Maersk Supply Service sells two anchor handling vessels

Maersk Supply Service, subsidiary of Denmark’s AP Moller-Maersk Group, announced earlier the plan to shrink its fleet by up to 20 vessels over the coming 18 months, the first 10 of which are expected to be scrapped or sold by the end of this year.

“The divestment plan is a response to vessels in lay-up, limited trading opportunities and the global oversupply of OSVs in the industry,” Maersk Supply Service said.

The company will also let go of 400 out of its 1,450 offshore workers by end-September due to the sluggish market.

Maersk Puncher and Maersk Provider have been delivered to their new owners, Karadeniz Energy Group based in Istanbul on 23 August. Both ships will be modified and will no longer compete in the OSV segment.

With the exit of the two anchor handlers, Maersk Supply Service has a fleet of 54 vessels.

Amid the challenging market conditions, AP Moller-Maersk Group had earlier announced a first half profit of $342m, down sharply by 87% year-on-year.