Navigator Holdings Ltd. (Navigator Gas) (NYSE: NVGS), the owner and operator of the world’s largest fleet of handysize liquefied gas carriers, has announced that on Wednesday (Feb19), it completed the acquisition of the first of three vessels, as previously announced on January 7, 2025.
The acquisition and delivery of the vessel, a German-built 17,000 cubic meter capacity liquefied ethylene gas carrier, renamed Navigator Hyperion, is the first of three handysize ethylene carriers that Navigator Gas committed to acquiring to complement the increased export capacity from its Export Terminal Joint Venture, as announced on January 7, 2025 (the “Transaction”). Delivery of the remaining two vessels under the Transaction is expected between February and May 2025. All three vessels are anticipated to operate in the spot market upon or shortly after delivery.
To finance the Transaction, the Company will use cash on hand and proceeds raised from a facility agreement (the “Facility Agreement”) entered into between Navigator Gas L.L.C. (the “Borrower”) and Nordea Bank Abp (“Nordea”) on February 7, 2025. Nordea will make funds available to the Borrower subject to the terms and conditions set out in the Facility Agreement. Obligations under the Facility Agreement are guaranteed by the Company and will be secured by the three vessels.
Gary Chapman, CFO of Navigator Gas comments that: “We have put in place competitively priced debt to finance the majority of the cost of acquiring the three vessels. As the vessels are delivered now, and in the coming weeks, we expect these to support our ethylene export terminal expansion and be accretive to our earnings both in 2025 and beyond.”