GOGL – Fourth Quarter 2019 Results

Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ: GOGL / OSE: GOGL) (the “Company” or “Golden Ocean”), a leading dry bulk shipping company, today announced its results for the quarter ended December 31, 2019. 

Highlights

      · Net income of $41.0 million and earnings per share of $0.29 for the fourth quarter of 2019 compared with net income of $36.7 million and earnings per share of $0.26 for the third quarter of 2019.

      · Net income of $37.2 million and earnings per share of $0.26 for the full year 2019, compared with net income of $84.5 million and earnings per share of $0.59 for the full year 2018.

      · Adjusted EBITDA of $73.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2019, compared with $81.1 million for the third quarter of 2019.

      · Completed refinancing of the $284.0 million loan facility financing 15 vessels on attractive terms.

      · Completed charter amendments for seven Capesize vessels leased from SFL Corporation Ltd. ("SFL") whereby SFL will fund the scrubber investments previously announced by the Company in exchange for increased charter rates.

      · Announced a cash dividend of $0.05 per share for the fourth quarter of 2019.

Ola Lorentzon, Chairman of the Board of Golden Ocean and interim Chief Executive Officer, commented:

“Golden Ocean’s solid performance continued in the fourth quarter despite a weakening rate environment. While the Company’s earnings potential has been demonstrated over the course of last year, the market is currently presenting a challenging scenario that will impact our results in the near term. As the current market dynamic continues to unfold, our focus remains on maintaining efficient operations and a strong balance sheet and liquidity position.“

Per Heiberg, Chief Financial Officer of Golden Ocean Management AS, commented:

“During the fourth quarter of 2019, the Company continued to enhance its financial profile through the refinancing of one of its loan facilities on attractive terms, rolling the current debt at par value and pushing maturities out in time. The Company believes this demonstrates its standing in the lending community and the Company's continued ability to source attractively priced capital, to the benefit of its shareholders.“

The Board of Directors

Hamilton, Bermuda

February 18, 2020

Questions should be directed to:

Per Heiberg: Chief Financial Officer, Golden Ocean Management AS

The full report is available in the link below.

Forward Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this report may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements, which include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. Words such as "believe," "anticipate," "intends," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "plan," "potential," "may," "will," "should," "expect," "pending" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this report are based upon various assumptions. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. The information set forth herein speaks only as of the date hereof, and we disclaim any intention or obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this communication.

In addition to these important factors and matters discussed elsewhere herein, important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies, fluctuations in currencies and interest rates, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter hire rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the dry bulk market, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, political events or acts by terrorists, and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

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