BW LPG Limited has signed a Debt Facility Agreement of USD290 million for the re-financing of six 2016 built ex-Aurora ships.
The re-financing has been raised from The Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) as ECA (Export Credit Agency) lender, with ABN AMRO Bank N.V., Singapore branch and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited as Mandated Lead Arrangers.
ABN AMRO Bank N.V., Singapore branch also acted as coordinator and facility agent. The all-in cost for this financing is LIBOR plus 1.88%, with a 16-year amortization profile.
BW LPG Chief Executive Officer, Martin Ackermann, commenting on the transaction said, “This financing exemplifies our strategy of cost leadership, and our ability to leverage the BW LPG platform value in obtaining market leading financing."
Martin added: "The ex-Aurora fleet is now fully re-financed at similar competitive terms and structure as the rest of the BW LPG fleet, which further strengthens our competitive edge in a challenging market. We thank our lenders for their continued support.”
In December 2016, BW LPG completed the acquisition of Aurora LPG, adding nine VLGCs with an average age of three years to its fleet. Additionally, the firm took delivery of six newbuildings and sold three vessels last year.
Following the acquisition of all shares in Aurora LPG Holding ASA on 12 December 2016, BW LPG Limited delisted Aurora LPG from Oslo Axess with last day of listing on 27 December 2016. Aurora LPG is thus now a fully owned and integrated subsidiary of BW LPG.
BW LPG has also terminated all agreements with Atlantic Tankers AS – the company set up by Aurora LPG to commercially manage their vessels. Technical management of the vessels will remain unchanged.
BW LPG is the world's leading owner and operator of LPG vessels. BW LPG currently owns and operates 55 Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGC) and Large Gas Carriers (LGC) including two VLGC newbuildings with a total carrying capacity of 4.5 million cbm.