Swedish tanker and ro-ro group Stena AB continues to bolster its earnings with ship sales.
The privately held owner said third-quarter net profit was SEK 1.3bn ($119m), up from SEK 984m last year, due to less tax paid.
Revenue was stable at SEK 14.4bn, while Ebitda rose to SEK 11.8bn from SEK 10.9bn in 2023, according to deputy chief executive Annika Hult.
“The liquidity position remains healthy. As of 30 September, available liquidity amounted to SEK 18.3bn,” she said.
So far this year, Stena has gained SEK 1.4bn from selling its three LNG carriers, plus four other non-tanker ships.
In April, it said it had delivered the 145,800-cbm gas vessel Stena Blue Sky (built 2006) to an “Asian buyer”.
The second-quarter report revealed the buyer was Viet Phat of Vietnam.
That deal followed the disposal of two sister ships, the tri-fuel diesel-electric 173,600-cbm Stena Clear Sky and Stena Crystal Sky (both built 2011), to BW LNG for an estimated $145m each.
Ropax company Stena Line experienced a drop in operational Ebitda due to “somewhat lower” freight, car and passenger volumes, together with higher costs compared with the same period last year.
There was a continued strong tanker market, but the reduced chartered-in fleet and the sale of the LNG ships lead to decreased operational Ebitda.
Tankers produced Ebitda down by SEK 1bn to SEK 1.6bn in the first nine months.
This was offset by increased earnings from the ro-ro segment, due to the delivery of another newbuilding in February.
Ro-ro Ebitda rose by SEK 89m to SEK 742m in the nine months to 30 September.
Cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments totalled SEK 6.5bn at the end of the third quarter.
