Scorpio Offloads Six New Bulkers

zoom Owner and operator of bulk carriers Scorpio Bulkers Inc. has entered into agreements to sell two Capesize dry bulk vessels and four newbuilding Capesize dry bulk vessels under construction for approximately USD 227 million. Two of the Capesize vessels were constructed in China and delivered to Scorpio in 2015, and the remaining four vessels are under construction. The Capesize vessels are being built in China and Korea, and are expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, respectively. As reported by World Maritime News, the company recently received a commitment from an unnamed European financial institution for a loan facility of up to USD 12.5 million for its final unfinanced vessel. With this move, Scorpio has now either signed credit facility agreements or received commitments for all 60 vessels in its fleet. Scorpio currently owns 28 vessels, consisting of three Capesize, 10 Kamsarmax vessels and 15 Ultramax vessels with an average age of 0.4 years. The company also time charters-in ten dry bulk vessels and has contracted for 26 dry bulk vessels from shipyards in Japan, South Korea and China. Upon final delivery of all of the vessels, the owned fleet is expected to have a total carrying capacity of approximately 4.4 million deadweight tonnes.