Osprey Reports Strong Profits

Osprey Maritime Ltd., in the middle of being taken over by Norwegian shipping magnate John Fredriksen, reported a sharp earnings turnaround on Wednesday, suggesting to analysts that Fredriksen had got a good bargain. The Singaporean energy transportation firm, which used to be controlled by a group of Indonesians including Bambang Trihatmodjo, son of former President Suharto, said it expected to report group attributable net profit for the whole year of at least $ 37 million. Last year it lost $191 million, mainly due to a hefty write-down in the value of its fleet of vessels at the bottom of the tanker cycle. Analysts said the profit forecast beat their expectations and showed that Osprey was enjoying a strong turnaround on the back of a rapid rise in tanker rates this year. Fredriksen, through oil transportation giant World Shipholding Group, has already managed to gain majority control of Osprey for S$1.00 a share.