Evangelos Marinakis-backed Capital Product Partners has increased its liquidity by $38.8m after sealing sale-and-leaseback refinancing for three boxships.
The Nasdaq-listed company said it had completed a deal with ICBC Financial Leasing of China worth $155.4m.
The ships involved are the 9,288-teu CMA CGM Amazon, CMA CGM Uruguay (both built 2015) and the CMA CGM Magdalena (built 2016), previously financed under Capital Product's 2017 credit facility.
The Greek company repaid nearly $117m on the mortgage.
When the transaction was announced in December, it expected $20.5m of additional liquidity due to a planned repayment of $134.9m to release the vessels.
Capital Product chief executive Jerry Kalogiratos told TradeWinds the earlier repayment figure was simply a pro forma calculation for the year-end, while in the meantime it has continued to pay off the loan, meaning the final amount was lower.
The lease has a duration of seven years and includes mandatory purchase obligations for the partnership at the end of the term for $77.7m in total.
Debt payments lowered
Other purchase options are available for Capital Product from the first year of the lease.
Debt payments will now amount to $27.4m per year, lower than the $30.8m previously paid.
The lease bears a lower margin compared to the 2017 credit facility, the company said.
It is paying ICBC $2.8m per quarter en bloc.
Capital Product owns 14 vessels, including thirteen neo-panamax container vessels and one capesize bulk carrier.
