Dryships $325M Bridge Loan Facility

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) announced that its subsidiary, Drillships Hydra Owners (the owning company of the Ocean Rig Corcovado), has signed a commitment letter with an international lender for a $325m Senior Secured Bridge Loan Facility.

Under the terms of this facility which is expected to be executed no later than December 31, 2010, the loan is to be utilized in one single drawdown to fund the delivery installment of the Ocean Rig Corcovado (Hull 1837) scheduled for delivery from Samsung Heavy Industries in January 2011. The bridge loan has a maturity of six months after the drawdown date.

Mr. George Economou, Chairman and CEO of DryShips Inc., said: “We are pleased to announce the commitment letter for a $325 million bridge facility to finance the delivery of our first drillship reflecting the options available to the company for financing the rigs. This facility provides the company with the required flexibility to pursue the best option for long term financing.”