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Bank Of Scotland News

31 Aug 2020

VIDEO: Pioneering Spirit Brings Ninian Northern Topside to Lerwick

 Credit: Rory Gillies/Shetland Flyer Aerial Media.

Pioneering Spirit, one of the world's largest vessels, reached Lerwick Harbour on Friday, August 28, carrying aboard the 14,200 tonne Ninian Northern Platform topside.Prior to the arrival in Lerwick, the giant catamaran had removed the Ninian Northern topsides in a single-lift from a jacket standing in 140 m water depth, at the Ninian oilfield around 100 miles (88 nautical miles) north-east of Shetland.Delivery of the Ninian Northern platform topside marked the inauguration of a new…

09 Sep 2019

UK Risks Losing Edge in Maritime Services

Adobestock / © magicbones

Britain's position as a top hub for maritime services is being eroded by competition, a loss of shipping finance business and the removal of tycoon-friendly tax breaks, a report said, deepening uncertainty for its financial sector as Brexit nears.The UK has been a pivotal global shipping centre for centuries, especially the City of London, and has dominated marine insurance, ship broking, shipping finance and other maritime services.These contribute $5.6 billion a year to Britain’s economy…

15 Jan 2019

Barclays Rejects Arctic Drilling

U.K.-based international bank Barclays  announced a new energy policy that significantly restricts the bank’s financing for the exploration or extraction of oil and gas in the Arctic.The policy  rules out funding for companies seeking to drill in the Arctic Refuge as well as other climate change threats.According to the British multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in London, arctic oil and gas refers to new exploration and extraction of oil and gas in the area within the Arctic Circle which is subject to sea ice, and includes the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and the Coastal Plains.The ANWR…

11 Dec 2018

Verus Petroleum Mulls 12-Fold Production Growth

Aberdeen, UK-based Verus Petroleum has secured a 12-fold increase in its production – from 1,500 to 18,000 barrels per day in less than a year – with the closing of three recent acquisitions on the UK Continental Shelf.A press release from the petroleum exploration and production services provider said that it  has recently completed three significant acquisitions; an interest in the Babbage gas field acquired from Premier Oil on 6th December, on the back of completing transactions to acquire Cieco Exploration & Production (UK) Limited and Equinor’s Alba field interest in November.The private equity backed independent operator said that these three deals, each with an economic date of 1st January 2018, were funded by a combination of equity, existing cash reserves and debt.

30 Apr 2018

Caledonian Maritime Assets Buys Three Ferries

A deal has been agreed for the three passenger ferries serving the Northern Isles to be purchased outright by Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) with loan funding from the Scottish Government. The MV Hamnavoe, MV Hrossey and MV Hjaltland, which have previously been leased from Royal Bank of Scotland, will be taken into CMAL ownership. An 18 month extension to the current Northern Isles Ferry Services contract has also been agreed to allow further progress to be made with the ongoing review of procurement policy. Serco NorthLink Ferries will continue to operate the services until 31st October 2019 under the extended contract. Minister…

14 Sep 2017

WFW Advises Berenberg on Shipping Loan

International law firm Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) has advised private bank Berenberg on its acquisition, jointly with a Japanese financial institution, of a circa US$460m performing shipping loan portfolio from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). WFW previously advised Berenberg on the acquisition of a similar US$300m portfolio from RBS in February 2017. Hamburg-based international investment and private bank Berenberg was founded in 1590 and is the world’s oldest merchant bank and the world’s second oldest bank overall. It is especially active in pan-European equity research, brokerage and capital markets transactions, in addition to private banking for wealthy customers and institutional asset management.

05 Jul 2017

Diana Shipping to Refinance its Existing Loan

Diana Shipping, a global shipping company specializing in the ownership of dry bulk vessels, has announced that it has agreed to refinance its existing loan facility with Diana Containerships, having an outstanding balance of US$42.6 million, with a loan facility of US$82.6 million, which reflects an additional loan amount to Diana Containerships of US$40.0 million. The loan also has an additional US$5.0 million interest-bearing amount, which is classified as discount premium. The loan matures in 18 months and bears interest at the rate of 6% per annum for the first 12 months, scaled to 9% for the next three months, and further scaled to 12% for the remaining three months of the loan. The loan facility includes financial and other covenants.

11 Feb 2017

Global Shipping Meltdown Impacts European Banks

The collapsing maritime shipping industry is stoking another European banking headache, this time in economic powerhouse Germany, says a report in WSJ. While the Commerzbank, Germany’s second largest bank, reported earnings, warned that its losses on shipping loans could be as high as EUR600 million ($641 million) this year after nearly doubling last year to EUR559 million. Stephan Engels, Commerzbank’s chief financial officer (CFO) admitted that there was little immediate prospect of recovery. “Our view for 2017 is just as critical as it was for 2016, as far as shipping overall is concerned,” he said. “We still have -particularly for container ships – more new vessels coming on to the market than are being scrapped.

23 Jan 2017

Japan's Orix Looking for More European Shipping Debt

Japanese financial services firm Orix Corp said it was looking to buy more shipping loans in Europe after confirming on Monday that it would purchase $289 million worth of such debt from Royal Bank of Scotland in a landmark deal. European banks, major lenders to the shipping industry, have been reducing exposure to the sector because of the slump in the shipping industry and to meet stricter banking rules. Orix said it had agreed to acquire the loans from RBS, confirming a Reuters story on Friday, in what is likely to be the first major purchase of shipping loans in Europe by a Japanese player in recent years. "Orix views these current market conditions as a favourable investment opportunity," it said in a statement.

22 Jan 2017

Orix Buys RBS Shipping Loans

Japanese financial services firm Orix Corp has agreed to buy $290 million (272 million euros) worth of Greek shipping loans from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Reuters reported quoting sources with direct knowledge of the deal. Reuters reported last month the British bank was close to selling at least $600 million worth of shipping loans to financial institutions including Orix. Germany's Berenberg Bank would purchase around $300 million of loans. Most of the loans Orix is buying from RBS are of investment grade and made to Greek borrowers, said the sources, who were not authorised to discuss the matter publicly. The sale is considerably smaller than the original $3bn deal to sell the whole of RBS' Greek shipping business to Orix…

20 Jan 2017

RBS Sells $600 Mln of Shipping Loans, Orix Among Buyers

Royal Bank of Scotland has concluded agreements to sell at least $600 million worth of shipping loans from its portfolio as part of efforts to exit the sector, sources with direct knowledge of the deal told Reuters on Friday. RBS, which is more than 70 percent state owned, is in the middle of a restructuring, which includes asset sales, job cuts and tackling multi-billion dollar charges to settle litigation and pay regulatory fines for past misconduct. The sources said Japanese financial services firm Orix Corp has agreed to buy $290 million worth of shipping loans from RBS, while separately Germany's Berenberg Bank would purchase around $300 million of loans. Spokespeople for RBS, Orix and Berenberg all declined to comment.

21 Dec 2016

RBS Near to Selling $600 Mln of Shipping Loans

Royal Bank of Scotland is close to selling at least $600 million worth of shipping loans from its portfolio, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. RBS, which is more than 70 percent state-owned, is still in the throes of a restructuring, which includes asset sales, job cuts and tackling multi-billion dollar charges to settle litigation and pay regulatory fines for past misconduct. The sources said buyers of the various shipping loan tranches included Japanese financial services firm Orix Corp , Germany's Berenberg Bank, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and asset manager Davidson Kempner. Bank of America and Berenberg declined to comment. Orix could not be reached for comment. Davidson Kempner and RBS declined to comment.

14 Dec 2016

Proposed New Capital Rules Threaten Shipping

© Petr Jilek / Adobe Stock

The global shipping industry will hit a credit crunch if proposed new bank capital rules are implemented in a sector already weighed down by toxic debt, bankers involved say. The Basel Committee of banking supervisors from nearly 30 countries met in Chile last month in an effort to complete the new rules for lenders in the world's major financial centres. It is now trying to pin down the details. While the rules do not target shipping specifically, some of the biggest rises in…

08 Nov 2016

Bank of Ireland Winding Down Shipping Loans

Bank of Ireland said it is winding down its shipping business, joining other banks looking to cut non-core lending and exposure to an industry suffering its worst downturn. Many European banks are already bogged down by a sluggish economy and face tough capital demands from regulators which are eroding profitability, leaving many looking for ways to shore up their balance sheets. Parts of the shipping industry are suffering their deepest ever downturn as international trade slows. Around 90 percent of world trade is transported by sea. "As previously stated, Bank of Ireland no longer lends within the shipping finance sector and we have been winding down the portfolio," the bank, Ireland's largest by assets, told Reuters on Tuesday.

07 Oct 2016

Trafigura Backs Out of Tanker Foray

Trafigura has sold five oil vessels to a unit of China's Bank of Communications , ending the trading house's move into owning tankers, the company said on Friday. Under the deal, the five medium-range tankers, ordered by Trafigura in 2013 from a shipyard in China, were sold to Bank of Communications Financial Leasing Company Ltd and subsequently leased back to the Swiss trading house. Financial terms were not disclosed. "The ships were bought at low entry levels and we saw an opportunity to sell now. While we have a significantly growing cargo programme it is not a must for us also to own the steel," Trafigura global head of wet freight Rasmus Bach Nielsen said in a statement.

20 Sep 2016

RBS Says Starts Winding Down Shipping Business

The Royal Bank of Scotland has begun winding down its global shipping finance business, it said on Tuesday, ending efforts to sell it amid a worsening downturn across the freight industry. Chief Executive Ross McEwan is battling to complete a restructuring, which includes asset sales and thousands of job cuts, amid a low-interest rate environment that makes finding profitable new business tough. "In line with the bank's strategy to create a simpler, stronger, and more sustainable bank, better aligned to the needs of our customers in the UK and Western Europe, we are commencing the wind down of our shipping business," an RBS spokesperson said.

15 Sep 2016

German Banks Count Cost of Global Shipping Crisis

Photo: Hanjin Shipping

German banks are struggling to recoup tens of billions of dollars of loans as a global shipping industry slump hits them hard. The lenders - among the biggest backers of shipowners over the past 20 years - are behind up to a quarter of the world's $400 billion of outstanding shipping loans, three shipping financiers told Reuters. This would make them collectively more exposed than banks from any other single country in terms of outstanding debt to the sector. These institutions…

15 Sep 2016

Diana Shipping Amends Loan Agreement to Diana Containerships

Diana Shipping Inc. has amended its existing loan agreement to a wholly-owned subsidiary of Diana Containerships to defer some payments under a new schedule. Diana Containerships Inc. is a former wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, of which the Company currently owns approximately 25.7% of the issued and outstanding common shares. The amendment to the Loan was unanimously approved by the independent directors of the Company. Pursuant to the terms of the amendment, the repayment of all outstanding principal amounts shall be deferred until the later of (i) the repayment or prepayment in full by Diana Containerships Inc. of the principal amount of US$8…

11 Aug 2016

RBS Looks to Sell Turkish Loans in Bid to Exit Shipping

Royal Bank of Scotland has put its portfolio of Turkish shipping loans up for sale, in the latest move by the state-backed bank to exit this troubled sector and cut overall losses through asset sales, two sources told Reuters. RBS, which has not made an annual profit since 2007, is restructuring under chief executive Ross McEwan and is looking to offload its entire shipping loans business to shore up its capital and avoid more losses on distressed debt. The sources, who declined to be identified, told Reuters the bank was looking to sell between $200 million to $500 million worth of Turkish-related shipping loans. RBS, which reported 2.05 billion pounds ($2.66 billion) of losses for the first half of 2016, declined to comment.

22 Jul 2016

Safe Bulkers to Amend Loan Pact with RBS

Safe Bulkers, Inc., an international provider of marine drybulk transportation services,  has agreed with the Royal Bank of Scotland plc (RBS) to amend certain financial covenants and terms to an existing term loan facility with an outstanding balance of US $73.4 million. The total consolidated liabilities of the Company divided by its total consolidated assets charter inclusive must not exceed 90% until and including year-end 2017 and 85% from 2018 onwards. The ratio of the Company's EBITDA(1) to its interest expense must be not less than 2.0:1 on a trailing 12 month basis, applicable from 2018 onwards. The consolidated net worth of the Company…

11 Jul 2016

Interest in RBS Greek Shipping Unit Cools after Brexit Vote

Royal Bank of Scotland is facing setbacks over a proposed sale of its Greek ship finance business, with potential suitors backing off, partly because of the British vote to leave the European Union, sources told Reuters. Britain's June 23 vote has raised the risk of recession and earnings downgrades that have battered bank shares. Reuters reported earlier that week that RBS had received bids for its Greek shipping operation. Sources said Credit Suisse and China Merchants were among the suitors. Banking and finance sources say Brexit has put into doubt any advancement of discussions for now - highlighting the fallout for transactions that had been in the works.

11 Jul 2016

Interest in RBS' Greek Shipping Unit Cools Post-Brexit Vote

The Royal Bank of Scotland is facing setbacks over a proposed sale of its Greek ship finance business, with potential suitors backing off, partly due to the British vote to leave the European Union, sources told Reuters. Britain's June 23 vote has raised the risk of recession and earnings downgrades that have battered bank shares. Reuters reported earlier that week that RBS had received bids for its Greek shipping operation. Sources said Credit Suisse and China Merchants were among the suitors. Banking and finance sources say Brexit has put into doubt any advancement of discussions for now - highlighting the fallout for transactions that had been in the works.

23 Jun 2016

RBS Receives Bids for Greek Shipping Business

The Royal Bank of Scotland has received bids for its Greek ship finance business, banking and financial sources familiar with the matter said, following a leap in bad shipping debts at the lender over the past few months. They told Reuters that the operation was worth about $3 billion although sources in the shipping business said that problems with lending to the industry, much of which is in a deep downturn, would affect the value of what could be recouped via a sale. Credit Suisse and China Merchants were among the suitors bidding, the sources said. RBS and Credit Suisse declined to comment, while China Merchants did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.