Shipbrokers are reporting more sales of Sovcomflot (SCF Group) vessels following the passing of a European Union banking wind-down deadline on Sunday.
The sanctioned Russian state shipowner may have to sell up to 40 ships to pay off loans with European banks.
The 20,311-cbm LPG carrier Sibur Tobol (built 2013) is one of the latest vessels listed as offloaded.
This ship has been renamed Alcor under the ownership of single-ship owning company Alcor Marine.
VesselsValue assesses the LPG carrier as worth $33m. No price is known for the disposal.
The Alcor retains a 15-year charter to Russian producer Sibur.
Brokers also said the 321,000-dwt charter-free VLCC SCF Shanghai (built 2014) has gone to an Indian buyer, again for an undisclosed price.
The tanker, worth $56.5m, is now owned under the name Twin Pollux by Pollux Marine of India.
And two of Sovcomflot’s “Green Funnel” fleet of dual-fuel aframax tankers have now been sold.
The Russian owner was the first to move into LNG fuelling for this size of tanker when it ordered the first vessels in 2017.
Shell-chartered ships sold
The two disposals are chartered to energy major Shell for 11 years and nine months.
The first is the 132,100-dwt Lomonosov Prospect (built 2018), now called Adam and owned by Rome Crude Carriers of the Marshall Islands.
VesselsValue assesses the ship as worth $62m.
The 113,100-dwt former Samuel Prospect (built 2019), worth $64m, has been sold under the name Albert to Lotus Crude Carriers.
Dubai-based Koban Shipping has been named as a buyer for some of Sovcomflot’s tanker tonnage.
Sovcomflot told TradeWinds it does not comment on specific ship sales.
‘Several’ ships for sale
The company reiterated its previous statement on the matter, saying “several” vessels have been put up for sale due to the restrictions imposed.
The shipowner said reports of selling 40 ships were “exaggerated”, however.
“The aged tonnage is offered for sale on the market, as well as vessels whose operation does not seem appropriate due to the restrictions imposed on the Russian merchant fleet,” the company said earlier this month.
TradeWinds has already reported that Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping has spent just over $700m in total on four former SCF Group LNG carriers, in a sale led by Dutch lender ING.
The Singapore company acquired two XD-F LNG carriers, the 174,000-cbm SCF Timmerman (built 2021) and SCF Barents (built 2020).
It also picked up two tri-fuel diesel-electric vessels, the 170,200-cbm SCF Melampus and SCF Mitre (both built 2015).
More LNG carriers to go
All four ships are being sold with charters to Shell, with Eastern Pacific signing up to new contracts.
A further three LNG carriers are also expected to be offloaded. These have been identified as the Gazprom-chartered, 170,000-cbm Pskov and 170,500-cbm Velikiy Novgorod (both built 2014) and 174,100-cbm SCF La Perouse (built 2020), which is on charter to TotalEnergies.
Brokers have also recently reported the sale of Sovcomflot’s 47,000-dwt MR2 tanker Tuchkov Bridge (built 2004) to undisclosed buyers. The price has not been reported.
