Belships ASA: Acquisition of two modern vessels

Belships ASA

Belships has entered into agreements for the acquisition of two modern Ultramax bulk carriers built at Japanese shipyards in 2015 and 2017. Belships will pay a total of USD 15.5m as downpayment upon delivery of the vessels. The vessels are currently financed through time charter lease agreements with purchase options significantly below current market levels. Belships has the intention of declaring purchase options for both vessels during the next few months and re-finance the vessels under available bank financing which is expected to cover the amounts for the purchase options. The agreements are conditional upon certain steps to be completed by the parties involved. Delivery of the vessels is expected within July 2022.

“These agreements are immediately accretive for Belships’ shareholders and displays our ability to source transactions with short lead time and efficient use of capital. We expect the acquisitions will contribute to our earnings capacity and ability to pay dividends, which is the main objective” said Belships CEO, Lars Christian Skarsgård.

Belships ASA is a fully integrated owner and operator of geared bulk carriers. The owned fleet consists of 31 Supra/Ultramax bulk carriers with an average age below four years and daily cash breakeven for 2022 of about USD 10 000 per vessel. Lighthouse Navigation, a subsidiary of Belships, is a dry bulk operator with offices in Oslo, Bangkok, Singapore and Melbourne. Based on current market expectations, we expect to generate significant free cash flow and aim to pay quarterly dividends as announced with our dividend policy.

For further information, please contact Lars Christian Skarsgård, Belships CEO, phone +47 977 68 061 or e-mail LCS@belships.no

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act