Greek shipowner DryShips has inked sale and leaseback agreements for six bulkers with Chinese lenders.

Under the financing arrangement signed in May, five ships will be transferred to the buyer for 50 pct of the agreed aggregate purchase price of USD 164 million. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiaries will bareboat charter each vessel back for a period of eight years, with expiry set for May 2026.

The ships in question are three Newcastlemaxes, Marini, Morandi and Bacon and two Kamsarmaxes, Castellani and Nasaka.

DryShips said that the vessels are expected to be delivered and leased back to the company during May 2018.

The Greek shipping company has options to re-acquire each vessel during their respective bareboat charter periods, starting from the first anniversary of each vessel’s delivery date. There is also a purchase obligation upon the expiration of each bareboat agreement for 46.67 pct of the financing amount.

The deal was sealed just a month after Dryships entered into a finance lease arrangement with a Chinese leasing company for Kelly, a Kamsarmax drybulk vessel, under similar terms. The vessel will be chartered back for a period of ten years and DryShips has an option to buy back the ship.

Separately, DryShips said that it has decided to sell its 2001 built Panamax vessel, the Maganari, to an unaffiliated buyer for USD 9.7 million. The vessel is scheduled for delivery to the buyer by end of May 2018.

The owner of bulkers, tankers and gas carriers ended the first quarter of 2018 with a net profit USD 0.8 million, rebounding from a loss of USD 11 million reported a year ago.