First Ship Lease Trust To Distribute US$9.0 Million To Unitholders For 1Q FY09
• Maintains distribution per unit (“DPU”) of US1.50˘ for 1Q FY10
• 1Q FY10 net cash from operations remains steady at US$16.3 million
• Portfolio charter-free value improves to US$623 million, reflecting recovery in asset values and industry credit profile
• Provides DPU guidance of US1.50˘ for 2Q FY10; represents prospective annualised yield of 13%1
Singapore, 20 April 2010 – FSL Trust Management Pte. Ltd. (“FSLTM”), the Trustee-Manager
of First Ship Lease Trust (“FSL Trust” or the “Trust”), announced today the financial results for
FSL Trust for the first quarter ended 31 March 2010 (“1Q FY10”).
Mr Philip Clausius, Chief Executive Officer of FSLTM, said: “FSL Trust’s lease portfolio continues to deliver steady cash flow that underpins the sustainability of regular distribution to unitholders. We continue to be encouraged by the positive signs of a demand recovery in the shipping industry, although the oversupply of new ships continues to be an overhang over the mid-term. Our focus for this year remains on growing and diversifying the portfolio. We believe that asset values in the shipping industry have begun to bottom out, and we see the second half of this year as an exciting period for growth.”
DISTRIBUTION FOR 1Q FY10
For 1Q FY10, unitholders will receive US1.50˘ for each unit they own. The distribution for 1Q FY10 will be paid on 26 May 2010 to all unitholders of record as of 28 April 2010. Unitholders whose units are held directly through the Central Depository (the “CDP”) will receive their distributions in Singapore Dollar equivalent3.
Unitholders who wish to receive their distributions in US Dollar can do so by submitting a “Currency Election Notice” to CDP. The submission cut-off time for the “Currency Election Notice” is 11 May 2010, 5.00 p.m. (Singapore time).
All unitholders are exempted from Singapore income tax and Singapore withholding tax on the distributions made by FSL Trust regardless of whether they are corporate or individual unitholders.
The Distribution Reinvestment Scheme (DRS) will not apply for the 1Q FY10 distribution.
LEASE PORTFOLIO
FSL Trust’s current lease portfolio comprises 23 vessels which have all been leased out on long-term bareboat charters. All lease contracts into which FSL Trust has entered are structured on a “hell and high water” bareboat charter basis, the tightest contractual standard in the shipping industry.
As at 31 March 2010, the lease portfolio had a net book value (“NBV”) of US$821.2 million, remaining contracted revenue of US$731.4 million and a dollar-weighted average remaining lease term of 7.5 years (excluding extension periods and early buy-out options). The weightedaverage age of the vessels by NBV is approximately 4.9 years. The charts on page 4 show the portfolio revenue and NBV diversification by vessel type and lessee.
In March 2010, FSLTM obtained independent charter-free appraisals for its portfolio of 23 vessels. The aggregate charter-free value of the 23 vessels, which refers to the fair market value of the vessels without taking into consideration the long-term leases, stood at US$623.0 million as at March 2010. This is 5.5% higher than the charter-free value of US$590.5 million that FSLTM obtained in October 2009.
The charter-free value of US$623.0 million as at March 2010 represents 129% of the outstanding secured indebtedness of US$484.3 million, which was comfortably above the minimum value-to-loan coverage ratio of 100%4 mandated by one of the loan covenants in FSL Trust’s credit facility.
Detailed report at: www.firstshipleasetrust.com
First Ship Lease Trust