Excel Maritime Reports Results for the Fourth Quarter and Year ended December 31, 2011 and Agreement with Lenders

ATHENS, GREECE – March 16, 2012

Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd. (NYSE: EXM) (“Excel”), an owner and operator of dry bulk carriers and an international provider of worldwide seaborne transportation services for dry bulk cargoes, announced today its operating and financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011.

Fourth Quarter and Twelve-Month 2011 Highlights & Recent Developments:

• Operating profitable fourth quarter and twelve-months ended December 31, 2011 with Adjusted EBITDA at $34.6 million $162.8 million and net cash provided from operating activities at $8.9 million and $104.3 million, respectively;

• Agreement with all the lenders under the $1.4 billion syndicated credit facility on the amendment, for a period commencing on March 31, 2012 and ending on December 31, 2013, of the amortization schedule, the collateral value clause and certain of the financial covenants of the facility in order to defer principal repayments due over this period and align the facility with current charter market conditions and associated volatility in vessel market values; and

• Increased charter coverage to 100% of the available days of the Capesize vessels and to 61% of the available days of the entire fleet for the year ending December 31, 2012. A reconciliation of non-GAAP measures discussed herein is included in a later section of this release.

Management Commentary:
Pavlos Kanellopoulos, Chief Financial Officer of Excel, stated, “Against a declining freight environment, we are pleased that Excel recorded an operating profitable 4th quarter while strengthening its balance sheet. The structural imbalance of the dry bulk market has continued to weigh on asset values and freight rates in 2012. In response to this, the Company has proactively reached a comprehensive agreement with its lenders under the $1.4 billion syndicated credit facility to defer up to $100 million of installments originally scheduled for payment over the next several quarters to 2016 and realign certain covenants through December 2013. In addition, we continue to enter into fixed rate time charters for our open vessels with solid counterparties, reaching a fleet - wide time charter coverage of 61% for 2012, which should enable us to increase our cash flow visibility. We believe that all these strategic actions create a satisfactory runway for the next 18 months and combined with our proven track record of operational excellence, position the Company to participate when economic conditions and the shipping markets eventually improve.”

Corporate Developments:
In March 2012, we reached an agreement in principle with our lenders under the $1.4 billion syndicated credit facility on the amendment of the amortization schedule, the collateral value clause and certain of the financial covenants of the facility to be applied during the period from March 31, 2012 to December 31, 2013.

In accordance with the amendment, the loan repayment schedule will be modified to allow, at the Company’s option the deferral of principal repayments in an aggregate amount of up to $100.0 million, originally due between March 2012 and July 2013, to the balloon payment at the end of the facility’s term in 2016, subject to any excess cash flow being applied towards repayment of the deferred amounts, if any. The $100.0 million represents approximately 70% of the principal repayments scheduled for the period until July 2013 and results in a significant cash flow improvement to the Company. During the waiver and deferral period, the applicable margin over LIBOR (other than for any deferred principal amount) will increase to 2.75% per annum and will be 2.5% per annum thereafter through maturity, while the applicable margin for any deferred principal amount will increase to 4.0% per annum.

As part of the loan amendment, we will undertake to raise not less than $30.0 million in equity capital by December 31, 2012.

The waiver agreement and loan amendment are conditioned upon the Company raising $20.0 million out of the $30.0 million in equity capital, or alternatively securing from external sources the $20.0 million into a deposit account, before April 1, 2012, or by the time the first deferral option is exercised.

In order for us to meet the above conditions within the timeframe set by our lenders, we have reached an agreement in principle with certain entities affiliated with the family of the Chairman of the Board of Directors. In addition, we agreed to align the financial covenants of the three remaining bilateral facilities with those of the $1.4 billion syndicated credit facility.

About Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd.
Excel is an owner and operator of dry bulk carriers and a provider of worldwide seaborne transportation services for dry bulk cargoes, such as iron ore, coal and grains, as well as bauxite, fertilizers and steel products. Excel owns a fleet of 40 vessels, one of which, a Capesize vessel, is owned by a joint venture in which Excel holds a 71.4% interest, and, together with seven Panamax vessels under bareboat charters, operates 47 vessels (seven Capesize, 14 Kamsarmax, 21 Panamax, two Supramax and three Handymax vessels) with a total carrying capacity of approximately 4.1 million DWT.

Excel’s Class A common shares have been listed since September 15, 2005 on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol EXM and, prior to that date, were listed on the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) since 1998. For more information about Excel, please go to our corporate website www.excelmaritime.com.

Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd. press release