In 1984 Vela International Marine Limited was established as a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco to provide marine transportation for Saudi Aramco crude oil. At the outset, a small Vela team ran the company from within Saudi Aramco’s Dhahran headquarters. The company acquired four mid-1970s-built large crude oil tankers. As a matter of expediency, the vessels’ technical management was outsourced to independent third-party ship managers.

From this fledgling start, Vela is now a fully integrated, ship-owning and operating company equipped with the experience, expertise, systems and ships required to fully meet the needs of Saudi Aramco and to be a leader within the international tanker industry.

In its first 25 years, Vela’s fleet has transported both crude oil and refined products with a remarkable delivery and safety record. Several key events have set a path for Vela during its fledgling years, as successive management teams have built and shaped the company into its current form – set for the future.

The first key event was the formation of Star Enterprises in 1988, a partnership between Saudi Aramco and Texaco to refine and market petroleum products in the USA. As a result, Saudi Aramco needed to ship greater volumes of crude oil across the oceans, and almost overnight Vela became a major charterer in the international tanker markets. However, Vela retained little control over its fleet and operations and was just like any other charterer, exposed to a very large extent to the vagaries of the highly volatile tanker markets.

With this in mind, by the early 1990s Vela had set in motion a series of steps to achieve greater control over its fleet and operations.

The tanker chartering and scheduling functions were moved to London, with Aramco’s SPOL forming the Marine Transportation Services section. In 1991, three more ships were acquired and, at the same time, Vela embarked upon an ambitious new building programme. And so in 1992, by ordering a total of 15 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), capable of carrying over two million barrels of crude oil each, to higher specifications than industry standards to be constructed in Japan, Korea and Denmark, the company’s transformation from being a major charterer to becoming a major ship owner and charterer had well and truly begun. These ships were delivered into the Vela fleet in the period from 1993 to 1995. This completed another key event in the Company’s history.

Additional responsibilities accrue to a leading international tanker owner and operator to ensure the highest standards of safety and reliability are applied not only to the ships it charters but also to the ships it owns.

In the 1990s, these tanker industry standards were changing rapidly, in light of new International Maritime Organization (MARPOL) regulations and new laws being passed in the USA (Oil Pollution Act 1990) and, later, in Europe. As a result, the tanker industry is one of the most heavily regulated sectors in the shipping industry, setting high standards to be maintained by its staff and verified by independent inspectors both onboard the ships and ashore in the maritime offices.

In 1993, a third key event took place with the merger of Saudi Aramco and Saudi Arabian Marketing & Refining Company (SAMAREC). This led to Vela taking on the additional operational responsibilities of shipping Saudi Arabian domestic coastal crude and refined products and providing marine transportation for the Kingdom’s product imports and LPG exports. In the process, Vela acquired four product tankers, previously operated by SAMAREC, and a clear need to expand its product tanker capabilities even further.

Also in 1993 the Company established an ISO 9000 Quality Assurance Programme, and in 1995, just a few years later, began the process of transferring the technical ship management from four third-party ship management companies to come under the auspices of its own highly qualified technical management team, recruited for the purpose and based in Dubai. This office was expanded to house marine operations and purchasing support functions, and they were joined by an in-house accounting organisation.

By the end 1990s, just 16 years from the company’s modest beginnings, all of the main management functions and shipping expertise was brought in-house. The company had offices in Saudi Arabia, Dubai and London. It owned and operated a modern fleet of 15 crude oil tankers and four product tankers.

If the 1990s was the decade of Vela’s transformation, the 2000s were a time for the company to mature, adapting to a rapidly changing business environment, developing third-party business and consolidating its position as an industry leader. 

In 2002, the Dubai office was chosen as the company’s headquarters. The London and Saudi teams were relocated to Dubai, where all the executive, commercial, operational, technical, administrative and other support staff, including its own new building construction supervisory team is based.

Saudi Arabia’s strong economic growth has led to rapidly increasing movements of refined product around the Kingdom, and this in turn, triggered the decisions to modernise Vela’s product tanker fleet to meet these rapidly changing requirements. So the company ordered new product tankers to be built in Korea and sold or retired its older vessels, acquired with the SAMAREC merger.

In the early 2000s, Vela’s new building activities continued apace with the ordering of double-hull VLCC new buildings from South Korea.

In 2010, Vela took delivery of the final 4 double hull VLCCs from South Korea and concluded the sale of 11 single hull VLCCs.

Vela more than ever, is responsible for maintaining the security of supply of crude oil and products to Saudi Aramco customers overseas and within the Kingdom. The company’s operations are a critical component in the flow of oil required to fuel economic growth.

  The Word Vela!

When searching for a name befitting our maritime heritage we, like seafarers of old, turned to the stars to find our way. 

The constellation, Argo is located in the southern hemisphere and figures prominently in the story of Jason and the Argonauts (in the quest for the Golden Fleece).  The constellation Argo became known as the Vela constellation. 

It’s also serendipitous, we think, that the Latin word ‘Vela’ means ‘Sails’.

And by happy coincidence, the first key event in Vela’s history involves the formation of “Star” Enterprises in 1988.

All Vela-owned ships are named after stars in the Vela Constellation.

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