The Singapore-based Hafnia Group has filled the only gap in its portfolio of product tanker pools with the creation of a new LR2 platform.

Hafnia is to join with long-time collaborators to launch “the Hafnia LR2 Pool by Reederei Nord, Chartworld and Hafnia.”

The three owners have been working together for years in Hafnia’s LR1 pool.

“We are incredibly proud to launch an LR2 pool with our long-standing LR1 partners Reederei Nord and Chartworld. With the LR1 and LR2 markets having a significant degree of overlap, we expect the synergies of the two pools to complement each other brilliantly and further extend the services we can offer our clients," said Peter Kolding, vice president for commercial and pool management.

Starting with seven

The platform will initiate next month with a founding fleet of seven tankers. The partners declined to disclose the specific vessels, but three will come from Hafnia, two from Germany's Reederei Nord and two from Greece's Chartworld.

Hafnia controls pools in the LR1, MR, handysize and specialised tanker sectors, but had not previously done so in the LR2 segment.

"We are excited to now be operating in the LR2 pool management space, where we look forward to further leveraging our market-leading position in the LR1 segment” Kolding said.

“Whereas the three founding partners of the LR2 Pool, know each other well through years of partnership, we are thrilled and open to commence dialogue with additional partners operating in this segment irrespective of whether they may have had previous experience with us,” he added.

With the Hafnia LR2 Pool launch, Hafnia, the Mikael Skov-led owner will operate over 240 product and chemical tankers across its commercial platforms, from worldwide offices in Singapore, Dubai, Copenhagen and Houston.

The combination also was hailed by the partners.

Subscribe to Streetwise
Ship finance is a riddle industry players need to solve to survive in a capital-intense business. In the latest newsletter by TradeWinds, finance correspondent Joe Brady helps you unravel its mysteries

“We are thrilled to commence this new venture with close friends," said a Reederei Nord spokesman.

With offices in Amsterdam, Hamburg and Limassol, Reederei Nord also pools its vessels in aframaxes, feeder-size container ships and bulk carriers.

Chartworld noted it has been a member of Hafnia’s MR and LR1 pools for several years.

“Given Hafnia’s consistently strong performance in the other CPP segments, we are excited to extend our partnership as a founding member of the new LR2 pool,” a spokesman said.