Notes for Navios

Angeliki Frangou’s Navios Maritime is looking to raise $375m to help pay for two capesize newbuildings.

Angeliki Frangou (centre).

New York listed Navios is targeting the windfall from a notes offering to US institutional investors.

Navios says the offering will provide extra funds to pay for the purchase of two new vessels set for delivery in late 2009 and early 2010. It will also help cover debt on existing loans.

It will secure the first priority ship mortgage notes against 15 of its vessels, including the two new arrivals.

Navios has been an aggressive buyer of distressed assets of late. Last month it snapped up a 58,000-dwt newbuilding from a new Japanese shipyard in a $36.2m cash plus shares deal.

The purchase of the 58,000-dwt Navios Celestial followed only 24 hours after the company raised $34.2m from a share offering.

In August Navios grabbed two 180,000-dwt capesize bulkers for $141.5m, also covered by cash plus shares.

Two months earlier it acquired four capesize newbuilding resales on order in South Korea in a pact worth $324.5m.

The buys swelled the Navios orderbook to 11 capesize vessels. Four are set to hit the water this year, with six more to come in 2010.

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