Norden's sale of two MR2 products tankers to Bergshav has failed after investors in a Pareto syndication got cold feet over a lacklustre tanker market.
Brokers had recently reported a sale of Norden Asset Management's 51,300-dwt Nord Skate (built 2008) and Nord Stingray (built 2009) to an unknown Norwegian buyer.
The price is given as $17m each on an en bloc basis by data provider VesselsValue. Both ships are fitted with scrubbers and ballast water treatment systems, but Nord Skate has a drydocking due in February.
An official of Oslo's Pareto Securities declined to comment.
But Denmark's Norden confirmed to TradeWinds that the deal has fallen through for lack of enthusiasm among Norwegian investors.
Norway's Bergshav confirmed that it was the intended buyer, and is still in the market.
"It's been a process going on for some time and the financing just didn't come together," said Henrik Lykkegaard Madsen, head of asset management at Norden.
"It's part of a fleet renewal. We've recently acquired some newer ships, and we're looking to sell a couple of our older ones — not necessarily these two," he said.
In October, Norden bought Top Ships' 50,300-dwt Eco City of Angels and Eco Los Angeles (both built 2020) for a reported $73m. If it wants to dispose of older ships, it has a range of candidates to choose from. Five of the 14 MR2s it owns are built in 2009, and three of its four MR1s are that old or older.
Madsen would not be tied down to his current pricing ideas for tankers in that bracket.
"It depends on the ship. And the market is moving. I think we're all keeping our fingers crossed waiting for a better charter market and therefore better prices," he said.
Bergshav chief financial officer Andreas Hannevik confirmed that the Atle Bergshaven-controlled company was the intended buyer, but was unwilling to comment beyond that, and referred questions to Pareto.
But Bergshav has not lost interest in the market.
"We're traditionally heavily invested in the tanker market, and we do look favourably on it now," Hannevik said. "We're looking at a number of deals, also in MRs."
Earlier in November, Bergshav was linked by some brokers to the purchase of two aframaxes from the fleet of Swiss-based Advantage Tankers. But Bergshav told TradeWinds at the time that his company was not the buyer.
One source with insight into the failed sale of the Norden MR2s commented that the private shipping investors of Oslo have recently been a hard sell in general.
"It may be because it's the year's end and people want to count their money, or it could be because there is negative sentiment over recent lockdowns in Europe hampering demand," he said.
"But other recent Oslo syndications have been difficult to bring together, even ones that have succeeded, and not just in tankers. And in tankers, even optimistic buyers think it's still a little early, while on the sellers' side, there are no sellers left at low levels."
