Mikael Skov says the merged Hafnia and BW Tankers will have an eye on growth but will not need to chase deals given the scale created by the transaction.
Skov was confirmed as chief executive of the enlarged Hafnia when a deal to create the world’s third largest product tanker owner was put in place last week.
Should shareholders back the move, Hafnia will have 86 owned vessels and boast further size given its pool presence via Hafnia Management.
Skov says the combined platform will have sufficient scale to improve operational efficiency, invest in digital initiatives and provide a more attractive platform for investors.
“In combination with the pools there is substantial scale operationally, so the combined business will be able to focus on value accretive transactions going forward as opposed to the need of investing to obtain scale,” Skov told TradeWinds today.
A statement confirming the planned merger last week said there was a firm intention for the super-sized Hafnia to be floated on a "renowned stock exchange".
Hafnia has previously filed papers in preparation for a US listing, while BW has looked at an IPO for its product tanker fleet on the Oslo Stock Exchange.
Skov declied to give away where Hafnia would look for a senior listing to upgrade its existing position on the Oslo over the counter market.
“Timing and venue of a listing will as always be depending on capital markets development in general,” he said.
A spokesperson for BW, which has two listed platforms in Oslo and is the major shareholder in New York-quoted DHT Holdings, said the company would be listed when "conditions are ideal".
Hafnia’s increased fleet of 86 ships will see it climb just above Torm into third place among product tanker owners globally, according to data from Clarksons.
Just China Cosco, with 89 of the ships, and Scorpio Tankers, with 115, now boast larger fleets, according to the world’s largest shipbroker.
Both BW and Hafnia has been active consolidators in the product tanker market before combining.
Hafnia took over the Lauritzen fleet and BW bought 20 tankers in separate deals with Metrostar and Elandra in the summer of 2014.
The consolidation trend has continued this year, with Diamond S Shipping merging with Capital Product Partners’ tanker stable just a few weeks ago.
“I think you will see a continued focus on consolidation, in particular among smaller companies who either are listed or have an ambition to become a public company,” Skov said.
“Without sufficient scale, it will be difficult to capture global spikes in freight rates, and outperform competition.”
BW became a major shareholder in Hafnia in July after buying shares previously held by core investors Blackstone, Tufton Oceanic and Hartmann.
The BW spokesperson said it was presented with an opportunity to increase our existing position in Hafnia Tankers at attractive prices and the purchase was in line with a strategy to grow the business. “Tankers is a core segment for BW,” the spokesperson added.
“After discussions with other shareholders about the future strategy of Hafnia Tankers, we decided to proceed with the merger of Hafnia Tankers and BW Tankers," she added.
“Hafnia Tankers has a strong team that has depth of knowledge and capability.
“BW sees a good cultural fit between the organisations, as well as the opportunity to further integrate the fleets and provide even better service to customers in the product tanker markets.”
