US tanker operator Mjolner Shipping has extended the charters of two aframax tankers from Libya’s General National Maritime Transport Co (GNMTC) for a year.
The 115,000-dwt Alqadisia (built 2008) and Al Jalaa (built 2007) are set to earn $28,000 per day, European tanker brokers said.
Robert Lyons-led Mjolner and GNMTC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on reports of the charter.
The rate appears to be an improvement on the ships' prior earnings amid what has been a hot spot market for crude tankers.
Mjolner has had the Al Jalaa on charter since 2017, and in 2018 it earned some $14,000 per day.
Buoyant aframax sentiment
The spot market for such ships stood at $41,580 per day on Tuesday, according to Fearnley Securities.
That was a dip from $48,624 per day at the end of last week, but Howe Robinson data shows last year's average of just $23,600 per day in the sector.
The broker said a one-year charter for an aframax was steady this week at $26,000 per day, which is an increase from $25,000 per day at the end of the year.
Some analysts have predicted that aframax earnings have the most upside potential in the tanker segments, with rising US crude exports and an increasing number of scrapping candidates.
“Out of all the crude tanker segments, aframaxes look to be best placed… more vessels turn 15 years of old in 2020 than in previous years,” Alphatanker said.
“Forecast US production growth means that European shipments will still have room to climb. We therefore expect that demand for aframaxes will remain strong even against the backdrop of flat Russian crude exports.”
GNMTC has a period charter-oriented employment strategy for its fleet of 20 tankers, which have an average age of 14 years.
The company is seeking offers for its sole bulker, the 169,000-dwt Jabal Nafusa (built 2011).
The Daehan Shipbuilding-constructed ship was bought as a resale for $61m in November 2010. The bulker is likely to fetch a little less than $20m in today’s market.
New Jersey-based Mjolner operates a fleet of crude tankers ranging in size from panamax to VLCC.
