Stolt Tankers is pleased to welcome the Bochem Houston to its Stolt Tanker Joint Service, bringing the number of ships in its deep-sea fleet to 84. The Bochem Houston is one of six newbuildings ordered from the CMJL shipyard in China by Belgian shipowner Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB).

Stolt Tankers reached an agreement with CMB's chemical tanker division Bochem in June this year for the long-term time charter and pooling of the six 26,000 deadweight chemical tankers. The remaining five ships are expected to enter service in 2023 and 2024.

Lucas Vos, President, Stolt Tankers said: “This agreement is an excellent opportunity to further solidify our relationship with CMB and Bochem. As well as securing attractively priced tonnage in a firm chemical tanker market, these modern, fuel-efficient ships will help to lower the age profile and carbon intensity of our fleet while offering customers more flexibility as they can trade in any of our deep-sea routes.

“With the option for these ships to be retrofitted for ammonia propulsion, the agreement also supports Stolt Tankers’ commitment to reducing its emissions by 50% by 2030 (compared to 2008 levels). At the end of the day it’s our customers who truly benefit, as we expect this deal to drive further improvements in our best-in-class customer service and reliability as we modernise our fleet.”

Stolt-Nielsen S.A. press release