YZJ inks upto eight 208k BCs5 Dec 2014 09:41
Vogemann at Yangzijiang for newcastlemax series
Eight replacement newbuildings will carry a higher price tag than the orders originally contracted by the German owner at JES
Reederei Vogemann has turned to Yangzijiang Shipbuilding for up to eight newcastlemax bulkers.
Industry sources say the eight 208,000-dwt newbuildings are for delivery from late 2016 into 2017. The deal involves four firm ships, plus four options.
TradeWinds is told that the ships will replace eight similar-size newbuildings the company signed up for early this year at JES International Holdings. But that deal did not materialise as the yard failed to secure refund guarantees.
Chinese financial institutions are tightening up on lending to shipyards as the sector is regarded as risky.
Also, JES subsidiary Jiangsu New East Marine Equipment was removed from the first batch of “white list” shipyards drawn up by China Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
Jiangsu Eastern Heavy Industry, another subsidiary of JES, is also blacklisted by the Supreme People’s Court of China for failing to settle debt obligations of around CNY 15m ($2.44m) covering five separate lawsuits filed by equipment suppliers.
China, faced with an excess of shipbuilding capacity, singling out in the white list shipyards considered worthy of policy support.
The Vogemann order is costing around $24m more than previously. It is said to be paying around $56m for each newcastlemax at Yangzijiang compared with a reported $53m at JES.
Vogemann is also listed with six fuel-efficient handysize bulkers on order at Samjin Shipbuilding. The 36,000-dwt units were booked last year at a reported price of around $22m each for delivery from the end of this year into 2015. However, Vogemann is not likely to take delivery of the sextet from Samjin as the yard is now under Chinese court protection and operations have stopped.
The Korean shipyard was hit with financial troubles and failed to secure refund guarantees for its newbuilidngs. It is unknown if Vogemann is looking for another shipyard to have the handysize ships built.
Vogemann has also acquired tonnage from the secondhand market. In July, it bought the Mipo-built, 36,800-dwt Voge Emma (ex-A Handy) and Voge Mia (ex-B Handy, both built 2011) for $18.5m and $18m, respectively. The duo was previously owned by Nobu Su’s Tomorrow Makes Today (TMT) and they were sold at an auction approved by the US Bankruptcy Court in Houston, Texas.
The company has also offloaded two vessels from its fleet. It sold the 700-teu feedership Johanna (built 1999) for $1.6m to Foroohari Reederei and the 71,000-dwt panamax bulker Voge West (built 1995) to an undisclosed buyer for $5.5m.
London broker Clarksons’ database lists Vogemann as currently owning three capesizes, three open-hatch handies, one panamax bulker, six handysize bulkers and two handysize products tankers.
http://www.tradewindsnews.com/weekl
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