Greek owner Avin International has placed an order for two firm 158,000 dwt suezmax tankers at Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea, with brokers Intermodal reporting a price of $64m per unit. The ships, which deliver in 2021, are Tier II and will come fitted with scrubbers.
On the large number of tanker deals done in recent months, both for newbuilds and secondhand tonnage, Intermodal noted in its most recent weekly report: “[M]ost owners are looking ahead to the next year and the introduction of the IMO 2020 that is widely expected to be a game changer in the industry and are eager to invest despite any adverse short term fundamentals.”
Avin currently has a fleet of 36 vessels, made up of two panamax bulkers and 34 tankers of various sizes.