Euroseas Ltd. Announces Charter Contracts for Three of Its Containerships and One of Its Drybulk Vessels


MARSHALL ISLANDS--(Marketwire - Mar 20, 2013) -   Euroseas Ltd. (NASDAQ: ESEA), an owner and operator of drybulk and container carrier vessels and provider of seaborne transportation for drybulk and containerized cargoes, announced today that four subsidiaries of the Company have entered into time charter agreements for the following vessels:

  • M/V Despina P, a 1,932 teu, 1990 built handysize containership, has been extended for about six months at a gross daily rate of $ 6,000 with the new rate applicable from the 15th of March 2013.

  • M/V Captain Costas, a 1,732 teu, 1992 built handysize containership, has been extended for about one year at a gross daily rate of $6,500; the new rate will apply from the 15th of April 2013 with the charterer having the option to extent the charter for a further year at a gross daily rate of $11,500.

  • M/V Aggeliki P, a 2,008 teu, 1998 built intermediate containership, has been chartered for about one year at a gross daily rate of $6,000 starting on the 8th of March 2013. 

  • M/V Aristides N P, a 69,268 dwt, 1993 built Panamax bulk carrier, has been chartered for about 11 to 14 months at a gross daily rate of $7,500. The charter will commence upon completion of its scheduled drydocking which has already commenced and is expected to be completed before the end of March 2013.

Following the above mentioned charters, as of March 15, 2013 approximately 37% of the Company's remaining container fleet days for 2013 and approximately 4% in 2014 are secured under period charters and are protected from market fluctuations. The Company's drybulk fleet is 75% covered in 2013 and 25 in 2014 via time charter contracts and participation in pools.

Aristides Pittas, Chairman and CEO of Euroseas, commented: "We are pleased to announce that we have concluded these time charter agreements which provide about $8.2m of secured revenues. Our entire fleet continues to be fully employed despite this challenging environment. We look forward to capitalizing on an anticipated stronger containership and drybulk market in the near future with the remaining of our vessels coming up for re-chartering in the rest of 2013 and 2014." 

As of March 15, 2013, Euroseas Ltd. fleet profile is as follows:

                 
Name   Type   Dwt TEU Year Built Employment
(*)

TCE Rate
 ($/day)
Dry Bulk Vessels                
PANTELIS   Panamax   74,020   2000 TC 'til
Feb-14 +
1 Year in
Charterers
Option
$11,200
+50/50 Profit Share
$14,200
ELENI P(1)   Panamax   72,119   1997 Buamarine Pool Spot
IRINI   Panamax   69,734   1988 TC 'til
Apr-13
$14,000

ARISTIDES N.P.
 
Panamax
 
69,268
 
1993
TC 'til
Feb-14
$7,500

MONICA P
 
Handymax
 
46,667
 
1998

TC 'til
Sep-13
$12,375
Total Dry Bulk Vessels  
5
  331,808        
Multipurpose Dry Cargo Vessels                
ANKING   1   22,568 950 1990 TC 'til
Mar-13
$8,600

Container Carriers
               
MAERSK NOUMEA   Intermediate   34,677 2,556 2001 TC 'til
Jun-13
$15,750

TIGER BRIDGE
 
Intermediate
 
31,627

2,228

1990
TC till
Apr-13
$5,500
AGGELIKI P   Intermediate   30,360 2,008 1998 TC 'til
Mar-14
$6,000

DESPINA P
 
Handy size
 
33,667

1,932

1990

TC 'til
Sep-13

$6,000
CAPTAIN COSTAS
(ex-OEL TRANSWORLD)
 
Handy size
 
30,007

1,742

1992

TC 'til
Apr-13
TC 'til
Apr-14
+12 months in
Charterers Option
$7,000
$6,500
$11,500
MARINOS
(ex-YM PORT KELANG,
ex-MASTRO NICOS,)
 
Handy size
 
23,596

1,599

1993
TC 'till
Apr -13

$6,000

MANOLIS P
 
Handy size
 
20,346

1,452

1995

TC 'til
May-13

$6,000
OEL BENGAL (ex-NINOS,
ex-YM QINGDAO I)
  Feeder   18,253 1,169 1990
TC 'til
May-13
$6,950

KUO HSIUNG
 
Feeder
 
18,154

1,169

1993
TC till
Apr-13 +
6 months in
Charterers Option
$6,725
$13,500

Total Container Carriers
  9   240,687 15,855      
Fleet Grand Total   15   595,063 16,805      
                 

(1) ELENI P is employed in the Baumarine spot pool that is managed by Klaveness, a major global charterer in the drybulk market.

Note: Charter duration indicates the earliest redelivery date unless the contract rate is lower than the current market rate in which cases the latest redelivery date is assumed; vessels with the latest redelivery date shown are marked by (*). Generally, charterers have a range of 15 days to 3 of months to redeliver the vessels depending on the length of the charter.

About Euroseas Ltd.
Euroseas Ltd. was formed on May 5, 2005 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to consolidate the ship owning interests of the Pittas family of Athens, Greece, which has been in the shipping business over the past 136 years. Euroseas trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker ESEA since January 31, 2007.

Euroseas operates in the dry cargo, drybulk and container shipping markets. Euroseas' operations are managed by Eurobulk Ltd., an ISO 9001:2008 certified affiliated ship management company, which is responsible for the day-to-day commercial and technical management and operations of the vessels. Euroseas employs its vessels on spot and period charters and through pool arrangements.

The Company has a fleet of 15 vessels, including 4 Panamax drybulk carriers and 1 Handymax drybulk carrier, 3 Intermediate containership, 4 Handysize containerships, 2 Feeder containerships and a multipurpose dry cargo vessel. Euroseas` 5 drybulk carriers have a total cargo capacity of 331,808 dwt, its 9 containerships have a cargo capacity of 15,855 teu and its multipurpose vessel has a cargo capacity of 22,568 dwt or 950 teu.

Forward Looking Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements (as defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) concerning future events and the Company's growth strategy and measures to implement such strategy; including expected vessel acquisitions and entering into further time charters. Words such as "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "anticipates," "hopes," "estimates," and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, no assurance can be given that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements involve known and unknown risks and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to changes in the demand for dry bulk vessels and container ships, competitive factors in the market in which the Company operates; risks associated with operations outside the United States; and other factors listed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the Company's expectations with respect thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based.

Visit our website www.euroseas.gr

Contact Information:

Company Contact
Tasos Aslidis
Chief Financial Officer
Euroseas Ltd.
11 Canterbury Lane,
Watchung, NJ 07069
Tel. (908) 301-9091
E-mail: aha@euroseas.gr

Investor Relations / Financial Media
Nicolas Bornozis
President
Capital Link, Inc.
230 Park Avenue, Suite 1536
New York, NY 10169
Tel. (212) 661-7566
E-mail: euroseas@capitallink.com