Shipowners turn to dry bulkers thanks to high Chinese demand
The massive rise in raw material imports by China and the ever-growing role this country plays in international transport has made more and more Greek shipowners move away from the use of tankers, which have traditionally supported the rise of Greek shipping, and into dry bulkers. At the end of last year, Petros Livanos’s Drylog Bulkcarriers proceeded to a series of moves to strengthen its presence in the dry bulker market, according to a report in the industry publication TradeWinds. Along with with International Shipowning Comp., which is based in New Orleans and owns shares in Drylog, the Livanos company has bought two modern panamax bulkers from Naples-based Augustea for a total of $48.5 million. Both 73,300-dead weight ton ships were built in 1998. The two firms also operate through another company, Dry Bulk Cape Holding (DBCH), which will incorporate the two recently purchased vessels, renaming them Bulk Fern and Bulk Cedar. DBCH was set up in end-2003 and already owns two modern capesize bulkers of 170,000 dwt. Drylog also proceeded recently to an order to the Tsuneishi shipyards for a ship to be delivered in 2008 and already chartered by Mitsui. Drylog further owns 50 percent of three capesize bulkers. In total the Drylog group showed net profits of $6.2 million in the first nine months of 2005. The Livanos group is also involved in DBCN, a consortium managing handymax bulkers. Drylog and the Chilean company CSAV have bought out the 50 percent stake owned by two of the consortium’s founding members, Belgium’s Bocimar and Greek AM Nomikos, of the well-known Greek shipowning family. DBCN was established in early 2004 to focus on the South American market, but the new owners are expected to expand on a global scale. DBCN and Drylog also take part in another consortium, Dry Bulk Handy Holding, which has invested $24.4 million for a handymax ship under construction to be delivered this September by the IHI Marine United shipyards in Japan. Kristen Marine Another Greek company bolstering its interests in the dry bulker market is Kristen Marine (unrelated to Kristen Navigation of the Angelikousis family), which, according to TradeWinds, is involved in the acquisition of the ship Star Chaser, built in 1997 with a capacity of 28,300 dwt. But a company representative confirmed only its interest, stressing that negotiations did not end in an agreement. The ship has been recently sold, along with the vessel Star Elfin, for $21.75 million each, without the buyer being identified. Kristen enjoys significant cash flow as it recently sold part of its fleet. In October it received $42.75 million for the sale of two similar bulkers, the Ocean Trader and Ocean Ranger, both 32,000-dwt vessels built in 1983, of Voyager, a 33,000-dwt ship built in 1985, and of Discoverer, built in 1983 with a capacity of 34,000 dwt. Purchasing the ships was Norway’s KS, managed by Lorentzen Skibs. In May 2005, Kristen Marine reportedly sold Navigator I, a 33,000-dwt ship built in 1977, for $5.35 million. A month earlier the company had sold two multi-purpose containerships, the Tasman Independence and Tasman Resolution, built in 1989 and 1998 respectively, for $11.5 million each. Market observers say Kristen Marine is seeking openings in various shipyards in order to acquire some vessels of the handysize and handymax categories.
