The National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (NSCSA) reported that it had achieved a profit of more than SR142 million ($37.8 million) for the first nine months of this year, compared to a profit of SR10 million for the same period of last year.

However, there was still some negative impact on NSCSA's aimed results, due to freight and charter hire rates dropping in the second half of the current year, the company said.

Meanwhile, nscsa recently celebrated the maiden voyage of a new crude oil carrier (vlcc).

The voyage of the Harad in Jebel Ali, UAE, was attended by senior officials including the Humoud bin Farraj bin Nadir, the general consul of Saudi Arabia to Dubai, the managing director of Dubai Port Authority Jamal Majid bin Tunaiyah; Ahmed Sulaiman Banaja, the chairman of nscsa; Ziyad Fahad Al Dughaither, board member and ceo of nscsa, some diplomatic officials, financiers (Saudi American Bank and Gulf International Bank officials), officials from Vela International Marine, the builders Samsung Heavy Industries Ltd of Korea and other invitees.

Al Dughaither stated that the Harad was the first of a series of four double hull vlccs purchased this year at a cost of SR1,238 million and will join the company's existing fleet of five vlccs already under charter with Vela International Marine.

The Harad has also been time chartered to Vela for a period of 51/2 years under an agreement held recently with the Aramco subsidiary.

The vlccs will give service by carrying Saudi crude oil worldwide. Al Dughaither also added that the financial arrangement for the vlccs was partly organised by Saudi American Bank (Samba) and Gulf International Bank (gib) jointly with Al Bank Al Saudi Al Fransi, Al Jazirah Bank and Saudi Investment Bank.

Al Dughaither explained that the oil tankers are of excellent specifications, each with a capacity of 303,000 dwt (equivalent to 2,165,000 barrels). The delivery of remaining three vessels will take place over the course of next year. These newbuildings will join nscsa's existing fleet of crude oil carriers, thus bringing the total number to nine with a total capacity of 19 million barrels.

He also said that the acquisition of the vlccs was in line with the company's strategy of expansion in the transportation of crude oil and petrochemical products through its affiliate National Chemical Carriers (ncc), 80 per cent-owned by nscsa and 20 per cent by Sabic, which is planning to add four more feathers to its cap of present fleet capacity of 14 chemical carriers.

When delivered, these 18 tankers, along with nscsa's Uqba bin Nafi and ACC's Al Farabi vessels will transport Saudi exports of petrochemical products to more than 150 ports across the globe.