HONG KONG (dpa-AFX) - Seaspan Corp. (SSW), an independent charter owner and operator of containerships, said Thursday that it has agreed to acquire a fleet of six containerships for about $380 million in cash.
The acquired vessels are comprised of three 10,700 TEU vessels built in 2012, two 9,200 TEU vessels built in 2013, and one 9,200 TEU vessel built in 2014. This adds a total of approximately 59,700 TEU.
The company expects delivery of the six vessels in December 2019. Currently, the acquired vessels currently operate under long-term charter with a leading global liner.
Seaspan expects the purchase of the acquired vessels to be financed from additional borrowings as well as cash on hand. The closing of the acquisition is expected to occur in December 2019.
Upon closing, Seaspan expects the transaction to be immediately accretive to its earnings per share.
Seaspan noted that with this acquisition, its global fleet approaches one million TEU, with a total pro forma fleet size of about 975,000 TEU.
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