Italian product tanker owner d’Amico International Shipping (DIS) has increased its forward charter coverage after fixing several vessels at what it described as very profitable rates.The Milan-listed company said its operating arm, d’Amico Tankers, has signed a series of new contracts and extensions since the start of the year.One MR1 tanker had its charter extended by 17 months, while a contract on an MR2 tanker due to expire around November this year has been prolonged by a further 15 months.The owner has also fixed one MR1 and one MR2 on new 12-month charters and secured a 24-month contract for an LR1 unit, with an option for a further year at a higher rate.Following the deals, d’Amico said it has about 54% of its 2026 available vessel days covered at an average time-charter equivalent rate of roughly $23,500 per day. Coverage stands at about 22% for 2027 and 1% for 2028 at similar or higher average rates.“In line with our long-term commercial strategy, we continue to secure a balanced level of forward coverage by takingadvantage of the current strength in the time-charter market, allowing us to lock-in a solid portion of ourfuture earnings,” said Carlos di Mottola, chief executive at DIS, adding that the company is comfortable with its contract position for the current year and intends to keep a portion of the fleet trading spot in order to benefit from strong market conditions.At the same time, the owner is continuing a fleet renewal programme. Earlier this year it ordered two MR2 tankers in China for delivery in 2029, taking its orderbook to eight ships — four LR1s, two MR1s and two MR2s — with a total investment of about $412.6m. d’Amico currently operates a fleet of about 29 product tankers across the MR, handysize and LR1 segments with an average age of just under 10 years.