Diana Expands Fleet, Agrees on New Charters

Diana Shipping Inc., a global shipping company specializing in the ownership of dry bulk vessels, has through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary taken delivery of the M/V  G. P. Zafirakis, a 179,492 dwt newly built Capesize dry bulk vessel that the company entered into an agreement to purchase in June 2014.

The M/V G. P. Zafirakis is time chartered to RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, Essen, Germany, at a gross charter rate of USD 25,250 per day for a period ending on minimum February 14, 2016 to maximum June 24, 2016. The charter is expected to commence on August 24, 2014.

Additionally, the company announced that, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, it has entered into a time charter contract with RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, Essen, Germany, for one of its Kamsarmax dry bulk vessels, the M/V Maia.

The gross charter rate is USD 12,000 per day for a period of minimum twelve months to maximum sixteen months. Due to scheduled maintenance, the charter is expected to commence by the end of September 2014.

The Maia is a 82,193 dwt Kamsarmax dry bulk vessel built in 2009.

The employments of the two vessels are anticipated to generate approximately USD 17.9 million of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the time charters.

Including the newly delivered Zafirakis, Diana Shipping Inc.’s fleet currently consists of 39 dry bulk vessels (2 Newcastlemax, 11 Capesize, 3 Post-Panamax, 3 Kamsarmax and 20 Panamax).

The company also expects to take delivery of two new-building Newcastlemax dry bulk vessels and one new-building Kamsarmax dry bulk vessel during the second quarter of 2016.

As of today, the combined carrying capacity of the company’s fleet, excluding the three vessels not yet delivered, is approximately 4.4 million dwt with a weighted average age of 6.69 years.