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Tuesday, July 18,
2000
Liberian registry to
offer recording of mortgages in London
Shipowners will, for the first time, be able to record Liberian
mortgages in London, beginning later this year. Jill Keohane,
vice-president corporate of the Liberian International Ship &
Corporate Registry (LISCR), says "This is a service which
has real value to owners, in saving both time and legal fees.
"
"London is a major shipping center
and it sits in the time zone that bridges the Far East and the
U.S. There is a lot of demand for the recording of mortgages
to be available there. We can use secure technology which will
allow us to maintain the mortgage register in the U.S., but inspect
and close it from London when our clients need to. That will
generate legal cost savings of many thousands of dollars per
vessel, besides making the process simpler."
Nick Sherriff, a director of Frontline
(U.K.) Ltd, which has recently flagged three VLCCs into the Liberian
Registry, welcomes the opportunity to register mortgages in London.
"It will save us a lot in legal fees," he says.
The recording of mortgages in London is
the first step in a Liberian Registry program designed to take
registry services to clients. Over the next year, LISCR will
be announcing a number of new services aimed at saving shipowners
time and money.
End of
a cross-Channel era
Sea Containers Ltd.'s subsidiary Hoverspeed Ltd. says it will
"reluctantly have to withdraw" its two 32 year old
hovercraft on the Dover to Calais route and replace them with
two SeaCats that have 50% more capacity. Crossing times will
not be significantly changed in that the hovercraft take 35 minutes
while the SeaCats take 45 minutes.
James B. Sherwood, president of Sea Containers
Ltd., said two factors have dictated the decision. Since the
loss of on-board duty free sales more people are taking their
cars to France to buy larger quantities of goods at the same
prices available there ashore as the former on-board duty free
prices. The hovercraft does not have sufficient car capacity
to meet this demand.
Sherwood also said that travelers would
benefit from the equipment changes in that the SeaCats are more
spacious and comfortable, the windows are not obscured by spray
so passengers can enjoy the visual experience much better, and
there is a bar-cafe and shops where French-priced goods can be
purchased when the ships are in French waters.
Frontline ups Golden Ocean stake
The board of Frontline has issued 68,700 new shares in Frontline
to purchase $5 million of Golden Ocean Bonds. Shares were used
as payment for the bonds due to the seller's preference to have
a continued interest in the tanker market.
Based on the closing price at Oslo Stock
Exchange on July 17 of NOK 108 and an exchange rate of NOK 8.73/US$1
the payment equals 17 % of face value, which is in line with
the offer Frontline has given for the restructuring of Golden
Ocean.
Frontline and its affiliates now own own
$109.5 million, or 38 %, of Golden Ocean's $291 million bond
issue.
The Frontline Board will consider using
the same mechanism in future to further increase its holding
of Golden Ocean Bonds.
Total number of shares in Frontline after
completion of this issue is 78,838,060.
Diamond
Offshore will deliver Ocean Confidence to BP Amoco late
Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. says an agreement has been reached
with a subsidiary of BP Amoco (BP) which provides for a modification
to the contract covering the Ocean Confidence. The modification
provides for an extension of the delivery date from July 1 to
December 1 of 2000.
This extension will allow Diamond Offshore
additional time to complete and test the rig for performance
in waters up to 7,500 ft . Diamond Offshore will accrue a penalty
based upon the delivery date of the rig and has agreed to accrue
an additional obligation to BP for certain types of downtime
which could occur during the first two wells of the drilling
contract. These accruals would incrementally reduce revenue payments
from BP to Diamond Offshore during the five-year contract term
of the Ocean Confidence.
The company currently expects the Ocean
Confidence to be delivered by September 30, 2000. Based upon
the expected delivery date, future revenue would be reduced by
approximately $3.6 million. Should the delivery occur on December
1, 2000, the maximum such reduction wouldbe approximately $6.1
million.
The Ocean Confidence, originally built
by Mitsui in 1988 is a dynamically positionedf enhanced Aker
H3.2 design semisubmersible. It is currently located at Friede
Goldman Halter's Sabine Pass, Texas, yard.
NNS reports increased earnings
Newport News Shipbuilding today reported net earnings of $24
million, or $0.74 per diluted share, for the second quarter of
2000. EBIT for the quarter was $54 million, up from an adjusted
$47 million in last year's second quarter.
"The second quarter results represent
a continuation of the successful track record we've established,"
commented Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William P. Fricks.
"This marks the tenth consecutive quarter the Company has
reported substantial EPS growth, building on our commitment to
deliver consistent and improving financial performance."
Newport News posted second quarter revenues
of $532 million versus $444 million in the same period in 1999,
reflecting gains in all business segments. The Construction segment
led the advance as revenues climbed to $227 million from $164
million. Increased construction work on the aircraft carrier
Ronald Reagan and the Virginia-class submarines, coupled with
advanced procurement on CVN 77, accounted for the higher volume.
Additionally, Engineering revenues of $80 million reflected a
$19 million gain over last year as this segment benefited from
design work on a new propulsion plant for the next class of aircraft
carriers.
EBIT in the quarter rose to $54 million
from an adjusted $47 million in the second quarter of 1999. Volume
gains across all segments and higher margins in Fleet Services
drove the improvement. The higher margins in Fleet Services,
and continued strength in the Construction segment, contributed
to the Company achieving operating margins in excess of 10% for
the sixth straight quarter.
Free cash flow for the quarter of $13 million
brought year-to-date cash flow to $77 million. The second quarter
free cash flow reflected the payment of over $60 million in interest
and taxes. The Company also repurchased 850 thousand shares of
its stock during the quarter, bringing year-to-date repurchases
to more than two million shares at a cost of approximately $61
million.
Pod problem plagues Paradise
Carnival reportedly halted a week-long cruise on its smoke-free
Paradise when it was just hours out to sea on Sunday.
The ship returned to Miami with a technical problem with one
of its two Azipod propulsion units and Carnival also canceled
its next cruise, which had been due to sail from Miami on July
23.
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