Tankers International

What Tankers International does

Tankers International is a London-headquartered VLCC (Very Large Crude Carrier) pooling company founded in 2000 as the world's first operator of its kind. The company acts as an outsourced commercial management layer for ship owners, pooling vessels into a single fleet that trades crude oil charters under one operational umbrella and redistributes earnings via a transparent Pool Point system recalibrated semi-annually. As of 2023 the pool reached its peak size of 69 VLCCs, having grown from 51 ships at inception, with sub-pools structured around vessel attributes including scrubber installation, primary fuel type, and vessel age. International Seaways consolidated sole ownership of the company in Q1 2026, having previously shared equal voting rights with Euronav N.V.; the company operates additional offices in New York and Singapore providing 24/7 global coverage.

The technology stack combines bespoke IT systems for chartering, operations, and pool financial accounting developed over more than two decades of operational experience. The proprietary VLCC Fixture App, originally launched in 2013 and substantially enhanced in 2021-2022, provides real-time fixture data and freight market rates across BASIC (free), PLUS, and PRO subscription tiers, with API integration and WhatsApp notifications for premium subscribers; the platform has been downloaded by more than 25,000 users and integrates AIS feed tracking, SMHI weather routing, and a Baltic Exchange data partnership. Strategic product extensions include a dedicated Bunker Desk (October 2024) for fuel procurement, a Climate Compensation Voyage Programme launched in partnership with Vertree/Hartree Partners (2022) for nature-based carbon offsetting, and a Suezmax Pool added in January 2026 to broaden the offering beyond VLCC tonnage.

The business model centers on Pool Management Fees earned for commercial management of vessel participants on a managed services basis, supplemented by subscription revenue from the VLCC Fixture App, commissions from the bunker procurement desk, and fees associated with the climate compensation programme. Distribution operates exclusively through direct enterprise relationships with ship owners, with all commercial decisions executed by the in-house chartering team — no third-party intermediaries. Charterers including oil majors, trading houses, and refiners access the pool's aggregated tonnage directly, while individual ship owners receive twice-monthly cash distributions; the company describes the pool as providing a "physical hedge" for owners seeking cash flow stability alongside spot market upside.

Name

Tankers International

Legal name

Tankers (UK) Agencies Limited

Website

https://tankersinternational.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Tankers International is a London-headquartered VLCC pooling company that commercial manages the world's largest fleet of large crude oil carriers on behalf of ship owners via a transparent Pool Point earnings system, serving oil majors, trading houses, and refiners as charterers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tanker Pooling Services

NAICS

Marine Cargo Handling (48832)

SIC

Deep Sea Foreign Transportation Of Freight (4412), Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731)

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

• VLCC tanker pooling
• Crude oil shipping
• Tanker chartering services
• Commercial vessel management
• VLCC fixture data

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Pool Management Fees: Tankers International generates revenue by managing a pool of VLCC and Suezmax vessels on behalf of ship owners. The company acts as an outsourced chartering department, handling all commercial decisions and distributing earnings to participants based on a transparent Pool Point system. Revenue is generated through fees associated with the management and commercial operation of pooled vessels.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Tankers International operates the world's largest pool of modern large crude oil carriers (VLCCs and Suezmax vessels), providing ship owners with outsourced commercial management including chartering, scheduling, and revenue distribution via a transparent Pool Point system. The company acts as an outsourced chartering department for participating vessels, securing spot market cargoes from oil majors, trading houses, and refiners. It also offers the VLCC Fixture App, a proprietary data product providing real-time tanker fixtures and freight market rates.

Product overview

Tankers International operates as a large-scale tanker pooling company offering shipowners and charterers the advantages of large-scale operations through its portfolio of products and services. The core offering is the Tankers International Pool (TI Pool), the world's largest VLCC pool supplemented by a Suezmax Pool launched in 2026. The VLCC Fixture App provides real-time market data and freight rates. The company operates specialized sub-pools (Non-Scrubber, Scrubber-fitted, and older vessel pools) to ensure fair earnings distribution. Additional services include a Climate Compensation Voyage Programme for carbon offsetting, a Bunker Desk for fuel procurement, and comprehensive fleet management with market intelligence and research support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Scrubber Pool: A sub-pool for vessels equipped with exhaust gas cleaning systems (scrubbers), allowing owners to benefit from trading on fuel-efficient vessels.
• Suezmax Pool
• VLCC Fixture App

Products and services

• Tankers International VLCC Pool (TI Pool) The world's largest pool of modern large crude oil carriers, providing shipowners with transparent and cost-effective commercial management to maximize spot market earnings through economies of scale and unparalleled access to cargoes. Pool participants trade vessels on an equal basis and share revenues via a transparent Pool Point system with twice-monthly distributions.
• Suezmax Pool A Suezmax crude oil tanker pool launched in 2026, expanding Tankers International's service offering beyond VLCCs to provide multiple crude tanker transportation solutions for shipowners and charterers.
• VLCC Scrubber Pool A specialist sub-pool for vessels equipped with exhaust gas cleaning (scrubber) technology, accommodating vessels trading on heavy fuel oil while meeting IMO 2020 sulfur regulations and leveraging different trading patterns and earning potential of scrubber-fitted vessels.
• VLCC Fixture App A web-based application providing real-time VLCC tanker fixtures, crude oil freight market rates, and Tanker View market insight for the crude oil shipping market. Available in BASIC (free), PLUS, and PRO subscription tiers with features including bunker prices, fixing rates, laycan, demurrage, commissions, TCE calculations, cargo forecasts, WhatsApp notifications, and an API feed for system integration.
• Climate Compensation Voyage Programme A climate compensation service launched in partnership with Vertree that assesses and calculates the carbon footprint of pool voyages, offering nature-based carbon offset solutions (forest conservation, afforestation, clean cooking stoves) for customers to compensate unavoidable emissions.
• Bunker Desk A dedicated bunker procurement service launched in 2024, providing pool partners with strategic fuel procurement strategies and volume discount negotiations for bunkers and related costs.

Quantifiable outcome

• Fleet reduced waiting time and downtime after dry-docking through improved scheduling
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Lila GlobalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 21 July 2025Lila Global joined as a new pool partner, continuing Tankers International's expansion with the addition of new quality tonnage.
• Wah KwongminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 18 September 2024Wah Kwong joined Tankers International as a new pool partner with the VLCC Hong Kong Spirit, taking the pool to 36 vessels.
• Kuwait Petroleum CorporationminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 19 October 2023Kuwait Petroleum Corporation joined as a new pool partner, marking a growth milestone for the pool.
• MercuriaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 21 March 2022Mercuria joined the VLCC Scrubber Pool with the Seaways Kilimanjaro (296,999 DWT, built 2012), expanding the specialist scrubber pool to 21 vessels.
• Vertree Partners LimitedcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 January 2022Partnership to launch the Climate Compensation Voyage Programme for the tanker sector. Vertree, a subsidiary of Hartree Partners, provides scientifically recognized methodologies to calculate emissions baselines and nature-based carbon offset options for pool customers.
• Hartree Partners / Hartree Maritime Partners LLCminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2019Hartree Partners joined as one of the original members of Tankers International's dedicated scrubber-fitted VLCC Pool.
• FrontlineminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014Tankers International and Frontline formed VLCC Chartering Ltd partnership in 2014, which was mutually dissolved in 2018.
• Hunter Group ASAminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHunter Group ASA joined as a pool participant with top-quality ships and high standards of ship management.
• Transportation Recovery FundminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTransportation Recovery Fund joined the VLCC Pool, specifically the specialist Scrubber Pool, increasing its size and reducing average vessel age.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• International Seaways Inc. U.S.-listed crude and product tanker owner and now 100% owner of Tankers International (Q1 2026). Operates a VLCC fleet that participates in the TI Pool alongside third-party vessels, making it simultaneously parent and largest pool participant with overlapping commercial operations.
• DHT Holdings: Pure-play VLCC operator that runs its own spot chartering and pool-like arrangements, competing directly with Tankers International for both ship-owner pool participation and charterer cargoes in the global VLCC market.
• Euronav N.V. Belgian VLCC/Suezmax pure-play and former 50/50 controlling shareholder of Tankers International alongside International Seaways. Operates VLCCs directly and through the TI Pool, making it both an owner-peer and historical partner with materially overlapping commercial activities in crude oil shipping.
• Frontline: One of the world's largest independent VLCC operators and historically a direct counterparty: Tankers International and Frontline co-operated VLCC Chartering Ltd from 2014 to 2018 before mutually dissolving the JV. Frontline runs its own commercial desk and competes for VLCC charterers that could otherwise be served by the TI Pool.

Broad incumbents

• Torm: Danish-listed product tanker owner with VLCC exposure operating in similar crude and product shipping markets. Competes with Tankers International for charterer relationships and offers an alternative commercial management model to ship owners considering pool participation.
• Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL): Japanese conglomerate with one of the largest global VLCC fleets as part of a diversified shipping portfolio. Operates alongside Tankers International in the global crude tanker market and provides an alternative pooling or commercial management option for VLCC ship owners.
• Scorpio Tankers: Public product and crude tanker operator with significant VLCC exposure. While broader in vessel mix, Scorpio competes with TI Pool for VLCC charter business and shares cargoes with overlapping charterer relationships among oil majors and trading houses.

Emerging players

• Maersk Tankers: Product and crude tanker operator that historically operated third-party commercial pools (Star Tankers, Handytankers) and competes with Tankers International's pool management offering. Provides similar outsourced chartering and vessel commercial management services to ship owners.

Regional players

• China Merchants Energy Shipping: Chinese state-linked VLCC and crude tanker operator serving Asia Pacific loading and discharge points. Competes with TI Pool for Asian charterer and pool participation opportunities while operating in similar VLCC and Suezmax segments.
• Bahri: Saudi Arabia's national shipping carrier and one of the largest VLCC operators globally, with a strong Middle East crude focus that overlaps with TI Pool's key operating region and charterer base. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, a Bahri-adjacent national customer, is also a TI Pool participant.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TankersInt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tankersinternational

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Tankers International