International Seaways' acquisition of neighbouring Diamond S Shipping was more than a year in the making, although talks were "on and off" through a coronavirus-plagued 2020, top executives told TradeWinds on Wednesday.

International Seaways chief executive Lois Zabrocky and chief financial officer Jeffrey Pribor spoke in an interview shortly after confirming the $2.2bn combination, which had first been reported by TradeWinds early on Wednesday.