Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE: SFL) (“Ship Finance” or the “Company”) announces that it has agreed to acquire three large container vessels in combination with long term time charters to a leading container line.
The vessels are modern eco-design built in 2015 with approximately 10,600 TEU carrying capacity. The Company expects to take delivery of the vessels in the near term, and the purchase price is confidential.
The charters will run for a period of minimum 6 years, with options for the charterer to extend the charters up to 10 years. There is also a purchase option with profit split at the end of the initial period. Company’s fixed rate charter backlog will increase by approximately $260 million, increasing to approximately $430 million if the charter extension options are exercised. The EBITDA contribution from the vessels is estimated to approximately $35.5 million per year.
Ship Finance has received an offer for a $200 million intermediary bank financing to part-finance the acquisition of these vessels. The balance will be funded by cash at hand. The Company expects to arrange a long term financing in due course.
Ole B. Hjertaker, CEO of Ship Finance Management AS, said in a comment: “This acquisition highlights our strength and ability to achieve sustained growth through repeat transactions with the world’s largest liner companies. We have firmly established ourselves as a quality operator of vessels, and our financial flexibility enables us execute swiftly on new transactions. Over the last five months we have added more than $800 million to our charter backlog and expect to continue increasing our fleet of vessels and charter backlog in 2018”.
