Falling Freight Rates Keep Diana in Red

Owner of dry bulk vessels, Diana Shipping Inc. today reported a net loss of USD 17.4 million for the third quarter of 2015, down from a net income of USD 7.7 million reported in the third quarter of 2014.

Time charter revenues were USD 38.9 million, compared to USD 45.1 million for the same quarter of 2014.

Diana attributed the decrease in time charter revenues to lower time charter rates, partly offset by revenues derived from the increase in ownership days resulting from the company’s fleet expansion.

Net loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 amounted to USD 42.2 million, compared to net loss of USD 4 million reported in 2014. Time charter revenues were USD 119.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2015, also down from last year’s USD 129.4 million.

Diana also announced that, on November 10, 2015 it took delivery of the m/v New Orleans, a 180,960 dwt newly built Capesize dry bulk vessel that the company bought in April 2015. The m/v New Orleans is time chartered to SwissMarine Services S.A., Geneva, at a gross charter rate of USD 11,650 per day minus a 5% commission paid to third parties, for a period of minimum eleven months to about fifteen months. The charter commenced yesterday.

This employment is anticipated to generate approximately USD 3.84 million of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the time charter.

Including the newly delivered m/v New Orleans, Diana’s fleet currently consists of 42 dry bulk vessels. The company also expects to take delivery of one Capesize dry bulk vessel by mid-November 2015, one new-building Newcastlemax  during the second quarter of 2016, as well as one Kamsarmax and one Newcastlemax newbuild during the third quarter of 2016.