Janggeum Maritime, the tanker arm of Sinokor Merchant Marine Group, has struck an investment deal with Geneva-based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), under which the global shipping giant is seeking to acquire a 50 percent stake in the firm.
The two sides have signed an agreement and filed for merger approval with South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission, as well as regulators in Greece and Cyprus. Details of the deal including financial terms were not disclosed.
The deal comes as Janggeum Maritime rides an extraordinary windfall from a market dislocation triggered by war in the Middle East.
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively crippled following U.S.-led strikes on Iran in late February, crude exports from key Gulf producers have plunged while onshore storage capacity has rapidly filled. That imbalance has pushed global oil majors and traders to charter very large crude carriers (VLCCs) as floating storage units, sending demand — and earnings — sharply higher.
Floating storage in the region has surged from around 10 million barrels before the conflict to more than 50 million barrels, according to Reuters. Over the same period, crude exports from eight Middle Eastern countries dropped from 25.13 million barrels per day to 9.71 million barrels.
The company had aggressively expanded its fleet of secondhand VLCCs ahead of the conflict — a strategy that is now paying off. Since late December, Sinokor has been linked to the purchase of 29 VLCCs built between 2010 and 2016, paying between $68 million and over $100 million per vessel, well above benchmark valuations, according to a Lloyd’s report.
The acquisitions included eight vessels from John Fredriksen’s Frontline, six from Belgium’s CMB.Tech, three from the UK’s Zodiac Maritime, and two from New York-listed International Seaways. Other reported sellers include Greece’s Marinakis Group, George Economou’s TMS Tankers and Chandris Group.
Industry insiders say the nature of those purchases offered an early clue.
“Buying older VLCCs — especially without scrubbers — is a strong signal they’re intended for storage rather than transport,” a shipping source said. “Fuel efficiency matters less when vessels are anchored.”
That strategy was reinforced in late January, when the company pre-positioned at least six empty tankers in the Persian Gulf. When the conflict escalated on Feb. 28 and shipping routes tightened, oil companies scrambled to secure storage — and Janggeum was already in place.
The company is now estimated to be earning about $500,000 per day per vessel from floating storage leases — up from $30,000–40,000 a year ago, $70,000–80,000 in late February, and even above the roughly $400,000 currently earned on key Middle East–Asia transport routes.
With MSC entering the picture, Janggeum Maritime is now looking beyond opportunistic gains.
The tie-up is aimed at diversifying into broader shipping operations by leveraging MSC’s global container network, potentially transforming the tanker-focused firm into a more integrated maritime player.
Janggeum Maritime declined to comment on its fleet acquisitions and VLCC strategy. MSC did not respond to requests for comment.
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