STAR BULK TAKES DELIVERY OF THE NEWLY ACQUIRED CAPESIZE VESSEL STAR AURORA
ATHENS, GREECE, September 30, 2010- Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (the "Company" or "Star Bulk") (NASDAQ: SBLK), today announced that it has taken delivery of the Star Aurora, a 2000-built, 171,199 dwt Capesize vessel. The vessel has been delivered to its charterer, Rio Tinto , for a 3-year time-charter employment at a gross daily rate of $27,500. The vessel's $42.5 million acquisition price was funded by a combination of Company cash and $26 million loan from a major European bank at favourable terms.
Akis Tsirigakis, President and CEO of Star Bulk, commented: "We are pleased to take delivery of the Star Aurora and employ her with a first class charterer. We remain committed on making prudent and accretive acquisitions on both Net Asset Value and Earnings Per Share basis, as is the case with the Star Aurora. We focus on increasing shareholder value, and we are one of the few operators in the dry bulk industry that has been able to grow our fleet organically, to date, without having diluted our shareholders while at the same time maintaining a sustainable and meaningful dividend distribution."