Page 10: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (May 2022)

Analysis: OSV Sales What Goes Around Comes Around

Sale of Ex-Sanko Energy Firming AHTS Values

By Robert Day, Head of Offshore, VesselsValue hose who are old enough (or young enough) to re- was reduced by 50%. This was a truly remarkable asking price member Justin Timberlake’s poignant lyrics, ‘What for an AHTS that was just over 5 years old.

goes around, goes around, goes around, comes all Many within the industry described this reduction as a one

Tthe way back around’, will appreciate their signi? - off, a sale to be ignored and not representative of the actual mar- cance and relatability to the offshore oil and gas market. ket. Others blamed the unit’s lower speci? cations: the fact the

On that theme, it appears a vessel very close to my heart, the Japanese had written the book value down to zero, its poor fuel

AHTS previously known as Sanko Energy (now Ena Shogun), consumption, or because it was considered a forced bank sale. has come ‘all the way back around.’ In any case, the vessel was sold to Eastern Navigation (Singa-

News is ? ltering through the market that Eastern Navigation pore) for $5.8 million. The day before the sale, VV valued the (Singapore) has sold the vessel ? ve years after purchasing it vessel at $6.8 million.

from Sanko Steamship in early 2017. In any softening market, there is always one de? ning sale

So why does this vessel resonate with me? Well, from a pro- where the achieved price is often a lot lower than the market fessional perspective, it was my ? rst analyst experience of a perception. In our case, it was the Sanko Energy. However, sale that went against everything established market experts we must remember that VesselsValue is a transactional-based thought about values and sale prices. It also set off a chain re- model, and we cannot base ourselves on one data point alone. action for other distressed AHTS sales, truly illustrating how So, when the en-bloc sale of 11 Very Large AHTS for $75 mil- poor the offshore market was, and many point-blank ignored or lion from suffering Hartmann Offshore to Breakwater Capital refused to accept the situation. occurred, it supported our valuations and reinforced these new

In January 2017, Sanko Steamship was keen to exit the trou- prices were not a one-off or something to be ignored. Sales are bled offshore market and therefore took the executive decision outlined in table below and associated VV values.

to sell its remaining AHTS vessels - the Sanko Energy (16,315 blt 2011 Keihin), Sanko Brilliance, and Sanko Baron (12,228 What goes around, comes around blt 2009 Keihin). First up for sale, and the subject of this article, Recent market rumors suggest that Eastern Navigation Sin- was the Sanko Energy AHTS. gapore has sold the Ena Shogun for $13 million to Chinese in-

Sanko Energy AHTS was marketed for sale at $10 million, terests likely to be engaged in the Chinese domestic offshore which even by 2017 standards was considered a very low ask- renewables market. VV value for the vessel today is $10 mil- ing price, compared to other sales candidates and general valu- lion. This represents a $7.2 million cash gain from their original ation opinion. Sanko Energy AHTS was to cause further disrup- investment of $5.8 million in 2017.

tion to the market when around a month later its asking price There are a few offshore owners who can claim to have made

Vessels Value 10 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • May 2022

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