Höegh Autoliners has agreed to purchase the ro-ro vessel Höegh Berlin for a purchase price of USD34.25 million.
It was built at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in 2005 and has a capacity of 7,850 ceu. It is part of a series of vessels Höegh built at DSME between 2004 and 2010. The vessel was sold in 2009 and chartered back to Höegh Autoliners under a bareboat charter agreement.
This is the fifth bareboat-chartered vessel the company has purchased back in less than a year, including Höegh Beijing, Höegh Tracer, Höegh Trapper and Höegh St. Petersburg.
Per Øivind Rosmo, cfo of Höegh Autoliners, said: “After the purchase of the leased vessels, we will have a fleet of 31 owned vessels, three bareboat chartered vessels with purchase option and three vessels chartered in on medium term time charters. This gives us limited exposure to the currently tight and expensive time charter market.
“Höegh Berlin has done a very good job for us and our customers since we built her in 2005 and is very well suited for our established and balanced trade systems from Asia to Europe and the USA with return to Asia via South Africa and Australia or the Middle East.” Höegh Autoliners has agreed to purchase the ro-ro vessel Höegh Berlin for a purchase price of USD34.25 million.
