Oil major BP has provisionally chartered a very large crude carrier (VLCC) as floating storage off Malaysia at the cheapest rate for so far this year, shipping industry sources said. The supertanker Gene was chartered by BP for $20,500 a day for three months. The sources noted that BP could also renew the contract by another three months for a daily rate of $22,000.
According to tanker tracking data, Gene was set to arrive at Linggi port on the west coast of the Malaysian peninsula on Thursday. The booking came amid a flurry of ship charter by oil producers and traders after crude demand plunged and tanker rates dropped. The daily costs for chartering VLCCs for six months has been declining from a high of $120,000-$130,000 a day in April.
