Golden Ocean Group has struck a deal to acquire the fleet of Quintana Shipping for about $364m in shares and the assumption of debt. The 14-vessel Quintana fleet, which averages four years of age, is comprised of six capesizes, three post-panamaxes and four kamsarmaxes and one 10-year-old panamax.

Under the deal, John Frederiksen-backed Golden Ocean will issue 14.5m shares, currently worth about $101m, to Quintana’s shareholders and assume the fleet debt of $262.7m.

At the same time, the New York- and Oslo-listed company reported that it had also agreed to buy two 2017-built ice-class panamaxes from Seatankers Management, part of Mr Fredriksen’s private empire. The consideration for those two vessels will be 3.3m shares in Golden Ocean. The 16 incoming bulkers will bring Golden Ocean’s fleet to 77 vessels, plus six capesize newbuildings scheduled to join the fleet by January 2018. It commercially manages another 45 vessels for third parties.

Putting the aggregate value of the transactions at about $412m, based on its March 14 share price, the company said that the expansion would add significant scale to the operation and contribute to reducing cash breakeven levels.

“We consider the price obtained to be attractive and expect the transaction to be significantly value-accretive to our shareholders,” said Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal, Golden Ocean Management’s chief executive. The all-share transaction “underscores the value the sellers ascribe to our operating platform, management team and corporate strategy”, she said.

According to Ms Vartdal, a feature of the acquisition is “attractive bank financing”, which includes no fixed debt amortisation and soft covenants until June 2019. Golden Ocean has just raised $60m in equity and is using a $17.4m tranche of the proceeds for a downpayment to Quintana’s lenders in return for those terms. A sweep of excess cash generated by the fleet will be used to pay deferred amounts.

Following the latest raising of equity, once the transactions complete, Mr Fredriksen’s Hemen Holding is expected to remain Golden Ocean’s largest shareholder with about 37.6%. Quintana interests will become the second-largest shareholders with about 11%.

Quintana Shipping was launched in 2010 by US energy investor Corbin Robertson Jr, together with a Riverstone/Carlyle energy fund. It acquired its first ship the following year. Mr Robertson built his previous major dry bulk shipping venture Quintana Maritime into an owner of 29 vessels in three years, then sold it to Excel Maritime Carriers in April 2008.

This time he has had to wait along with the rest of the industry for an elusive dry bulk recovery to materialise. Quintana filed for an initial public offering back in 2014, but that was kept on ice until the application was finally withdrawn a few days ago.

Lefteris Papatrifon, Quintana’s chief executive, told Lloyd’s List that the all-share nature of the deal was a sign that the shareholders wanted continued exposure to a recovering dry bulk market. “It will allow them to have liquidity and flexibility in managing their own shareholding positions,” he said. “There is a lot of interest from many people right now in buying quality dry bulk assets,” he noted.

The fleet is expected to be delivered gradually during the second quarter as vessels are freed of cargo and at appropriate ports.