Nasdaq-listed Greek containership owner Euroseas has revealed plans to spin off three of its oldest vessels into a separate publicly listed company.
The Aristides Pittas-led tonnage provider with 27 ships on fully delivered basis will place the 1997-built Aegean Express, the 1998-built 2008 teu Diamantis P, and the 1999-built 1732 teu Joanna into Euroholdings in exchange for 100% of the shares in the company, which will be distributed to its shareholders.
Euroholdings shares, for which the company has applied to see them trading on Nasdaq, represent about 5% of Euroseas’ NAV estimate, and the company said it does not expect the spin-off to have any material impact on the business or its overall strategy.
Chairman and CEO Pittas said the move enables the company to maximise the value of the older vessels in its fleet and shareholder returns by creating a new platform to capture new opportunities following a different strategy from Euroseas.
“We firmly believe that under the right circumstances, there is considerable value in the current environment in continuing to trade older, well-maintained vessels, rather than selling them,” Pittas noted, adding that the two companies would be valued better separately as they offer more and different options to investors and that Euroholdings could be used as a consolidating vehicle in the shipping sector, especially for vintage vessels.
In addition to the spin-off move, the Aegean Express has been recently fixed for at least 10 months at $16,700 per day in direct continuation of its existing charter. The Diamantis P (pictured) is currently undergoing minor repairs, while the Joanna remains under charter until November 2026.