EAGLE Bulk Shipping has reported a US$3.5m net loss for the first quarter of the 2020 calendar year, following what chief executive Gary Vogel said was “a massive reduction of global trade” due to COVID-19.
Eagle Bulk is a major player in bulk shipping, particularly the supramax/ultramax segment.
Highlights for the quarter were:
- Net revenues of US$74.4 million
- Time charter equivalent for the quarter of US$43.0 million
- A net loss of $3.5m or $0.05 per basic and diluted share
- Adjusted EBITDA of US$18.8m.
The company also reported completing the scrubber installation program in early April, with 41 vessels, or 82% of their fleet, now fitted with exhaust gas cleanings systems.
“Global economic disruption brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a massive reduction of global trade and cargo flows,” Mr Vogel said.
“While our primary focus has been and will continue to be ensuring the health, safety and welfare of our crews and employees, we also consistently seek to deliver above market commercial performance, regardless of underlying conditions,” he said.
Despite tough business conditions, Mr Vogel said they had been able to maintain their trading momentum into the quarter and “significantly outperform the market” with a time charter earnings of more than $10,000 per day.
“We were able to achieve this result by successfully executing on our active management approach to trading and by benefiting from operating scrubbers on the majority of our fleet,” he said.
“While the short-term dynamics are challenging, we believe Eagle is well-positioned to navigate through this uncertain period given the quality of our team, our active owner-operator model, and our solid balance sheet.”
