Greek drybulk specialist Safe Bulkers has done a deal with entities owned by chairman and CEO Polys Hajioannou to novate a panamax newbuild contract and sell, upon delivery, a kamsarmax vessel.
Hajioannou will take over the remaining capital expenditure requirements for the vessels, currently at $48.2m, while brokers value the pair at $46m.
Safe Bulkers said that the transactions will substantially preserve its liquidity position and avoid the need to incur additional indebtedness. However the sale will result in an aggregate non-cash impairment loss of $16.6m.
“Consistent with our efforts to preserve liquidity through arrangements with our commercial lenders and maintenance of a lean operational profile, these transactions have allowed the Company to continue to minimize its cash outflows for capital expenditures. Of the four newbuild vessels that were previously on the Company’s orderbook, we have been able to finance one newbuild vessel through the issuance of preferred equity securities and we now have entered into arrangements to sell or novate two additional newbuild vessels, thus substantially preserving the Company’s liquidity position,” commented Loukas Barmparis, president of Safe Bulkers.
The two Japanese-built vessels are scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2017.
