Euroseas announces time charter contract and financing for its newbuilding Kamsarmax M/V Ekaterini
Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA), an owner and operator of drybulk and container carrier vessels and provider of seaborne transportation for drybulk and containerized cargoes through its subsidiar has entered into a time charter contract for its newbuilding vessel, M/V Ekaterini, a 82,000 dwt, 2018 built Kamsarmax bulk carrier, the Company said in a news release.
Specifically, M/V Ekaterini, which is scheduled to be delivered to the Company from the shipyard on May 7, 2018, has been chartered to a highly reputable European charterer for about two years at a gross daily rate of $13,000. The charter will commence upon delivery of the vessel and is expected to contribute approximately $9.0 million of net revenues to the Company during the contract period.
The Company also announced that it has secured a bank loan of about $18.4 million to finance the acquisition of the vessel. Proceeds from the loan will enhance the Company’s liquidity by about $2.2 million after repayment of the last installment to the shipyard and all related expenses with the delivery of the vessel.
Aristides Pittas, Chairman and CEO of Euroseas, commented: "We are pleased to announce the two-year contract of our new vessel Ekaterini along with its respective financing. We believe that this fixture will provide us with substantial additional secured cash flow for the next two years, allowing us more flexibility in pursuing further growth opportunities." Release of First Quarter 2018 Results, Conference Call and Webcast Euroseas Ltd. also announced today that it will release its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018 on Tuesday, May 8, 2018 before the market opens in New York. On the same day, Tuesday, May 8, 2018 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time, the Company's management will host a conference call and webcast to discuss the results.
About Euroseas Ltd.
Euroseas Ltd. was formed on May 5, 2005 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consolidate the ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 140 years. Euroseas trades on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker ESEA. Euroseas operates in the dry cargo, drybulk and container shipping markets. Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 certified affiliated ship management company and Eurobulk (Far East) Ltd. Inc., which are responsible for the day-to-day commercial and technical management and operations of the vessels. Euroseas employs its vessels on spot and period charters and through pool arrangements. The Company has a fleet of 18 vessels, including two Kamsarmax drybulk carriers, three Panamax drybulk carriers, one Ultramax drybulk carrier, one Handymax drybulk carrier, 10 Feeder containerships and an intermediate containership. Euroseas seven drybulk carriers have a total cargo capacity of 499,753 dwt, its 11 containerships have a cargo capacity of 25,473 teu.