American Eagle Tankers News

With the ongoing development of deepwater pre-salt plays and a decreased demand on local content in tankers and other vessels, Brazilian national operator Petrobras and other super-majors have been looking abroad for better rates and reliable operators of shuttle tankers. Claudio Paschoa, Maritime Reporter’s correspondent in Brazil spoke to Peter Liew, Global Director – Mid Size Tankers, Crude Shipping, about AET Tankers’ history and its operations in Brazil.AET (formerly American Eagle Tankers) was founded in Houston in 1994 primarily to conduct lightering operations in the Gulf of Mexico. The company’s fleet grew to 32 vessels (mainly Aframax tankers but also two VLCCs) by 2003, when acquired by MISC Berhad.

Crowley Maritime Corp. has announced that Tim Bush has been promoted to vice president and deputy general counsel. In his new position, Bush will help support the company’s growth as a provider of solutions for the U.S. government and various public-sector agencies. He will be based in Houston and report to Michael Roberts, senior vice president and general counsel. “Tim is an outstanding lawyer, and adds a great deal of value to the Crowley team,” Roberts said. Bush will continue to serve as Crowley’s lead attorney on several large projects for the U.S government, including the Defense Freight Transportation Services (DFTS) contract for the U.S.

American Eagle Tankers (AET), a subsidiary of Malaysian shipping line MISC Bhd, said that it will acquire all the remaining shares of Paramount Tankers, making the latter its wholly owned subsidiary. AET will acquire Golden Energy Tanker Holdings’ 50% stake in Paramount Tankers, a joint venture between the two companies that owns and operates six aframax vessels. AET did not disclose the value of the deal, which is expected to be completed by September this year. AET President & CEO, Captain Rajalingam Subramaniam, says: “We are continually looking for opportunities to ensure sustainable growth in our business and to own / operate modern tonnage which serves our customer needs globally.

ShipServ, the leading marine and offshore marketplace with an expected annual trade of $3bn in 2015, has cemented its position in Asia with the opening of a new office in Singapore. The office will be managed by ShipServ’s VP of Sales Sharon Gill and will be open for business from July 1st. “We are very excited to get much closer to one of the biggest and most vibrant shipping markets in the world and will look to increase our already substantial customer base in the region,” said Kim Skaarup, Chief Operating Officer of ShipServ. Singaporean owners, managers and shipyards currently using ShipServ include Keppel Shipyard, Thome Ship Management, EMAS AMC, MOL Shipmanagement and American Eagle Tankers. There are also 4000 Singaporean suppliers on the platform.

The Isle of Man Ship Registry has appointed Captain Raja Ray as business development manager in Singapore. The senior appointment is aimed at strengthening the flag’s position in the growing shipping markets of Asia Pacific. Captain Raja is a senior maritime professional who spent almost 20 years working for American Eagle Tankers (AET) as master and then ashore in Singapore and London in Health, Safety, Security and the Environment (HSSE) positions and also as their Designated Person Ashore (DPA). His most recent posting was Head of AET’s Atlantic fleet in Houston. The Isle of Man registry has contracted him to promote the flag to the industry in Singapore and Asia.

Teekay Tankers Ltd. announced the appointment of Mr. Kevin J. Mackay as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Teekay Tankers, effective June 20, 2014. Mr. Mackay will join Teekay Tankers from Phillips 66 Corporation (Phillips 66), where he is currently head of the global marine business unit for this industry-leading downstream company. In this role, he is responsible for all aspects of marine transportation, including chartering, operations, demurrage, strategy & freight trading, business improvement and marine risk management. He held a similar role as the General Manager, Commercial Marine at ConocoPhillips from 2009 to 2012 before the formation of Phillips 66. Mr. Mackay started his career working for Neptune Orient Lines in Singapore from 1991 to 1995. He then joined AET Inc.

In summarizing his company's results, Flemming R. "We have achieved much. We came from a difficult past and we are on the right track to return to full health, but we are not there yet. We would have preferred a little more time to consolidate all we have achieved and are achieving before having to deal with a severe downturn in the economic environment like this one. "Today the NOL Group is clearly focused on building its three core businesses: APL, the Liner business; APL Logistics (APLL); and the tanker business, American Eagle Tankers (AET). Volumes in Europe were up 14 percent and rates up 1 percent, while in Asia/Middle East rates were up three percent.

A recent clutch of 'Rolls-Royce' shipboard equipment and technology contracts in Norway arising out of specialized, capital-intensive newbuild projects testified to the U.K. group's march into the commercial marine domain. For sure, the emergence of the engineering group's name in new mercantile circles is the outcome of last year's acquisition of Vickers, and its Vickers-Ulstein Marine division, rather than the result of U.K. home-grown product diversification. But the new proprietor of the former Ulstein and Vickers' interests intends to build on the platform and integrated system opportunities offered by ownership of the industry's most extensive global network of marine equipment production.

Malaysian shipping firm Nepline Bhd agreed to sell two crude oil tankers to American Eagle Tankers Inc for $38 million cash. The sales were driven by the recent decision by the European Shipowners' Association to impose restrictions on all single-hull tankers plying European and American waters by 2002. "Although the decision has yet to be enforced, it has prompted Nepline to plan for replacing its single-hull tankers with newer double-hull oil tankers," it said. Nepline said proceeds from the sale would be mainly used to settle the offshore bank borrowings originally taken up to finance the acquisition of the vessels in 1996.

Tanker freight rates from the Caribs to the U.S. Gulf, which plummeted by $0.64 per barrel over the last week, have almost doubled overnight to levels only seen once before this year. "Charterers thought they'd found the bottom of the freight market on Monday," said a shipping source. "Somehow everyone came onto the market for the same window," said one U.S. tanker broker. Brokers said tanker owners were now demanding W350 ($2.2 per barrel). American Eagle Tankers fixed a 70,000 tonner to Orion at W300. The rate exceeds the W284 ($1.79 per barrel) being quoted before the rot set in at the beginning of last week. The Caribs market is likely to gain longer term support from the North Sea market…

Duramax Marine, a world leader in water-lubricated rubber bearings, recently broke ground on a new facility that will streamline the company's current manufacturing operations. The facility, with approximately 65,000 sq. ft. of factory and office space will consolidate production and administration into one centralized location in Troy Township, Ohio, approximately 40 miles south east of Cleveland. The expected grand opening will be the first quarter of 2001. Watson Coatings Inc. said that Gordon Watson, founder and CEO, retired on Nov. 2, 2000. Gordon founded Watson Coatings in 1987 with his wife Carol, and sons, Tom and Gary. Carol Watson will continue as Office Manager…

MISC Bhd has bought four Aframax tankers from Japan's Tsuneishi Corp for $260m. The first unit of the 107,500-deadweight tonnage (DWT) tankers will be delivered in 2009, while the rest in 2010, MISC said in a statement. It added that the continuous expansion of MISC's petroleum fleet under American Eagle Tankers (AET), supported by regional offices in London, Singapore and Houston will provide it with the critical mass to better serve its customers globally. It also took delivery of its eighth 300,397-DWT very large crude carrier (VLCC) from Universal Shipbuilding Corp of Japan for some $65m. MISC said the delivery of the VLCC, which has a capacity of carrying 340,000 cu m of crude has increased its fleet size to 109 vessels.

MISC Bhd, the world's largest carrier of liquefied natural gas (LNG), is on the lookout for takeover targets to help it grow amid softer shipping rates, according to a report on http://www.btimes.com.my. In 2003, the firm bought American Eagle Tankers (AET), a crude oil transportation company, from Singapore's Neptune Orient Lines for $445 million. An analyst from a foreign research house said that if MISC were to buy, it will be to support AET to grow its petroleum business. MISC has allocated some RM8.44 billion mainly to build tankers and ships. It owns 21 LNG tankers, 49 petroleum tankers, 13 chemical tankers and 21 containerships as of June 30. (Source: http://www.btimes.com.my)

INTERTANKO’s fleet has grown by 12.5% or 21.3m deadweight tons to 194m dwt owned by independent tanker owners as tankers belonging to fifteen owners put up to its Council for their consideration were approved. 16 applications for associate membership were also considered and approved by Council. The two biggest owners entering are Frontline (13.3m dwt) and American Eagle Tankers (6.1m dwt). The next six largest entries are Marmaras Navigation, Sea Fortune Shipping, Estoril Navigation, A.K.Shipping and Trading, Eastwind Shipmanagement, FR8 Shipmanagement, and Calisa SpA, with 1.6m dwt between them. Also JB Ugland, Zest Shipping, FAL Shipping, Transmarine Management, Chemmariner Shipping, with 250,000 dwt between them.

Neptune Orient Lines, the world's sixth largest container shipper, plans to spin off and list its oil-transportation unit, American Eagles Tankers (AET), on the New York Stock Exchange. The Singapore-based company said it plans to offer common shares to be listed on the NYSE and Singapore Depositary Receipts (SDRs) on the Singapore Exchange to investors internationally as well as in the city-state. The offering is expected to be made in the second or third quarter and AET would use net proceeds of the offer to buy additional tankers for an expansion program. NOL said the listing would unlock value for shareholders and support the growth of the group's three core businesses - logistics, container transportation and oil transportation in tankers.

Neptune Orient Lines subsidiary American Eagle Tankers Inc. has contracted Hyundai Heavy Industries to build two new VLCCs. No financial details were given. The two double-hulled vessels, each with a cargo capacity of 352,000 cu. m. are expected to be delivered in 2002.

Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) said on Friday its unit American Eagle Tankers had decided to withdraw its initial public offering due to market weakness. American Eagle, Singapore-based NOL's oil transportation unit, had received approval for a share listing on the New York Stock Exchange and also planned to issue Singapore Depositary Receipts. "NOL's management is committed to maximizing shareholder value for its investors, but believes that current equity market conditions do not favor a listing for AET," the company said in a statement.

Crude oil tanker owner and operator American Eagle Tankers Inc. Ltd. has filed for an initial public offering that could raise up to $132 million for the unit of Singapore's Neptune Orient Lines Ltd. American Eagle, which is based in Jersey City, N.J., plans to use the net proceeds from the IPO to expand its fleet of tankers, which currently numbers 24, it said on Tuesday in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company is selling 6.75 million common shares for between $17.60 and $19.50 apiece, which would give it a potential market value of $495 million based on the high end of the price range and about 25 million shares outstanding.

Malaysia International Shipping Corporation Berhad (MISC) will acquire Neptune Orient Lines’s American Eagle Tankers (AET). The acquisition will provide MISC with an additional fleet of 29 Aframax tankers (22 owned and 7 chartered-in) and 2 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC). This will effectively increase MISC’s fleet to 37 Aframax tankers and 3 VLCCs (MISC presently has 8 Aframax tankers and 1 VLCC). In addition, AET has contracted for 3 Aframax and 3 VLCC new-builds and plans to charter-in 1 Aframax newbuild, while MISC has contracted for 4 additional Aframax and 1 VLCC newbuilds. Including newbuilds and charter-ins, the combined fleet totals 53 crude oil carriers.With the acquisition, MISC will be the second largest combined Aframax fleet in the world.

The U.S. Coast Guard said that shipping operations at the Southwest Pass, off Louisiana, were not affected by a minor crude oil spill after two crude oil tankers collided on Wednesday evening. "The Coast Guard has established a safety zone around the incident area. Normal shipping operations will continue outside the safety zone," said the Coast Guard Marine Safety Office in Morgan City, La. The spill which took place approximately 40 miles south of Grand Isle, La., was not near the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) as earlier reported, said Mark Bugg, scheduling manager for the LOOP, the only deep-water U.S. oil port and a major conduit for the country's crude oil imports.

Shipping operations at the Southwest Pass, off Louisiana, were not affected by a minor crude oil spill after two crude oil tankers collided on March 15, Coast Guard officials said. The spill took place approximately 40 miles south of Grand Isle, La., when a lightering vessel owned by American Eagle Tankers Inc., the Eagle Carina, collided with a Chevron oil tanker, the J. Dennis Bonney, while preparing to transfer crude oil from the tanker to the lightering vessel, company officials said. It was estimated that approximately 7,560 to 8,400 gallons of crude oil were spilled. The Coast Guard classifies an offshore spill of this volume as minor. There were no injuries resulting from the collision and no reports of impact to marine wildlife resulting from the spill, officials said.

In summarizing his company's results, Mr. Flemming R. "We have achieved much. We came from a difficult past and we are on the right track to return to full health, but we are not there yet. We would have preferred a little more time to consolidate all we have achieved and are achieving before having to deal with a severe downturn in the economic environment like this one. "2001 is proving a tough year -- and, while this result is disappointing, we have to remember where we started from and accept that sustained profitability is not achieved magically overnight," Jacobs said. The Group recorded serious losses in 1997-98 when the Asian crisis hit just as it had purchased the American liner business, APL.