SFL - Acquisition of two new bulk carriers and sale of an older vessel

Press release from Ship Finance International Limited, November 9, 2010

Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE:SFL) ("Ship Finance" or the "Company"), today announced that it has agreed to acquire two additional newbuilding 57,000dwt Supramax bulk carriers for a total purchase price of approximately $61 million.

The vessels will be chartered to an investment-grade, Asia-based logistics company with which we have previously agreed to charter three similar Supramax bulk carriers. The new time charters have a tenor of 10 years with an average daily net charter rate of approximately $16,500 net per vessel. Expected delivery from the shipyard in China is scheduled for the second and third quarters of 2011. Financing has not yet been finalized, but we have received indications from banks for 80% of the purchase price.

The Company also announced that Golden Ocean Group Limited ("Golden Ocean") has exercised a purchase option for the 1997-built Panamax bulk carrier Golden Shadow in combination with a sale of the vessel to an unrelated third party. Ship Finance acquired the vessel from Golden Ocean in 2006 in combination with a 10-year bareboat charter back, and as part of that transaction Golden Ocean was also granted certain fixed-price purchase options. The vessel sale is expected to be concluded in December 2010, with a sale price of approximately $21.5 million pursuant to the option agreement. Net cash proceeds to the Company will be approximately $4.5 million after prepayment of related financing.

Ole B. Hjertaker, CEO of Ship Finance Management AS, said in a comment: "We are very pleased to expand our long-term relationship with a large investment-grade industrial player, and it demonstrates our ambition to continue building and renewing our fleet and charter backlog with modern assets and high-quality counterparts. Including this new transaction, our aggregate charter backlog now stands at approximately $6.8 billion with a weighted average term of approximately 12 years."

The Board of Directors
Ship Finance International Limited
Hamilton, Bermuda

About Ship Finance
Ship Finance is a major ship owning company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: SFL). Including newbuildings, the Company has a fleet of 71 vessels, including 30 crude oil tankers (VLCC and Suezmax), two chemical tankers, eight oil/bulk/ore vessels, 12 dry bulk carriers, nine container vessels, six offshore supply vessels, one jack-up drilling rig and three ultra-deepwater drilling units. The fleet is one of the largest in the world and most of the vessels are employed on long-term charters. The Company has declared a cash dividend for 26 consecutive quarters.