Cetus Maritime in Talks for 13 Seacon Ships Ahead of a Planned IPO
Around 30% of the consideration would be cash, with the balance in shares issued immediately before the buyer's listing
Hong Kong bulker owner and operator Cetus Maritime is in talks to take interests in 13 vessels from Hong Kong-listed Seacon Shipping in a cash-and-shares transaction tied to the handysize specialist's planned overseas listing.
Seacon disclosed in a filing that it is negotiating the disposal of certain vessel-owning subsidiaries to Cayman-incorporated Cetus Maritime Holdings. Those subsidiaries hold interests in 13 ships, although neither company has identified the vessels or disclosed their value. The transaction would qualify as a major disposal for Seacon under Hong Kong listing rules.
Under the structure currently under discussion, around 30% of the consideration would be paid in cash. The remaining 70% would come in shares in Cetus or an affiliate, issued immediately before the buyer's intended initial public offering on an overseas stock exchange. The number of shares would be based on the agreed net asset values of the respective fleets and corporate entities. No binding agreement has been signed, and Seacon cautioned that the transaction may not proceed.
The structure effectively converts a sale and purchase transaction into a pre-listing capital contribution, leaving the seller exposed to the performance of the buyer's shares rather than banking a clean exit price.
The deal would mark another sizeable consolidation move for Cetus. The company was created in 2023 through the merger of Asia Maritime Pacific and Hamburg Bulk Carriers, then combined a year later with Chile's Nachipa Corp to create what was at the time a 65-ship platform with around 40 owned vessels and 25 chartered units. It followed that last year by acquiring Australia's Rhumb Maritime, extending its commercial reach in the dry mini and handysize sectors.
Cetus today describes its fleet as more than 40 ships ranging from 8,500 dwt to 45,000 dwt, with around 1.3m dwt of owned capacity.
Seacon controlled 36 vessels and held interests in another 12 through joint ventures at the end of 2025. A completed 13-vessel deal would therefore amount to a significant reshaping of its owned and affiliated fleet, and would concentrate a further slice of the small-bulker market in a single Hong Kong platform ahead of that platform going public.
