Seanergy Announces Share Repurchase Plan
Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan (the “Plan”). Under the Plan, the Company may repurchase up to $17 million of its outstanding common shares, representing approximately 10% of the Company’s market capitalization as of August 10, 2021.
Stamatis Tsantanis, the Company’s Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, stated:
“We believe that the share price and the market value of Seanergy are currently significantly undervalued both in terms of the underlying asset or equity value of the Company, and also in terms of our solid ability to generate earnings in the current market environment. Considering this, we feel that a share buyback is the correct and well-timed capital allocation decision.
By using our strong balance sheet and our fleet’s robust cash-flow generating capacity to reduce the number of outstanding common shares, we can increase stockholder value, while maintaining sufficient liquidity reserves to take advantage of attractive market opportunities.”
The Company may repurchase common shares in open-market transactions pursuant to Rule 10b-18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or pursuant to a trading plan adopted in accordance with Rule 10b5‐1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Any repurchases pursuant to the Plan will be made at management’s discretion at prices considered to be attractive and in the best interests of both the Company and its shareholders, subject to the availability of stock, general market conditions, the trading price of the stock, alternative uses for capital, applicable securities laws and the Company’s financial performance. The Plan may be suspended, terminated, or modified at any time for any reason, including market conditions, the cost of repurchasing shares, the availability of alternative investment opportunities, liquidity, and other factors deemed appropriate. These factors may also affect the timing and amount of share repurchases. The Plan does not obligate the Company to purchase any of its shares. The Board of Directors’ authorization of the Plan is effective immediately and expires on December 31, 2022.
Seanergy Announces Delivery & Immediate Period Employment of one Capesize Vessel and New Bank Loan Facility
Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. reported the delivery of a previously-announced Capesize vessel acquisition, the M/V Friendship (the “Vessel”). The Vessel is a 176,952 dwt Capesize bulk carrier, built in 2009 by Namura Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Japan. The M/V Friendship is the fifth Capesize delivery that Seanergy has successfully completed in 2021 to date.
The Vessel has been fixed on a time charter (“T/C”) with NYK Line, a leading Japanese corporation, which is an existing charterer of Seanergy. The T/C is expected to commence immediately, upon finalization of the customary transition process and will have a term of minimum 17 to maximum 24 months from the delivery. The gross daily rate of the T/C is based at a premium over the Baltic Capesize Index (“BCI”).
Moreover, Seanergy received approval, from one of its existing lenders to partially finance the acquisition of the M/V Friendship. The loan facility of up to $13.0 million bears interest rate of LIBOR + 3.25%, has a four-year term and will be repaid through 4 quarterly instalments of $0.7 million followed by 12 quarterly instalments of $0.38 million and a balloon of $5.7 million payable together with the last instalment.
Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. is the only pure-play Capesize ship-owner publicly listed in the US. Seanergy provides marine dry bulk transportation services through a modern fleet of Capesize vessels. On a fully-delivered basis, the Company’s operating fleet will consist of 16 Capesize vessels with an average age of 11.4 years and aggregate cargo carrying capacity of approximately 2,829,631 dwt.
The Company is incorporated in the Marshall Islands and has executive offices in Glyfada, Greece. The Company’s common shares trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “SHIP”, its Class A warrants under “SHIPW” and its Class B warrants under “SHIPZ”.Source: Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp.
Seanergy achieves fuel savings of up to 12% through DeepSea’s industry-first performance routing platform
AI led maritime technology company DeepSea Technologies has partnered with Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. to develop, test, and improve Pythia, the world’s first weather routing and voyage optimisation platform tailored to the exact performance of vessels, under all conditions. This platform has allowed Seanergy’s Capesize vessels to achieve a reduction of fuel consumption of up to 12%, with average fuel savings of 8%, as recorded over a series of voyages during the first four months of 2021.
Seanergy and DeepSea have worked closely on the development of Pythia with the aim to build a unique performance routing tool tailored to the needs of top-tier shipping companies. Pythia is an industry-first next generation weather routing and voyage optimisation platform which uses AI-based performance models – based on highly detailed real-time data – to analyse 19 different parameters. The AI models accurately track how a vessel performs over time under any conditions, including those related to the weather and the state of the vessel – such as the fouling levels.
As a result of using real-time data, Pythia obtains a highly accurate understanding of the vessel and develops dynamic, tailor-made performance models for each ship, which are then used to determine the optimum routes, speeds, and trims for minimum fuel consumption.
This collaboration redefines fleet management across the global shipping industry, ushering in a new era where shipowners can accurately calculate the real fuel savings and reduction of emissions for each voyage. The approach also reduces fuel costs for charterers and other bunker bill payers, while accelerating the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within the shipping industry.
Commenting on the announcement, Roberto Coustas, Co-Founder and CEO of DeepSea Technologies, said: “Our great work with our partners and friends at Seanergy goes back several years, and now it’s fantastic to be able to take the traditional service of weather routing one step further by collaborating side by side with them. Together, we have managed to evolve weather routing into a true performance routing solution, that adapts to each individual company’s objectives.”
Stamatis Tsantanis, CEO of Seanergy Maritime, and Roberto Coustas, Co-founder and CEO of DeepSea Technologies
“We are aligned with Seanergy on many of our key objectives. We are both committed to pursuing a more sustainable future for shipping that mitigates the environmental impact of our sector through collaboration. With this partnership, we are not just trialling and fine-tuning this unique optimisation technology, but also bringing to market the first performance routing platform with a proven track record of fuel and emissions savings that can push the decarbonisation efforts of the industry forward.”
Stamatis Tsantanis, CEO of Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp., added: “Working with our partners at DeepSea and adopting Pythia is crucial for our ongoing ESG strategy. This strategy, which underpins how we aim to reduce fleet carbon emissions in a cost-effective way through technical and operational measures, will enable us to comply with IMO regulations and the United Nations’ Sustainability Goals.
“We believe that our industry’s increasingly ambitious sustainability aspirations and regulation will make non-efficient tonnage much harder to operate. In this environment, we aim to maintain chartering competitiveness and flexibility by striving for high-quality, environmentally compliant vessels with first-class fleet operations. Our partnership with DeepSea has been incredibly powerful in granting us a greater and more accurate understanding of our fleet performance, and in informing our decision-making process to achieve higher efficiency standards.”
The partnership journey for DeepSea and Seanergy goes back to 2019 when the two companies started collaborating for the performance optimisation of Seanergy’s vessels. Initially, Seanergy installed DeepSea’s data collection hardware and performance monitoring platform, Cassandra, onboard four vessels, gaining access to unprecedented levels of insights. Following the significant return on investment achieved through the adoption of both DeepSea’s AI platforms – Cassandra and Pythia – Seanergy is now deploying them across its entire fleet. Now, Seanergy’s fleet is among the most efficient in the industry.
Seanergy Takes Delivery of Two Capesize Vessels with Prompt Commencement of Period Charters
Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. reported the delivery of two previously-announced Capesize vessel acquisitions. The first vessel is a 181,709 dwt Capesize bulk carrier, built in 2010 by Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Japan, which was renamed M/V Patriotship, and the second is a 176,925 dwt Capesize bulk carrier, built in 2006 by Namura Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Japan, which was renamed M/V Tradership (the “Vessels”).
Taking advantage of the strong market conditions, Seanergy fixed the M/V Patriotship proactively at $31,000 per day for a period employment of 12 to 18 months with a major European cargo operator. Additionally, the M/V Tradership has been fixed for a period employment of 11 to 15 months with a major South Korean industrial company at an index-linked rate based on the Baltic Capesize Index. Both time charters are expected to commence promptly, upon finalization of the customary handover process.
Moreover, the Company is in advanced discussions with a leading Asian financial institution to finance part of the acquisition price of the M/V Patriotship through a sale and leaseback structure at competitive terms.
Stamatis Tsantanis, the Company’s Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, stated:
“I am pleased to announce the timely delivery of our fourteenth and fifteenth Capesize vessels and the immediate commencement of their respective period employments.
We are also excited to initiate business relationships with two additional reputable charterers. Including these deliveries, 87% of our operating fleet is employed under advantageous medium to long-term charters.
At the financing front, we have secured competitively-priced financings for our recent vessel acquisitions, as previously announced, which will further enhance our strong liquidity position and reduce the Company’s average cash interest expense.
We believe Seanergy is optimally positioned to take advantage of the rising market conditions.”
Seanergy Announces Delivery of Capesize M/V Flagship
Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. announced that it has taken delivery of the 176,387 dwt Capesize bulk carrier, built in 2013 by Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in Japan, which was renamed M/V Flagship (the “Vessel”). The Vessel was subsequently financed through a leasing agreement with Cargill International SA (“Cargill” or the “Charterer”). Pursuant to the agreement, the Company has chartered back the Vessel on a bareboat basis and subsequently entered into a five-year time charter (“T/C”) with Cargill at a rate which is linked to the Baltic Capesize Index (BCI).
Financing Agreement
The bareboat financing amount of the Vessel is $20.5 million at an implied interest rate of approximately 2% all-in, fixed for five years. The Company has the option to buy back the Vessel at any time during the whole five-year leasing period, at the end of which it has a purchase obligation of $10 million subject to certain adjustments based on the market price of the Vessel.
Time Charter Agreement
Under the terms of the T/C, the Vessel will earn an index-linked rate based on BCI, while the Company has the option to convert the daily hire from index-linked to fixed for a minimum period of three months to a maximum of 12 months based on the prevailing Capesize Freight Futures Agreements (“FFA”) curve. The index-linked rate will be 102% of the BCI minus $1,325 per day. The term of the T/C matches the term of the leasing transaction and has a duration of 60 months from the delivery of the Vessel to Cargill on May 10, 2021.
Energy Saving Devices
In addition, Cargill will fund the equipment and the installation of certain energy saving devices (“ESDs”) onboard the M/V Flagship, aimed to increase the Vessel’s energy efficiency by reducing fuel consumption and subsequently the Vessel’s carbon footprint. The Company and the Charterer have successfully implemented a similar project for the M/V Championship in 2019 in a cooperative scheme pioneered by Seanergy and Cargill.
Stamatis Tsantanis, the Company’s Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, stated:
“We are pleased to announce the delivery of the thirteenth Capesize vessel and its immediate commencement of period employment, during the strongest Capesize market of the last decade. Including this delivery, 84% percent of our fleet is employed under index-linked time charters.
We are also excited to further expand our strategic partnership with Cargill with another transaction, which is very beneficial commercially and environmentally. Cargill is one of the most prominent charterers with a clearly defined and actionable environmental and sustainability agenda.
The debt financings we have secured so far for our recent vessel acquisitions are priced competitively and this will further reduce the Company’s average cash interest expense. Moreover, upon the conclusion of this transaction our strong liquidity position will be further enhanced.
The implementation of our strategic decisions of the last 6 months has a clear positive impact on Seanergy so far, and we continuously explore opportunities to further increase value for our shareholders.”
Seanergy: Ενισχύει τον στόλο με την αγορά ενός capesize
Τον στόλο της με την αγορά ενός capesize φορτηγού πλοίου ενίσχυσε η εισηγμένη στην αμερικανική χρηματαγορά ελληνικών συμφερόντων ναυτιλιακή εταιρεία Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp.
Το πλοίο ναυπηγήθηκε το 2005 στα ναυπηγεία της Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. στην Ιαπωνία, έχει χωρητικότητα 177.536 τόνους και θα μετονομαστεί σε M/V «Goodship». Με την παράδοσή του, ο στόλος της εταιρείας θα αυξηθεί στα έντεκα capesize πλοία και η συνολική μεταφορική ικανότητά του θα ανέλθει περίπου σε 1.926.117 τόνους.
Όπως έγινε γνωστό από την εταιρεία, η αξία αγοράς του πλοίου ανέρχεται σε 11,4 εκατ. δολάρια και θα χρηματοδοτηθεί με διαθέσιμα κεφάλαια, αξιοποιώντας μικρό μέρος των προσφάτων αυξήσεων κεφαλαίου. Η παράδοση του πλοίου αναμένεται μέχρι το τέλος του Ιουλίου.
Ο πρόεδρος και διευθύνων σύμβουλος της εταιρείας, Σταμάτης Τσαντάνης, δήλωσε σχετικά: « Η προσθήκη του πλοίου στον στόλο μας αυξάνει τη λειτουργική μας δυναμική ως αμιγώς capesize εταιρεία. Το πλοίο αναμένεται να μας παραδοθεί άμεσα, με ημερήσιους ναύλους που υπερβαίνουν τα 30.000 δολάρια και ενδέχεται να προσδώσει στα καθαρά έσοδα της εταιρείας 3,4 εκατομμύρια δολάρια μέχρι το τέλος του 2020».
Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι η Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. είναι η μοναδική ελληνική εταιρεία εισηγμένη στο αμερικανικό χρηματιστήριο που διαχειρίζεται αποκλειστικά στόλο πλοίων τύπου capesize και με μέση ηλικία στόλου περίπου τα 11,5 έτη.