Details of the re-structuring of TORM have been widely disseminated and we intend to look at the transaction more closely next week. While we tend to concur with Erik Nikolai Stavseth’s characterization of the deal creating another “living-dead” shipping company controlled by the banks, our concern is that the outcome supplies no discipline. The banks are providing liquidity in the form of a $100 million working capital facility.

With its various iterations of the registration statements on file the Peter Livanos vehicle, GasLog Ltd. at last achieved the desired end result and began the process of marketing its IPO this week. In this final version, the company intends to sell 23.5 million shares with a price range of $16-$18 per share, which would generate gross proceeds of $399.5 million at the midpoint. In addition, the company intends to sell to insiders a further $3.7 million of shares. Post-offering, the public will own approximately 37.4% of the outstanding shares.

The temperature begins to warm, the days get longer and Safe Bulkers Inc. goes to market with what seems to be its annual spring equity offering. Utilizing its existing shelf registration, the company announced on Monday its intention to offer five million shares of its common stock to the public with an overallotment option of 750 thousand shares. This follows offerings of five million shares priced at $8.40 in April 2011 and nine million shares priced at $7.00 in March 2010.

By George Weltman

By George Weltman