MAROUSSI, ATHENS, GREECE--(Marketwired - Jan 23, 2017) - Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA), an owner and operator of drybulk and container carrier vessels and provider of seaborne transportation for drybulk and containerized cargoes, announced today the signing and service of a drawdown notice under a $10.86 million loan to finance the recent acquisition of M/V Alexandros P, the newbuild Ultramax drybulk carrier that was delivered to the Company on January 16, 2017.
The Company also announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell for scrap the M/V RT Dagr, a 1,645 teu feeder containership, built in 1998, for net sale proceeds of about $2.1 million. The vessel is expected to be delivered to its buyers in the beginning of February 2017.
Aristides Pittas, Chairman and CEO of Euroseas commented: "We are pleased to announce the signing and drawing of the $10.6 million loan to finance our newbuilding Alexandros P. As the vessel was already fully paid with cash on hand, the proceeds from the loan as well as those from the sale of M/V RT Dagr, provide us with significant additional liquidity and "fire power" for our growth plans. Over the last year or so, despite the very challenging market conditions, we have taken advantage of quality vessel investment opportunities at a low point in the market cycle for both the drybulk and containership segments. We are looking forward to continuing executing on this strategy and benefitting from a potential market recovery in both sectors."
About Euroseas Ltd.:
Euroseas Ltd. was formed on May 5, 2005 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consolidate the ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 140 years. Euroseas trades on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker ESEA since January 31, 2007.
Euroseas operates in the dry cargo, drybulk and container shipping markets. Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 certified affiliated ship management company and Eurobulk (FE) Ltd. Inc., also an affiliated ship management company, which are responsible for the day-to-day commercial and technical management and operations of the vessels. Euroseas employs its vessels on spot and period charters and through pool arrangements.
The Company has a fleet of 13 vessels, including one Kamsarmax drybulk carrier, three Panamax drybulk carriers, one Ultramax drybulk carrier, one Handymax drybulk carrier, and seven Feeder containerships. Euroseas six drybulk carriers have a total cargo capacity of 417,753 dwt, its seven containerships have a cargo capacity of 11,525 teu. The Company has also signed a contract for the construction of one Kamsarmax (82,000 dwt) fuel efficient drybulk carrier. Including the new-building Kamsarmax, the total cargo capacity of the Company's drybulk vessels will be 499,753 dwt.