Golar LNG Limited announced today that it has entered into an agreement to sell the companies that own the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Golar Freeze to subsidiary company Golar LNG Partners L.P. for a price of $330 million. The transaction is expected to close before the end of October 2011.
The acquisition is being financed by the assumption of approximately $108 million of senior bank debt and with vendor financing provided by Golar LNG in the form of a loan in the amount of approximately $222 million. The loan has a term of three years and a fixed interest rate of 6.75%. It is expected that the vendor financing will be refinanced prior to its maturity with third party debt and/or in connection with the acquisition of potential further assets by Golar LNG Partners from the Company in the future.
The transaction structure and the term of the loan agreement will reduce Golar LNG’s need for external financing for its newbuild deliveries in 2013 and 2014 and is likely to positively influence Golar’s ability to grow and pay additional dividends in the future.
Golar LNG Chairman Mr. John Fredriksen said in a comment, “ We are very pleased to have completed this transaction which confirms the Company’s strategy to monetise long-term contracts through the growth of Golar LNG Partners. As a large shareholder in Golar LNG Partners we are also pleased to see that the strategy to grow the business and dividends is now coming to fruition .”
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Source: Golar LNG, October 6, 2011; Image: Qatargas