Frontline (FRO) Q2 2026

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08/28 The wee hours of the day for me on PST, but already mid morning in Oslo. And FRO have announced their Q2 2026 results. Yes, like many other tanker entities reporting Q2 2026 results - spectacular revenue numbers. In FRO’s case,

  • Reported rev of $943.3M
  • Best ever quarterly profit of $659.2M (Adj profit $580.2M)
  • Spot TCEs (daily): VLCC $152,700, Suezmax $111,500, Aframax/LR2 $92,400
  • FRO had 11 VLCCs on time charter in Q2 (including a newbuild VLCC in June 2026). A second VLCC newbuild was also fixed on a 1-year TC. FRO has subsequently fixed two 2016 built VLCCs- one on a 2-year TC, the other on a 3-year TC. This is unusually high TC coverage for FRO
  • Declared div of $2.61/sh
    FRO – Second Quarter and Six Months 2026 Results - Frontline

Spot VLCC rates still very high - yet FRO opted for additional VLCC coverage. Don’t completely get that move, but would guess that FRO mgmt are sensing the tenor of high VLCC rates don’t last. Sale of two 2017-build VLCCs have been announced in July 2026, at an average rate above the cost of a VLCC newbuild. That’s just timely, good business. FRO mgmt have already suggested the excess gains from the sale will be distributed to shareholders. Cash break-even for Suezmax is higher than cash break-even on a VLCC? Seems odd, unless the TC coverage somehow factors in to the equation.

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Well, upon further digging, the charters do make some sense. On the two multi-year charters, the first year in each case is @ $110K daily. The rate steps down in subsequent years. Those are both older VLCCs. FRO also locked in $120K daily rates on its two newest vessels. One other point, FRO have done a lot of refinancing in Q2 and Q3 2026, over $1B worth. That is in addition to the newbuild financing that was completed in two separate deals. My clunky math says $50M/VLCC and $35M/Suezmax covers the fleet. The Aframax/LR2 end up debt free. The actual debt spread across the fleet is probably somewhat different.

[Edit: FRO mgmt also explained the breakeven discrepancy. FRO have more Suezmax vessels being dry docked over the next 12 months, so Suezmax breakeven is higher than VLCC breakeven.]

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