Safe Bulkers is making good on its prediction five months ago that charterers would start fixing bulkers for at least three years toward the end of 2021. The Polys Hajioannou-led owner has placed a second capesize bulker on a three-year charter since Monday, the latest being the 181,400-dwt Lake Despina (built 2014). New York-listed Safe Bulkers has fixed the vessel at $22,500 per day and will get a one-time $3m payment when the charter begins at some point between the end of January 2022 and May 2022. The undisclosed charterer has the option to extend the three-year fixture for another year at $27,500 per day.

Safe Bulkers said it expects to earn about $27.5m in revenue over the minimum scheduled three-year period of the charter. “While we remain a strong spot charter market player, we decided to lock this second three-year period time charter that further enhances the visibility of our future cash flows and supports our long-term earning capability,” president Loukas Barmparis said. The ship is currently being chartered at a 19% premium to the daily Baltic Capesize Index rate to the end of January 2022.

Safe Bulkers on Monday fixed a 181,000-dwt capesize it bought in early August for at least three years at $24,400 per day, starting in November. Charterers, which some brokers identify with agricultural firm Olam, have the option to extend the deal for a year at $26,500 per day. The company expects to make about $26.7m in revenue over the ship’s minimum three years of employment.

Chief executive Polys Hajioannou told investors in a May conference call that charterers would seek multi-year deals to employ vessels in a further improved bulker freight market. He said then that he would keep most of his company’s fleet of about 40 bulkers in the spot market in anticipation of such deals.

The Baltic Exchange’s capesize 5TC, which is a spot-rate average weighted across five key routes, came in at $86,953 per day on Thursday after picking up $83 per day since Wednesday.