In the tanker sector, Guggenheim Capital has doubled its orderbook at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) by declaring options for two 300,000 dwt VLCCs. The declared options are scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2020. No price has been revealed for the latest orders.
The combination of low newbuilding values, new technology and the pick-up in demolition is an attractive story to sell to investors, shipbroker Gibson noted in an April report, pointing to recent orders by Norwegian investor Arne Fredly and Guggenheim Capital as a possible sign of the return of private equity and hedge funds to the sector which could see a surge of orders flood the market in a similar fashion to the 2013-2015 period.
The global orderbook for VLCCs now stands at 115 ships, equivalent to around 16% of the extant fleet.
