John Fredriksen’s listed dry bulk arm Golden Ocean Group has entered into a deal with Fredriksen’s family company Hemen Holding to acquire 18 bulk carriers.
The deal is priced at around $752m, and is made up of 10 newcastlemax bulkers built between 2019 and 2021 as well as eight kamsarmaxes built between 2020 and 2021.
Golden Ocean says the deal will add significant scale to company’s operating fleet, contribute to reducing cash breakeven levels, and is in line with its fleet renewal strategy.
Affiliates of Hemen has agreed to provide a loan facility of $414m to give Golden Ocean time to arrange long-term financing for the vessels, while a private placement of around $338m has been executed with Hemen pre-committing to subscribing for its allocation valued at $169m.
