DryShips Inc. and OceanFreight Inc. have entered into a definitive agreement. The former will acquire the outstanding shares of the latter for consideration per share of $19.85, consisting of $11.25 in cash and 0.52326 of a share of common stock of Ocean Rig UDW Inc. The Ocean Rig shares that will be received by the OceanFreight shareholders will be from currently outstanding shares held by DryShips. Under the terms of the transaction, the Ocean Rig shares will be listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market upon the closing of the merger.
Based on the July 25, 2011 closing price of 89.00 NOK ($16.44) for the shares of Ocean Rig on the Norwegian OTC, the transaction consideration reflects a total equity value for OceanFreight of approximately $118 million and a total enterprise value of approximately $239 million, including the assumption of debt. The transaction has been approved by the Boards of Directors of DryShips and OceanFreight, by the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of DryShips, which negotiated the proposed transaction on behalf of DryShips, and by a Special Committee of independent directors of OceanFreight established to negotiate the proposed transaction on behalf of OceanFreight.
The transaction will allow DryShips to acquire drybulk vessels with attractive long-term charters. OceanFreight owns a fleet of six vessels, including four Capesize and two Panamax vessels with a weighted average age of six years and combined deadweight tonnage of 859,622 tons. The company has also contracted to purchase five newbuilding Very Large Ore Carriers (VLOC) with a combined deadweight tonnage of approximately one million tons, scheduled to be delivered in 2012 and 2013. DryShips will also benefit by
assuming OceanFreight’s attractively-priced credit facilities. Those facilities have an aggregate principal amount of $142.8 million, bear interest at Libor plus 250 basis points and
have a final maturity of October 2015.
The public shareholders of OceanFreight will receive the consideration for their shares pursuant to a merger of OceanFreight with a subsidiary of DryShips. The completion of the merger is subject to customary conditions, including clearance by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of a registration statement to be filed by Ocean Rig to register the
shares being paid by DryShips in the merger and the listing of those shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. The cash portion of the consideration is to be financed from DryShips' existing cash resources and is not subject to any financing contingency. The merger is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2011.