Costamare, York Capital to Extend Shipping Pact

By Aiswarya Lakshmi April 30, 2015

Greek ship-owner Costamare and US-based hedge fund York Capital Management are considering extending the life of their investment joint venture that has already spent more than $1 billion on new and secondhand container ships.

“Our joint venture with York has been progressing quite well and since inception we have done deals of $1.1bn. All investments have been performing well and we are currently in discussions with our partner regarding the extension of the investment period,” Gregory Zikos, the CFO of Costamare commented in a statement.

Costamare has teamed up with York Capital for an 11,000 teu newbuild which has been ordered at Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction yard in Subic Bay in the Philippines.

The vessel is expected to be delivered in December 2016. Pursuant to a Framework Agreement with York Capital, Costamare holds a 49% equity interest in the relevant vessel-owning entity.

“Regarding the market, there is a positive momentum; charter rates have been rising, the number of idle fleet is below 2% and activity remains high. We have no ships laid up, while the ships coming out of charter this year provide an upside based on today’s market conditions,” Zikos said.