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8-K - PRESS RELEASE 7/13/10 - TBS International plc | press_release071310.htm |
TBS
International’s Brazilian Joint Venture Establishes Brazil Flag
Service
DUBLIN, IRELAND – July 13,
2010 - TBS International plc (NASDAQ: TBSI) announced today that its
joint venture, LOG.STAR NAVEGACÃO S.A., or LOG.STAR, obtained an operational
license in Brazil to provide domestic shipping services.
LOG.STAR
is a Brazilian flag shipping company that will concentrate on the movement of
breakbulk, bulk parcels, heavy lift, general and project cargoes along Brazil’s
coastline and Amazon River basin. TBS owns 70% of the joint venture with the
remaining 30% owned by Log-In Logistica Intermodal S/A (BOVESPA: LOGN3), a
premier publicly-traded Brazilian logistics company with major shareholders
including Vale and Petros (pension fund of Petrobras). TBS expects to use its
international breakbulk shipping expertise to meet the growing demand of a
Brazilian coastal and Amazon River domestic transportation service.
Joseph E.
Royce, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President commented, “We are very
pleased to capitalize on our 15 year presence in Brazil and enter into a new
market segment, building on our domestic market knowledge, our international
breakbulk shipping expertise and our long standing customer relationships.
Brazil’s coastal trade accommodates an increasing volume of cargo, and the
Brazilian economy has strong long-term fundamentals. We are pleased
to have partnered with such well known and respected industry participants. We
believe this new joint venture will position us to further increase our presence
in Brazil, strengthen our operational base and provide additional future
growth.”
Forward-Looking
Statements "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995
This
press release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe
harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and
observations.
Included
among the factors that, in the company's view, could cause actual results to
differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this press
release are the following:
·
|
changes
in demand for the company’s services, which are increasingly difficult to
predict due to economic conditions and uncertainty;
|
·
|
the
effect of a decline in vessel valuations;
|
·
|
the
company’s ability to maintain financial ratios and satisfy financial
covenants required by its credit facilities, as
amended;
|
·
|
the
company’s ability to finance its operations and raise additional capital
on commercially reasonable terms or at all;
|
·
|
changes
in rules and regulations applicable to the shipping industry, including
legislation adopted by international organizations such as
the International Maritime Organization and the European Union
or by individual countries;
|
·
|
actions
taken by regulatory authorities;
|
·
|
changes
in trading patterns, which may significantly affect overall vessel tonnage
requirements;
|
·
|
changes
in the typical seasonal variations in charter rates;
|
·
|
volatility
in costs, including changes in production of or demand for oil and
petroleum products, crew wages, insurance, provisions, repairs and
maintenance, generally or in particular regions;
|
·
|
default
by financial counterparties;
|
·
|
a
material decline or weakness in shipping rates, which may occur if the
economic recovery is not sustainable;
|
·
|
changes
in general domestic and international political
conditions;
|
·
|
changes
in the condition of the company’s vessels or applicable maintenance or
regulatory standards which may affect, among other things, the Company’s
anticipated drydocking or maintenance and repair costs;
|
·
|
increases
in the cost of the company’s drydocking program or delays in its
anticipated drydocking schedule;
|
·
|
China
Communications Construction Company Ltd./Nantong Yahua Shipbuilding Group
Co., Ltd.’s ability to complete and deliver the
remaining multipurpose tweendeckers on the anticipated schedule
and the ability of the parties to satisfy the conditions in the
shipbuilding agreements;
|
·
|
the
possible effects of pending and future legislation in the United States
that may limit or eliminate potential U.S. tax benefits resulting from the
Company’s jurisdiction of incorporation;
|
·
|
Irish
corporate governance and regulatory requirements which could prove
different or more challenging than currently expected;
and
|
·
|
other
factors that are described in the “Risk Factors” sections of reports filed
with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
|
About
TBS International plc
TBS is a
fully-integrated transportation service company that provides worldwide shipping
solutions to a diverse client base of industrial shippers. Through
the TBS Five Star Service consisting of ocean transportation, operations,
logistics, port services, and strategic planning, TBS offers total project
coordination and door-to-door supply chain management. The TBS shipping network
operates liner, parcel and dry bulk services, supported by a fleet of
multipurpose tweendeckers and handysize and handymax bulk carriers, including
specialized heavy-lift vessels and newbuild tonnage. TBS has developed its
business around key trade routes between Latin America and China, Japan and
South Korea, as well as select ports in North America, Africa, the Caribbean and
the Middle East.
Visit our
website at www.tbsship.com
For more
information, please contact:
Company
Contact:
Ferdinand
V. Lepere
Senior
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
TBS
International plc
Tel.
914-961-1000
InvestorRequest@tbsship.com
Investor
Relations / Media:
Nicolas
Bornozis
Capital
Link, Inc. New York
Tel.
212-661-7566
E-mail:
tbs@capitallink.com