Danaos orders five container ships from Hanjin shipyard
But is tight-lipped on who they will be chartered to


Danaos Corporation (NYSE: DAC) today announced that it has signed shipbuilding contracts for five 3,400 TEU vessels with Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd. These containerships are expected to be delivered to Danaos from November 2009 through June 2010.

The capital expenditure commitment which is in the region of $300 million will be financed by existing credit facilities and own funds according to the work in progress schedule as specified in the shipbuilding contracts.

This new order increases Danaos’ total contracted fleet to 28 containerships with an aggregate carrying capacity of 147,524 TEU or 106% of its current fleet.

"This acquisition is one more step within the context of our fleet expansion strategy," said Dr. Coustas, Chief Executive Officer of Danaos.

 "Following the recent deal we announced with Hanjin Heavy Industries regarding orders for five Post- Panamax vessels, we now conclude one more deal for five additional Panamax vessels. Danaos will take delivery of these vessels from November of 2009 until June 2010, at a time when building berths for large containerships around the world are becoming increasingly hard to find. We have also arranged for 10 year charters for all of these vessels at accretive rates with a major liner company. This will add approximately another $ 400 million to our currently aggregate contracted revenue of $ 3.5 billion, increasing it to $3.9 billion in total.

"Although we have in the past provided details regarding our charter arrangements, for competitive reasons and also at the request of our customers, we have decided to no longer immediately disclose exact charter arrangements, as well as the identity of the liner company to safeguard our customers deployment strategy. The vessels will be powered by Korean built electronic engines providing improved efficiency, lower emissions and with a design speed of 23 Knots. “