General Maritime and Navig8 Crude to Merge

Tanker firms General Maritime Corporation and Navig8 Crude Tankers Inc. have introduced as we speak they’ve entered right into a definitive settlement to merge their respective belongings into a brand new tanker firm named Gener8 Maritime Inc.

Upon closing of this deal, Gener8 Maritime can have a mixed fully-delivered fleet of 46 vessels, comprised of 21 VLCC newbuildings and 25 vessels in operation together with seven VLCCs, 11 Suezmaxes, 4 Aframaxes, two Panamax tankers, and one Handymax product tanker. This fleet will comprise of over 11 million deadweight tons with a mean age of lower than 5.5 years upon supply of the VLCC newbuilds.

Gener8 Maritime anticipates it’ll contribute its crude tankers to established business swimming pools managed by Navig8 Group, benefiting from the dimensions and buyer base supplied by the Navig8 Group, the world’s largest business supervisor.

“We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Navig8 Crude, which we believe will combine an established owner and highly-respected commercial operator on an unprecedented scale,” stated Peter Georgiopoulos, General Maritime’s Chairman. “Together, Gener8 Maritime will be well-positioned to take advantage of improved market conditions and increasing average voyage lengths with one of the largest, youngest, and most efficient fleets in the industry. We are pleased to unite two high-quality investor groups, both of whom strongly support this transaction.”

“We believe this highly complementary combination will deliver outstanding value to shareholders,” stated Nicolas Busch, Chairman of Navig8 Crude. “We are excited to join forces with General Maritime and further leverage our market-leading commercial management platform.”

Financial particulars

Under the phrases of the definitive settlement, which was authorized by the Boards of Directors of each firms, General Maritime and Navig8 Crude will merge in a stock-for-stock transaction, whereby a newly-formed subsidiary of General Maritime will purchase the entire issued and excellent frequent inventory of Navig8 Crude. Navig8 Crude shareholders will obtain 0.8947 shares of the mixed firm for every share of Navig8 Crude frequent inventory. The definitive settlement offers that, following the shut of the transaction and topic to sure limitations, the present General Maritime shareholders will personal 52.55% and Navig8 Crude shareholders will personal 47.45% of the professional forma issued and excellent frequent inventory of Gener8 Maritime, together with restricted shares anticipated to be excellent at closing.

Executive Movements

It is anticipated that the present General Maritime administration staff will stay in place retaining government administration roles together with Peter Georgiopoulos as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, John Tavlarios who will change into Chief Operating Officer and Leo Vrondissis who will stay the Chief Financial Officer of the mixed firm. Two key members of Navig8 Crude, Gary Brocklesby and Nicolas Busch, are anticipated to change into senior consultants to the board of administrators and the administration staff specializing in strategic and business issues. In addition, Nicolas Busch will be a part of the board of administrators.

The newly-formed Board of Gener8 Maritime will embrace equal illustration from each General Maritime and Navig8 Crude’s shareholders. The transaction is anticipated to shut within the first half of 2015, topic to approval by the shareholders of every firm and customary closing situations.

Navig8 Crude Tankers Inc. is a crude tanker proprietor/operator registered on Norway’s OTC checklist (ticker: “BLUE”). Established in December 2013, the corporate has, via preliminary and follow-on choices, raised whole fairness up to now of US$405 million. The firm has positioned orders for 14 VLCC tankers, with deliveries scheduled to begin from This fall 2015. Six vessels are attributable to ship from Korea’s Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries, two from Korea’s Hanjin Heavy Industries (Phillipines), and 6 from China’s Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding