Pan Ocean Moves to Expand Tanker Ops as Korea’s SK Exits Wet Tankers
The tanker market continues to consolidate as Pan Ocean reported it has agreed to pay approximately $668 million to acquire the tanker segment of SK Shipping. Tankers had provided the historic starting point for SK Shipping in 1982 and continue to be a stable long-term business with strong contracts.
Pan Ocean reports it will acquire the segment, which consists of 10 VLCCs. The delivery of the last of the vessels is currently scheduled to be not later than April 2027.
Along with the tankers, Pan Ocean will take over the existing contracts for the vessels. It reports that the ships operate under long-term crude transport contracts with major domestic companies.
The sale of the business marks a key milestone in the turnaround of SK Shipping’s operations. Control of the company was acquired in 2018 by Hahn & Company, South Korea’s largest private equity firm. The investors reportedly paid $1 billion for just over 83 percent of the outstanding stock of the shipping company.
Hahn highlights its strategy for SK, focused on shifting the company away from segments highly sensitive to freight rate volatility toward more stable operations. In addition to the long-term crude oil transport contracts for the tankers, the company has LNG carriers and dry bulk carriers. It developed relationships with Qatar Energy, Malaysia's Petronas, and other high-quality domestic and international shippers. It got into the LNG transport business in 1994, and reports indicate the company currently has a fleet of approximately 30 ships.
Since the acquisition, Hanh reports SK has been transformed into one of the most profitable global shipping companies. Operating profits reportedly surged more than fivefold.
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Hahn had been exploring several exit routes for its investment. Reports appeared in the Korean media early in 2025 that negotiations were underway with HMM for the acquisition of the business. As part of its diversification strategy and efforts to build the non-container segments of its business, HMM was negotiating for the tankers and dry bulk carriers. HMM has a non-compete on the LNG segment with Hyundai Merchant Marine’s former LNG business, which was sold during the reorganization of the company. HMM, however, confirmed in August 2025 that the talks had broken down with SK Shipping.
According to the media reports from Korea, SK Shipping is saying that it will use the proceeds from the sale of the VLCCs to secure “new growth drivers and strengthen its future business portfolio.” It is unclear, however, if Hahn intends to continue to seek buyers for the remaining segments of the business.
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