Singapore’s BW Group has decided to sell about 7.48 million shares of tanker giant DHT Holdings and further reduce its stake in the company.
BW Group listed more than 7.48 million shares of its DHT stock for sale, according to a DHT filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. According to the filing, the sale amounted to a 4.65% stake valued at approximately $82.9 million.
DHT is known to have acquired 11 very large crude carriers (VLCCs) from BW Group in 2017, which at the time consisted of nine existing VLCCs and two newbuild VLCCs.To finance the acquisition, DHT issued approximately $256 million of DHT capital stock, and upon delivery, BW Group became the holder of approximately 33.5% of the outstanding share capital of the company. In recent years, BW Group’s shareholding has slowly declined from 33.5% in 2017 to 15.8% today.
DHT has contracted Hanwha Ocean (formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering) and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries, a shipbuilding subsidiary of HD Hyundai Group, for the construction of 4+4 VLCCs, which are expected to be delivered between April and December 2026, according to the latest news. Hanwha Ocean and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries will build two units each, with an average price of $128.5 million for the first four VLCCs and a total order value of $514 million. Should the owners choose to take effect the four optional units in the future, delivery is expected in the first half of 2027.
DHT said the series of VLCCs will be built to a new super-environmental design specification with a deadweight of about 320,000 tons, equipped with an exhaust gas cleaning system, compliant with the Tier III standard, hold a variety of fuel entry class ready symbols, and improve profitability through improved fuel economy and reduced emissions.