Arne Fredly’s Hunter Group is poised to pocket a tidy profit on the sale of two VLCC newbuildings.
Hunter revealed talks around the potential sale of two of its eight VLCCs as it inked bank debt for the series, pulled forward delivery dates and closed a near $80m equity raise.
Hunter, which entered the VLCC marker last year after taking over ships ordered privately by Fredly, is in advanced talks to sell two VLCCs.
The company told investors a $98m per ship price is on the table, with negotiations on the pair described as advanced.
Tanker sources are unclear on who the buyer may be, with fingers quickly pointing to a Korean owner as word of the deal spread around the market.
The price on offer is eye-catching and described by experts as “very hot” and “a good price in today’s market”.
It is well above the $93m figure Clarksons has against a resale VLCC right now. The last time the broker valued the tankers at this level was in early 2016.
The would-be buyer has yet to emerge and Hunter has not revealed which of the eight DSME newbuildings the talks centre on.
Hunter’s initial tankers were ordered at a historically low price of $82.2m each, with an extra charge on the scrubbers. Later options were priced at $82.8m, with the scrubbers adding $2.7m for each vessel.
The pending deal shows the continued escalation of crude tanker asset values ahead of an anticipated stronger market in 2020.
Sentiment is also strong in the time charter market, further helping to build a bullish mood and momentum around tankers ahead of new emissions laws widely anticipated as a game-changer.
With IMO 2020 in mind Hunter has today announced the accelerated delivery of its newbuildings by between one and three months.
Four will now be on the water by the end of this year with the rest following in 2020.
Hunter has been planning an equity raise for some time and confirmed on Tuesday it was looking to go to market this week.
Today it announced the printing of more than 190 million new shares at NOK 3.65 per share, which has brought in over $79m.
Hunter had previously indicated a $73m raise but it is benefiting from the exchange rate.
It will now undertake a smaller repair offering to allow other shareholders unable to take part in the wider placement to invest further.
Its offer, which closed on Thursday morning, was in the market at the same time as Tor Olav Troim’s 2020 Bulkers is completing a private placement en route to a listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange.
Like 2020, Hunter is working with a legion of Norwegian investment banks on the offer.
ABG Sundal Collier, Arctic Securities, Clarksons Platou Securities, Danske Bank, DNB Markets, Fearnley Securities, Nordea Bank, Pareto Securities and SEB are all involved.
The final piece of the Hunter jigsaw is a new $420m loan from Danske Bank, DNB Bank, Nordea Bank and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken.
The debt, carrying a margin of 275 bps and a 16-year amortisation profile, alongside the equity raise and the potential sale, would leave Hunter’s remaining six-VLCC orderbook fully funded.
OSM, the shipmanagement company led by Norwegian owner Bjorn Tore Larsen, will manage the Hunter fleet.
Larsen is also a major investor in ADS Crude, the public scrubber-play on veteran VLCCs.
