FSL Trust Nabs USD 108 Mn for Refinancing

Singapore-based FSL Trust Management, a trustee-manager of First Ship Lease Trust, is gaining ground on its refinancing campaign.

The company said that it has secured a total of USD 108 million via three separate loan facilities.

Specifically, a USD 50 million facility agreement was signed with Hellenic Bank Public Company, USD 40 million loan was inked with Chailease International Financial Services and USD 18 million facility agreement with Amsterdam Trade Bank N.V.

The purpose of the new facilities is to refinance the current existing outstanding syndicated loan of approximately USD 109.94 million.

The trustee-manager has been busy over the recent period with refinancing efforts aimed at reducing outstanding debt. In May it announced a commitment from an undisclosed bank for the refinancing of a chemical tanker duo f up to USD 18 million. The offer is subject to  definitive transaction documentation.

The refinancing is intended for FSL New York and FSL London. The sale of the ships had also been explored, however, the currently poor market conditions would not bring a favorable cash injection from the vessels’ disposal.

The cash-raising efforts saw the sale of the company’s chemical tanker FSL Tokyo in January 2018 for a cash consideration of USD 13.8 million.