Castor Maritime Forms Joint Venture with Investors Arranged by Fearnley Securities, Contributes M/V Magic Starlight for $18.75 Million
Key Takeaways
- •Castor Maritime established a joint venture with third-party investors arranged by Fearnley Securities AS to own and operate the M/V Magic Starlight, a 2015-built Kamsarmax bulk carrier.
- •Castor contributed the vessel to the joint venture in exchange for a 30% equity interest and $18.75 million in cash consideration.
- •The joint venture financed the acquisition partly through an $11.5 million sustainability-linked senior term loan from a European bank, secured by a mortgage on the vessel and guaranteed by Castor Maritime.
- •The transaction was completed on August 6, 2026, with physical delivery of the vessel to the joint venture.
- •Castor Maritime expects to record a net gain of approximately $2.9 million in the third quarter of 2026 from this transaction, excluding transaction-related costs.
Castor Maritime Inc. (Nasdaq: CTRM), a diversified global shipping and energy company, has entered into an agreement to establish a joint venture with third-party investors arranged by Fearnley Securities AS, a Norway-based investment bank and financial advisory firm specializing in the maritime and offshore sectors.
The Joint Venture was formed to acquire, own, and operate the M/V Magic Starlight, a 2015-built Kamsarmax bulk carrier vessel. Kamsarmax vessels are a size class of Panamax-type dry bulk carriers with a typical deadweight capacity of approximately 82,000 tonnes, designed to call at the Port of Kamsar in the Republic of Guinea, among other ports with similar draft restrictions. Kamsarmax and other Panamax-class bulk carriers are workhorses of global seaborne commodity trade, transporting major dry bulk cargoes including bauxite, coal, grain, and iron ore.
Under the terms of the agreement, Castor Maritime contributed the Vessel to the Joint Venture in exchange for a 30% equity interest and cash consideration of $18.75 million. Such structures are commonly used in the shipping industry to unlock vessel value, share operational and market risk with institutional or private investors, and access capital for fleet renewal or other corporate purposes.
The Joint Venture funded the acquisition through a combination of cash contributed by its partners and a $11.5 million sustainability-linked senior term loan (the "Facility") provided by a European bank. Sustainability-linked loans are a form of financing in which the borrower's interest rate or other terms are tied to the achievement of predetermined environmental or sustainability performance targets. Maritime sustainability-linked financing has grown as shipowners and lenders align capital terms with the International Maritime Organization's emissions-reduction trajectory and broader decarbonization goals. The Facility is secured by, among other things, a first-priority mortgage over the M/V Magic Starlight and is guaranteed by Castor Maritime.
The transaction was completed on August 6, 2026, with the physical delivery of the Vessel to the Joint Venture.
Castor Maritime expects to record a net gain of approximately $2.9 million during the third quarter of 2026 from the transaction, excluding any transaction-related costs.
Source: Castor Maritime Inc.
