A 15-year-old MR tanker previously linked to Norwegian investors has joined the fleet of a little-known Greek company that set up shop three years ago.

The Equasis database shows Premium Maritime as the new manager of the 34,700-dwt Ocean Dignity (built 2006) — a ship reported by brokers as sold in October to unidentified Greek buyers at an undisclosed price.

The Ocean Dignity was one of three sistership newbuildings that Greece’s Roxana Shipping sold in 2006 to a Norwegian KS (limited partnership) — a joint venture including Cleaves Shipbroking — with bareboat charters back to Roxana.

Equasis has featured Norway-based Ocean Product Tankers as its registered owner since then. Grimstad-based Bergshav Management is still listing the ship in the fleet list on its website.

However, the ship changed hands earlier this year and has already joined the Premium Maritime fleet under the new name of Olympic Vision.

IHS Markit features Oaktree Capital Management as its new owner, which suggests that the US-based investment giant had a hand in financing the transaction.

Managers at Premium Maritime did not respond to a request to confirm the information or to provide comment about their future strategy.

Firm with a history

However, the company’s website provides rich details about its background.

Led by 49-year-old chief executive Dimitrios Emmanouilidis, Premium Maritime is a successor company to GMA Maritime.

That was another Piraeus-based outfit set up by the Emmanouilides family in 1994 as owner and manager of tankers and bulkers that specialised in Caribbean and Latin American trades.

GMA Maritime stopped making headlines about a decade ago, and

Premium Maritime followed in its footsteps in early 2018, Greek shipping ministry documents show.

The company has taken over management of another two tankers since then. It started business with the 34,700-dwt Ocean Legacy (ex-Sea Pioneer, built 2007) — a ship bought at auction for $10m from the fleet of defunct Greek peer Trinity Ships.

A year later, Premium Maritime’s clients swooped on the 16,800-dwt Ocean Integrity (ex-Aulac Venus, built 2008), which was reported sold by Aulac JSC for $7.3m.

According to Equasis, the Ocean Integrity and Ocean Legacy are trading in the Emmanoulides family’s old hunting ground of Middle America and the Gulf of Mexico, according to Equasis.

By contrast, its newest acquisition — the Olympic Vision — is currently employed in the Mediterranean Sea.

According to its website, Premium Maritime entrusts the technical management of its ships to Tsakos Columbia Shipmanagement.