Bahri to Acquire 2 VLCCs

The board of National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) has approved the purchase of two second-hand very large crude carriers (VLCCs) for $155 million, it said in a bourse statement on Thursday.

Bahri will take delivery of the carriers between Jan. 14, 2016 and Feb. 1, 2016, the statement said, adding the financial impact of the ships would appear in its first quarter of 2016 earnings.

The ships were purchased from Alpha and Beta VLCC LLC, a subsidiary of Tanker Investment Ltd, the statement added.

Bahri became the sole provider of VLCC oil shipping services to Saudi Aramco after it purchased the marine unit of the oil giant in a deal first announced in 2012 and completed last year.

Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh