Owner and operator of LNG carriers Teekay LNG Partners has secured a new charter contract for its LNG carrier, the 2009-built Magellan Spirit.
The 3-year fixed-rate contract, secured with an integrated oil and gas company, is scheduled to commence during the summer of 2019.
Concurrently, Teekay LNG extended the in-charter of the Magellan Spirit until the summer of 2022.
With this deal “the partnership’s LNG carrier fleet is approximately 97, 93 and 92 percent fixed for the remainder of this year, 2020 and 2021, respectively, which further supports Teekay LNG’s expected earnings growth and continued deleveraging profile over the next few years,” Mark Kremin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Teekay Gas Group Ltd, said.
Furthermore, Teekay GP LLC, the general partner of Teekay LNG Partners, has declared a cash distribution of USD 0.19 per common unit for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, representing a 36 percent increase over the previous quarter’s distribution.
“Our new annual distribution of USD 0.76 per unit is supported by our diverse portfolio of long-term fixed-rate LNG contracts. Importantly, our new distribution level strikes a balance between providing a meaningful increase in returns to our unitholders, while simultaneously allowing Teekay LNG to continue along its existing delevering path,” Kremin added.