Norwegian ship management company Belships has signed agreements to acquire two modern Ultramax bulk carriers from undisclosed parties for $15.5m.

The bulk carriers were constructed at Japanese shipyards in 2015 and 2017.

With purchase options substantially under current market levels, the vessels are presently financed through time charter lease agreements.

Belships intends to announce purchase options for both vessels in the coming months.

The company also plans to re-finance the vessels using available bank financing, which is anticipated to cover the funds for the purchase options.

The vessels are expected to be delivered by the end of next month.

Both the agreements are subject to certain conditions that need to be met by the parties.

Belships CEO Lars Christian Skarsgård said: “These agreements are immediately accretive for Belships ’ shareholders and displays our ability to source transactions with short lead time and efficient use of capital.

“We expect the acquisitions will contribute to our earnings capacity and ability to pay dividends, which is the main objective.”

In May, Belships agreed to acquire a 64,000 deadweight tonnage (dwt) Ultramax bulk carrier, which was constructed at a Japanese shipyard in 2020.

An operator of geared bulk carriers, Belships has 31 Supra/Ultramax bulk carriers and a dry bulk operator subsidiary, Lighthouse Navigation, with offices around the world.