First of Four Newcastlemaxes Joins DryShips’ Fleet
Image Courtesy: NasdaqGreek shipowner DryShips Inc has taken delivery of its first previously announced 205,855 DWT Newcastlemax drybulk vessel built in 2014.
The company said that the ship was delivered to its one year time charter with “a major grain house”, the identity of which was not revealed.
The charter is expected to provide a total gross backlog of USD 7.1 million, according to DryShips.
“With three sister vessels to follow, two of which are also employed under time charter contracts, we expect our earnings and cash flows will built up during the second half of 2017,” George Economou, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said.
The ships were bought in March at “historically low prices”, as described by Economou, for a total of USD 124 million. The quartet features 206,000 dwt and an average age of 3 years.
As informed at the time, two of the Newcastlemax bulkers are planned to be employed under time charter contracts, while the other two are set to trade in the spot market.
As stipulated in the deal, the rest of the fleet is slated for delivery before the end of June 2017.
DryShips has been very active on the second-hand market, availing of the attractive ship prices, including the recent purchases of four Kamsarmax bulkers last month.
