10 Dec 2014 14:54
Goldenport Holdings Inc.
Athens, 10 December 2014
Interim Management Statement
Goldenport Holdings Inc. ("Goldenport" or "the Company"), (LSE: GPRT) the international shipping company that owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk and container vessels, announces today the Interim Management Statement covering the quarter to 30 September 2014 and the update on the trading of its fleet as of 9 December 2014.
CEO Statement:
Dry bulk freight rates during the third quarter of 2014 were weaker than in the first half of the year, as demand lagged net fleet growth. Market expectations for China to meaningfully reduce domestic iron ore production in favour of imports proved to be overly optimistic, coal imports to China have been affected by adverse policies and the Indonesian nickel export ban remains in place. In this environment, Supramax rates were once again more resilient than Capesize and Panamax rates, reflecting their versatility and reduced earnings volatility, while containership rates remained broadly stable, but at levels close to all time lows.
During the quarter the utilisation rate of our fleet reached 96%, while a small improvement in the time charter equivalent rate for the fleet was offset in dollar terms by a slight increase in average daily operating expenses.
We have continued to employ our dry bulk fleet on a short term basis under 3-6 month time charter agreements and have recently extended the charters for several of our containerships for another 8-12 months. In line with our strategy to reduce our exposure to older containerships, we concluded the sale of the 2,452 TEU, 1998-built vessel "Thasos" to an unaffiliated third party and the vessel was delivered to the new owners on 1 December 2014.
The outlook for 2015 is uncertain and the long-awaited recovery in the dry bulk sector may not materialize in the near term as the orderbook casts a shadow over subdued demand. This is reflected in the Capesize and Supramax FFA for calendar year 2015 which are currently trading at US$12,200 and US$ 8,825 per day, respectively. We remain nevertheless optimistic about the dry bulk sector and believe that increased coal imports to India, long-haul Brazilian iron ore imports to China and South American grain exports could lead to a sustainable rally.
The outlook for the containership sector hinges on geopolitical uncertainties receding and global economic growth picking up, but at the same time, tonnage providers are being squeezed by liner companies that have formed themselves into alliances focused on increasing profitability and efficiency.
Fleet Developments:
Disposal:
The Company concluded the sale of the 2,452 TEU, 1998-built vessel "Thasos", to an unaffiliated third party at a gross consideration of U.S.7,750 cash and the vessel was delivered to the new owners on 1 December 2014.
Today the fleet consists of 13 vessels, of which 7 are dry bulk carriers and 6 container vessels. The Company also has a 50% share in 2 additional dry bulk carriers that are accounted for under the equity method.
Third Quarter 2014, Selected Financial and Operating Data:
Balance Sheet Data (in US$ million): | 30 September 2014 (Unaudited) | 31 December 2013 (Audited) | |
Gross Debt | 153.0 | 166.9 | |
Cash and cash equivalents | 16.4 | 16.9 | |
Net Debt | 136.6 | 150.0 | |
Net Debt to book capitalization | 45.7% | 47.0% | |
Fleet Data: | Q3 2014 | Q3 2013 | |
Average number of vessels in operation | 14 | 17 | |
Number of vessels at end of period: | 14 | 16 | |
- Operating | 14 | 16 | |
JV vessels |
| 2 | 2 |
Ownership days |
| 1,288 | 1,604 |
Available days |
| 1,271 | 1,562 |
Operating days |
| 1,215 | 1,501 |
Fleet utilization |
| 96% | 96% |
| |||
Average Daily Results (in US$): |
| Q3 2014 | Q3 2013 |
Time Charter Equivalent (TCE) rate |
| 7,458 | 7,265 |
Average daily vessel operating expenses |
| 4,224 | 3,989 |
|
Fleet Employment Profile:
Vessel | Type | Capacity | Built | Rate (US$) per day | Earliest | |
Expiration (1) | ||||||
Dry Bulk | DWT | |||||
1 | D Skalkeas | Post Panamax | 93,000 | 2011 | 9,500 | Jan-15 |
2 | Eleni D | Supramax | 59,000 | 2010 | 8,200 | Feb-15 |
3 | Milos | Supramax | 57,000 | 2010 | 10,750 | Dec-14 |
4 | Sifnos | Supramax | 57,000 | 2010 | 9,100 | Jan-15 |
5 | Pisti | Supramax | 57,000 | 2011 | 13,000 | Dec-14 |
6 | Sofia | Supramax | 57,000 | 2011 | 9,500 | Dec-14 |
7 | Golden Trader | Handymax | 48,140 | 1994 | 6,350 | Dec-14 |
8 | Ermis (2) | Supramax | 53,800 | 2009 | 13,200 | Dec-14 |
9 | Alpine Trader (2) | Supramax | 53,800 | 2009 | Drydocking | |
Containers | TEU |
| ||||
1 | MSC Fortunate | Post Panamax | 5,551 | 1996 | 13,025 | Jul-15 |
2 | Erato | Sub Panamax | 2,500 | 2011 | 8,150 | Mar-15 |
3 | Thira | Sub Panamax | 2,100 | 1997 | 7,180 | Jul-15 |
4 | Paris Jr | Handy | 1,129 | 1996 | 6,565 | Jul-15 |
5 | Gitte | Handy | 976 | 1992 | 6,400 | Feb-15 |
6 | Brilliant | Handy | 976 | 1992 | 6,565 | Jul-15 |
Boldface indicates new charters arranged since the last update on 28 August 2014. | ||||||
(1) Represents earliest day on which the charterer may redeliver the vessel | ||||||
(2) Vessel owned under a 50:50 joint venture with Glencore International AG | ||||||
For further information, please contact:
Goldenport Holdings Inc. | |
John Dragnis, Chief Executive Officer | +30 210 8910 500 |
Alexis Stephanou, Chief Financial Officer | +30 210 8910 542 finance@goldenport.biz |
Tavistock | |
Catriona Valentine / Emily Fenton | +44 (0) 20 7920 3150 |
Q3 2014 Review and Current Market Outlook:
Dry Bulk Carriers:
Supply:
During the third quarter of 2014, deliveries reached approximately 10.5 million DWT (139 vessels) while demolition levels were approximately 3.9 million DWT (70 vessels). As a result there was a net increase in the fleet of approximately 6.5 million DWT or 0.9% in terms of capacity and approximately 70 units in terms of number of vessels.
New orders showed a noticeable decrease from Q2 and reached around 78 units of 8.0 million DWT compared to 120 units of 10.5 million DWT. The current orderbook stands at about 2,092 units representing about 20% of the world fleet in terms of number of vessels and about 23% in terms of carrying capacity.
During the nine-month period to 30 September 2014 there have been 242 orders placed in the wider Handymax sector and the current orderbook of 820 units represents about 26% of the operating Handymax fleet.
Demand:
Chinese iron ore imports continued to increase throughout the 3rd quarter although at a slower pace. About 700 million mt were imported during the first nine months of 2014, representing a year-on-year increase of 16.3%, but the 242 million mt imported in Q3 2014 was on par with Q3 2013. At the same time, iron ore stocks at Chinese ports are at historically low levels, which is an encouraging sign for the near future. Iron ore prices have dropped about 50% since the end of 2013 to close to $70/mt, which are the lowest levels of the last five years, but are expected to remain stable around current levels for the next few months.
Dry bulk freight rates were lower in the third quarter, but during the fourth quarter we have experienced a recovery in rates. The average TC rates in Q1, Q2 and Q3 2014, current and FFAs for calendar year 2015, as of Tuesday 9 December are as follows:
US$ per day | Q1 2014 | Q2 2014 | Q3 2014 | Current | Cal 2015 FFAs |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Capesize | 16,298 | 11,972 | 12,590 | 6,844 | 12,200 |
Panamax | 10,427 | 6,371 | 5,783 | 8,498 | 8,000 |
Supramax | 11,631 | 9,025 | 8,831 | 10,103 | 8,825 |
Containerships:
Supply:
In the third quarter, the world containership fleet increased by approximately 2% in terms of the number of vessels to 5,110 units and 2.3% in terms of capacity to 18.0 million TEU. This is the result of larger vessels being introduced into the market and utilised by the liner companies, and smaller vessels reaching the end of their economic life being scrapped.
During the third quarter of 2014, about 39 new building contracts were signed, equivalent to about 287,000 TEU. This represents a 21% decrease from the first quarter and it is mainly attributed to the increase in the price of newbuildings.
The current orderbook stands at about 465 vessels of about 3.5 million TEU and this represents approximately 20% of the world fleet in terms of capacity. The vast majority of the investment in the container segment is focused in the asset class of over 8,000 TEU, which represents about 82% of the current orderbook in terms of capacity.
Demand:
From a chartering point of view, there has not been any significant movement in the freight market. Despite the ongoing cascading effect, whereby larger vessels substitute smaller ones, and the delivery of more "eco" vessels throughout the quarter, the majority of standard feeder vessels continue to find employment albeit at historically low rates.
- ENDS -