Norden's owned fleet is growing
SHIPPING: Following a year with very large investments in the fleet, Norden ends 2010 as owner of 28 vessels, equally divided between Dry Cargo and Tankers. This is 10 more than at the beginning of the year, and the fleet will also grow in 2011
”The business model is unchanged. We own 12-13% of the vessels we operate and even if this share is rising slightly next year, Norden is still primarily an operator which invests a limited amount of capital in vessels compared to our total active fleet. However, there are some very interesting investment opportunities these years in Dry Cargo and especially in Tankers, and we will seize these opportunities, because they are good investments. In a cyclical industry like shipping, we buy ships when prices are down”, says Nordens’s CEO Carsten Mortensen.
Norden has purchased a handful of modern product tankers in the expectation that the purchases will turn out to be a good deal when freight rates and ship prices recover. In addition, the Company has taken delivery of several newbuildings, not least the new Post-Panamax vessel type.
Finally, Norden has - in consultation with the sellers – decided to exercise purchase options for 4 bulk carriers. The vessels were acquired at sensible prices seen in relation to the market values for similar vessels.
Lately Norden took over Nord Energy and the Handymax vessel Nord Expres in December while a third vessel bought with a purchase option - Nord Brave - has been resold for delivery in January 2011.
The fleet of owned vessels will continue to grow in 2011 when a number of newbuildings will be delivered to both Dry Cargo and Tankers. Norden has also just bought yet another Handysize product tanker, Payal, which we will take over during the first quarter.
Kilde: Norden / maritimedanmark.dk
