Excel Maritime to Acquire Quintana

Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd and Quintana Maritime Limited announced that Excel has agreed to acquire Quintana pursuant to a definitive merger agreement whereby Quintana would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Excel. Excel will pay $13.00 per share in cash per share of Quintana common stock and 0.4084 shares of Excel Class A common stock per share of Quintana common stock. In the event the average closing price of Excel’s Class A common stock during the 15 trading day period ending before the effective date of the merger exceeds $45 per share, this exchange ratio will be adjusted so that the total value delivery per Quintana share including cash is $31.38, unadjusted for dividend payments. Based on Excel’s closing price of $33.00 as of January 28, 2008, and unadjusted for dividend payments, the offer represents a total value of $26.48 per share, representing a 57% premium to Quintana’s January 28th closing price of $16.89 and a 34% premium to Quintana’s 30-day average price. In all cases, the value of the Excel Class A common stock to be delivered per Quintana share shall be reduced by the amount of any dividends paid by Quintana in 2008 up to the closing of the merger. The merger agreement was approved by the boards of directors of each company.