General National Maritime Transport Co (GNMTC) is pursuing its fleet-renewal programme, with up to four separate transactions on both sides of the sale-and-purchase fence.
Deals reported by several brokers since 28 March suggest that Libya’s state-owned oil company is about to buy two aframax newbuildings to replace an ageing suezmax pair.
This is a pattern similar to the one observed in 2020 and 2021, when GNMTC bought three aframax resales at about the same time it offloaded as many older vessels of the same type.
Managers at GNMTC did not immediately respond to a request to comment on reports that it had agreed to sell the 160,400-dwt vessel 17 February (built 2008) and 159,200-dwt Libya (built 2007).
Unidentified buyers are said to have spent a total of $46m on the two South Korean-built suezmaxes.
On the buying side, Clarksons reported that GNMTC is acquiring the 115,100-dwt Philadelphia Star (built 2022) — a vessel that was scheduled for delivery last month by Daehan Shipbuilding to Greece’s Atlas Maritime.
Atlas managers were not available for comment.
However, if confirmed, a sale would make sense for the Leon Patitsas-led company, which ordered the ship for between $45m and $46m — the lowest price for such a vessel in two decades.
GNMTC is said to be spending $61m on the ship.
US brokers report that the Libyan company is in the process of buying a second aframax newbuilding at Daehan as well, at the same price. Atlas has another four such vessels under construction at the yard.
GNMTC is known to be prepared to pay top dollar for Greek-ordered, top-notch tonnage freshly out of the yard.
In early 2021, the company spent about $160m to buy a pair of LR2 product carriers from First Ship Lease Trust and one aframax from Ionic Shipping.
When GNMTC confirmed the acquisitions, it presented them as “the start of its first phase” of a fleet-renewal programme between 2020 and 2023.
GNMTC currently lists about 20 suezmaxes, aframaxes, LR2s and product tankers on its website.
Busy in Pakistan
Another state-owned company — Pakistan National Shipping Corp (PNSC) — is in expansion mode as well.
On 11 April, the company published a tender to procure up to two aframax vessels on the secondhand market.
Draft tender documents published on its website suggest PNSC is looking for nine-year-old vessels built at “any reputable yard” — but preferably in Japan or South Korea.
However, the company may harbour even more ambitious plans. Another tender document published on its website on 31 March shows it is looking to hire a consultant to build an aframax newbuilding.
Potential advisors must submit offers by 12 May. To be eligible, they must have consulted on newbuildings of no less than 85,000 dwt — at least five of which must have been aframaxes or LR2s and at least one must have been an eco ship.
According to its website, PNSC controls four aframaxes, two product tankers and five bulkers. Seven of these will hit 20 years of age by 2024.
Ali Haider, Pakistan’s maritime affairs minister, told Reuters in December that the country was in negotiations to buy ships to expand into container shipping.
However, no such tender has yet been published on the company’s website.
