Articles

Private placements are an attractive but seldom used source of ship finance. It’s a market in which borrowers and their advisors can use creativity to create bespoke credit solutions rather than simply squeezing the deal into an “off the rack” bank loan

Maritime M&A has been robust in recent years as cash-rich shipowners pursue growth without ordering newbuildings. Companies: MOL Chemical Tankers, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Fairfield Chemical Carriers, Nordic Tankers, MUFG, Morgan Stanley

Amazing things can happen when you plug the right team into the right platform with the right product – and the Blue Ocean Funds are a good example of that. Companies: Blue Ocean Funds, EnTrust Global, HitecVision, Jefferies, Evercore, Maas Capital, ABN AMRO

Altera Shuttle Tankers, a subsidiary of Altera Infrastructure, successfully placed $200 million of senior unsecured bonds, in what we view as a positive sign for the maritime bond market. The company will use the net proceeds to refinance approximately $203.8 million in existing notes. Companies: Altera Shuttle Tankers, Altera Infrastructure, Arctic Securities, Danske Bank, DNB Markets, Nordea, SEB, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Nordea

At the beginning of the year headlines erupted when news broke that Energos had acquired two more FSRU’s from Dynagas affiliates on long-term charters in Germany. That transaction made Energos the largest LNG infrastructure owner-operator by FSRU capacity within the continent of Europe, and growth prospects surrounding energy transition and security have remained strong.

The growth of offshore wind has been obstructed by many hurdles, but capital formation continues for the development of new projects or renewal of existing ones. Among the leading companies in the sector, raising capital has seemed to occur most frequently through private placement, at least when seeking new equity investment. Companies: Odfjell Oceanwind, Mitsui O.S.K Lines, Kansai Electric Power Company, Enova, Source Galileo Norge, DNB Markets

With the volume of ultra-low-cost European commercial bank declining, and owners seeking diversification from Chinese leasing, more Western owners are raising ship finance in Japan. Companies: FPG AIM, Fearnley Securities, Maritime Asset Partners, DNB Markets, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank, Sea Bridge Finance, AMA Capital Partners, ABL Corporation, Dorian LPG

Ocean Yield is not the only company last week to have issued new notes, New Fortress Energy issued new notes last week for a total issuance size of $750 million, seeking extra liquidity to repay their outstanding debts or also for general and corporate purposes to pursue new and emerging opportunities. Companies: New Fortress Energy, Vinson and Elkins

With the recent announcement of Cetus Maritime (“Cetus”) and Nachipa Corp’s (“Nachipa”) merger, as well as a great presentation by Chris Weyers of AMA Capital Partners here at our Hamburg conference, we thought this a good opportunity to discuss the M&A outlook for 2024 and sum up what we have seen so far. Companies: Cetus Maritime, Nachipa Corp, AMA Capital Partners, Star Bulk, Eagle, Cadeler, Eneti, Asia Maritime Pacific, Hamburg Bulk Carriers

Maritime Partners has brought fresh thinking, new capital, and lots of energy to the Jones Act. The results have been spectacular. Companies: Maritime Partners, Seacor, American Industrial Partners’, J. Russell Flowers, MG Transport Holdings, American Tanker Holding Company, U.S. Marine Management

Thanks to strong markets in all the main sectors, shipping companies have generated a lot of free cash flow in recent years and now find themselves in a new paradigm of capital allocation. In a rare moment in the history of shipping, owners find themselves both highly liquid and the beneficiaries of strong free cash flow, a reflection of the strong current markets.

In Dealogic’s Marine Finance Rankings Syndicated Loans – Full Year 2023, we saw an increase over 2022, in syndicated marine finance loans as well as global shipping loans. This disrupts a downward trend which has continued since 2018/2019.

Digital innovation has been a hot topic at many maritime conferences and editorial pieces in the last few years. We have seen the promise of what digital technology can do in making operations more efficient and even have the industry release less carbon into the environment. Companies: hosted iLex, Infinity Maritime, Shipfinex

The business model of a vessel operating leasing company like Ocean Yield (“OCY”) works like this: OCY uses its balance sheet to buy a vessel which they rent to someone who uses it to move stuff around. Companies: Ocean Yield, KKR Infrastructure, Aker, Fearnley Securities, CMB, Alantra, Shuaa Capital, Maritime Asset Partners

Growth opportunities for offshore wind abound, but a combination of rising project costs, strained supply chains, and legislative challenges have made the economics of the industry challenging for developers and vessel owners alike. Companies: Cadeler, Eneti, Swire Pacific , Scorpio Bulkers, Seajacks International, Ørsted, DNB, Jefferies

This past week, Floatel International Ltd., announced the issuance of new senior secured bonds for total proceeds of $350 million. DNB Markets and Pareto Securities were mandated as joint bookrunners. Companies: Floatel International Ltd., DNB Markets, Pareto Securities

This past week, Ocean Yield ASA (“OCY”) issued $75m worth of perpetual callable hybrid bonds. If that combination of words is confusing, don’t worry because you’re not alone. Companies: Ocean Yield ASA, Arctic Securities, Danske Bank, Nordea, SEB

Last week, over 450 attendees gathered at the Grand Elysée hotel in Hamburg to share and discuss their views on the current state of our industry, where it is going, how they plan to navigate the markets, and buying football clubs for fun! Companies: Berenberg, Hamburg Commercial Bank, UniCredit, Ehlermann Rindfleisch Gadow, Marshall Islands Registry, Maritime Strategies International, AMA Capital Advisors, Navios Maritime Partners, CMA CGM, Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, COSCO, OOCL, Evergreen, Kühne Foundation

We used to see Manav Kumar, President of Dynamic Drilling, on a more regular basis – when Marine Money Offshore conferences took place in abundance and the offshore market was strong. Manav was a founding speaker at our Singapore Offshore Finance Forum in 2013, and a regular at the Houston conference since its inception in 2011, which he often attended while participating in his leadership roles (currently on the global executive committee) at the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC). Companies: Dynamic Drilling

When we read last week that drilling startup Eldorado had closed a $275mm senior secured debt facility for two ultra-deepwater drillships we were impressed. Companies: Eldorado Drilling AS, Fearnley Securities, SpareBank 1 Markets, Arctic Securities, CSG Investments, Beal Bank