Nordic American Tankers continues to clear out its vintage tonnage with the company confirming the sale of a third suezmax in recent days.
The Herbjorn Hansson-led tanker specialist confirmed Friday that it has agreed the sale of another 2002-built vessel to an unnamed buyer.
The identity of the vessel being sold was not disclosed, but NAT has only three 2002-built suezmaxes left in its fleet — the 160,305-dwt Nordic Moon, the 149,921-dwt Nordic Grace, and the 164,274-dwt Nordic Passat, according to a fleet list on its website.
The latest sale follows that of the 150,200-dwt Nordic Sirius (built 2000) in October 2021 and the 164,300-dwt Nordic Mistral (built 2002) in February 2022.
TradeWinds has previously reported that Greek shipowner World Carrier Corp was behind the purchase of the Nordic Mistral, which has since been renamed Cactus.
“Through the sale of the third vessel, the solidity and maneuverability of NAT is enhanced,” the US-listed shipowner said.
“We have improved our position through the above-mentioned transactions with the net price for NAT about $15m per vessel, or $45m in total.”
NAT, as have many tanker owners over the past 18 months, has been tasked with raising liquidity to boost flexibility ahead of a healthier market, according to Clarkson Platou Securities.
Other owners selling older suezmax tankers in 2022 include Teekay Tankers, Viken Shipping, and Greece’s Chemnav Shipmanagement, according to VesselsValue.
In late February, NAT reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $21m against the $29m loss posted for the corresponding period last year.
The reduced losses came as the company reported average time charter equivalent rates of $10,100 per day, up from $5,800 per day sequentially.
