Norway’s Hunter Group has fixed the last of its VLCC newbuildings at a firm rate in a weak tanker market.
Subsidiary Hunter Tankers said the 300,000-dwt Hunter Frigg, which delivered last week from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, has been fixed for a period of between six and eight months at $40,000 per day.
The ship will go on charter ex-yard.
Hunter said the delivery from DSME marks the end of the company’s newbuilding programme.
Brokers said the ship is fixed to US-based commodities player Koch Industries.
Those following the Hunter VLCC fleet said the strong rate is a reflection of the newbuilding being chartered straight from the yard to lift a clean cargo.
They said the period rate for dirty trading VLCCs is currently around half that achieved on the Hunter Frigg and is closer to $20,000 per day.
But one commented that the ship will now be locked away for the winter period and unable to cash in on any seasonal rate improvements.
The Hunter Frigg is the last of eight open-loop scrubber-fitted VLCCs contracted by Arne Fredly-controlled Hunter Group.
The company owns seven of them after selling one hull to South Korea’s SK Shipping in 2019 prior to its completion at the yard.
In March, the tanker owner said it had fixed three of sisterships — the Hunter Alta, Hunter Saga (both built 2019) and Hunter Freya (built 2020) — for six months at $80,000 per day. The trio were linked to business with trading houses.
A month later, the newbuilding Hunter Disen was reported fixed for 18 months at about $60,000 per day to Trafigura.
Sistership newbuilding Hunter Idun delivered in July onto a six-month charter.
This month Hunter Group took back the ownership of two VLCCs — the Hunter Alta and Hunter Saga — that it had sold to John Fredriksen's SFL Corp in September.
Hunter paid a combined purchase price of $118m after declaring its buy-back option on the ships.
The company is expected to declare the buy-back option on the sistership Hunter Laga (built 2019) later this year.
