DHT Holdings announces acquisition of 11 VLCCs from BW Group
BW Group Limited and DHT Holdings, Inc. jointly announce today the acquisition of BW Group's VLCC fleet by DHT. The fleet consists of 11 VLCCs, including two newbuildings due for delivery in 2018.
BW Group's VLCC fleet has a value of approximately $538 million at prevailing broker valuations. DHT will finance the acquisition by issuing approximately $256 million of DHT capital stock, consisting of approximately 32 million shares of DHT common stock and 15,700 shares of preferred stock that are mandatorily convertible into 15.7 million shares of DHT common stock subject to DHT shareholder approval. The implied value of the DHT common stock issued to BW is $5.37 per share. DHT will also pay BW Group $177.36 million in cash and assume approximately $104.16 million in remaining obligations with respect to the two newbuildings. The cash requirements associated with the purchase are expected to be financed with bank debt.
Following BW Group's delivery of all vessels and novation of newbuilding contracts to DHT, BW Group Limited and its affiliates will own approximately 33.5% of DHT's outstanding share capital and will be granted customary rights, including the right to appoint two directors to DHT's board.
DHT expects that BW Group's VLCC fleet will be delivered during the second quarter of 2017. As a result of the acquisition, DHT will have a fleet with an average age of 6.9 years, consisting of 30 VLCCs (including four newbuildings for delivery in 2018), and two Aframaxes.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is serving as legal counsel to DHT. Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal counsel to BW Group.
About BW Group
BW Group is a leading global maritime group involved in oil and gas transportation, floating gas infrastructure, environmental technologies and deepwater production. Through its predecessor companies, Bergesen and World-Wide Shipping, BW has been delivering energy and other vital commodities for more than 80 years. BW's fleet of over 170 vessels includes crude oil supertankers, refined oil tankers, LNG and LPG carriers, floating storage and regasification (FSRU) units, chemical tankers, bulk carriers and floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units.
About DHT Holdings, Inc
DHT is an independent crude oil tanker company. DHT fleet trades internationally and consists of crude oil tankers in the VLCC and Aframax segments. DHT operates through its integrated management companies in Oslo, Norway and Singapore.