Pakistan National Shipping Corp. (PNSC) has purchased a fourth Aframax-class oil tanker named M.T. Lalazar for $13.5 million. The 113,881 dwt vessel is the largest ever to join Pakistan's fleet, PNSC officials said.
The vessel, previously named M.T. Lombradia, was operating by Greek-based Fuente Shipping Corp. and was registered in the Bahamas. The vessel was built in November 1984 in Italy.
The tanker purchase is part of a contract for transportation of crude oil for Pak-Arab Refinery Co. Ltd. (Parco), National Refinery Ltd. (NRL), and Pakistan Refinery Ltd. (PRL).
Through the vessel's purchase, PNSC said it would save on foreign exchange, which was being paid for chartering foreign vessels. Contracts with Parco, NRL, and PRL would provide a cargo guarantee of about 7.35 million tonnes/year (t/y) of crude oil, including 4.1 million t/y for NRL, 2.75 million t/y for Parco, and 500,000 t/y for PRL.