Buyers are continuing to show hunger for older VLCCs with several fresh deals surfacing.
European brokers said Pantheon Tankers of Greece is in the process of selling the 318,000-dwt Sea Lion (built 2003) to an undisclosed Chinese owner.
The 17-year-old tanker, which was built at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries, is poised to fetch a price of $27m, which is roughly in line with levels achieved recently by similar tonnage.
The company did not reply to requests for comment.
Founded in 2012, Pantheon is controlled by Greek shipowner Anna Angelicoussis. It has 30 tankers on the water: 10 VLCCs, eight suezmaxes, six aframaxes and six MRs.
In November last year, Pantheon sold a similar, DSME-built tanker. The 299,000-dwt Astro Challenge (built 2002) went to Medship of Turkey for $31.5m.
In another VLCC deal, Nathalin Group of Thailand has been linked to the purchase of the 309,000-dwt tanker Olympic Liberty (built 2003).
The Samsung Heavy Industries-built tanker, which is controlled by the Onassis Group's Olympic Shipping & Management, was reported sold for $26m.
However, Olympic Shipping chief executive George Karageorgiou has said that the report is not correct.
The price is in line with recent transactions. However, it could appear low if it has a charter attached. In March, Koch Logistics reportedly fixed the tanker for two years at $45,000 per day, a rate that was seen as firm relative to market levels at the time.
The deals come after a string of other deals in recent days.
On Wednesday, ADS Crude Carriers sold the 299,000-dwt ADS Page (built 2002) for $25.5m. The ship is fitted with scrubbers.
TradeWinds also reported that Maran Tankers of Greece bought three VLCCs built between 2009 and 2011 in an auction. The vessels, which came from the fleet of Ocean Tankers shipowning affiliate Xihe Holdings, sold for $110m en bloc.
