ATHENS, Greece, May 13, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Paragon Shipping Inc. (Nasdaq:PRGN), a global shipping transportation company specializing in dry bulk cargoes, announced today that it has recently concluded the following time charter fixtures:
* The Kind Seas (1999-built Panamax, 72,493 dwt) has been chartered to Deiulemar at $45,500 per day for a period of 34 to 37 months. This vessel is expected to be delivered to its new charterer between January 1, 2009 and April 30, 2009. * The Golden Seas (2006-built Panamax, 74,475 dwt) has been chartered to Transfield Shipping Inc. at $48,000 per day for a period of 34 to 37 months. This vessel is expected to be delivered to its new charterer between October 26, 2008 and February 20, 2009. * The Crystal Seas (1995-built Handymax, 43,222 dwt) has been chartered to Cosco Bulk at $33,000 per day for a period of 35 to 37 months. This vessel is expected to be delivered to its new charterer between July 10, 2008 and September 31, 2008.
Michael Bodouroglou, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Paragon, commented, "We are pleased to announce the fixing of the Kind Seas, Golden Seas and Crystal Seas on three year time charters in keeping with our balanced chartering strategy. Since the beginning of 2008 we have successfully fixed four of the six vessels coming off charter this year at an aggregate average rate increase of 25%. We have now locked in 100% of our voyage revenue days for 2008 and are focused on the successful fixing of the remaining two vessels over the course of the year."
The Company will announce its first quarter 2008 earnings and dividend declaration tomorrow, May 14, 2008.
About Paragon Shipping Inc.
Paragon Shipping Inc. is an Athens, Greece-based international shipping company specializing in the transportation of drybulk cargoes. The Company's current fleet consists of eleven vessels with a total carrying capacity of 706,358 dwt. For further information, please visit the Company's website at http://www.paragonship.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statement
Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.
The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words "believe," "anticipate," "intends," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "plan," "potential," "will," "may," "should," "expect," "pending" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management's examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.
In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for dry bulk shipping capacity, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessels breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties.