Bermudian-headquartered Ardmore Shipping Corporation, which owns and operates product and chemical tankers, has reported net income of $113.4 million for 2023, which compares with net income of $135.1 million in 2022.

The company reported adjusted earnings of $113.4 million for 2023, compared with $143.5 million in 2022.

Revenue for the fourth quarter of 2023 was $98.9 million, a decrease of $33.9 million from $132.8 million for the prior year quarter.

The company's average number of operating vessels was 26 in the final quarter of 2023, compared with 27 in the prior year quarter.

The board of directors declared a cash dividend of $0.21 per common share for the fourth quarter, which will be paid on March 15 to all shareholders of record on February 29.

Anthony Gurnee, the company's chief executive officer, said: "The product and chemical tanker markets remain strong as a result of tight supply/demand fundamentals further accentuated by large-scale geopolitical and weather-related trading restrictions.

“The simultaneous restrictions in the Panama Canal and Suez Canal are currently driving substantial incremental tonne-mile demand; while the ultimate duration of these canal restrictions remains to be seen, this is having a pronounced impact during the seasonally stronger winter season.

“At the same time, we must acknowledge the key role of our seafarers in this increasingly volatile world and we continue to place their security as our top priority.

“After another successful year of delivering strong results for our shareholders in 2023, Ardmore is navigating this supportive market with financial discipline and a constant focus on performance optimisation.

“We continue to utilise the strong earnings environment to pursue all of our capital allocation priorities simultaneously, further strengthening our balance sheet, investing in a gradual fleet modernisation along with vessel optimisation and emissions reduction for our existing fleet, and returning capital to shareholders via an attractive quarterly dividend."