Star Bulk’s green loan

(Posted on 11/10/18)

Star Bulk Carriers Corp., a global shipping company focusing on the transportation of dry bulk cargoes has announced that it has entered into a $310 million loan agreement, which includes a $70 million tranche that will exclusively finance the procurement and retrofitting of scrubbers for up to approx. 50 vessels in Star Bulk’s fleet. 

Star Bulk’s vessels transport major bulks, which include iron ore, coal and grain, and minor bulks, which include bauxite, fertilizers and steel products.

DNB Bank ASA, acted as the Mandated Lead Arranger, Facility Agent and Coordinator, along with ABN AMRO Bank N.V , BNP Paribas, Danish Ship Finance A/S and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB as Mandated Lead Arrangers.  

The remaining $240 million were drawn on September 28, 2018 and refinanced in full a group of 26 vessels, namely 4 Newcastlemax, 4 Capesize, 2 Post Panamax, 14 Kamsarmax and 2 Supramax vessels.  

The Green Loan Tranche has been certified by DNV GL Business Assurance Services Limited to be aligned with the Green Loan Principles. The completion of this financing is an important milestone for Star Bulk and its lending partners, who are pioneering sustainable Green Loans for dry bulk shipping investments, which aim to promote maritime emission reductions and compliance with the 2020 IMO regulations.

The Green Loan Tranche has a margin of 280 basis points over LIBOR and an amortization profile of 4.5 years.  

Star Bulk was incorporated in the Marshall Islands on December 13, 2006 and maintains executive offices in Athens, Greece. Its common stock trades on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “SBLK” and on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker “SBLK R”. On a fully delivered basis, Star Bulk will have a fleet of 111 vessels, with an aggregate capacity of 12.67 million dwt, consisting of 17 Newcastlemax, 20 Capesize, 2 Mini Capesize, 7 Post Panamax, 35 Kamsarmax, 2 Panamax, 16 Ultramax and 12 Supramax vessels with carrying capacities between 52,055 dwt and 209,537 dwt.

The Company holds call options and has sold respective put options on 4 Capesize vessels, with exercise dates in early April 2019.

Latest News

Shipping takes major sustainable plastic step with toolkit from MACS

The Maritime Association for Clean Seas (MACS) has published a series of practical guides to enable... Read more

Shanghai climbs to second as Singapore retains top spot

Shanghai has officially become the world’s second-most prominent shipping hub, according to the... Read more

OceanScore sees growing port adoption of PortView

OceanScore, the maritime data and sustainability company helping shipping and ports turn regulatory... Read more

INTERCARGO highlights progress and priorities in bulk carrier safety

Bulk carrier safety continues to show steady long-term improvement, but the nature of risk facing seafarers... Read more

Norden raises full-year guidance following strong performance in dry cargo

Following stronger than expected operational performance in dry cargo, reduced costs associated with... Read more

Algoma announces refinancing of long-term debt

Algoma Central Corporation, a leading provider of marine transportation services, has announced that... Read more

Global maritime under threat from Fortibleed incident, warns Cydome

Major maritime, ports and energy companies have been identified by Cydome’s threat-intelligence... Read more

Crewing specialist expands global recruitment network with Indonesian seafarers

As the global shipping industry faces mounting concerns over future crew availability, Danica Crewing... Read more

IMO pauses evacuation in Strait of Hormuz following attack

Following an attack on a vessel in the Gulf of Oman, IMO has decided to temporarily pause its evacuation... Read more

Human cost of keeping world trade moving highlighted on Day of the Seafarer

Leading health and wellness platform OneCare Group is calling on shipping leaders to recognise the immense... Read more