TOP Ships buys nine tanker newbuilds backed by $679m charters

Greece’s tanker shipowner Top Ships has entered into an agreement with an entity affiliated with the company’s chief executive Evangelos J. Pistiolis to acquire 100% of the issued and outstanding shares of nine Marshall Islands companies (the SPVs), counterparties to ship building contracts for nine very-high specification 47,499-dwt medium range (MR) product/chemical oil tankers with Guangzhou Shipyard International Company Limited, scheduled for delivery during 2028 and 2029.

To remind, TOP Ships on Feb. 18 entered into a share purchase agreement with Central Mare Inc., an affiliate of the company’s chief executive officer, to purchase 500 registered shares of each of Roman Shark I Inc., Roman Shark II Inc., Roman Shark III Inc., Roman Shark IV Inc., Roman Shark V Inc., Roman Shark VI Inc., Roman Shark VII Inc., Roman Shark VIII Inc., and Roman Shark X Inc. (the SPVs), representing all of the issued and outstanding shares of the SPVs.

Each