Aspo Plc subsidiary ESL Shipping sells an ice-classed bulk carrier to The Qrill Company AS. The sales price of the 21,353-dwt self-discharging Kallio, 2006-built, is about 18m euros. The sales gain for Aspo is expected to be around 10m euros.
The company stated that divesting the vessel, taken into use in 2006, would help to speed up the green transition of ESL Shipping and strengthen the financing of the new vessels currently under construction.
Kallio has sailed under the Finnish flag. After the divestment of the vessel, the aim is to assign the vessel crew to ESL Shipping’s other vessels whenever possible. The Kallio has been handed over to the new owner, operating in the marine feed ingredients business.
“We are investing heavily in Green Handy vessels, which can be operated fossil-free and have an ice class of 1A. Development of the Green Handies has progressed according to our plan. By divesting m/s Kallio, we strengthen the balance sheet of ESL Shipping and implement our strategy,” said Rolf Jansson, CEO of Aspo and chairman of the board of ESL Shipping.
“The first new generation Green Handy vessel will join our fleet in about two years. During the transition period, we will consider chartering or acquiring additional vessels, when needed,” added Mikki Koskinen, managing director of ESL Shipping.
Currently, the combined fleet of ESL Shipping and AtoB@C Shipping consists of around 40 vessels with cargo capacity ranging from 4,000-25,000 dwt.
