Tsakos marks milestone with shuttle tanker deliveries, solidifying leading position

The US-listed Greek owner recently stole headlines with a US$1.3Bn newbuilding deal for nine shuttle tankers, secured on long-term charters with Petrobras’ multimodal logistics arm, Transpetro.

Now, TEN is poised to take delivery of two newbuilds ordered in 2022. South Korean shipbuilding giant Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) hosted naming ceremonies on 24 and 25 April for Athens 04 and Paris 24, a pair of 154,350-dwt DP2 shuttle tankers bound for long-term service with French major TotalEnergies. Inspired by the Olympic Games hosted in Athens and Paris in 2004 and 2024 respectively, the vessels are key additions to TEN’s growing fleet.

According to the company’s latest report, the ships are committed on charters through the first half of 2032, with options that could extend the deal by up to 11 more years. TEN is understood to have paid about US$130M per unit.

The deliveries will mark just the beginning. TEN has another 10 shuttle tankers under construction at SHI, scheduled to roll out between mid-2026 and late 2028, including the nine earmarked for the Petrobras/Transpetro deal. That agreement alone is expected to generate roughly US$2.0Bn in revenues.

With the newbuilds, TEN will field a fleet of 16 DP2 Suezmax shuttle tankers, positioning it among the largest independent players in the segment. The Greek company is also pressing ahead with a broader renewal push, building 21 vessels totalling 2.6M dwt, with a minimum revenue backlog of US$4.0Bn already locked in.

Including ships under construction, TEN’s diversified fleet – spanning crude tankers, product carriers, and LNG vessels – stands at 82 units, totalling 10.1M dwt.