Oslo-listed BW LPG Limited has signed a debt facility agreement worth USD 221 million for the financing of four of its Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC) newbuildings.
The financing has been raised from ING Bank, KFW IPEX-Bank GmbH, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (OCBC) and Standard Chartered Bank, as mandated lead arrangers, where ING Bank also acted as coordinator and facility agent, the company said.
The loan is insured by Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-Sure). The all-in cost for this financing is LIBOR plus 1.60%, with an 18-year amortization profile.
“We are very pleased with this financing, which leverages the well-priced Korean ECA lending to provide an exceptional all-in cost and structure. This is a clear demonstration of BW LPG’s platform value in obtaining market leading financing. We are grateful to our lenders for their continued support,” BW LPG Chief Executive Officer, Martin Ackermann, said in a comment.
BW LPG Limited has also today taken delivery of BW Tucana, the seventh VLGC in its newbuilding programme of eight ships being built by the Korean Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI).
With the BW Tucana, BW LPG has a fleet of 40 vessels, comprising 28 owned VLGCs, seven chartered-in VLGCs and five owned VLGCs. In addition, BW LPG has five VLGC newbuildings under construction.