AET seals Petrobras deal for another four shuttle tankers

MISC said in a press release that it had won a long-term charter contract to own and operate four specialist DP2 Suezmax-sized shuttle tankers from Petrobras for operations in international and Brazilian waters. The four 152,000dwt shuttle tankers will be built by a Korean shipyard for delivery in 2020 and will then be contracted to Petrobras.

AET first started with working with Petrobras with an initial contract for two DP2 shuttle tankers in the Brazilian Basin in 2010.

MISC said the firm charter period would be for ten years and was expected to commence in 2020. No contract value was disclosed and the deal was not expected to have any financial impact during the current financial year.

The vessels, compliant to IMO NOx Tier 3 requirement, will be built in accordance with Petrobras’ latest technical requirement for DP2 shuttle tankers and installed with a ballast water treatment system. Each will be equipped with high power thrusters and generators fully capable of operating in harsh weather conditions, MISC said.

President and group ceo and AET chairman Yee Yang Chien said: “I would like to extend my heartiest congratulations to AET on this latest award by Petrobras.”

He added: “AET’s focus on increasing its presence in the shuttle tanker business is consistent with the MISC Group’s priority of developing its portfolio of assets that generate long-term secured income on a recurring basis. AET’s latest success in the shuttle tanker segment is another step forward in the MISC Group’s commitment in expanding its business presence in the Brazilian oil and gas industry, that includes the fast growing FPSO market.”

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Yee concluded: “This award goes to prove that growth remains possible for MISC despite the present challenging operating conditions for tanker operators.  It reaffirms MISC’s belief in the prospects of growth in the oil production supply chain.”

AET president and ceo Rajalingam Subramaniam said: “The 2010 Petrobras contract signalled AET’s entry into the shuttle tanker market and this allowed us to demonstrate our expertise and enhance our reputation in a more sophisticated arena of the petroleum logistics industry. Harnessing this experience, we continued to innovate and re-engineer our business and operations to ensure the services we deliver remain relevant to the evolving landscape and our customers’ changing needs. I am delighted that Petrobras has recognised AET’s capabilities and expertise in DP2 shuttle tanker operations with the award of this new contract.”

In April, AET sealed a long-term charter deal with Shell for two LNG dual-fuelled aframax tankers.