Danaos Corporation Announces New Senior Secured Credit Facility
January 28, 2021 at 09:10 am EST
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Danaos Corporation announced new senior secured credit facility. The commitment letter with Citibank N.A. and National Westminster Bank plc provides for the New Senior Secured Credit Facility in an aggregate amount equal to the lesser of $815.0 million and 75% of the aggregate charter-attached market value of the 48 owned vessels mortgaged thereunder and the residual value of the seven vessels subject to the 2020 Leaseback Agreement or the New Leaseback Agreement. The obligations of Danaos Corporation, as borrower, under the New Senior Secured Credit Facility will be secured by first preferred mortgages over the 48 owned vessels financed, general assignment of all hire freights, income and earnings, including all rights under any charter of more than 24 months’ duration, the assignment of insurance policies, as well as any proceeds from the sale of mortgaged vessels, stock pledges and will benefit from corporate guarantees from its subsidiaries that own the vessels mortgaged thereunder and that own the vessels subject to the 2020 Leaseback Agreement and the New Leaseback Agreement, as well as certain intermediate holding company subsidiaries that own the shares of the subsidiaries that own the vessels subject to the 2020 Leaseback Agreement and the New Leaseback Agreement. It expects that borrowings under the New Senior Secured Credit Facility will bear interest at an annual interest rate of LIBOR plus a margin of 2.50%. The New Senior Secured Credit Facility is expected to be repayable in quarterly or semi-annual installments of aggregating $81.5 million per annum, and a balloon payment due on the final maturity date, which will be the fourth anniversary of drawdown or, at the option of the lenders under the New Senior Secured Credit Facility, the sixth anniversary of drawdown, of $489 million or $326 million, respectively. Upon the sale or actual or constructive total loss of a vessel, it will be required to prepay the facility in an amount equal to the outstanding amount of the facility multiplied by the fraction of the market value of the relevant vessel divided by the market value of all vessels mortgaged thereunder plus the residual value of the vessels subject to the 2020 Leaseback Agreement or the New Leaseback Agreement. The New Senior Secured Credit Facility is expected to contain financial covenants requiring it to maintain throughout the term of the New Senior Secured Credit Facility a: minimum fair market value of collateral vessels to loan value coverage of 120%; minimum cash and cash equivalents of $30 million; maximum consolidated debt (less cash and cash equivalents) to consolidated EBITDA ratio of 6.5x; and minimum consolidated EBITDA to net interest expense ratio of 2.5x.
Danaos Corporation is a holding company and an international owner of containerships, chartering its vessels to a range of liner companies. The Company's principal business is the acquisition and operation of vessels. The Company conducts its operations through the vessel owning companies, whose principal activity is the ownership and operation of containerships that are under the management of a related party of the company. The Company's manager is Danaos Shipping Company Limited (Danaos Shipping). The Company has a fleet of over 50 containerships aggregating approximately 329,590 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). Its containership fleet includes approximately 53 containerships deployed on time charters and approximately two containerships deployed on bareboat charter. Gemini Shipholdings Corporation (Gemini), a company beneficially owned by the Company, owns approximately four additional containerships of over 24,000 TEU aggregate capacity.