VLCC scrapping capacity is becoming squeezed and prices could fall, says cash buyer Shabbir Baig of Mideast Shipping and Trading.

Baig says, in what he terms the “year of the tanker”, that 50 VLCCs are expected to be recycled this year, with 25 already dispatched for beaching.

The managing director of Mideast says Pakistan, which has returned to tanker recycling after an 18-month ban, can scrap 10 or 11 VLCCs this year.