Persian Gulf Tanker Rates May Drop

Persian Gulf Tanker Rates May Drop as Refineries Delay Cargoes
By Alaric Nightingale
Dec. 20 (Bloomberg)

The cost of shipping Middle East crude to Asia, the world's busiest market for supertankers, may drop as oil companies resist paying record prices to hire ships.

Very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, are making about $300,000 a day on benchmark international trade routes to Asia, according to prices compiled by Bloomberg. In 2004, the previous record year, they made $290,000 a day, according to London-based shipbroker Galbraith's Ltd.

Charterers who hire ships for oil companies may now be ``holding back if possible for fear of paying too much,'' Charlie Fowle, a director at the company, said in an e-mailed note today.

Sinochem Corp., China's biggest chemicals trader, hired the tanker C. Champion at a rate of 285 Worldscale points, according to a report today from Oslo-based shipbroker PF Bassoe AS. That's 10 percent below the London-based Baltic Exchange's benchmark rate of 317.66 points for voyages to Asia.

Higher Rates

Flat rates for ships loading next year are higher than those in 2007 because of record refueling costs. The Baltic Exchange's assessments reflect 2007 flat rates until the end of the year.

At 317.66 Worldscale points, owners of double-hulled very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, can earn about $297,0777 a day on a 39-day round trip from Saudi Arabia to South Korea, based on a formula by R.S. Platou, an Oslo-based shipbroker, and Bloomberg marine fuel prices.

That means costs for Japanese refineries fell 0.4 percent to $7.42 a barrel from $7.45 a barrel on Dec. 18.

There are 23 modern two-hulled tankers available for hire within the next 30 days, according to a report today from Paris- based Barry Rogliano Salles. There were 40 such ships competing for cargoes two months ago, according to the shipbroker.

Hebei Spirit

South Korea Battles Biggest Oil Spill in 4 1/2 Years
By Sungwoo Park and Bomi Lim
Dec. 7 (Bloomberg)

South Korea battled to contain the world's biggest oil spill in 4 1/2 years after a supertanker collided with a barge near Hyundai Oilbank Co.'s refinery on the nation's west coast.

The collision caused three holes on the ship's side and 10,500 metric tons (78,750 barrels) of crude oil was spilled, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries said in a statement today. The Hebei Spirit has stopped leaking and the slick is 7.4 kilometers (4.6 miles) long and 2 kilometers wide, it said.

Hebei Spirit is fitted with one hull, according to Lloyd's Register-Fairplay, which assigns ship-registration numbers. An international ban on such ships is due to start in 2010. Modern tankers are fitted with two hulls to cut the risk of an oil spill and are usually more expensive to hire.

South Korean oil companies are probably the world's ``biggest users'' of single-hull tankers, Per Mansson, a tanker broker at Nor Ocean Stockholm AB, said in an e-mailed note today. ``This might change policies in Korea and that would be tremendous for the market.''

The government will form a committee comprising oil-spill experts and seek help from residents of nearby regions to contain the slick, according to the statement. The vessel held 263,000 tons of crude oil and there were no casualties, it said.

The spill is the worst in South Korea's history and the biggest anywhere since the Tasman Spirit leaked about 27,000 tons of oil at the port of Karachi in Pakistan in July 2003, Tim Wadsworth, technical support manager for the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Ltd. in London, said by phone.

Barge Crashes

The oil leaked after a crane on the barge crashed into the Hebei Spirit at 7:15 a.m. local time, said Jeong Seong Mun, deputy director at the ministry's safety information center. The barge, owned by Samsung Heavy Industries Co., suffered minor damage, the ministry said in an earlier statement.

The leak is almost a third of the 37,000 tons spilled into Prince William Sound, Alaska, by the Exxon Valdez in 1989, according to data on the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation's Web site.

Today's spill surpasses a 1995 accident in South Korean waters, when 5,000 tons of oil leaked at Yeosu, 455 kilometers south of Seoul. The country mobilized 166,905 people, 8,295 boats and 45 aircraft to contain the spill, which resulted in 9.6 billion won ($104 million) of economic losses, the ministry said in a statement.

The government has sent 30 patrol boats, 4 helicopters and 10 oil-spill control vessels to the site of the latest spill and is yet to assess its economic impact, said Lee Woo Sung, an official at the ministry.

Natural Resources

The environment ministry is studying what damage the spill may have caused, Cho Gyu Won, an assistant director at the ministry's natural resources division, said from Gwacheon, near Seoul.

The tanker was carrying crude oil for Hyundai Oilbank's refinery at Daesan, Kim Sung Yong, a spokesman for the company, said by telephone. South Korea's fourth-biggest oil refiner may reduce processing at its 390,000 barrels-a-day Daesan plant following the spill, said company officials who asked not to be identified.

Hyundai Oilbank's Kim said the crude-oil processing rate at the refinery remains unchanged at about 80 percent of capacity. The company is using its stockpiles and will ask state-run Korea National Oil Corp. for an emergency supply, if needed, he said.

The very large crude carrier, or VLCC, capable of carrying more than 2 million barrels of oil, is registered to Hong Kong- based Hebei Ocean Shipping Co., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. A man who answered the phone at the company's office wouldn't comment and declined to identify himself.

Single Hull

Of the eight VLCCs listed on Hebei Ocean's Web site, at least six are fitted with a single hull, according to the Lloyd's Register-Fairplay database.

The accident led owners of double-hull tankers to raise prices for leasing the vessels by 15 percent compared with benchmark prices yesterday, Charlie Fowle, a director at London- based shipbroker Galbraith's Ltd., said by phone today.

Contracts called forward freight agreements that indicate the future cost of shipping oil jumped by as much as 8 percent, according to Ben Goggin, head of tanker FFAs at broker London- based SSY Futures Ltd.

Teekay's Spin-Offs

Teekay Tankers' Taste of Success
Ruthie Ackerman
12.13.07
Forbes.com

Teekay Corp. thinks the whole is less than the sum of its parts.

The energy-based maritime conglomerate has spun off yet another one of its major operations. On its first day of trading Thursday, shares in Teekay Tankers (nyse: TNK) gained 4.0%, or 78 cents, to $20.28. Its initial public offering price of $19.50 per share was at the high end of the anticipated range.

The offering was of a 40% interest in Teekay Tankers; parent Teekay Corp. (nyse: TK) is retaining 60%.

Teekay also has spun off Teekay Offshore Partners (nyse: TOO), which specializes in fleets for storage of oil for offshore units, and Teekay LNG Partners (nyse: TGP), which operates vessels that carry liquified natural gas.

Since it began its spin-off program in May 2005, Teekay stock is up 28.5%. Teekay LNG is up 33.0% since it came public in May 2005, and Teekay Offshore has risen 20.2% since its debut in December 2006. By contrast, an index of energy-transport companies compiled by Revere Data has increased only about 11% since May 2005.


Charles W. Rupinski, an analyst at Maxim Group, said Teekay's tanker business is its most volatile one, and management probably thought it was dragging down the valuation of the company as a whole.

Even though spot rates are very high right now and Teekay has a lot of spot exposure, going forward the tanker business is facing many challenges and investors are likely to be cautious, Rupinski said.

Indeed, although the offering did well, investors put a significantly lower value on the spin-off than the parent. Using the pro forma earnings for last year provided by the Teekay Tankers offering document, the spin-off was valued at 9.2 times last year's income while the parent fetched 12.7 times last year's reported profit. The spin-off is planning to return a high proportion of its earnings to shareholders by way of dividends.

Teekay Tankers is getting nine double-hull Aframax-class tankers, which will be used for spot charters and short- or medium-term fixed-rate time-charter contracts. At the end of June, the ships, whose name derives from the acronym for average freight rate assessment and which are smaller than the oil supertankers that cannot make it into some harbors and canals, were worth about $275 million

Teekay Tankers raised about $180.8 million from the IPO after expenses and commissions. The proceeds will be used to partially repay Teekay for the inital fleet.

In addition, Teekay will give Teekay Tankers the opportunity to purchase up to to four Suez-max class tankers within 18 months. These ships are built to fit through the Suez Canal.

Asian Aframax Rate Gains Most Since 2005

Asian Aframax Rate Gains Most Since Feb. 2005 on Yearend Demand
By Katherine Espina
Dec. 12 (Bloomberg)

Asian aframax rates rose the most in two years and nine months, benefiting from higher costs for chartering bigger tankers and boosted by increased shipments for January ahead of the yearend holidays.

The rate to transport 80,000 metric tons of fuel from Kuwait to Singapore jumped 12 percent yesterday to Worldscale 233.75, according to the London-based Baltic Exchange. The gain is the biggest since Feb. 23, 2005, when the rate rose 16 percent. Shipping a ton of fuel on the route costs $19.94, based on Bloomberg data.

Hiring rates of supertankers, also known as very large crude carriers or VLCCs, on the Middle East to Far East routes have risen almost four percent since November, prompting charterers to split cargoes so smaller ships like suezmaxes and aframaxes can move them. Supertanker rates may extend gains after an oil spill in South Korea last week involving a single- hull vessel increased speculation of more demand for two-hull tankers.

``There is a knock-on effect from VLCC rates rising,'' Takeshi Ando at the tanker team of shipbroker Matsui & Co. in Tokyo said. ``Aframax owners don't like to offer below VLCC rates so I expect this sector will still go up,'' Ando said by phone.

The hiring rate for a supertanker on the Middle East-Japan route rose 5.5 percent yesterday to Worldscale 227.19, advancing more than fourfold since the start of the year, according to the Baltic Exchange's data. A supertanker on the Middle East-Singapore route gained 5.6 percent to Worldscale 231.56, its fourth day of gains.

Winter Demand

Aframax rates on the Middle East-Singapore route surged 4.5 percent last week, bringing gains in the past eight weeks to 78 percent, as transport demand rose to meet fuel needs for the Northern Hemisphere winter and shipowners passed on the additional costs from higher bunker prices.

Five aframaxes, capable of moving a total of 543,920 tons of fuel, are scheduled to arrive in Singapore this week while one with 113,013-ton capacity will arrive next week, according to Bloomberg data. That compares with three last week, with the capacity to haul a total of 309,880 tons of fuel.

The collision between a barge and the single-hulled supertanker Hebei Spirit on Dec. 7 in South Korea spilt 10,500 metric tons (78,750 barrels) of oil, the worst oil spill in the world in four-and-a-half years.

The following is a table of rates to charter smaller tankers capable of carrying less than 1 million barrels of crude oil or oil products on Asian routes as of Dec. 11, according to the Baltic Exchange.

--------------------------------------------------------------
Route Tons Rate Change Carrier
--------------------------------------------------------------
Kuwait-Singapore 80,000 233.75 +11.86% Aframax
Persian Gulf-Japan 75,000 209.17 +0.40% Oil Product Tanker
Singapore-Japan 30,000 312.50 0% Oil Product Tanker
Middle East-Japan 55,000 251.73 +0.23% Oil Product Tanker
--------------------------------------------------------------

Baltic Dirty Tanker Index through the roof

Well, it finally happened

A single-hull tanker spilled.

Freight Derivatives Surge After South Korea Oil Spill
By Alaric Nightingale
Dec. 7 (Bloomberg)

Forward freight agreements, contracts that traders buy and sell to bet on the future cost of shipping crude oil, surged after a single-hull tanker was involved in the worst spill in South Korea's history.

Contracts for January climbed as much as 8 percent while those for the first the three months of next year advanced 7 percent, according to Ben Goggin, head of tanker FFAs at SSY Futures Ltd. in London.

``All my sellers from yesterday have turned buyers this morning,'' he said by telephone today. ``This could push rates much higher.''

The Hebei Spirit spilt 10,500 metric tons of crude oil about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) off the coast of South Korea after it was struck by a crane on a barge. Should South Korea respond by banning such single-hull ships from its waters, it would be ``tremendous'' for the tanker market, Per Mansson, a shipbroker at Nor Ocean Stockholm AB, said in an e-mailed note today.

Modern tankers are fitted with two hulls to cut the risk of an oil spill and usually cost more to hire.

Contracts that indicate the cost of shipping crude in January climbed to 140 Worldscale points, from 130 yesterday, Goggin said. FFAs for the first quarter of next year rose to 120 Worldscale points from 112 points.

$108,000 a Day

Worldscale points are a percentage of a nominal rate, or flat rate, for more than 320,000 specific routes. Flat rates for every voyage, quoted in U.S. dollars a ton, are revised annually by the Worldscale Association in London to reflect changing fuel costs, port tariffs and exchange rates.

Based on 2007 flat rates, owners of very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, would earn about $108,000 a day for leasing out vessels at a rate of 140 Worldscale points, a formula from Oslo-based shipbroker RS Platou AS and marine-fuel prices compiled by Bloomberg showed. Earnings will turn out to be higher than that because 2008's flat rates will be raised to reflect this year's record refueling costs.

``If it's proved that a double hull would have avoided the spill, then I think it will have huge ramifications,'' Charlie Fowle, a director at Galbraith's Ltd., a London-based shipbroker, said in an interview. ``Everybody will be clamoring for double- hulls.''

Frontline Shares Fall As Contract Ends

Frontline Shares Fall As Contract Ends
Associated Press
12.04.07
Forbes.com

Shares of Frontline Ltd. slipped in trading Tuesday, after a JPMorgan analyst reduced his 2008 earnings estimates to reflect the oil tanker operator's expected losses from the end of two long-term charter agreements.

Frontline (FRO) said earlier Tuesday it ended deals for two vessels with Ship Finance International Ltd. (SFL ), which then sold the tankers for $40 million each. Frontline expects $32.8 million for the contract's early termination.

Analyst Jonathan B. Chappell cut his 2008 profit estimate to $2.55 per share from $2.70 per share, saying the company "continues to trade short-term gains for long-term earnings losses."

He reiterated his "Underweight" rating for Frontline, and suggested the stock should underperform other tanker operators for the next nine months to a year.

Shares of Frontline fell $1.76, or 3.9 percent, to close at $42.87. The stock has ranged between $29.35 and $53.09 in the past year.

Chappell also lowered 2008 profit estimate on Ship Finance to $1.77 per share from $1.96 per share.

However, Chappell said that unlike Frontline, he expects Ship Finance to use the sale's proceeds to diversify and expand its fleet outside of the struggling tanker market.

He maintained his "Overweight" rating.

Ship Finance shares fell 57 cents to $24.64.

Nokta and Chappell in 2006

Around the Markets: Rising tide lifts stock of cargo firms
By Dune Lawrence
JULY 11, 2006
International Herald Tribune

NEW YORK: As U.S. stocks sank in May and June, shares of oil tanker companies like Teekay Shipping proved buoyant, outperforming the Standard & Poor's 500 index by 17 percentage points.

The surge reverses 18 months of underperformance and may mean further gains to come, as share prices play catch-up to profit growth, with the added luster of dividends that outstrip even high- yielding utilities. The companies themselves also consider their stock cheap, if $1.31 billion in buybacks in the past year is any indication.

"As an investor, you want to buy when things are bleak, and these things have been pretty bleak," said J.C. Waller, who manages the Icon Energy Fund. "When you find that combination of value, dividend yield and price appreciation coming from where these things have been, you can't ignore it."

The Bloomberg tanker index jumped 14 percent from the end of April through June 30, as daily rates for the largest carriers reached a four-month high in what is usually a period of price declines. The S&P 500 slipped 3.1 percent in that same period. Overseas Shipholding Group, the biggest U.S.-based owner of oil tankers, led the advance with a 21 percent gain. Teekay climbed 8.8 percent.

The tanker index touched its low point for the year in mid-April, 32 percent below its record high of November 2004. Even after rebounding, its price stands at 8.2 times earnings over the past 12 months, compared with 13.4 when the index peaked. The S&P 500 trades at 17 times earnings.

whose fund has outperformed 80 percent of similar funds over the past five years, estimates that an S&P index of tanker and pipeline stocks is 22 percent undervalued.

"They've gotten so low that there's not a whole lot of downside," said Malcolm Polley at S&T Wealth Management Group. Polley started buying Frontline and General Maritime in February.

And business is improving in the industry. Freight rates for the class of ships known as very large crude carriers, which can carry two million barrels of oil, on routes from the Gulf to the United States and to Japan have climbed 25 percent and 52 percent, respectively, since April.

Earnings have held up better than many analysts predicted this year. First-quarter profit at all six members of the tanker index exceeded the estimates of analysts.

Omar Nokta, an analyst at Dahlman Rose, an investment bank that specializes in shipping and energy companies, raised his earnings predictions for some tanker stocks twice in June. Constraints in the supply of tankers, and the need to lock in oil contracts further in advance, will support earnings growth and cash flow and justify higher share prices, he said.

Nokta raised his 2006 profit projection for Teekay, the world's largest oil tanker owner, to $4.79 a share from $3.98. He expects Overseas Shipholding Group to earn $10.24 a share, up from $8.31.

"If you buy now, you get this awesome run for the fourth quarter," said Nokta. "Most of the Street hasn't changed their estimates yet, not even for the current environment."

Some analysts say that the higher rates, and the rally, will not last. They warn that the stocks' low valuations reflect the risk of investing in an industry where rates and earnings fluctuate rapidly.

Jonathan Chappell at J.P. Morgan Chase in New York attributed the June rate surge to short-term factors including the use of some tankers as storage by Iran and Saudi Arabia.

"Everything else, from inventories to demand estimates to the number of ships that have been removed this year, points to a bearish market," Chappell said.

The share prices also reflect concern that there are too many new tankers being built as estimates for the growth in demand for oil decline. The International Energy Agency expects demand to increase 1.8 percent this year, compared with a peak of 3.8 percent in 2004.

Tanker demand will increase 3.8 percent in 2006 through 2008, compared with fleet growth of 5.4 percent, according to a June estimate by shipping analysts at Jefferies in Houston.

Omar Nokta upgrades FRO, OSG, NAT

Oil Tankers Owe Strength to OPEC
Ruthie Ackerman
11.26.07
Forbes.com

Increased oil production has sent spot charter rates surging on oil tankers in the last week, helping to keep the stocks of crude oil tankers and operators above water.

On Monday, Dahlman Rose & Co. analyst Omar Nokta, upgraded three tanker companies because they are the most exposed to the strong spot rates. Nokta raised his rating on Frontline, Overseas Shipholding Group, and Nordic American Tanker Shipping to “buy” from “hold” and reiterated his “buy” rating on General Maritime, Tsakos Energy Navigation, Ship Finance International, and Omega Navigation Enterprises.

But even with the upgrade oil tanker stocks were a mixed bag at the close on Monday, indicating investors didn't share Nokta's optimism.

Notka said the spot rates on the Very Large Crude Carriers, or VLCC’s, have jumped in the Arabian Gulf in the past few days. Last week, VLCC’s averaged $33,000 per day. On Monday morning they spiked to $84,000 per day, a level not seen since August 2006. The number of vessels being chartered has jumped significantly, limiting the supply of ships, Nokta said.

The strength in the oil tanker market has spread to West Africa and the Mediterranean as well, he added.

The problem for oil tanker lines over the last year has been that the supply of ships outstripped the demand for oil. With oil prices at record highs since OPEC's production cut in Nov. 2006, demand for oil tankers fell.

But Nokta believes the strong demand for oil tankers over the last few weeks is a result of increased production from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. As global oil stock levels have fallen over the past six months, OPEC has been under pressure to increase production. OPEC appears to have raised production by 750,000 barrels, Nokta said, which is more than the 500,000 barrel boost it previously announced.

Nokta believes the increased production is a sign that a formal boost should come when OPEC meets on Dec. 5. With gasoline, U.S. heating oil, and crude oil stockpiles down substantially there should be a significant amount of imports through the winter and into the spring, boosting the demand for oil tankers, Nokta said.

The conversion of 60 VLCCs into dry bulk carriers for 2008 and 2009 should offset a significant number of the 36 new VLCCs being built and the 69 more being delivered in 2009. With increased production in the Arabian Gulf demand will increase helping the tanker market to outperform expectations, Nokta said.

Route Rates 3 - Test

route	class	size	Days	WS	TCE - equiv	breakeven	Date
TD1	VLCC	280 kmt	64 days	120.00	$xx,000	$30,000	Nov. 29th
TD2	VLCC	260 kmt	xxxx	185.00	$130,000+	$30,000	Nov. 29th
TD3	VLCC	250 kmt	38 days	182.50	$130,000+	$30,000	Nov. 29th
TD4	VLCC	260 kmt	xxxx	135.00	$xx,000	$30,000	Nov. 29th
TD5	Suezmax	130 kmt	xxxx	200.00	$27,406	$22,100	Oct. 23rd
TD6	Suezmax	135 kmt	xxxx	155.68	$63,000	$22,100	Oct. 23rd
TD7	Aframax	80 kmt	xxxx	150.00	$xx,000	xx,000	Nov. 29th
TD8	Aframax	80 kmt	xxxx	190.00	xxx	xxx	Nov. 30th
TD9	Aframax	70 kmt	xxxx	170.00	$x,000	$xx,000	Nov. 29th
TD10	Panamax	50 kmt	xxxx	215.00	$xx,000	xx,000	Nov. 28th
TD11	Aframax	80 kmt	xxxx	120.45	$18,613	$15,000	Oct. 11th
TD12	Panamax	55 kmt	xxxx	xxxx	$xx,000	xx,000	xxx
TD14	Aframax	80 kmt	xxxx	180.00	xxx	xxx	Nov.29th

---	From	To	Size	Class
TD1	MEG	USG	280,000mt	VLCC
TD2	MEG	Singapore	260,000mt	VLCC
TD3	MEG	Japan	250,000mt	VLCC
TD4	WAF	USG	260,000mt	VLCC
TD5	WAF	USAC	130,000mt	Suezmax
TD6	Black Sea	Mediterranean	135,000mt	Suezmax
TD7	North Sea	Eur Continent	80,000mt	Aframax
TD8	Kuwait	Singapore	80,000mt	Aframax
TD9	Caribbean	USG	70,000mt	Aframax
TD10	Caribbean	USAC	50,000mt	Panamax
TD11	Mediterranean	Mediterranean	80,000mt	Aframax
TD12	Antwerp	Houston	55,000mt	Panamax
TD14	Indonesia	Japan	80,000mt	Aframax

updated Nov. 30th

Dahlman Rose Upgrades FRO and OSG

Crude Oil Declines as Reports Show OPEC Production Increase
By Mark Shenk
Nov. 26 (Bloomberg)

Crude oil fell on speculation that OPEC is increasing production to reduce record prices and keep the global economy from slowing.

The 12 members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will probably increase output 1.1 percent to 31.6 million barrels a day this month, according to preliminary estimates by PetroLogistics Ltd. OPEC agreed in September to raise production targets for the 10 members with quotas by 1.9 percent starting Nov. 1.

``The Petrologistics numbers are showing a good-size build in OPEC output,'' said Tim Evans, an analyst with Citigroup Global Markets Inc. in New York. ``Most of the increase is from Iraq, which is fairly encouraging.''

Crude oil for January delivery fell 48 cents, or 0.5 percent, to settle at $97.70 a barrel at 2:44 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures touched $99.11 today, the highest since reaching a record $99.29 on Nov. 21. Oil futures trading began in 1983. Prices are up 65 percent from a year ago.

Iraq, which last month resumed exports from Kirkuk through its northern pipeline network, will make the biggest contribution to the supply increase, raising output by 20 percent to 2.15 million barrels a day, according to PetroLogistics, which assesses supply by tracking tankers.

Iraqi Recovery

``This is the highest we've seen since the U.S. invasion in 2003 and may be a sign that the Iraqi oil industry is finally recovering,'' said Evans.

Iraqi production has yet to recover from the unrest that followed the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. Iraq produced 2.48 million barrels a day in February 2003, the last month before the invasion. The Persian Gulf country has the world's third-biggest proved oil reserves, according to BP Plc.

Saudi Arabia is producing more than 9 million barrels a day, CNBC reported, citing unidentified people at the Saudi oil ministry. The country, which is OPEC's largest producer and the world's top oil exporter, pumped an average 8.75 million barrels a day in October, the highest since November 2006, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Prices also fell on signs that slowing economic growth in the U.S., Europe and Japan will curb fuel consumption. Investor optimism about financial markets in the U.S., which consumes a quarter of the world's oil, fell this month to the lowest in two years after concern grew that the country is heading toward a recession, according to a UBS AG poll.

The UBS/Gallup Index of Investor Optimism dropped to 44 in November from 70 last month. The sentiment gauge declined to the lowest level since Hurricane Katrina struck the U.S. Gulf Coast and is down from a three-year high of 103 in January.

Frontline Ltd., the world's biggest supertanker operator, and Overseas Shipholding Group Inc. had their ratings raised by Dahlman Rose & Co. because of increasing OPEC shipments. Ship- hire rates on tankers sailing to Asia from the Middle East, the world's busiest market for supertankers, more than doubled since Nov. 9, according to data from the London-based Baltic Exchange. Dahlman is an investment bank that specializes in marine transport companies and related industries.

OPEC will load 24.5 million barrels a day onto tankers in the four weeks to Dec. 8, compared with 23.8 million barrels in the month ended Nov. 10, Oil Movements said on Nov. 22. It will be OPEC's 14th consecutive weekly increase and the biggest this year, according to the company, which tracks shipments.

Upcoming Meeting

The group, which produces more than 40 percent of the world's oil, is scheduled to discuss crude-oil production for the first quarter of 2008 at a meeting in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 5.

``We are primed to make another run for $100,'' said Eric Wittenauer, an analyst at A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc. in St. Louis. ``There's a good shot we will make it this time but once that occurs there is no telling what will happen.''

The dollar dropped to a record low against the euro earlier today on concern U.S. credit-market losses may prompt the Federal Reserve to keep reducing interest rates. The U.S. currency recovered against the euro later in the session.

``On one hand there's growing evidence that demand will drop,'' Wittenauer said. ``Economic concerns are being reflected in a number of markets. At the same time, we are seeing weakness in the dollar, which tends to push commodity prices higher.''

Persian Gulf Rates Surge Most in Three Years

Persian Gulf Oil-Tanker Rates Surge Most in Almost Three Years
By Alaric Nightingale
Nov. 23 (Bloomberg)

The cost of shipping Middle East crude oil to Asia, the world's busiest market for supertankers, climbed by the most in almost three years as demand eliminated a glut of ships that were competing for cargoes.

Hire rates for the key benchmark voyage to Japan climbed 29.5 percent today, the biggest one-day increase since Jan. 30, 2005, according to data from the London-based Baltic Exchange.

Supply of tankers to load in the first half of December is getting ``tighter and tighter,'' Atsuto Otani, a London-based broker at Galbraith's Ltd., said by phone today. ``Sometimes when cargoes rush into the market, charterers just panic and pay up.''

PTT Pcl, Thailand's biggest energy company, hired the vessel Asian Progress II at a rate of 134 Worldscale points, Oslo-based shipbroker PF Bassoe A/S said in a report today. The Baltic Exchange's benchmark rate for a comparable voyage to Singapore rose to 130 points.

Worldscale points are a percentage of a nominal rate, or flat rate, for more than 320,000 specific routes. Flat rates for every voyage, quoted in U.S. dollars a ton, are revised annually by the Worldscale Association in London to reflect changing fuel costs, port tariffs and exchange rates.

Each flat rate assessment gives owners and oil companies a starting point for negotiating hire rates without having to calculate the value of each deal from scratch.

At 130 Worldscale points, owners of double-hulled very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, can earn about $85,498 a day on a 25- day round trip from Saudi Arabia to Singapore, based on a formula by R.S. Platou, an Oslo-based shipbroker, and Bloomberg marine fuel prices.

`Plenty' of Vessels

Gains may be tempered once refineries start booking ships to load after Dec. 20 when ``plenty'' of vessels will become available, Otani said. Out of the 64 tankers so far hired to load in December, none have been arranged to load after the 20th of the month, Paris-based shipbroker Barry Rogliano said in an e- mailed report today.

There are 52 carriers available for hire up to Dec. 23, according to Barry Rogliano. That compares with 52 likely outstanding cargoes for the remainder of the month.

Demand for crude oil will rise 2.8 percent in the first quarter of 2008, the biggest year-on-year gain since the first three months of 2005, according to data from the Paris-based International Energy Agency.

Frontline Ltd., the world's biggest VLCC operator, said Nov. 15 it needs $30,000 a day to break even on each of its supertankers.

Bookings for VLCCs sailing from the Middle East to Asia account for 47 percent of global demand for the carriers, according to New York-based McQuilling Brokerage Partners LLP. Shipments to the U.S. and Caribbean, the second-biggest market, account for 14 percent of demand for supertankers.

Asian Aframax Rates May Rise a Sixth Week on December Cargoes
By Katherine Espina
Nov. 23 (Bloomberg)

Asian aframax rates may extend gains for a sixth week on increased demand for December cargoes before the Northern Hemisphere winter.

The rate to transport 80,000 metric tons of fuel from Kuwait to Singapore, the world's fourth-busiest route for such ships, rose 0.9 percent to Worldscale 148.86 yesterday, the highest since July 3, according to the London-based Baltic Exchange. Shipping a ton of fuel on the route costs $13.96, based on Bloomberg data.

Aframax rates on the Middle East-Singapore route have gained 27 percent in the past five weeks, boosted by higher bunker prices and shipments of November cargoes. The surge in rates of supertankers, also known as very large crude carriers or VLCCs, may boost charter fees of smaller ships like aframaxes.

The hiring rate of supertankers for the benchmark voyage to Japan climbed 20 percent yesterday, the biggest one-day increase since March 11, 2005, according to data from the Baltic Exchange. A supertanker can transport 2 million barrels of oil.

``The jump in the VLCC market will initially boost sentiment,'' Channa Munasinghe, director at Singapore-based shipbroker Alliance Tanker Chartering Pte, said in a phone interview today. Cargoes for supertankers may eventually be split for transport into smaller vessels.

That ``could potentially create a jump, not immediately but in about two to three weeks,'' Munasinghe said. Rates for aframaxes may rise 5 to 10 points next week, he said.

Exxon Mobil

``The stronger VLCC market should in turn lead to an improved sentiment for smaller tanker tonnage,'' Henrik With and Glenn Lodden, analysts at Oslo-based DnB NOR Markets, said in a weekly report.

Four aframaxes, which are able to transport a combined 439,703 deadweight tons of cargo, are scheduled to arrive in Singapore this week, and one, capable of moving 98,570 tons, next week, according to Bloomberg data.

Exxon Mobil Corp. hired the tanker Aegean Harmony to transport 90,000 tons of fuel oil on Nov. 22 at the rate of Worldscale 170, Seatown Shipbroking Pte in Singapore said in a report today.

At that rate, moving 80,000 tons of fuel oil will cost Worldscale 151.10, a 1.5 percent premium to prices quoted on the Baltic Exchange for the Middle-East to Singapore route.

The double-hulled Aegean Harmony was built in 2007 by South Korea's Samsung Heavy Industries Co., according to Bloomberg data. Exxon is the world's largest oil company.

Southeast Asia is the world's busiest aframax market after the Mediterranean. The Caribbean is the third busiest.

Earnings Releases Third Quarter 2007

Arlington	ATB	Oct. 23rd	loss
Overseas	OSG	Oct. 29th	profit falls 71%
General Maritime	GMR	Oct. 31st	profit falls 54%
Teekay	TK	Oct. 31st	profit falls 78%
Tsakos	TNP	Nov. 5th	profit rises
Top Tankers	TOPT	Nov. 9th	loss
Nordic American	NAT	Nov. 5th	loss
Double Hull	DHT	Mon, Nov. 19	???
Knightsbridge	VLCCF	Fri, Nov. 30th	confirmed
Ship Finance	SFL	Nov. 15th	profit falls 55%
Frontline	FRO	Nov. 15th	profit falls 78%
Euronav	[Europe]	Oct. 23rd	loss
MISC	[Malaysia]	Date	Result
---	---	---	---

updated Nov 18th

Ship Finance 3Q Profit Falls 55 Percent

Ship Finance 3rd-Qtr Profit Falls 55 Percent As Revenue Falls Faster Than Expenses
November 15 (AP)

Ship Finance International Ltd. said Thursday its net income fell more than half in the third quarter, as revenue fell at a higher rate than expenses and its spot-tanker business delivered lower profits.
Profit fell 55 percent to $20.6 million, or 28 cents per share, from $45.7 million, or 63 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue fell 23.3 percent to $93.4 million from $121.8 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected earnings of 43 cents per share on revenue of $97.5 million, on average.

Though operating expenses also fell, they used up about 36 percent of revenue last quarter compared with 29 percent in the year-ago period. Results also included a loss of $7.2 million or 10 cents per share, from a noncash accounting adjustment.

The company also said the spot-tanker market has been "substantially weaker" and negatively impacted earnings.

Ship Finance shares fell 55 cents, or 2.1 percent, to $25.80 in afternoon trading.

Frontline Third-Quarter Profit Falls 76%

Frontline Third-Quarter Profit Tumbles on Hire Rates
By Alaric Nightingale
Nov. 15 (Bloomberg)

Frontline Ltd., the world's biggest operator of supertankers, said third-quarter profit tumbled 76 percent as it leased out ships for less and fuel costs surged.

Net income fell to $24.2 million, or 32 cents a share, from $98.8 million, or $1.32, a year earlier, Hamilton, Bermuda-based Frontline said in a statement to the Oslo stock exchange today. That missed the $40 million, or 53-cents-a-share, median estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Refineries are cutting crude-oil imports because of reduced processing margins, Frontline said. At the same time, fuel costs for shipping lines are increasing as oil prices reach a record. Tanker-rental rates also shrank because of the ``high availability'' of ships, the company said.

``They are hardly making any money,'' said Siri Evjemo Nysveen, a broker at Kaupthing Ltd. in London, who until September covered Frontline as an analyst at the bank. ``This is a very negative report.'' The company may be forced to cut its profit outlook for 2008, she said.

The shares closed down 3.5 kroner, or 1.6 percent, to 213 kroner in Oslo trading, the lowest since April 26. The slide pared the stock's advance this year to 19 percent, valuing the company at 15.9 billion kroner ($2.9 billion).

Earnings from Frontline's very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, declined 39 percent to $36,000 a day, while those from its 1 million-barrel carriers declined 37.5 percent to $25,000 a day. Breakeven levels are $30,000 and $22,100 respectively.

Independent Tankers

Frontline's third-quarter sales slumped 32 percent to $276 million. Profit included a gain of $4.8 million on the sale of the tanker Front Horizon. Excluding that transaction, net income was $19.3 million, less than the $28 million, or 38.5-cent-a- share, median estimate from 10 analysts.

The company is continuing to investigate ``alternatives and options'' for its Independent Tankers Corp., a Cayman Islands- based business that owns 10 tankers leased out on fixed-rate charters to BP Plc and Chevron Corp., Chief Executive Officer Bjoern Sjaastad said on a conference call today.

Frontline would have to make a deal with bondholders and the oil companies who are leasing the ships before it could sell the company or the vessels it owns, Sjaastad said. ITC's outstanding debt is $469.7 million and it is paying an 8.5 percent interest rate to finance its ships.

Tanker Sale

Operating performance in the final three months of the year will be ``in line'' with the third quarter, Frontline said. Net income will be buoyed by the sale of shares of Imarex NOS ASA, an Oslo-based derivatives broker, and Dockwise Ltd., a company that hauls oil rigs.

World oil demand will rise 2.3 percent next year, Frontline said, citing data from the International Energy Agency, an adviser to 26 nations.

The carrying capacity of the global fleet of VLCCs will climb almost 6 percent to about 156.5 million tons in 2008, from about 148 million tons at the end of this year, according to estimates from London-based shipbroker Galbraith's Ltd.

The Galbraith's assessment assumes 40 new VLCCs will enter service next year, each with a capacity of about 310,000 tons, and 15 carriers that can each haul about 260,000 tons will be switched to other trades.

At least 38 VLCCs will be converted to ``non-trading purposes'' worldwide by the end of 2008, Frontline said today. Of those ships, 90 percent will become iron-ore carriers, and 10 percent will be turned into storage and production vessels.

The company plans a dividend of $1.50 a share for the third quarter. Frontline has said it plans to pay about 100 percent of profits to shareholders in the form of dividends.

About 40 percent of Frontline's fleet is protected from possible declines next year in the single-voyage, or spot, market through shipping contracts with oil companies that pay a fixed daily amount.

Baltic Dirty Tanker Index

Six Month Chart

Top Tankers Q3 loss widens

Top Tankers Q3 loss widens; shares hit year-low
Nov 8th, 2007
(Reuters)

Top Tankers Inc. (TOPT), which transports refined petroleum products and crude oil, reported a wider third-quarter loss on lower demand and rates for its vessels, sending shares down as much as 12 percent to a new year-low.

Prolonged warm weather in most parts of Europe and the United States, higher-than-anticipated fuel-oil inventories at the beginning of the period and constant rise of oil prices, led to a softer demand for crude oil during the quarter, the Greek company said.

Total available ship days fell to 1,987 during the latest third quarter, from 2,484 in the year-ago quarter. Total average time charter equivalent fell 20 percent to $22,467 per ship per day.

For the third quarter, the company reported a net loss of $18.4 million, or 50 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $11.4 million, or 35 cents a share, in the same quarter last year.

Voyage revenue fell 27 percent to $51.2 million.

Analysts on average were expecting the company to post a loss of 41 cents a share, before special items, on revenue of $46.3 million.

The stock was trading down 5 percent at $4.79 in late morning trade on the Nasdaq, after hitting a low of $4.41 earlier in the session. (Reporting by Hezron Selvi in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

Nordic American posts third quarter loss

Nordic American to buy two new vessels, posts loss
Nov 5th, 2007
(Reuters)

Oil tanker operator Nordic American Tanker Shipping Ltd (NAT) on Monday said it will buy two new vessels for $90 million each.

The company said the two suezmax new-buildings are expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2009 and by April 2010. Nordic American said the transactions will be financed by borrowings under its $500 million credit line.

The company also posted a third-quarter loss of $1.2 million, or 4 cents a share, compared with net income of $20.3 million, or 97 cents a share a year earlier.

Tsakos third quarter profit rises

Tsakos Energy Navigation 3rd-Quarter Profit Increases on Larger Fleet, Capital Gains
Nov 5th, 2007
(AP)

Greek tanker owner Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd. reported higher third-quarter net income Monday as an expanded fleet and a large capital gain lifted earnings above Wall Street expectations.

Net income for the three months ended Sept. 30 rose to $50 million, or $2.61 per share, from $44.5 million, or $2.33 per share, during the same period a year earlier. The latest quarter included capital gains of $31.8 million, compared with similar gains of just $13.3 million a year ago.

Revenue increased to $122.5 million from $115.2 million a year ago.

Analysts polled by Thomson Financial forecast earnings excluding items of $1.12 per share on revenue of $106 million.

Tsakos' fleet grew to an average of 43.6 vessels during the quarter, compared with 37.1 a year ago. That increased revenue after commissions and costs by 3.9 percent, the company said, though depreciation and financing costs also increased.

The company did say its time charter equivalent per ship per day was $26,467 in the third quarter of 2007, down from $29,779 in the third quarter of 2006.

Tsakos said that though the seasonally weak third quarter, when refiners scale back crude demand ahead of the switch-over to heating oil, has ended, spot rates for both crude and product tankers have not yet reached the levels typically expected for the seasonally strong fourth quarter.

Tsakos shares rose $3.58, or 5.4 percent, to $69.56 in midday trading.

Teekay third quarter profit falls 78%

Teekay third-quarter profit falls as rates drop
Oct 31
(Reuters)

Oil tanker operator Teekay Corp (TK) said on Wednesday its quarterly profit fell as tanker charter rates and tanker freight rates declined.

The company said net income fell to $17 million, or 23 cents per share, from $79.8 million, or $1.07 per share, in the same period a year ago.

Seasonal oil field maintenance in the North Sea, and hurricane-related oil field outages led to lower oil export volumes and lower rates, the company said.

Net revenue rose to $462.3 million from $344.3 million in the third quarter a year earlier, the company said.

GMR third quarter profit falls 54%

GMR Announces Third Quarter Results

Oct. 31
PRNewswire-FirstCall

General Maritime Corporation today reported its financial results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2007.

Financial Review: 2007 Third Quarter

The Company had net income of $10.9 million, or $0.36 basic and $0.35 diluted earnings per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2007 compared to net income of $24.0 million, or $0.78 basic and $0.76 diluted earnings per share, for the three months ended September 30, 2006. The decrease in net income was principally the result of lower voyage revenues attributable to a generally lower rate environment in the third quarter of 2007. The impact of lower rates on the Company was mitigated by the Company's increased time charter coverage at rates above current spot rates. Results for the 2007 period also reflected higher interest expense due to increased borrowings to fund our $15.00 special dividend in March 2007 and increased off-hire days due to longer then anticipated drydockings and one accelerated drydocking in the third quarter of 2007.

Peter C. Georgiopoulos, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, commented, "During the third quarter of 2007, we continued to benefit from the strategic decision we made over a year ago to place a significant portion of our fleet on accretive time charters. The considerable success we have had in this important area is testimony to our strong reputation in the industry and unrelenting focus on effectively managing the Company's assets through the shipping cycles. Complementing our solid results for the third quarter, we declared a third quarter dividend of $0.50 per share, our third consecutive dividend under the Company's fixed annual dividend of $2.00 per share. Including this quarterly dividend and the $15 special dividend we paid on March 23, 2007, General Maritime has distributed dividends of $24.78 per share to shareholders since 2005. With 70% time charter coverage for our fleet on the water, we have contracted revenues of $191.8 million for 2008, which positions the Company well for our $2.00 fixed dividend target while maintaining upside potential to benefit from any rate increases in the future."

Included in net income of $10.9 million are a $3.4 million unrealized non- cash gain associated with the change in fair value of our freight derivative as well as a $1.3 million gain associated with monthly cash settlements of our freight derivative, both of which are included in Other (income) expense.

Net voyage revenue, which is gross voyage revenues minus voyage expenses unique to a specific voyage (including port, canal and fuel costs), decreased 12.2% to $49.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $55.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2006. EBITDA for the three months ended September 30, 2007 was $31.0 million compared to $34.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2006 (please see below for a reconciliation of EBITDA to net income). Net cash provided by operating activities was $18.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $15.6 million for the prior year period.

The average daily time charter equivalent, or TCE, rates obtained by the Company's fleet decreased by 15.9% to $30,176 per day for the three months ended September 30, 2007 from $35,886 for the prior year period. The Company's average rates for vessels on spot charters decreased by 51.9% to $18,246 for the three months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $37,994 for the prior year period.

Total vessel operating expenses, which are direct vessel expenses and general and administrative expenses, increased 7.1% to $22.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2007 from $21.0 million for the three months ended September 30, 2006. Direct vessel operating expenses increased 15.5% to $12.7 million from $11.0 million, while general and administrative expenses remained flat at $9.9 for the same periods. The average size of General Maritime's fleet increased 7.8% to 19.4 vessels in the third quarter of 2007 from 18 vessels in the prior year period. On a daily basis, direct vessel operating expenses increased 7.2% to $7,125 during the quarter ended September 30, 2007 compared to $6,645 for the prior year period. This increase can be attributed to cost associated with bringing the technical management of two of our Aframax vessels in-house and the write off of certain expenses reflecting insurance claim deductibles as well as increased premiums reflecting the increased value of our fleet.

Financial Review: Nine Months 2007

Net income was $39.4 million or $1.29 basic and $1.25 diluted earnings per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $134.4 million, or $4.24 basic and $4.13 diluted earnings per share, for the nine months ended September 30, 2006. Net voyage revenues decreased 16.0% to $161.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $192.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2006. EBITDA was $91.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $165.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2006. Net cash provided by operating activities was $79.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $135.4 million for the prior year period. TCE rates obtained by the Company's fleet decreased 4.4% to $33,002 per day for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 from $34,508 for the prior year period. Total vessel operating expenses remained relatively flat at $70.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 compared to $70.7 million for the prior year period, and daily direct vessel operating expenses rose 9.3% to $6,777 for the nine month period ending September 30, 2007 from $6,203 from the prior year period.

OSG Q3 Profit Falls 71%

Overseas Shipholding Third-Quarter Profit Falls 71%
By Todd Zeranski
Oct. 29 (Bloomberg)

Overseas Shipholding Group, the largest U.S.-based oil tanker owner, said third-quarter profit fell 71 percent as the company was paid less for oil deliveries.

Net income declined to $26.6 million, or 83 cents a share, from $90.8 million, or $2.29, a year earlier, the New York-based company said in a statement today. The average estimate of 12 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was 70 cents a share. Revenue rose 4.3 percent to $277.2 million.

Shipping rates have fallen 19 percent this year, according to the Baltic Dirty Tanker Index. The decline is due at least partly to ship supply outpacing crude-oil demand. While the size of the world fleet expanded 3.8 percent, demand increased 1.7 percent, according to the International Energy Agency.

``They're going to have a tough couple of quarters, this and next,'' Natasha Boyden, a Cantor Fitzgerald LP analyst, who has a ``buy'' rating on the stock, said. ``The rates haven't rebounded like we thought they would. Weather hasn't been helpful, and that's usually the biggest driver.''

Overseas Shipholding was unchanged at $69.21 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock has risen 23 percent this year.

Profit included a gain from sales of vessels of $1.5 million, or 5 cents a share. The year-ago quarter had a gain of $15.8 million, or 39 cents.

Oil is up 53 percent in 2007 and reached a record $93.80 a barrel in New York Mercantile Exchange trading today.

Tanker Fleet

The world fleet will increase by as much as 32 percent during the next five years, estimates Lloyd's Register-Fairplay, the company that assigns ship registration numbers.

``We hope we would see asset values come down, as rates have been depressed for several quarters,'' Boyden said. Overseas Shipholding ``would like to see that, because they would be able to buy.''

Last month, Overseas Shipping said it would add four Suezmax carriers, which can each transport 1 million barrels of oil, to its fleet. The company owned or operated 51 crude-oil tankers at the end of the quarter, including 20 very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, which can carry 2 million barrels of oil.

The company has booked 44 percent of the fourth quarter for its VLCCs at an average rate of $25,500 a day. For its Aframax tankers, which can transport 600,000 barrels of oil, it has booked 13 percent of the quarter at a spot charter rate of $17,000 a day.

VLCC Fleet

The company's VLCCs operate mainly out of the Persian Gulf on routes to Asia and the U.S. The tanker owner said it was paid an average of $34,802 a day for its VLCCs in the quarter, a 50 percent decrease. Its break-even point for VLCCs is $17,400.

Its Aframax tankers earned an average spot rate of $24,614, from $34,952 a day a year earlier, a 30 percent decline.

Overseas Shipholding's U.S.-flag fleet ships crude oil and refined products between U.S. ports under the Jones Act, a 1920 law that requires commercial vessels operated between U.S. ports to be built in the U.S., crewed by Americans and owned by an American company.

Revenue for its U.S. fleet nearly tripled to $53.8 million.

Tanker Fleets

Company Fleets [Draft]

625 pixels - 10 columns - 8pt (reset font)

Company	ticker	vessels	dwt*	VLCC	Suezmax	Aframax	Panamax	Product	LNG
Teekay	TK	159	7.73	1	25	46	0	30	7
Frontline [2]	FRO	59	14.70	39	20	0	0	0	0
Overseas	OSG	108	8.15	20	0	20	11	34	0
Ship Finance [2]	SFL	37	9.60	27	10	0	0	0	0
Tsakos	TNP	43	3.04	3	10	8	0	21	1
General Maritime	GMR	19	2.15	0	9	10	0	0	0
Top Tankers	TOPT	23	1.95	0	13	0	0	10	0
Knightsbridge	VLCCF	5	1.50	5	0	0	0	0	0
Double Hull [1]	DHT	8	1.37	3	1	4	0	0	0
Nordic American	-----	12	1.80	0	12	0	0	0	0
Arlington	ATB	9	7.00	2	0	0	2	5	0
-----	-----	-----	---	--	--	--	--	--	--
Euronav	[Eur]	32	dwt	15	15	2	0	0	0
MISC (Malaysia)	-----	45	dwt	8	0	31	0	6	23
Total	-----	vessels	dwt	96	126	86	13	100	31

updated October 2007
[1] DHT tankers chartered in from OSG
[2] Many ships are in both FRO and SFL fleets, SFL charters to FRO.

* million deadweight tons. This number is an estimate based only on the crude tankers in the fleets. Product carriers, LNG carriers, and any other vessels are not included. 300,000 dwt per VLCC; 150,000 dwt per Suezmax; 80,000 dwt per Aframax; and 50,000 dwt per Panamax - regardless of actual individual tanker specifications. This number should only be used as an estimate of total capacity.