Tor Olav Troim’s Himalaya Shipping has priced its New York initial public offering (IPO) to raise at least $40.5m.
The Oslo-listed newcastlemax bulker owner said investors will pay $5.80 for each of 7.72m shares up for grabs in a deal closing on 4 April.
This could raise $44.8m, but net proceeds will be $40.5m after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and estimated expenses.
The price compares to its trading price of NOK 61.20 ($5.88) in Oslo on Friday morning.
Himalaya has also granted underwriters a 30-day option to buy another 1.158m shares at the same price. This would be worth another $6.7m.
The cash will be used for general corporate purposes, which may include funding vessels on order or maintaining liquidity, repayment of indebtedness and funding working capital needs, the company said.
The Herman Billung-led operation has two dual-fuel bulkers on the water that can burn both LNG and conventional marine fuels, and it has a further 10 scheduled for delivery in 2024.
The company has previously said it will repay $7.5m drawn under a bridge loan facility from DNB Bank, which is also the lead underwriter of the IPO.
The owner also plans to repay $2.5m in short-term funding to its ship manager, $480,000 toward the installation of scrubbers on two vessels and a further $19.2m toward scrubbers on eight additional vessels unless it secures debt financing for the same purpose.
It will also pay $8.1m in loan fees to leasing providers and $1.35m in fees related to the delivery of its first two vessels from China’s New Times Shipbuilding.
The first of the scrubber-fitted vessels — the 210,000-dwt Mount Norefjell — was delivered this month.
Two more are due in the next month, and a further three by the end of the year. The remaining six vessels are expected to be delivered by the end of the third quarter of 2024.
The ships cost $70m on average and are lease-financed with bareboat charters back to Himalaya, which is spending $2.4m on each scrubber-fitting.
