News bulletin – tanker shipping

NEWS BULLETIN

TANKER SHIPPING

ETHANE ARRIVAL AT EPS

Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) has taken delivery of STL Yangtze, the first of six 98,000-m3 very large ethane carriers building against 15-year charters to Zhejiang Satellite Petrochemical. All six newbuildings feature dual-fuel propulsion capable of running on ethane.

“The delivery of STL Yangtze is a major milestone for EPS as it represents our commitment to maritime’s energy transition with our holistic alternative marine fuels programme to achieve the industry’s decarbonisation goals,” EPS says. www.epshipping.com.sg

STOLT TAKES THREE

Stolt Tankers has agreed to acquire three Japanese-built stainless steel chemical tankers. The 33,600-dwt units are expected to join its fleet in the third quarter this year.

“This acquisition is an excellent opportunity for Stolt Tankers to secure competitively priced tonnage ahead of an expected cyclical upturn in the chemical tanker industry,” says Lucas Vos, president of Stolt Tankers. “The newly added ships will lower our fleet age profile and can trade in any of our deep-sea lanes, increasing flexibility across our fleet. In the end, Stolt Tankers’ customers are the real winners in this deal, as these ships will support our proven platform that provides a high quality, reliable service offering.” www.stolt-nielsen.com

TWO MORE FOR THUN

Thun Tankers has ordered another two 7,999-dwt product/chemical tankers, representing a further development of its recently built tonnage. The two vessels, to be built by regular partner Ferus Smit in the Netherlands and due for delivery in the first half of 2024, will feature adaptive propulsion systems to reduce fuel consumption, enhanced hull designs and the most resource-efficient machinery. They will work in the Gothia Tanker Alliance under the technical management of MF Shipping Group.

“The scope for the ‘R-Class’ series have been to build the most resource-efficient vessels available for the trade, with minimal environmental impact,” says Joakim Lund, CCO of Thun Tankers. “Thun’s long experience of building high performing quality vessels has been used in the design process. We have been combining this with a number of new features to further improve performance while reducing our climate footprint.” thuntankers.com

BIGGER CARBON DIOXIDE CARRIER GETS THE NOD

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and NYK Line have been granted Approval in Principle (AiP) by ClassNK for their large liquefied carbon dioxide carrier (LCO2) concept. While CO2 is often carried in small gas ships, scaling up – which will be needed to cope with future carbon capture projects – presents technical challenges in cargo containment design, which is sensitive to the temperature and pressure of CO2. The joint development project has been designed to overcome these issues and, the partners say, the resulting vessel design has been shown to comply with relevant regulations and standards.

NYK Line believes that the establishment of CO2 transport technology by large vessels will greatly contribute to the realisation of a carbonneutral society. NYK is working together with the MHI Group, which possesses a wide range of technologies in the CCUS value chain, to achieve the early realisation of not only small and medium-sized vessels but also large LCO2 carriers. Based on the design of the LCO2 carrier granted the AiP, NYK Line will further promote its participation in the CCUS value chain, such as by studying the design of the LCO2 carrier for each project, including further enlargement of the size of vessels. www.nyk.com

BW LPG SPENDS ON DUAL FUEL

BW LPG has reported first quarter timecharter equivalent income of $130.8m, down 13 per cent on the first quarter 2021, with EBITDA also down, by 17 per cent, at $93.2m. The decline against year-earlier levels was due

largely to a weaker spot market in the VLGC sector, along with three vessels going into drydock for retrofitting of dual-fuel engines.

That retrofitting programme is now complete, the company says, with 16 of its VLGCs now able to run on LPG. Using LPG as fuel has already reduced carbon emissions by between 15 and 20 per cent and cut sulphur emissions by more than 95 per cent.

Looking ahead, BW LPG says near-term rates remain strong, supported by healthy export volumes from the US Gulf and Middle East, but there are still volatilities due to geopolitical developments. The company says it has a more optimistic view of the VLGC market in 2023, based on steadily increasing trade volumes and fleet inefficiencies resulting from tighter emissions controls and Panama Canal transit delays.

BW LPG has also agreed the sale of its 2007-built VLGC BW Liberty, due to be delivered to new owners this month, with the deal expected to generate $25m in liquidity and a net book gain of $4m. www.bwlpg.com

BWEK RIDES THE CHANGES

BW Epic Kosan, the leading operator of small gas carriers, has reported first quarter revenues of $90.6m, up 51 per cent on the prior year though slightly down on the previous quarter, with net profit up 30 per cent year-on-year at $9.1m. The improvement, according to CEO Charles Maltby, resulted from the increased scale of the company’s fleet, along with improving market conditions and effective cost management.

That market improvement was supported by a strong market in the west, though in the near term the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and Covid-related lockdowns in China are impacting demand, affecting logistics chains, prompting rises in energy prices, and delivering negative margins in the petrochemical industry. On the supply side, the market appears balanced with only a modest fleet growth expected this year.

“BW Epic Kosan has a strong foundation in scale and operational capability for future success and is working to optimise performance from its fleet, both in economic and environmental terms, while working with partners on projects in areas such as ammonia and CO2 shipping,” the company states. “The fine tuning of our fleet with asset transactions highlights the company’s ability to evolve its fleet positively and deliver profitable growth.” bwek.com

NAVIGATOR STRONG IN SPOT

Navigator Holdings, which is active in the Handysize LPG tanker sector through Navigator Gas, has reported operating revenue of $119.8m for the three months to end March, compared to $85.7m in the previous year; net income rose from $2.8m to $27.0m.

Average timecharter rates increased strongly during the first quarter and indications suggest further improvement in the second quarter. The conflict in Ukraine has disrupted traditional supply sources, with alternative supplies adding to tonne-mile demand for carriers. In addition, US NGL production and exports continue to increase, with propane production up 7 per cent year-on-year in April and seaborne propane exports up by 14 per cent. Overall, increased US exports of LPG are providing incremental shipping demand, primarily for larger vessels, which is reducing competition within the various fleet size segments. navigatorgas.com

AVANCE ENJOYS UPTURN

Avance Gas has reported a first-quarter operating profit of $34.8m, up from $21.6m in the previous quarter on the back of a strong VLGC market; net profit improved from $7.5m to $24.3m. The uplift was based on increasing LPG exports from the US, with March seeing an all-time high of 90 cargoes lifted, compared to the monthly average of 78 for 2021 as a whole – Avance notes this has continued into the second quarter, with 89 cargoes lifted in April. That added VLGC demand was compounded by inefficiencies, notably delays in China caused by Covidrelated closures and delays in transiting the Panama Canal after the removal of the pre-booking system.

Avance expects market conditions to remain largely unchanged for the rest of the year. US waterborne LPG exports are predicted to be 10 per cent higher than in 2021, backed by continued production increases and solid demand from the residential and petrochemical markets in Asia. Those strong fundamentals, together with Panama issues, are forecast to absorb the significant orderbook due for delivery next year, when as many as 47 new VLGCs are scheduled to arrive. www.avancegas.com