New York-listed tanker owner DHT Holdings has officially confirmed that it has sold two very large crude carriers (VLCCs) built by Chinese shipbuilders, which was initially disclosed at the end of March this year.
According to a statement from DHT, the company has successfully sold the DHT Lotus and DHT Peony for a total consideration of US$103 million. The transaction is expected to generate net cash proceeds of approximately $85 million and is expected to be delivered to their new owners in April and July of this year, respectively.
DHT expects to record earnings of $17.5 million and $15.5 million in the second and third quarters of this year, respectively.
The DHT Lotus and DHT Peony are part of DHT’s acquisition of BW Group’s VLCC fleet for a total of $115.8 million, and were added to its VLCC fleet in 2017, according to the report. The two VLCCs sold by DHT have a deadweight of 320,000 dwt and were built and delivered in 2011 by Bohai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry, the shipbroker said.
Svein Moxnes Harfjeld, President and CEO of DHT, said of the transaction: “These two vessels have served the company well over the past eight years. The company takes this opportunity to fine-tune its fleet and align the services it provides with customer needs and market trends.”
Recently, the United States has repeatedly signaled that Chinese-built ships may face high port fees when docking at U.S. ports.
With the sale of the 2 VLCCs, DHT becomes the first known VLCC owner to sell all of its Chinese-built vessels. Upon completion of the transaction, DHT will have 21 operational VLCCs and 4 newbuild VLCCs, all from Korean shipyards. Four new vessels will be delivered by Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Samho in 2026.