Sovcomflot Takes 4th Place in International Top Tanker Company Ratings (Russia)

Sovcomflot Group (SCF) has taken 4th place in a list of the top 30 tanker companies in the world as published by the British shipping magazine Tanker Operator.

The preface to the list reads as follows: “Sovcomflot is continuing its rise to the very top of the global ratings and will undoubtedly retain its place in the top five next year when the company brings its first VLCC tanker into commission.”

According to Tanker Operator magazine, Sovcomflot’s extensive experience of trans-Arctic shipping significantly strengthens its positions in the ratings.

Sovcomflot gained top ratings as a world leader in several different tanker classes:

• ¹1 in the world in the Aframax tanker segment
• ¹2 in the Suezmax and product carrier segment
• ¹3 in shuttle tanker fleet size (¹1 for ice class vessels of this type)

Tanker Operator magazine noted one further factor that helped Sovcomflot gain additional points in the ratings. Since 2005, practically all new SCF tankers have been given an additional classificatory symbol indicating their compliance with high standards of environmental safety. While gaining this eco-friendly badge is not mandatory, it does require a ship’s design to be more technologically advanced and demonstrates a responsible attitude to environmental protection on the part of the ship owner.

In drawing up its top 30 list, Tanker Operator magazine only considered tanker tonnage and excluded gas carriers, bulk carriers, supply ships and other service vessels. As a result, Sovcomflot entered the top five with its 135 tankers alone (deadweight 11.45 million tonnes) while the present SCF fleet consists of 159 vessels with a combined deadweight of over 12 million tonnes.

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LNG World News Staff, April 01, 2013