Editor’s selection: Eastern Pacific’s ammonia gambit, Avance Gas bet pays off and shipping investor gets political

TOP STORY

Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping is backing what it sees as a strong outlook for ammonia and LPG by growing its gas fleet with another contract for a new breed of VLGCs at a South Korean shipyard.

TradeWinds learned that the company is closing in on an order for four LPG dual-fuel VLGCs — dubbed very large ammonia carriers (VLACs) — that will be able to carry a full load of ammonia or LPG.

IN THE NEWS

Successful bet | Norway’s Avance Gas is monitoring time charter exposure in a rising market. The John Fredriksen-owned VLGC owner took a decision last year to limit coverage to capitalise on spot rates. “It’s not nice to improve your time charter coverage if the spot market is better,” chief executive Oystein Kalleklev said.

Pay rise | London-headquartered shipbroker Affinity (Shipping) posted a huge rise in 2022 annual profit as CEO Richard Fulford-Smith saw his total pay package boosted by higher earnings from tankers, bulkers, LNG and sale-and-purchase desks.

Getting political | Stefanos Kasselakis, a 35-year-old Greek ship investor who earned a small fortune through opportunistic bulker and tanker asset plays last year, has embarked on a political career with his home country’s main opposition Syriza party this week.

Banker expands | Banking giant JP Morgan is continuing to expand its growing fleet with new ship orders. The US bank has ordered two more 50,000-dwt product carrier newbuildings at China’s Guangzhou Shipyard International.

Green Seas | And in this week’s Green Seas newsletter, Eric Martin explores how a unique vessel will use wingsails to reduce emissions to move launcher parts to French Guiana.

COMMENT

This is the height of the ‘silly season’ when media is forced to rely on frivolous and overhyped news to keep their readers’ attention when many are on holiday.

So is this how we should interpret a crazy idea that a US-based shipping investor is standing for a radical left-wing Greek political party?

Read our weekly Wavelength column here.

INTERVIEW

“Everything is for sale at any time for the right price,” chief executive Erik Hanell tells TradeWinds’ Matt Coyne. Stena Bulk is continuing to evaluate its options, including a complete about-face on ship sales altogether.

The Swedish tanker owner in June began exploring the possibility of selling its trio of LNG carriers, naming its effort after one of the three, the 145,000-cbm Stena Blue Sky (built 2006).

Read the full interview with Hanell here.

AND FINALLY...

The private Scorpio Services Holding of Monaco is looking in a new direction for its latest investment, and that direction is up.