Golden Ocean raises $200m in private placement, has plans for more
Fredriksen-led Golden Ocean has raised gross proceeds of NOK 1,718m ($200m) through a private placement of new shares, and has plans to issue more equity to raise a further $20m.
Some 343,684,000 new shares were issued in the private placement at a price of NOK 5.00 per share. Once the units have been issued, the company will have 516,359,637 issued common shares, each with a par value of $0.01.
Golden Ocean does not have sufficient unused authorised share capital to issue all the new shares and needs shareholder approval to increase its share capital. A majority of shareholders, representing 50.82% of Golden Ocean’s shares and votes, have indicated they are in favour of the increase and are expected to grant approval next week.
Until then, John Fredriksen’s investment vehicle Hemen Holding will defer settlement of its 16,359,637 allocated new shares until the requisite approval is in place.
Golden Ocean also plans to offer another 34,368,400 new shares at a price of NOK 5.00 per share to raise gross proceeds of up to NOK 171.8m ($20m). These new shares will be offered to holders of less than 100,000 shares (as of February 18) who have not been allocated shares in the private placement.
The new shares will initially be restricted and will trade on the Oslo Børs under the separate trading symbol ‘GOGL R’ from around February 23, after the placement’s prospectus has been approved by the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority.
The new shares issued in the placement will be restricted in the US and will be subject to a six-month holding period during which they cannot be traded in the country.
The shares will become freely tradeable on both the Oslo Børs and NASDAQ Global Select Market in the second half of 2016, and will be listed under Golden Ocean’s usual trading symbol ‘GOGL’.
The company says the private placement has enabled it to fulfill the equity condition in its amended financing terms.
Danske Bank, DNB Markets, Arctic Securities, Clarksons Platou Securities and Nordea Markets managed the private placement.
On Thursday, Golden Ocean said it has amended all its bank loan facilities and further delayed newbuilding deliveries, which it said were “further proactive measures to strengthen its balance sheet”.
