SR Shipping is said to be the buyer of United Ocean Group supramax Ocean Paradise, sold at auction in Tokyo last week for US$9.2m.

The vessel attracted a tremendous amount of interest from owners across the world with some 15 inspections taking place in Hong Kong prior to its sale. Built nine years ago at Tsuneishi Cebu in the Philippines, the ship is the fifth sold by United Ocean Group since it went bankrupt at the end of last year.

SR Shipping, part of Bangladeshi outfit Kabir Group, has been regularly picking up secondhand supramax vessels throughout the year with a focus on Japanese-built ships.