We are the owner and operator of the world’s largest fleet of handysize
liquefied gas carriers. We provide international and regional seaborne transportation
services of liquefied petroleum gas, or “LPG,” petrochemical gases
and ammonia for energy companies, industrial users and commodity traders. These
gases are transported in liquefied form, by applying cooling and/or pressure,
reduce volume by up to 900 times depending on the cargo, making their transportation
more efficient and economical. Vessels in our fleet are capable of loading,
discharging and carrying cargoes across a range of temperatures from ambient
to minus 104° Celsius and pressures from 1 bar to 6.4 bar.
Our fleet consists of 38 vessels, including eight newbuilding vessels. We define
handysize as liquefied gas carriers between 15,000 and 24,999 cbm, including
three of our newbuilding vessels. Our handysize liquefied gas carriers can accommodate
medium- and long-haul routes that may be uneconomical for smaller vessels and
can call at ports that are unable to support larger vessels due to limited onshore
capacity, absence of fully-refrigerated loading infrastructure and/or vessel
size restrictions.
We carry LPG for major international energy companies, state-owned utilities
and reputable commodities traders. LPG, which consists of propane and butane,
is a relatively clean alternative energy source with more than 1,000 applications,
including as a heating, cooking and transportation fuel and as a petrochemical
and refinery feedstock. LPG is a by-product of oil refining and gas extraction,
the availability of which has historically been limited by the flaring of natural
gas at the wellhead.
We also carry petrochemical gases for numerous industrial users. Petrochemical
gases, including ethylene, propylene, butadiene and vinyl chloride monomer,
are derived from the cracking of petroleum feedstock’s such as ethane,
LPG and naphtha and are primarily used as raw materials in various industrial
processes, like the manufacture of plastics, vinyl and rubber, with a wide application
of end uses.
Our vessels also carry ammonia for both ammonia traders and producers of fertilizers,
a main use of ammonia for the agricultural industry.
Capitalize on the increasing demand for seaborne transportation of LPG and
petrochemicals, including U.S. ethane and ethylene. We intend to use our vessels
to further pursue the anticipated increases in liquefied gas transportation
opportunities globally, and in particular, LPG and ethane and ethylene that
we expect will result directly and indirectly from the growth in U.S. shale
oil and gas production and associated liquids.
Maintain a flexible, customer-driven chartering strategy. We will seek to enhance
our returns through a flexible vessel employment strategy that combines a base
of time charters and COAs with more opportunistic, high-rate voyage charters.
In addition, we will seek to further strengthen our relationships with existing
customers and expand our client base by providing companies with liquefied gas
transportation solutions in the form and duration they require.
Capitalize on backhaul and triangulation opportunities in the petrochemical
market. We believe that the versatility of our fleet, in particular our ethylene-capable
and semi-refrigerated vessels, enhances our ability to pursue current and emerging
backhaul and triangulation opportunities as new trade routes develop, thereby
maximizing utilization and enhancing profitability. To further capitalize on
such opportunities, we are seeking to expand our leading ethylene-capable liquefied
gas carrier position through the acquisition of our six semi-refrigerated newbuildings,
four of which will be midsize ethylene-capable vessels. This represents an upsizing
from our strategy of owning and operating only handysize liquefied gas carriers.
We intend to seek opportunities to improve our financial results and maximize
the utilization of our vessels by transporting both LPG and petrochemicals during
vessel repositioning voyages and between time charters.
Maintain reputation for operational excellence. We believe we have established
a track record in the industry of operational excellence based on our significant
experience in the operation and ownership of high-specification liquefied gas
carriers. We will endeavor to adhere to the highest standards with regard to
reliability, safety and operational excellence.
Selectively grow and expand our operations. We intend to maintain our market
position by growing our fleet through newbuildings and selective acquisitions
of modern, high-quality vessels, as well as opportunistically expanding our
business through the investment in complementary assets, including ventures
that expand the types of cargo we carry and/or involve receiving, storing, partially
mixing and distributing liquefied gas cargoes, should such opportunities arise.
Maintain a strong balance sheet with moderate leverage. We will seek to maintain
modest leverage in the future by financing our growth with a balanced mix of
cash from operations, debt financings and proceeds from future equity offerings.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, based on prevailing conditions and our outlook
for the liquefied gas carrier market, we are likely to consider incurring further
indebtedness in the future.
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