Athenian Sea Carriers, the tanker company of Greece’s Kyriakou family, may be offloading its only remaining legacy vessel.
Greek market sources and brokers in the US and Athens are tying the firm to a $80m deal for the 319,100-dwt Captain X Kyriakou (built 2013).
The HD Hyundai Heavy Industries-built vessel, which has just passed a special survey, is believed to be heading to a Norwegian fund buyer in a deal arranged by Fearnleys.
Clarksons reported in October last year that the scrubber-fitted VLCC was fixed by Trafigura for 12 months at $50,000 per day.
If the deal is confirmed, the Captain X Kyriakou would be the first VLCC to change hands in the secondhand market since mid-August, when Greek owner Evangelos Marinakis agreed to shed nine such vessels in a $1bn deal with Saudi company Bahri.
Managers at Athenian declined to comment.
If confirmed, the sale would be the final piece in a long-term strategy to transform the company from a VLCC owner to a chemical tanker player.
Named after Xenophon Kyriakou, the father of Athenian’s late founder Minos Kyriakou, the Captain X Kyriakou is the last remaining vessel in a VLCC fleet that has been steadily shrinking through a string of sales over the past few years.
The buyers of the VLCCs Athenian sold in this period included Greek peers Thenamaris, Capital Maritime, Altomare and Eurotankers, as well as South Korea’s Sinokor.
Athenian has been investing these proceeds into a wide-ranging newbuilding programme to build a presence in a different market segment.
TradeWinds has been reporting since March 2023 about the Jens Martin Jensen-led company gradually extending a chemical tanker orderbook in China.
Athenian Sea Carriers’ fleet list currently features 10 such vessels under construction at Wuchang Shipbuilding.
The 18,500-dwt tankers are due for delivery between 2025 and 2027. The first eight ships that Athenian ordered last year were reported to cost about $30m each.
The sale of the Captain X Kyriakou will mean Athenian will not have any ships on the water until its new chemical tankers begin being delivered.
Athenian said on its website: “As an organisation, we remain fully committed to future-proof shipping investments.”
