Scorpio Tankers (STNG) have had an active month with vessel transactions.
- Was aware of the sale of 4 on-the-water MR2s. The 2014-built vessels were sold to Torm Plc (TRMD) @ $32M each.
- Separate transaction involves STNG acquiring 4 newbuild MR2, slated for delivery in 2026 and 2027.
- More recently STNG have placed an order for 2 VLCCs
While it is possible that STNG get involved in the dirty tanker side, there is extra overhead and logistics involved. To my knowledge, crews on dirty and clean tankers are not interchangeable. Given STNG is a clean tanker operator currently, there would be additional effort required to get the VLCCs properly crewed. I have to wonder if STNG are just being opportunistic here, and will offer the vessels to a dirty tanker entity as delivery time approaches?
FWIW, Scorpio had an investment stake in DHT Tankers (DHT). But has been trimming its stake
https://seekingalpha.com/news/4519928-scorpio-tankers-announces-agreements-to-construct-vlccs
Interesting times …