LNG carrier owner CoolCo has secured additional debt financing and will use the funds to upgrade five of its vessels.
According to a statement by CoolCo, a syndicate of existing lenders in one of its bank facilities has approved an increase in the debt amount of $70 million and has also agreed to reduce the facility’s interest rate margin from 275 basis points to 225 basis points.
The firm expects to draw the additional funding on Friday.
CoolCo said the facility’s underlying SOFR exposure is fully hedged, and the facility’s scheduled amortization will be adjusted proportionally for the increased size.
Moreover, the additional debt funding under this facility will fund the LNGe conversion of five vessels, including retrofits with sub-coolers for LNG boil-off reliquefaction under the recently announced contract with HD Hyundai Global Service, it said.
CoolCo said the contract value is about $10 million per vessel.
The firm has seven TFDE LNG carriers it acquired from Golar LNG and four it purchased from its largest shareholder Eastern Pacific Shipping. Two of these are TFDE vessels and two are XDF ships.
This week, CoolCo also exercised its option to buy two newbuild LNG carriers from EPS.
“As we take decisive steps forward in our efforts to reduce the emissions profile and improve the overall competitiveness of our fleet of modern LNG carriers, this amendment stands as a testament to the confidence in our mission by our banking partners, for which we are very thankful,” CoolCo’s CFO John Boots said.