Tsakos Energy Navigation Announces Strategic Long-Term Employment for Panamax Tankers
Fixtures to Contribute $20 Million of Extra Annualize Profits to Bottom Line; $1.5 Billion in Total Fleet Minimum Secured Revenues -- 2.7 Years Average Fleet Contract Duration
ATHENS, GREECE--(Marketwired - Mar 29, 2016) - Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd. (NYSE: TNP), a leading crude, product and LNG tanker operator, today announced charter extensions with a state oil company with profit sharing provisions for four panamax tankers, with an average duration of 22 months per vessel and minimum gross revenues of $65 million. These fixtures are expected to commence between April and November of 2016 upon expiration of their existing employments and contribute, on an annualized basis, an extra $20m to the Company's bottom line.
"The extension of these contracts follow our policy to increase TEN's long-term employment profile as time charter rates have finally started to reflect the strength of the spot market," Mr. Nikolas Tsakos, President and CEO of TEN commented. "With an average contract length of 2.7 years for the whole fleet and $1.5 billion in minimum revenues coupled with the ability to benefit from market peaks through our flexible contracts, TEN has further secured its ability to maintain its uninterrupted dividend record going forward which, since its NYSE listing in 2002, has distributed an average of $0.75 per share per annum at a yield of 5.25%. With steady cash flows, substantial organic growth and firm cost controls TEN is attractively priced and placed for both value and yield investors," Mr. Tsakos concluded.
ABOUT TSAKOS ENERGY NAVIGATION
To date, TEN's pro-forma fleet, including two VLCCs, an LNG carrier, nine Aframax crude oil tankers, a Suezmax DP2 shuttle tanker and two LR1 tankers all under construction, consists of 65 double-hull vessels, constituting a mix of crude tankers, product tankers and LNG carriers, totaling 7.2 million dwt. Of these, 47 vessels trade in crude, 13 in products, three are shuttle tankers and two are LNG carriers. All of TEN's tanker newbuildings except the two VLCCs and the LNG carrier Maria Energy are fixed on long-term project businesses. As of March 2016, 60% of 2016 fleet available days are on secured contracts with an average length of 2.7 years and minimum gross total revenues of $1.5 billion.
ABOUT FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted by such forward-looking statements. TEN undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
