The vessel was built in April 1998 by Miyoshi Shipbuilding, Japan (Kurinoura Dockyard, Yawatahama, Japan, hull No. 342) for the Owners, Million Comets S.A., registered in Panama. The vessel was named SUNRISE SUZURAN and was flying the Panama flag (call sign: 3FTT8 and official No.: 25504-98). IMO No. 9177674.
The vessel is a single-screw, double hull/double bottom product/chemical tanker, IMO-class III with a bulbous bow and a transom stern. The ship has five (5) sets of steam-heated cargo tanks, port and starboard and one (1) set of steam-heated slop tanks, port and starboard.
The vessel is propelled by a 2-stroke, supercharged, direct reversible, 6-cylinder Akasaka 6UEC33 LS II marine diesel engine (B&W licence) of 3'236 kW @ 210 r.p.m., directly fitted to a four-bladed, fixed-pitch propeller of 3'600 mm. The stern tube is of the water-lubricated type.
Her initial trading area was in the Far East, where she was sailing regularly between S. Korea, China, Singapore and various Japanese ports. The crew was a mix of Koreans and Filipinos. Management: K.K. Kyowa Sansho from Kure in Japan.
In early 2002 Saint Michel Shipping Ltd., Valletta, Malta bought the vessel and on 22.02.2002 the tanker was docked in the Seibu Dockyards Co. Ltd., Hiroshima, Japan for inspection and some small repairs. On 26.02.2002 the vessel was taken over by ABC Maritime AG, as the new managers and renamed SAINT MICHEL. The flag was changed to Malta and the port of registry became Valletta (official No.: 7616, call sign: 9HFE7).
On 01.03.2002 the vessel sailed from Hiroshima and the vessel’s first voyage was in ballast to Singapore, where she arrived on the 11.03.2002 and where she was dry docked again for hull painting and for some modifications. After completion the SAINT MICHEL sailed from Singapore for Indonesia to load palm oil for West Africa.
Then the vessel was working along the West African Coast in time charter to a major oil company, distributing oil products.
In 2011 sold to Greek buyers and handed-over in Dakar on 22.07.2011 to BS Trading SA (Management: Poseidon SA, Piraeus), who renamed her A. MICHEL and registered her first in Panama (Official No.: 42312PEXT, Call sign: 3FUM8.), but on 01.09.2011 she was registered under the flag of the UAE (United Arab Emirates). The A. MICHEL (Call sign: AGE2723) is operated as a bunker tanker by Al Arabia Bunkering Co. LLC, Sharjah, see also www.alarabiabunkeringcompany.com