Ed Buttery-led Taylor Maritime Investments (TMI) has revealed it has scrapped a bulker sale announced in March while clinching another disposal. The London-listed shipowner said it has agreed with the buyer to cancel the deal for an unnamed bulker. This is likely to be the 32,600-dwt Happy Hiro (built 2006), one of two vessels TMI sold in March. The handysize went for $12.4m to Chinese interests but was never delivered. The owner said on Monday that the vessel’s value has jumped by more than 10% since the sale was agreed. VesselsValue assesses the Happy Hiro as worth $14.6m. The bulker has now been fixed on a new one-year charter with a yield of more than 40%. The company has been contacted for further information. Meanwhile, TMI has sold another handysize built in 2009 for $17.2m. The company has four vessels built that year, but the one most closely matching the valuation is the 32,300-dwt Golden Bonnie, worth $17.1m. The deal will generate an internal rate of return of 80%. TMI will be left with 27 bulkers and has no other ships contracted for sale currently. The company said the average net time charter rate for the vessels is $20,250 per day, giving an average annualized unlevered cash yield of 29%. This is up from $18,600 per day and a 24% yield on 31 March.

The contracts have an average duration of eight months, up from six months at the end of the first quarter. TMI has covered 53% of the remaining fleet days for the financial year ending 31 March 2023 at an average of $19,700 per day. “This provides strong earnings visibility and certainty, with the opportunity in this good market to secure more charters at attractive rates for the remaining open days for the fleet,” the owner said. Chief executive Buttery said the latest sale allows the company to “crystallize” the increase in asset values since the end of the last quarter. “Meanwhile, yields continue to be strong, and we’ve now locked in a substantial level of revenue across the portfolio at very attractive yields as part of our focus on securing more cover for the fleet going into the summer,” he added. The CEO said this is consistent with TMI’s commercial strategy to have a mix of charter durations to balance revenue optimization and earnings visibility.