New York-listed shipowner SFL Corporation has announced charter extensions with the Danish liner Maersk for three 8,700-9,500 teu container vessels.
The owner of 34 container vessels said Tuesday it had agreed new five-year charters for three 10,600 teu vessels with Maersk until the middle of 2030, adding about $210m in its charter backlog.
In addition, SFL Corporation recently chartered the 1,700 teu feeder vessel Green Ace to Maersk until the fourth quarter of 2024.
Maersk has also recently exercised one year extension options for three 8,700-9,500 teu vessels, adding approximately $30m to the charter backlog.
The company’s container fleet generated approximately $90.2m of charter hire in the quarter of 2024, including profit share from fuel savings.
SFL has also a car carrier fleet of seven vessels, a fleet of 16 crude oil and product tankers of which three were under construction at quarter end, and 15 dry bulk carriers of which eight were employed on long term charters in the quarter.
Furthermore, it owns two harsh environment drilling rigs, the large jack-up rig Linus and the ultra-deepwater semi-submersible rig Hercules.
The estimated fixed rate charter backlog from the company’s fleet of 76 wholly or partly owned vessels and newbuildings under construction was approximately $3.6bln, with a weighted remaining charter term of 5.7 years.
Ole B. Hjertaker, chief executive of SFL Management AS, said in a comment: “We are pleased to execute on our growth strategy, with several new vessels to be added over the next few months.
“Over the last decade SFL has transformed from a vessel financing provider to a maritime infrastructure company, with the majority of assets on long term time charters to end users.
“A key part of our value proposition is to own, operate and continuously upgrade the fleet to the highest standards, including fuel efficiency measures to reduce the carbon footprint for us and our customers. And the strength of our operating platform is illustrated by our ability to execute multiple repeat transactions with industry leading counterparties.
“Our fixed rate charter backlog continues to grow and stands at approximately $3.6 billion after recent acquisitions and charters. This provides increased cash flow visibility going forward, with additional contribution from the newly acquired vessels from the third quarter onwards.”
