Indian owner Seven Islands Shipping is reported to have banked a huge profit on a veteran tanker it bought a little over two years ago.
Brokers said the 159,000-dwt Classic (built 2005) has gone for $36.75m to an undisclosed buyer, in line with market valuations.
The ship has increased in value from $22m a year ago, according to VesselsValue data.
The former Ridgebury Pallas was bought by Seven Islands from US owner Ridgebury Tankers for $17.2m in December 2020.
The ship is its biggest tanker.
Ridgebury had paid $19.9m for the vessel from Germany’s Konig & Cie in July 2019.
Seven Islands has been contacted for comment.
Norwegian shipbroker Lorentzen & Co values a five-year-old suezmax at $68m. A new ship is priced at $83m.
Suezmax rates to West Africa to northern Europe are assessed at $35,900 per day by Seaborne Shipbrokers.
The deal if confirmed leaves Seven Islands with 24 vessels, including two other suezmaxes and 17 handy tankers.
The owner also controls two LPG carriers.
MR2 added this year
The newest ship in the fleet is a small tanker dating from 2012, but one MR was built in 1999 and seven others were delivered between 2000 and 2003.
In March, the company is said to have paid $18m for the 49,000-dwt MR2 Ostria (built 2006) to Ostria Shipping in Panama.
Four other tankers were bought in 2022, while two product carriers, one built in 1999, were offloaded last year.
Seven Islands is 48.5% owned by Canadian tycoon Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings, which is a major backer of giant container ship tonnage provider Seaspan Corp.
Watsa also bought a $10m stake in US tanker owner International Seaways in 2021.
