The tanker shipping company DHT Holdings is streamlining its fleet: two ships are going to a new owner for over USD 100 million.
The two tankers were built in China in 2011 and DHT only added them to its fleet in 2017.
The 332-meter-long sister ships “DHT Lotus” and “DHT Peony”, which were built at the Bohai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry shipyard in China, are being sold. The VLCC oil tankers will sail under the Hong Kong flag.
The total purchase price is $103 million, which will leave net proceeds of $85 million after repayment of existing debts of $15.9 million. The ships are to be delivered to the new, as yet undisclosed owner in April and July. As part of the takeover of BW Group in 2017, DHT acquired the tankers for a total of USD 115.8 million. At the time, the shipping company had increased its VLCC fleet by a total of eleven ships.
“The two vessels have served us well over the past eight years,” commented DHT President and CEO Svein Moxnes Harfjeld on the sale of the two tankers. “We have taken the opportunity to optimize our fleet profile and align our service offering with customer needs and market trends.”
DHT expects stable profits for the current year, the company announced. The second and third quarters are expected to generate $17.5 million and $15.5 million respectively.
