Dry CargoEurope

ESL Shipping sells barge in fleet renewal move

Finnish dry cargo vessel operator ESL Shipping, a subsidiary of Aspo, has sold its 9,000 dwt towable barge Espa to Tallinn-based Raduga Shipping and Trading.

The transaction was concluded and the vessel was subsequently delivered to its new owner on January 18. ESL Shipping said it would gain approximately €1.4m ($1.6m) from the sale.

The 1987-built Espa was in recent years mainly used for cement industry transport demand. The barge also spent one summer as a floating beach volley field in Helsinki. ESL Shipping said that peculiarities in Finnish shipping policy led to increasing costs of barge towing tugboats, as tugboat crew could not receive the same state support available to other ship types.

“Simultaneously as we are investing in the most environmentally friendly new ships in accordance with our strategy, the time has come to let go our true servant Espa,” stated Matti-Mikael Koskinen, managing director of ESL Shipping.

ESL Shipping is in the process of renewing its fleet. The company ordered a series of six electric hybrid vessels in India last year, set to enter service starting from the third quarter of 2023. The newbuildings will reportedly cut greenhouse gas emissions, including CO2, per cargo unit transported by almost 50% compared to existing ships.

Adis Ajdin

Adis is an experienced news reporter with a background in finance, media and education. He has written across the spectrum of offshore energy and ocean industries for many years and is a member of International Federation of Journalists. Previously he had written for Navingo media group titles including Offshore Energy, Subsea World News and Marine Energy.
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