Quintana Maritime Press Release

Quintana Maritime Limited Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual 2007 Results and Declares Dividend of $0.31 Per Share

ATHENS, GREECE – February 14, 2008 – Quintana Maritime Limited (NASDAQ: QMAR), a leading international provider of dry bulk transportation services, announced today its operating and financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2007.

Proposed Merger with Excel:
• Jointly announced with Excel Maritime Carriers, Ltd. (NYSE: EXM) that Excel had agreed to acquire Quintana;
• Excel will pay $13.00 per share in cash for each share of Quintana common stock and 0.4084 shares of Excel Class A common stock (subject to adjustment) per share of Quintana common stock, representing a 57% premium to QMAR closing price on January 28th, the date the transaction was announced.
• It is a transformational transaction for Excel and Quintana, which will create the largest U.S. listed dry bulk shipping company by DWT;
• The combined company will operate a fleet of 47 vessels with a total carrying capacity of 3.7 million DWT. The size of the fleet is expected to increase to 55 vessels with a total carrying capacity of 5.2 million DWT after the addition of 8 Capesize vessels which are expected to be delivered by the end of 2010.
• Excel’s acquisition of the Quintana fleet significantly lowers the average age of Excel’s fleet.

2007 Highlights:
• Increased quarterly dividend guidance by approximately 30% to $0.31 per share;
• Increased net revenues and net income by 129% and 322%, respectively, over 2006;
• Increased adjusted net income and adjusted EBITDA by 209% and 133%, respectively, over 2006;
• Completed sale-leaseback transactions for our 7 oldest Panamax vessels, receiving net proceeds of approximately $250 million, $185 million of which was used to prepay debt under our revolving credit facility;
• Took delivery of the remaining vessels purchased from Metrostar and finalized negotiations with Bunge for the remaining term of the master time charter which ends December 31, 2010 for all 17 vessels under the agreement; and
• Leveraged our relationship with our sponsors by entering into joint ventures for the construction of 7 Capesize vessels.

Fourth Quarter 2007 Results:
For the fourth quarter of 2007, Quintana reported net income of $4.2 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, compared to a net income of $10.8 million, or $0.21 per diluted share, in the fourth quarter of 2006. The fourth quarter 2007 results include finance and legal fees relating to our sale process of $1.4 million and a non-cash unrealized swap loss of approximately $14.6 million on our interest-rate swap. There was a non-cash unrealized swap gain of $2.1 million in the corresponding period in 2006. Before the sale process costs and the unrealized swap loss / gain, our adjusted net income was $20.3 million, or $0.35 per diluted share, an increase of approximately 133% over adjusted net income of $8.7 million, or $0.18 per diluted share in the corresponding period last year. Net revenues for the fourth quarter were $64.9 million compared to $37.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2006, an increase of 75%.

Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2007 was $41.2 million, an increase of $12.6 million, or approximately 44%, over Adjusted EBITDA of $28.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2006. During the fourth quarter of 2007, Quintana operated an average of 29 vessels, earning an average time charter equivalent (TCE) rate of $25,925 per ship per day. During the corresponding quarter in 2006, the Company operated an average of 20.5 vessels, earning an average TCE rate of $21,566 per day.

Stamatis Molaris, President and Chief Executive Officer of Quintana Maritime, commented, “The fourth quarter continued to provide the strong profitability and cash flow generation of the previous quarters in 2007. Our Adjusted Net Income more than doubled compared to the same quarter last year whilst our adjusted EBITDA increased by more than 40%. We are very excited about entering a new phase of the Company’s growth through the proposed merger with Excel.”

Full Year 2007 Results:
For the year ended December 31, 2007, Quintana reported net income of $53.8 million, or $0.95 per diluted share, compared to net income of $12.7 million, or $0.37 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2006. Net income for 2007 includes finance and legal fees relating to our sale process of $1.4 million and a non-cash unrealized swap loss of $20.3 million on our interest-rate swap. In 2006 there was a non-cash swap loss of $9.8 million and a non-cash write-off of unamortized financing fees of $1.9 million. Before the sale process costs and the non-cash charges, adjusted net income in 2007 was $75.4 million, or $1.33 per diluted share, compared to $24.4 million or $0.70 per diluted share in 2006, an increase of 209%, or $0.63 per diluted share. Net revenues for 2007 were $236.4 million, compared to $103.3 million a year ago, an increase of 129%.

Adjusted EBITDA for the full year 2007 was $174.8 million, an increase of $99.7 million, or 133%, over Adjusted EBITDA of $75.1 million in the full year 2006. During 2007, Quintana operated an average of 27.9 vessels, earning an average TCE rate of $24,859 per ship per day. During 2006, the Company operated an average of 13.5 vessels, earning an average TCE rate of $22,116 per day.

Stamatis Molaris, President and Chief Executive Officer of Quintana Maritime commented, “We are pleased to have concluded the 2007 fiscal year with our strongest operational results to date. These results were a consequence of the growth of our fleet from 23 to 29 vessels over the course of 2007. The proposed merger with Excel will further enhance the combined company’s growth prospects, and we expect the combined company to provide an attractive mix of long-term charter coverage, which ensures visible cash flows, and exposure to immediate upside potential in the spot market.”

Dividend:
The Board of Directors of Quintana has declared a dividend of $0.31 per share, payable on March 7, 2008 to all shareholders of record as of February 22, 2008. Inclusive of this dividend, Quintana declared dividends of $1.17 per share with respect to periods in 2007 and aggregate dividends of $2.50 per share since August 2005. The dividend payment of $0.31 per share is consistent with the guidance provided by the Board of Directors.

Warrants:
As of December 31, 2007 a total of 7,346,564 warrants (including 85,365 cashless shares issued) of the 8,182,232 originally issued had been exercised, and the Company had collected approximately $58.1 million in gross proceeds. As of February 12, 2008, a further 2,326 warrants had been exercised through the cashless shares option, resulting in no further proceeds to the Company. As of February 12, 2008, 833,342 warrants remained outstanding. If the remaining warrants were exercised, the Company would expect gross proceeds of approximately $6.7 million.

Management of Interest-Rate Risk:
The Company entered into an interest swap agreement with Fortis Bank S.A., effective from July 1, 2006 through December 31, 2010, which effectively fixes interest due under the new revolving credit facility at a rate of 5.985%, inclusive of the spread due its lenders. Because the swap does not qualify for hedge accounting, the Company is required to mark to market the fair value of the hedge at the end of every reporting period, which may result in significant fluctuations from period to period. The non-cash charge of $20.3 million recorded for the period ended December 31, 2007 after a non-cash loss of $14.6 million during the fourth quarter of 2007, reflects the change in fair value of the hedge during the year. This charge was primarily due to the fact that the variable-rate interest portion of the swap is tied to forward LIBOR rates, which were comparatively lower in 2007.

Quintana Maritime Press Release