<\/code><\/p>\nAccording to New York broker, Poten & Partners, the last VLCC contract was placed in June 2021, followed a month later by the last Suezmax order. No new panamax tankers or LR1 tonnage have been ordered since April 2020 and only six Aframax\/LR2s and seven MRs have been ordered so far this year, the broker said.<\/p>\n
The tanker market is fraught with uncertainty. Not only do owners face prices up by close to 20-30% on first-half 2021 prices, but there is uncertainty on propulsion type and, of course, bigger questions about the future of tanker shipping generally as the world\u2019s decarbonisation drive becomes more urgent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is the general expectation that global oil demand (and its transportation) will likely peak within the nest 10-20 years,\u201d Poten said in its most recent weekly Tanker Opinion.<\/p>\n
For a shipowner, that is not a strong incentive to invest in an asset that has a 20-year life. Especially, if (in the case of a VLCC) it is 28% more expensive\u00a0than last year and you won\u2019t get it delivered for at least another two years.\u201d<\/p>\n
That explains why tanker owners are targeting secondhand tonnage. A secondhand tanker is cheaper (in relative terms), Poten said, and can be employed in today\u2019s rising market immediately.<\/p>\n
Noting that Greek and Chinese owners have been particularly active as both buyers and sellers, the broker said: \u201cBuyers want to expand or renew their fleet to take advantage of rising rates, while sellers see an opportunity to shed older assets at attractive prices and\/or realise some gains on previously acquired tonnage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Source: https:\/\/www.seatrade-maritime.com\/tankers\/no-large-tanker-newbuilds-ordered-over-year<\/p>\n
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