Rickmers Holding, parent of the Rickmers Group of shipping companies, intends to[ds_preview] issue a corporate bond of up to 200 mill. € at an annual coupon between 8.5 and 9.1 %. The notes have a maturity of five years and are expected to be traded from 11 June 2013 in the Freiverkehr of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (Open Market, Entry Standard) with participation in the Prime Standard for Corporate Bonds. The subscription period starts 27 May and is expected to run until 7 June 2013.
»The shipping industry is in a phase of consolidation, and we are looking to play an active role in this market consolidation,« says Bertram R. C. Rickmers, founder and sole shareholder of the Rickmers Group. »A structural change is taking place in the way shipping companies will be able to finance their businesses. The traditional sources of equity and debt financing that existed for many years, particularly in the German Ship Owning community that built a large percentage of the world container fleet, are no longer available, so positioning to attract new investors, and access new sources of financing is critical,« Ronald D. Widdows, CEO Rickmers Holding.
In 2012, the Rickmers Group achieved consolidated revenue of 618.3 mill. € (2011: 574.3 mill. €). EBIT also rose from 90.5 mill. € in 2011 to 114.7 mill. €, with net earnings for 2012 improving to 22.5 mill. € (2011: 13.8 mill. €).
