Stena Bulk invests in six chemical tankers
Stena Bulk/Stena Weco and Golden Agri (GAR) have invested in a further six chemical tankers. Golden Stena Weco, which is a joint venture between Stena Weco and Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), will be responsible for the commercial management. The main aim of the investment is to ensure that Golden Stena Weco has the necessary resources to meet its own transport needs and, by means of efficient commercial and operational management, to make shipments profitable despite the current relatively low market levels. The total investment is in the region of USD 100 million, Stena Bulk said in a press release.
The tankers have a deadweight of 17,000 tons and were built at the South Korean shipyard Samho Shipbuilding in 2008-2009. The six tankers have been given the names GSW Forward, GSW Fabulous, GSW Frontier, GSW Fortune, GSW Future, and GSW Fighter and will join the Golden Avenue and her sister the Golden Adventure in the jointly owned fleet.
“With the new investment in this segment, we are entering a new chapter in our collaboration with Golden Agri-Resources. These tankers will transport chemicals and vegetable oils on an international basis”, says Erik Hanell, President and CEO of Stena Bulk and President of Stena Weco.
“Golden Stena Weco, with its head office in Singapore, is now responsible for the commercial operation of eight jointly owned chemical tankers as well as a number of time-chartered vessels. This investment is yet another step in building up our joint venture. We see this as part of the strategy of capturing market shares in Asia in particular with the long-term aim of establishing a presence, via our close partners, in new areas in this segment with the possibility of developing on other continents”, says Erik Hanell.
Golden Stena Weco is a joint venture between Stena Weco and the Indonesian palm oil producer Golden Agri Resources (GAR). Golden Stena Weco currently operates a fleet of five chemical tankers in its fast-growing trading business in Singapore.
Stena Weco, which was formed at the beginning of 2011, is owned equally by the tanker shipping company Stena Bulk and Danish Dannebrog, each with 50 percent. The shipping company specialises in the transportation of vegetable oils and chemicals and is one of the largest cargo carriers between Asia and Europe. About eight million tons of the total of 45 million tons of palm oil produced globally per year is transported from South East Asia to Europe. Stena Weco has a large share of this trade.