The Singapore-listed trust said the proceeds from the rights issue would be used for the repayment of bank loans, and the lenders of Rickmers Maritime will extend the existing value-to-loan covenant waiver until 20 December 2014.
“This is an opportune time to reduce debt, reward unitholders with an improved distribution per unit (DPU) yield and strengthen the balance sheet,” said Thomas Preben Hansen, ceo of Rickmers Maritime.
The company posted first quarter net profit of $10.74m, up 30% from $8.24m in the same period of last year. Revenue was flat at $35.5m.
The shipping trust announced a DPU of 0.60 cents per unit, similar to the corresponding period of 2012.
“With $441.5m of secured revenue from 1 April 2013 until the expiry of the last charter party contract in 2019, we have the economic fundamentals to position Rickmers Maritime for continued growth in the future,” Hansen commented.
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