Diamond S Shipping has confirmed the sale of two 10-year-old MR tankers as part of its fleet renewal initiatives.
The US-listed company said it has sold the 50,000-dwt Atlantic Aquarius and Atlantic Leo (both built 2008).
The Craig Stevenson-led shipowner said it will recognise a non-cash charge of about $9.5m per vessel this quarter.
The product tankers are expected to be delivered in the third or fourth quarter of this year, but the identity of the buyer was not disclosed.
Diamond said the disposals would generate liquidity of about $12m in aggregate after repayment of outstanding debt and settlement of working capital.
Last week, the company said it was poised to begin renewing its MR product tanker stable in the coming months. Stevenson has confirmed this.
Diamond’s 52-strong fleet has an average age of 10 years, with five ships exceeding 13 years and seven over 12 years old.
“We do look at the age profile, and at some point in time, we have to start addressing the age profile on the product side of the business,” Stevenson told analysts on its quarterly earnings call.
The company said quality secondhand tonnage is its preference as it begins renewal talks, but added that it is not ruling out other options.
