Euronav Buys Suezmax Pair with New Joint Venture Partners

Belgium’s tanker shipping company Euronav has entered into a joint venture together with affiliates of Ridgebury Tankers and clients of Tufton Oceanic.

As informed, each 50%-50% joint venture company has acquired one Suezmax vessel.

The tankers have been bought for a total of USD 40.6 million with the vessels being delivered for the winter spot market 2019/2020. One vessel has been handed over to the JV and another is expected to be delivered before the end of the month.

Both ships will be commercially managed by Euronav’s chartering desk. The Antwerp-based company will also provide financing for the joint ventures.

“These two on-the-water vessels are ideally positioned to take advantage of what Euronav and our partners believe is the early stages of a sustained period of elevated freight rates in the large tanker market,” Euronav said.

Euronav’s owned and operated fleet consists of 2 ultra large crude carriers, 42 very large crude carriers, 27 Suezmaxes — of which 2 owned in a joint venture — and 2 floating storage and offloading (FSO) vessels owned in a joint venture.