Frontline’s disposal of its 150,000-dwt tanker Front Alfa (built 1993) has sent scrapping for 2012 through the 10mdwt barrier.
Figures earlier in the week from Clarksons put the amount of tonnage sold for scrap in the first nine weeks of this year at 9.9mdwt.
But the sale of the 150,000-dwt tanker by John Fredriksen-controlled Frontline pushes that total just past the psychological barrier.
On an annualized basis that would take scrapping for the whole of 2012 to over 57mdwt, a 45% increase on the 39.5mdwt sent for scrap last year.
Dry bulk is still leading the demolition league tables ahead of tankers with 5.1mdwt reported to have been scrapped.
At this rate the amount of bulkers sent for recycling could be close to the 30mdwt mark on an annualized basis and over 31% up on 2011.
Tanker scrapping, buoyed by a couple of recent VLCC disposals, has just passed the 3.1mdwt and could be on target for 18mdwt by the end of the year.
The one sector to see an actual decline in scrapping levels is gas tankers, with only 100,000-dwt sent to the breakers this year.
In the containership segment demolition has reached 27 ships of 55,000-teu so far this year, according to Alphaliner.
“Owners continue to clear out older tonnage that struggles to find employment in the current depressed charter market,” it said.
The Paris-based consultancy expects containership scrapping for the full year to reach 170,000-teu, twice the 85,000-teu scrapped in 2011.
Indian breakers still continue to lead the market in terms of destination with 3.8mdwt of tonnage already sold into the country so far this year.
If India maintains that pace for the rest of the year it could scrap almost 22mdwt, an annualized year-on-year increase of over 65%.
China remains in second spot with 2.4mdwt of ships recycled and on an annualized basis looks set to reach 13.8mdwt, up 64% on 2011.
Pakistan, again thanks to increased tanker scrapping, has already reached half of last year’s total in only the first nine weeks of 2012.
It has so far reportedly scrapped 1.9mdwt and looks on course for a total of almost 11mdwt, almost three times what it achieved last year.