MSC Formalizes Tie-Up With Tanker Giant Sinokor After Massive VLCC Buying Spree

Mediterranean Shipping Company is moving to take joint control of South Korea’s Sinokor Maritime, formalizing a relationship that has drawn growing attention across tanker markets.

A March 11 competition filing in Cyprus shows MSC, via its Luxembourg-based subsidiary SAS Shipping Agencies Services, will share control of Sinokor with owner Ga-Hyun Chung, who previously held full ownership.

The deal provides the clearest confirmation yet of a relationship that has been the subject of intense industry speculation for months.

Sinokor has stunned tanker markets in early 2026 after rapidly building a massive position in very large crude carriers (VLCCs). Industry estimates suggest the company now controls on the order of 100 to 120 supertankers—potentially up to a third of the available spot fleet—following an aggressive wave of secondhand purchases and charters.

That buying spree has coincided with a sharp surge in tanker earnings, with VLCC spot rates jumping above $100,000 per day earlier this year as charterers rushed to secure tonnage amid tightening availability.

Until now, MSC’s role in that expansion had remained opaque. Market participants previously reported that some vessels acquired by Sinokor were ultimately backed by entities linked to MSC founder Gianluigi Aponte, though neither company publicly confirmed a partnership.

The Cyprus filing suggests those behind-the-scenes links are now being formalized.

The move is significant for MSC, the world’s largest container shipping line, which has historically focused on liner trades but has increasingly expanded across the maritime sectors—from terminals and logistics to cruise and now potentially large-scale exposure to crude tanker markets.

Financial terms were not disclosed, and neither MSC nor Sinokor has publicly commented on the deal.

Updated: May 27, 2026 (Originally published March 19, 2026)

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