Update On The Arrest Of 'Verona I' And 'Nika I'

Singapore, 9 June 2010 - FSL Trust Management Pte. Ltd. (“FSLTM”), Trustee-Manager of First Ship Lease Trust (“FSL Trust” or the “Trust”) refers to the earlier announcements1 on 5 June 2010 and 8 June 2010 and wishes to provide an update on the arrest of ‘Verona I’ and ‘Nika I’.

FSLTM has been notified today that the amounts claimed for allegedly unpaid bunkers for ‘Verona I’ and ‘Nika I’ are approximately US$1.6 million and US$2.5 million, respectively. To secure the release of the two vessels, FSLTM understands that an aggregate amount of US$4.8 million is required to be posted as security to the respective courts.

The total security amount of US$4.8 million represents approximately 8.5% of FSL Trust’s cash and cash equivalents of US$56.2 million as at 31 March 2010. However, FSLTM would like to reiterate that as a cash flow business, the operational funding of FSL Trust is met not only from its strong cash position, but also derived from lease rentals received on an ongoing basis. In this regard, FSL Trust has received prompt and full lease payments from its remaining leases for the month of June 2010. Since FSLTM fully believes that full lease payments will continue to be received promptly in the following months, FSL Trust’s cash flow is, and is expected to remain, strong notwithstanding the posting of the required security amounts for the two vessels. This total value of the claims is also not material in comparison to FSL Trust’s total equity of US$370 million as at 31 March 2010.

The immediate focus of FSLTM remains to secure expeditious release of both vessels, so as not to disrupt the normal operations of the vessels.

FSLTM will make further announcements as and when there are material developments in the above matters.

About First Ship Lease Trust
(Bloomberg: FSLT SP; Reuters: FSLT.SI; OTCQX: FSHPY)
First Ship Lease Trust (“FSL Trust” or the “Trust”) is a provider of leasing services on a long-term bareboat charter basis to the international shipping industry. The Trust has a diversified portfolio of 23 modern and high quality vessels, consisting of seven containerships, nine product tankers, three chemical tankers, two dry bulk carriers and two crude oil tankers.

FSL Trust is listed on the main board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST) and its American Depository Receipts are quoted on the PrimeQX tier of International OTCQX. FSL Trust is a component stock of the FTSE ST Maritime Index.

__________________________
(1) Press Releases: “Arrest of ‘Verona I’”, dated 5 June 2010 and ‘Arrest of ‘Nika ‘I” at Qingdao, dated 8 June 2010.

First Ship Lease Trust