Diana Shipping Takes on Carrier Contracts

Diana Shipping Inc. assumed shipbuilding contracts from two unnamed parties for construction of two Capesize dry bulk carriers for $120.8 million. The carriers, priced at $60.4 million each, will be built by Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co. and are expected to be delivered during the second quarter of 2010. Capesize carriers are a shipping designation for vessels which must travel around Africa's Cape of Good Hope because they are too large for transit of the Suez Canal. Diana Shipping also said it arranged with Fortis Bank a $62 million secured term loan, which the company plans to use to pay pre-delivery installments for the dry bulk carriers. Diana noted that the loan requires no principal payments before delivery of the ships and may be refinanced then. (Source: AP)