Ardmore Shipping in third-party ship management deal

The four Carl Büttner vessels – Aurelia, Avalon, Apollo and Admiral – are high-quality 24,000-dwt chemical tankers, which will operate alongside Ardmore’s own chemical tanker fleet. This move signals a doubling of the similar-sized chemical tankers under Ardmore’s management, leveraging the company’s global platform and experience in the chemical and vegetable oil trades.

Ardmore Shipping chief commercial officer Gernot Ruppelt said, “We feel honoured that a company as well-established and professional as Carl Büttner has entrusted us with their assets. These are four high-quality, high-performing vessels, and we will work hard to repay their trust with performance.”

"This move also reflects our belief in the significant growth potential for more sustainable, non-fossil fuel cargoes, which already make up 25% of our business. The energy transition is driving greater demand for non-fossil fuel cargoes. In joining forces with Carl Büttner, we have strengthened our platform when it comes to meeting customers’ needs for the movement of chemical cargoes, which will benefit both partners.”

Carl Büttner managing director Thorsten Mackenthun said, “We believe there is a lot of aligned thinking between Büttner and Ardmore, and we look forward to this new partnership. There is a strong match between our chemical tankers and Ardmore’s global presence and strong track record in the chemical and vegoil markets. And we look forward to exploring new trades and cargo opportunities for our ships.”

Ardmore Shipping also owns and operates six chemical tankers (25-37,000 dwt), bringing the number of chemical tankers under Ardmore’s management to 10, in addition to their large fleet of IMO 2/3 medium range tankers. The growth in more sustainable, non-fossil fuel cargoes is one of the key strands in Ardmore’s Energy Transition Plan, alongside an ongoing focus on fuel efficiency improvements and partnership projects with like-minded customers and shipping companies.