Global Ship Lease Engages Evercore to Explore Strategic Alternatives
January 18 2018 - 8:30AM
Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL) (the "Company") announced today
that following the successful refinancing of all of the Company’s
indebtedness in October 2017 and with a strengthening market
backdrop, its Board of Directors has engaged Evercore to act as
financial advisor to assist in reviewing strategic alternatives
focused on maximizing shareholder value. These alternatives
include, among other things, a corporate acquisition, a business
combination or a partnership, while continuing to develop vessel
purchase opportunities.
Ian Webber, Chief Executive Officer of Global Ship Lease,
commented, "Following the completion of the $360 million bond issue
due 2022, which significantly extended the maturity of our
principal debt financing, as well as arranging the associated
secured term loan, both of which were achieved on favorable terms,
we believe now is the right time to explore strategic alternatives
to maximize shareholder value. With the refinancing complete, our
financial flexibility secured for the longer term, and our quality
portfolio of multi-year charters continuing to provide consistent
cash flows, Global Ship Lease is well-positioned as one of few
publicly listed containership leasing companies to acquire
attractive portfolios of ships, attract growth capital or find a
complementary merger partner. In addition, with increased
confidence in the container shipping industry's cyclical recovery,
we will continue to focus on near-term opportunities to grow our
fleet while we explore a broad range of strategic alternatives to
enhance shareholder value."
There can be no assurance that this strategic process will
result in any transaction. The Company has not set a timetable for
completion of the process, and it does not intend to comment
further unless a specific transaction is approved by the Board of
Directors, the review process is concluded or it is otherwise
determined that further disclosure is appropriate or required by
law.
About Global Ship Lease
Global Ship Lease is a containership charter owner. Incorporated
in the Marshall Islands, Global Ship Lease commenced operations in
December 2007 with a business of owning and chartering out
containerships under mainly long-term, fixed-rate charters to top
tier container liner companies.
Global Ship Lease owns 18 vessels with a total capacity of
82,312 TEU and an average age, weighted by TEU capacity, at
December 31, 2017 of 13.0 years. All 18 vessels are currently fixed
on time charters, 16 of which are with CMA CGM. The average
remaining term of the charters at December 31, 2017 is 2.8 years or
3.1 years on a weighted basis, taking into account the charter
extension recently agreed for GSL Tianjin.
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements provide the Company's current
expectations or forecasts of future events. Forward-looking
statements include statements about the Company's expectations,
beliefs, plans, objectives, intentions, assumptions and other
statements that are not historical facts. Words or phrases such as
"anticipate," "believe," "continue," "estimate," "expect,"
"intend," "may," "ongoing," "plan," "potential," "predict,"
"project," "will" or similar words or phrases, or the negatives of
those words or phrases, may identify forward-looking statements,
but the absence of these words does not necessarily mean that a
statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements
are based on assumptions that may be incorrect, and the Company
cannot assure you that the events or expectations included in these
forward-looking statements will come to pass. Actual results could
differ materially from those expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements as a result of various factors,
including the factors described in "Risk Factors" in the Company's
Annual Report on Form 20-F and the factors and risks the Company
describes in subsequent reports filed from time to time with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Accordingly, you should
not unduly rely on these forward-looking statements, which speak
only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes
no obligation to publicly revise any forward-looking statement to
reflect circumstances or events after the date of this press
release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Investor and Media Contact:The IGB GroupBryan
Degnan646-673-9701orLeon Berman212-477-8438
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