The Sarnia Cherie and Sarnia Liberty were bought this month by tanker fleet operator James Fisher Everard.
Although the financial terms of the sale are confidential, States Trading Supervisory Board president Mark Helyar confirmed it would enable full repayment of the remaining loan associated with their purchase for £15.2m. back in December 2008, when the States used emergency powers to buy the ships without recourse to the full States. At the time they were two of just a handful left in operation in the world, and were set to be lost to the island.
‘The fuel tankers were acquired because of concerns about the availability of suitable commercial vessels that could discharge safely at St Sampson’s harbour,’ Deputy Helyar said.
‘Since then, other vessels have entered the market and are regularly delivering to Guernsey. There is therefore no longer a case for owning fuel tankers to maintain our security of supply.
‘On the back of a review commissioned by Environment & Infrastructure in the last term, and accepted by the previous Policy & Resources Committee, the STSB was instructed to dispose of the tankers.’
The States said the sale avoided the need for further investment by the States as the two vessels approach the end of their originally anticipated operating life in 2027 and 2028.
Most bulk shipments of liquid hydrocarbons to the island, including oil, petrol, and diesel, are imported through St Sampson’s harbour, which dries out at low tide. It is therefore only accessible by vessels that are specially designed to rest on the seabed when required – known as ‘not always afloat but safely aground’, or NAABSA for short.
The deal was negotiated by the States-owned holding company for the two ships, JamesCo 750.
JamesCo 750 has owned the ships since the States’ purchase of them, but since they were bought they have been on charter with JFE, which operates a fleet of 16 tankers throughout Europe and the Caribbean.
JFE has confirmed that it intends to continue including Guernsey in its trading operation of the vessels.
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