Financiers of troubled Varun Shipping’s LPG carrier fleet are moving to slow the planned sale of its vessels.

Demolition industry sources say a group led by the State Bank of India has informed interested parties that eight Varun LPG carriers, which were being marketed last week for scrap sale, cannot be sold because they are under arrest.

They say the bank’s decision on the ships will not be made until December and legal procedures could take a further six months to finalise.