India’s Great Eastern Shipping is among a number of owners selling LPG carriers in stronger markets.
The Mumbai-listed company said it had agreed a deal for its 35,421-cbm Jag Vijaya (built 1997) for delivery within the next four months.
No price has been given for the deal, but VesselsValue assesses the carrier as worth $12.95m for further trading, but only $7.4m for scrap.
The ship was bought as the Gas Columbia from KSS Line in South Korea in 2017.
It is not clear whether the vessel has gone for recycling or will continue to operate.
Great Eastern has been contacted for comment.
The sale leaves the owner with four LPG carriers built between 2002 and 2007 in its mixed fleet of 45 units.
A number of other LPG vessels have been reported sold this month.
Geogas Trading’s 84,000-cbm VLGC Pointis (built 2016) has been linked to a disposal to an unknown buyer for $70m with a charter attached, while Exmar’s 38,961-cbm Eupen (built 1999) is said to have fetched $16m from PascoGas in China.
And brokers said Greece’s Latsco Shipping has sold the 82,440-cbm VLGC Hellas Serenity (built 2008) for $47.5m into Indonesia.
Fearnley Securities said on Monday that VLGC rates have continued to rise in Asia and the Atlantic, with average earnings now at $47,600 per day.
“The West remains the strongest, with rates now well in excess of $50,000 per day,” the investment bank added.
“That said, the discount seen in the East has continued to shrink as an increasing number of vessels have ballasted West to capture the premium earnings seen here. In effect this has slimmed the tonnage list substantially.”
Clarksons Platou Securities put VLGC earnings up 13% in the week ended 13 May at $44,000 for non-eco ships.
“Ship supply in the West is limited, and the arbitrage for shipping propane to the Far East has improved,” it said.
Brokers also reported that one-year charters for scrubber-equipped VLGCs have been booked at around $40,000 per day, demonstrating confidence in market strength lasting into the first half of 2023.
