Greek dry bulk owner Diana Shipping has entered into a time charter contract with Koch Shipping in Singapore for 2006-built panamax bulker Coronis.
The charter commenced yesterday for a period of 9-10 months at a rate of $8,000 per day. The vessel was previously on charter to Tongli Shipping at just $5,300 per day.
Diana Shipping also announced that the $9.35m sale of 2002-built capesize Norfolk, announced last month, has fallen through after the company received a notice of cancellation by the buyer. The sale is the second to fall through this month, with the recent sale of 2005-built panamax bulker Calipso also falling through.
“The buyers elected to exercise their right to cancel the contract as a result of vessel’s missing the cancelling date stipulated therein, due to unforeseen events, unrelated to the condition of the vessel, and have requested the refund of the deposit of the purchase price,” Diana said regarding the Norfolk, the exact same reasoning given for the collapse of the Calipso sale.
Both vessels have recently called in China, and it may be that coronavirus-related quarantine restrictions have played a role in the cancellations.