The tanker market has entered a period that the shipping industry may never have experienced before over the past three years.
Historic records for both freight rates and vessel values are being broken one after another, while deals recently closed at unprecedented levels have been surpassed within days. Such a case is Dynacom’s 300,000-dwt newbuild supertanker “Pinios”, owned by George Prokopiou. According to shipbroking reports, the vessel, which was delivered in early 2026, was sold for close to $200 million — a price with no precedent in the shipping industry.
However, reports circulated by shipbroking houses suggest that even this record may already have been broken.
Specifically, the market is linking Belgian shipping group CMB.Tech to a possible en-bloc resale of four VLCCs for $1 billion, or $250 million per vessel. Although it may seem that the price is particularly high, analysts do not rule out the deal ultimately being confirmed. A similar situation is unfolding in the second-hand VLCC market. Pantheon Tankers, owned by Anna Angelicoussis and her sons Fragiskos and Antonis Kanellakis, was reported to have achieved a record sale for a 15-year-old supertanker.
More specifically, brokers reported that the company had sold the 314,000-dwt “Sea Leopard”, built in 2011, for $135 million. However, the latest information indicates that although the company has received offers at very high levels, it has not decided to sell the vessel.
This may mean that the vessel is capable of securing freight rates at levels that can generate strong profitability, while it is also possible that the company is waiting for the market to rise further, at a time when everyone needs available tonnage immediately.
Buying and selling
The VLCC market has undergone a sharp repricing during 2026, with the most significant acceleration coming late July, as exceptionally high freight earnings were quickly reflected in second-hand vessel values.
According to Xclusiv shipbrokers, although prices had already begun rising earlier in the year, the latest increase was particularly rapid, reflecting a combination of geopolitical turmoil, reduced actual vessel availability and the immediate cash-flow generation potential offered by the existing fleet.
Freight market soars
The Baltic VLCC TC Average rose from around $198,000 per day in July to approximately $272,000 per day in August, before averaging almost $449,000 per day during the first half of September.
On September 18, the index had reached approximately $722,946 per day, compared with around $79,700 per day in mid-September 2025.
Geopolitical developments have played a significant role in this move. Escalating tensions around Iran and disruptions related to the Strait of Hormuz have increased war-risk exposure, affected vessel availability and created greater uncertainty around normal trading patterns.
At the same time, diversions, longer voyage durations and increased demand for alternative sources of crude have boosted tonne-mile demand, constraining effective supply and putting further upward pressure on earnings.
Higher Values
Between July 10 and September 18, the values of five-year-old VLCCs increased from around $145 million to $172 million, an increase of approximately 18.6%.
The value of 10-year-old VLCCs rose from $115 million to $152 million, up almost 32%.
The value of 15-year-old vessels rose from approximately $83.5 million to $135 million, an increase of almost 61%.
Resale vessel values increased from around $175 million to approximately $200 million.
Overall, Xclusiv has recorded 103 VLCC sales from January through September 14, although activity has been uneven throughout the year.
January and February were particularly active months, with 38 and 27 sales respectively, before transactions fell sharply in the spring.
Momentum gradually returned over the summer, with 10 sales in August and a further nine through mid-September.
The age profile of the transactions is equally notable. Of the 103 VLCCs sold, 43 were aged 11-15 years, 32 were 16-20 years old, 14 were 6-10 years old, nine were more than 20 years old and just five were aged 0-5 years.
Source: Naftemporiki