The US-listed owner of 74 vessels in the water or under construction, Tsakos Energy Navigation, revealed a fresh newbuilding move on Thursday.
TEN is in firm discussions with a Far Eastern yard for the construction of five LR1 newbuildings with expected delivery between the second quarter of 2027 and third quarter of 2028.
The Greek owner didn’t disclose further details but mentioned that the first quarter of 2024 has been the ‘springboard for TEN’s green drive’ with a series of vessel renewals and future growth initiatives.
During this time, the fleet averaged almost two vessels fewer than in the equivalent 2023 period and had eight vessels undergoing scheduled drydockings and repairs compared to only two vessels in the first quarter of 2023.
Following the introduction of four vessels and the sale of one suezmax in the first quarter of 2024, the shipowner has taken delivery of another four vessels from Viken Crude AS and sold to third party interests two aframaxes, one suezmax and one LNG carrier for a substantial profit.
The owner described 2024 as a year with ‘heightened activity.’ As it is said, this activity resulted in the divestment of assets of 0.6 million deadweight tonnes with an average age of 17.5 years, and their concurrent replacement with environmentally friendly vessels of 1.4 million deadweight tonnes averaging 1.5 years.
During the first quarter of 2024, TEN took delivery of three modern dual-fuel LNG powered vessels. These vessels were financed by cash-at-hand and bank loans at competitive terms. As a result, bank debt at the end of the first quarter of 2024 reached $1.66 billion.
The first half of 2024 was one of the busiest ever for the company which engaged in activities relating to sales, acquisitions and new orders of 14 vessels, five of which in the first quarter.
TEN today operates a fleet of six vessels with alternative fuel capabilities, all on long-term contracts to oil majors.
“True to our strategy of vessel divestments and timely acquisitions, including new orders, TEN maintains the reputation it has built over the decades in the global maritime energy markets,” George Saroglou, president and COO of TEN commented.
“With such heightened renewals activity since the beginning of the year, coupled with a dividend that is twice the amount paid to shareholders this time last year, we remain confident the TEN’s stock price will continue to rise and eventually reflect it’s true value,” Mr. Saroglou concluded.
The shipowner gave to the press also a summary of its financial results for the first quarter. The company reported net income for the first quarter of 2024 at $54m, resulting in $1.60 earnings per share.
Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter of 2024, impacted by the reduced fleet size and the increased number of off-hire days due to drydockings, totaled $100.5m.
The company’s cash reserves remained at a solid $344.0m as of March 31, 2024.
Meanwhile, from July 1st, 2024 onwards, the ticker symbol for TEN’s common shares will change from “TNP” to “TEN”. TEN’s preferred shares will correspondingly transition to the new ticker and will trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbols “TEN-PRE” and “TEN-PRF”.
