Energy majors and giant commodity traders are locking in large and modern crude carriers in period time charters.
According to Clarksons, Chevron fixed Frontline’s 318,700-dwt scrubber-fitted VLCC Front Nausta (built 2019) for three years at $51,000 per day.
This is in line with current market levels as reported by the London brokerage, according to which eco and scrubber-fitted VLCCs are earning $52,250 per day on average in charters of such duration.
ExxonMobil has agreed to pay $50,000 per day to employ Yasa Holdings’ 158,200-dwt suezmax Yasa Polaris (built 2022) for between eight and 10 months.
Managers at Istanbul-based Yasa declined to comment on the information, citing standard policy not to discuss commercial deals.
The $50,000 per day reading is in line with the $49,500 per day that Clarksons says scrubber-fitted, eco suezmaxes are currently earning on average for employment lasting one year.
The Yasa Polaris deal shows that big oil players are keen to fix ships for medium and longer periods.
As TradeWinds reported on 1 March, Athens-based Atlas Maritime clinched a record $42,500 per day from Phillips 66 for a three-year time charter for its 115,500-dwt aframax Freeport Star (built 2023).
Barely a couple of weeks later, US-listed Performance Shipping announced that Clearlake Shipping had agreed to pay $31,000 per day to employ a trio of LR2 newbuildings still under construction for at least five years after their delivery in 2025 and 2026.
The $169.8m that Performance stands to gain just for the firm five years of the charters represents nearly 90% of the three ships’ construction cost.
What all the vessels described above have in common are their advanced specifications and eco performance.
Yasa took delivery of the scrubber-fitted and LNG-ready Yasa Polaris from DH Shipbuilding in 2022.
This article was amended after original publication, following a Clarksons correction clarifying that the Yasa Polaris charter is for between eight and 10 months rather than for three years, as originally reported in Clarksons’ latest weekly report
