South Korean shipping major Sinokor is now the largest single commercial operator in the very large crude carrier (VLCC) fleet and is expected to keep growing, according to shipping market participant estimates.
Sinokor controls around 17pc of mainstream VLCCs, or 13pc of the global VLCC fleet including shadow tankers, according to estimates by market participants surveyed by Argus.
Sinokor is estimated to own around 78 VLCCs, with that figure expected to rise to at least 88 vessels within the current quarter, according to shipping software firm Signal Ocean. Athens-based shipbroker Lion reported that Sinokor operates a fleet nearing 100 VLCC units.
The total share of VLCCs acquired and controlled by Sinokor is projected to grow throughout 2026, with estimates from market participants ranging between 120 and 130 vessels.
The fleet of VLCCs on the water is estimated by Argus to stand around 880 vessels, although not all the vessels are able to serve in the mainstream fleet, either due to age restrictions from large international charters, involvement in shadow fleet activity or use as floating storage. There are 230 VLCCs serving in the shadow fleet, according to ship research firm TankerTrackers.com.
Sinokor is projected to independently control at least 24pc of the global compliant VLCC spot fleet in 2026, according to Signal Ocean.
Sinokor did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Rising VLCC freight rates
Sinokor accelerated its buying activity of VLCCs starting in mid-December, following expectations that VLCC demand could stay strong through at least the first half of 2026, driven by supportive geopolitical and regulatory developments.
Out of the 45 sales and purchase deals for VLCCs in 2026 so far, 35 vessels were acquired by Sinokor, according to maritime software company Veson Nautical.
Crude tanker owner DHT announced on 18 February that it had entered into a one-year time charter agreement for a VLCC at $90,000/d. Another VLCC was reported by a market participant to have been put on a one-year time charter agreement at around $100,000/d.
The Argus-assessed time charter equivalent rates for VLCCs from the Mideast Gulf to China averaged between $22,000/d and $38,000/d for 2024 and in the first half of 2025. The average rate on the route jumped in the second half of 2025 to around $70,750/d, and so far in 2026 stands around $95,922/d, showing the strength of the tanker market.
