Pelagic Credit enters crude tanker sector with Suezmax financing agreement
Pelagic Credit Plc has entered into an agreement to provide a US$30 million mezzanine loan facility for the financing of two Suezmax tankers, marking the company’s first investment in the crude oil tanker sector.
The transaction, announced on November 9, 2026, represents a further expansion of Pelagic Credit’s maritime financing portfolio. The facility has an 18-month term and is expected to generate approximately US$3 million in distributable earnings from interest and fees over its duration, according to the company.
The agreement introduces exposure to crude oil transportation through a financing structure rather than direct vessel ownership. It also extends Pelagic Credit’s investment activities into a tanker segment supported by contracted vessel employment.
Financing backed by contracted tanker employment
The two Suezmax tankers will operate under time charter agreements with a major independent international energy and commodities trading group headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. The charter arrangements are expected to remain in place throughout the financing period, providing contracted cash flows to support debt servicing.
Suezmax tankers are designed to transport approximately one million barrels of crude oil when fully laden and are widely deployed across international crude oil trading routes.
The financing includes a customary security and corporate support package, although Pelagic Credit has not disclosed the identities of the vessels, their owner, the charterer or the detailed financial terms beyond the facility’s principal amount, duration and expected earnings.
C. Tobias Backer, Chief Executive Officer of Pelagic Credit, said the agreement expands the company’s investment portfolio into the Suezmax segment while combining vessel financing with contracted employment.
The investment is intended to support Pelagic Credit’s strategy of generating recurring income from maritime assets and maintaining quarterly shareholder distributions. The company expects the transaction to contribute approximately US$3 million in distributable earnings over the 18-month financing period, although this remains a forward-looking estimate rather than income already realised.
The agreement is expected to close during November 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Until completion, the financing remains an agreed transaction rather than a fully closed investment.
The move adds crude oil tankers to Pelagic Credit’s existing maritime financing activities, broadening the range of vessel segments represented in its investment portfolio.
