| Singapore-based pressurised gas carrier owner Epic Gas has sold two of its older ships. The company said 1997-built Epic Cebu and 1996-built Cefalu have been sold to buyers engaged in Southeast Asian cabotage trades. Epic Gas said, “The transaction demonstrates Epic’s commitment to proactively manage our fleet to improve profitability and deliver our customers a differentiated service with modern vessels across the full-size spectrum of pressurised LPG carriers.” Epic now has 36 pressurised LPG carriers with an average size and age of 5,625 m³ and 8.4 years, respectively. The company has an additional eight vessels on order with shipyards in Japan and is expecting the delivery of a newbuilding under a bareboat charter. Proceeds from the transaction were used to pay off USD9 million of senior debt maturing on 28 December. Epic Gas has pledged to reduce its exposure to older ships to overcome falling crude oil prices, which have impacted the trading of propane, butane, and petrochemicals. Epic said, “While a pressurised gas carrier can operate past 30 years, a vessel’s utility on the international market declines dramatically as vessels approach 20 years of age. With age, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain the vessels up to the oil major vetting standards required to trade in our markets.” |