Pan Ocean Launches New Round of Debt-for-Equity Swaps

Singapore-listed bulker owner Pan Ocean revealed intentions to issue new round of shares within its debt-for-equity swaps with creditors.

The restructured company plans to issue another 757,844 shares at KRW 10,000 each on April 29th.

The decision comes within Pan Ocean’s strategy of settling claims arising from its recent bankruptcy.

“This debt-to-equity conversion is for the two kinds of creditors. The one is for those who had confirmed claim amount on the rehabilitation plan but not submitted identification document to Pan Ocean in the previous debt-to-equity period and the other is for those who has confirmed claim amount after the approval of rehabilitation plan from the Court on 22nd November 2013,” the company said in a stock exchange filing.

The creditors listed in the filing are Merrill Lynch International, Mar Road Shipping, MT Maritime’s dry bulk division Strategic Bulk Carriers, Ep-Team, Kapitalanlagegesellschaft, Woori Bank, Rics Shipping, Korea Line Corporation, Danish breakbulk shipping company Nordana, and  Societa’ Commerciale E Finanziaria.

Pan Ocean signed the investment contract with its preferred bidder Harim Group & JKL Consortium in February.

The deal provides for Pan Ocean’s recapitalization through sale of equity, thus covering the company’s accumulated debt.

South Korea-based bulk carrier, formerly STX Pan Ocean, entered court receivership in June last year, for the second time in two decades, after its parent company STX Group failed to sell the unit due to an ongoing downturn in the industry.