Pacific Basin expands fleet with four scrubber-fitted Ultramaxes

Dry bulk shipping company Pacific Basin has bought four second-hand Ultramax vessels for a total of $67 million.

The Hong Kong-based shipowner said that the purchase would be funded by its cash reserves.

The four sister vessels each have cargo carrying capacities of over 61,000 dwt and are Kawasaki Heavy Industry designs built by Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering Co. (NACKS), a joint venture between Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation and COSCO.

All four ships are fitted with scrubbers and ballast water treatment systems, and two are equipped to carry logs.

“This is an excellent opportunity to expand our fleet with several high-quality, larger ships at an attractive price. We consider these vessels to be well constructed and efficient ships of excellent design for our trades,” Mats Berglund, CEO of Pacific Basin, said.

The acquisition is part of the company’s strategic plan to grow and renew its owned fleet with larger, modern second-hand acquisitions, focusing especially on adding Supramax and Ultramax ships and trading up its smaller, older Handysize ships to newer vessels with larger carrying capacity and longer asset lives.

The four vessels are expected to be delivered by late April 2021.