Scorpio Bulkers To Sell Six Capesize Vessels

New York-listed Scorpio Bulkers is selling a portion of its fleet.

New York-listed Scorpio Bulkers Inc. (Scorpio Bulkers) [NYSE:SALT] Wednesday announced it has entered into agreements with unaffiliated third parties to sell a total of six vessels.

This includes two Capesize dry bulk vessels and four newbuilding Capesize dry bulk vessels under construction, the company said.

The approximate purchase price for the six vessels will be $227 million, according to the release.

The company further noted that one of the newbuilds is under construction in China and expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2015, while the other three are under construction in Korea and are expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2016.

The sale comes at a time of great difficultly for the dry bulk sector, with Scoprio Bulkers President Robert Bugbee earlier this month likening the dire market to a "50 to 200 car pile-up."

Scorpio Bulkers owns three Capesize vessels and holds contracts for two additional Capesize newbuilds with shipyards in Asia, it says.

In the company's November 2 financial results, management said that through October 29 of this year, the firm has taken delivery of five new Capesize vessels.

The company currently holds contracts for another 34 new vessels of varying specifications to be delivered between Q4 2015 and Q3 2016, according to the financial release.

The total cost for these contracts is $645.7 million.

As part of its most recent financials, the company said it has seen a number of its credit facilities reduced due to sales of vessels.

At October 29, the company had available credit of $589.8 million, according to the financial release.

Earlier this month, Ship & Bunker reported that dry bulk operator Golden Ocean Group Limited has said the dry bulk market is likely to remain challenging for the next six to 12 months.