KNOT Offshore Partners

What KNOT Offshore Partners does

KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE: KNOP) is a Marshall Islands-incorporated, Aberdeen-headquartered master limited partnership that owns and operates a fleet of 19 DP2-class shuttle tankers transporting crude oil and condensates from deepwater offshore oil installations to onshore terminals and storage. The vessels load from FPSOs and production platforms via bow-loading equipment and dynamic positioning systems that allow safe cargo transfer in harsh weather, strong currents, and wave heights up to 10 meters; each shuttle tanker typically costs 50–100% more than a conventional tanker, and the fleet's average age is approximately 10.5 years. The partnership was formed in 2013 and completed its NYSE IPO in April 2013, with sponsor Knutsen NYK Offshore Tankers AS — itself jointly owned by TS Shipping Invest AS and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) — retaining approximately 29.3% of the 34,064,602 common units outstanding.

KNOP earns revenue primarily through long-term time charters and bareboat charters (typically 5–10 years) with National Oil Companies and Oil Majors including Petrobras, Shell, TotalEnergies, Eni, Transpetro, PetroChina, Repsol, Petrorio, and Equinor. Under time charters the partnership supplies the vessel and crew while the charterer pays fuel and port charges at fixed daily hire rates, and under bareboat charters the charterer assumes full operational control — together creating highly recurring cash flows explicitly insulated from oil-price and bunker-fuel volatility. A secondary stream of contracts of affreightment (COAs) and occasional voyage charters is used mainly for North Sea operations. Forward contracted revenue stood at $857.9M as of March 31, 2026 across an average remaining tenure of 2.4 years with 3.8 years of charterer extension options, and no single contract exceeds 10% of EBITDA — limiting customer concentration risk. The customer base is split between primary Brazil (offshore production feeding Petrobras and multiple Majors) and the North Sea/Barents Sea, with the partnership holding $140.7M of liquidity against $932.8M of total interest-bearing debt, $356.3M of which matures in the remainder of 2026.

Q1 2026 revenue was $92.0M with adjusted EBITDA of $56.5M, operating income of $14.7M, and net income of $2.6M; full-year 2025 revenue based on disclosed quarterly figures is approximately $364M, and the partnership declared a Q1 2026 quarterly distribution of $0.05 per common unit (up from $0.026), payable May 14, 2026. KNOP's sole direct subsidiary, Knutsen Shuttle Tankers 35 AS, holds the Synnøve Knutsen vessel. Following an October 2025 unsolicited $10-per-unit buyout proposal from sponsor KNOT, the partnership terminated those discussions in March 2026 after the Conflicts Committee (advised by Evercore, Richards Layton & Finger, and IGB Group) concluded no agreement could be reached.

Name

KNOT Offshore Partners

Legal name

KNOT Offshore Partners LP

Website

https://knotoffshorepartners.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

KNOT Offshore Partners LP owns and operates a 19-vessel fleet of DP2 shuttle tankers that transport crude oil under long-term charters with National Oil Companies and Oil Majors (Petrobras, Shell, TotalEnergies, Eni, Petrorio, Equinor, others) primarily in Brazilian offshore and North Sea oil fields.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Offshore Shuttle Tanker Services

NAICS

Other Support Activities for Water Transportation (48839)

SIC

Deep Sea Foreign Transportation Of Freight (4412), Oil & Gas Field Services, Nec (1389)

akta.pro primary industry

Liquid Bulk / Crude & Product Tanker Operators (VLCC/Suezmax/Aframax/MR) (TLADABAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Crude Oil & Petroleum Products Tanker Transport (TLADALAA), Crude Oil Tanker Shipping (EUALADAG)

Keywords

• Shuttle tanker services
• Offshore oil transport
• Crude oil shipping
• Marine transportation services
• Time charter vessels

Headquarters

HQ city

Aberdeen

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Time Charter and Bareboat Charter Revenues: KNOP earns revenue primarily through long-term time charters and bareboat charters with National Oil Companies and Oil Majors. Under time charters, the company supplies the vessel and crew while charterers pay for fuel, port charges, and daily hire rates. Under bareboat charters, charterers obtain full operational control and pay all operating expenses. Charters typically span 5-10 years with fixed rates that are insulated from oil price volatility and fuel cost fluctuations.
2. Contract of Affreightment (COA): Some vessels operate under COAs where KNOP undertakes to carry specified cargoes within defined periods on specified routes for lump-sum or per-voyage rates. These are typical for North Sea operations.
3. Voyage Charter (Spot): Occasional voyage charters for specific voyages between load and discharge ports, generating lump-sum revenue. These contracts are not common in the shuttle tanker market but serve as fallback options.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

KNOT Offshore Partners owns and operates a fleet of 19 shuttle tankers that transport crude oil from offshore oil fields to onshore terminals for international oil companies and national oil companies. Vessels are deployed primarily under multi-year time charter and bareboat charter contracts, with supplementary contracts of affreightment and voyage charters, serving customers including Petrobras, Shell, TotalEnergies, Eni, PetroChina, Repsol, Equinor, Petrorio, and Transpetro.

Product overview

KNOT Offshore Partners LP operates as a single unified offering—a shuttle tanker transportation service. The company owns and operates a fleet of nineteen DP2 shuttle tankers (vessels including Daqing Knutsen, Tove Knutsen, Carmen Knutsen, Bodil Knutsen, Windsor Knutsen, and others) that shuttle crude oil from offshore oil field installations to onshore facilities in Brazil and the North Sea. These vessels operate under long-term charters (time charters, bareboat charters, and contracts of affreightment) with major oil companies including Eni, Transpetro, PetroChina, Shell, TotalEnergies, and Petrobras. The company also provides ESG reporting services as part of its transparency commitments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Shuttle Tanker Time Charter Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 97.2% fleet utilization for scheduled operations in Q1 2026
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Knutsen NYK Offshore Tankers AS (KNOT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2013Sponsor and parent company jointly owned by TS Shipping Invest AS (TSSI) and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK). KNOT owns approximately 29.3% of KNOP's 34,064,602 common units outstanding. Provides business development, chartering, technical management, crewing, accounting, and administration services. Under omnibus agreement, KNOP has option to acquire shuttle tankers from KNOT that have charters of 5+ years. Together they form world's largest shuttle tanker fleet with 30+ years of industry experience.
• Evercore Group L.L.C.supportingOthersIndependent financial advisor retained by KNOP's Conflicts Committee to assist in evaluating the unsolicited $10 per unit buyout proposal from KNOT in 2025-2026.
• Richards, Layton & Finger, P.A.supportingOthersIndependent legal advisor retained by KNOP's Conflicts Committee for the buyout proposal evaluation.
• IGB GroupsupportingOthersIndependent advisor retained by KNOP's Conflicts Committee for buyout proposal evaluation.
• American Stock Transfer & Trust CompanysupportingOthersPartnership's transfer agent for outstanding common units. Handles unit transfers, address changes, certificate replacements, and Form 1099 issuance.
• Ernst & Young ASsupportingOthersPartnership's registered public accounting firm providing audit services.
• Baker Botts LLPsupportingOthersPartnership's corporate legal counsel.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Frontline plc: Large publicly listed crude oil tanker operator with VLCCs, Suezmaxes, and LR2/Aframax tankers serving major oil companies. Comparable as a publicly traded crude tanker owner with long-term charter exposure to similar end customers.
• Euronav NV: Belgian-listed crude tanker giant operating VLCCs and Suezmaxes. Comparable as a major publicly traded crude tanker company with charter exposure to NOCs and Oil Majors.
• DHT Holdings Inc. Pure-play VLCC operator listed in New York with similar crude tanker thesis and dividend/yield investor base. Not a shuttle tanker specialist but is the closest publicly traded crude tanker comparable in capital structure and cash distribution model.
• Overseas Shipholding Group Inc. NYSE-listed crude and product tanker operator with VLCC, Suezmax, and Aframax tonnage. Comparable as a publicly traded crude tanker peer with charter exposure to major oil companies and similar customer dynamics.
• International Seaways Inc. NYSE-listed tanker operator with VLCC, Suezmax, Aframax, and Panamax tankers. Comparable as a publicly traded crude tanker peer with similar customer base and long-term charter book.
• Torm plc: Copenhagen-listed product tanker owner-operator with one of the largest MR fleets. Comparable as a publicly listed tanker operator serving oil majors with fixed-rate exposure, though product-tanker focused.
• Scorpio Tankers Inc. NYSE-listed product and crude tanker operator with significant scale in MR and LR2 product tankers. Comparable as a publicly traded tanker company serving similar Oil Major customers, though with a product-tanker tilt.
• Teekay Tankers Ltd. Publicly traded crude oil and product tanker operator with overlapping exposure to offshore oil logistics. While not a shuttle tanker pure play, it competes for charterer relationships and capital in the same crude tanker investment universe.

Direct peers

• Stena Bulk: Privately held Swedish shipping group with a fleet that includes shuttle tankers serving offshore oil fields. Operates in the same vessel category and customer segments as KNOP, particularly in the North Sea.
• Knutsen NYK Offshore Tankers AS: Sponsor and parent of KNOP, jointly owned by TS Shipping Invest and Nippon Yusen Kaisha. Operates the largest shuttle tanker fleet globally and shares the same vessel class, customer base, and operating model — making it the closest direct comparable.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KNOT Offshore Partners