UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Commission file number:
FORM
(Mark One) | |
REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED | |
TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
Not Applicable
(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)
Republic of the
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
(Address of principal executive offices)
Telephone:
Fax: +30
(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)
SECURITIES REGISTERED OR TO BE REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OF THE ACT:
Title of Each Class |
| Trading Symbols |
| Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered |
SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g) OF THE ACT: None
SECURITIES FOR WHICH THERE IS A REPORTING OBLIGATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(d) OF THE ACT: None
Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.
As of December 31, 2022, there were
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
Yes ☐
If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Yes ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
†The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management's assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.
Yes ☒ No ☐
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant
included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based
compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing.
U.S. GAAP ☐ |
| Other ☐ |
If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.
Item 17 ☐ Item 18 ☐
If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).
Yes ☐ No
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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MATERIAL MODIFICATIONS TO THE RIGHTS OF SECURITY HOLDERS AND USE OF PROCEEDS | 104 | ||
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PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES BY THE ISSUER AND AFFILIATED PURCHASERS | 108 | ||
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F-1 |
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ABOUT THIS REPORT
In this annual report, unless otherwise indicated:
● | “GasLog Partners”, the “Partnership”, “we”, “our”, “us” or similar terms refer to GasLog Partners LP or any one or more of its subsidiaries, or to all such entities unless the context otherwise indicates; |
● | “GasLog”, depending on the context, refers to GasLog Ltd. and to any one or more of its direct and indirect subsidiaries, other than GasLog Partners; |
● | “GasLog Group”, refers to GasLog Ltd. and to any one or more of its direct and indirect subsidiaries, including GasLog Partners; |
● | “our general partner” refers to GasLog Partners GP LLC, the general partner of GasLog Partners and a wholly owned subsidiary of GasLog; |
● | “GasLog LNG Services” refers to GasLog LNG Services Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of GasLog; |
● | “GasLog Carriers” refers to GasLog Carriers Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of GasLog; |
● | “GasLog Partners Holdings” refers to GasLog Partners Holdings LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of GasLog Partners; |
● | “Merger Agreement” refers to the agreement and plan of merger dated as of February 21, 2021, and as subsequently amended on April 20, 2021, with BlackRock’s Global Energy and Power Infrastructure Team (collectively, “GEPIF”), pursuant to which GEPIF acquired all of the outstanding common shares of GasLog Ltd. that were not held by certain existing shareholders for a purchase price of $5.80 in cash per share (the “Transaction”). Following the consummation of the Transaction in June 2021, certain existing shareholders including Blenheim Holdings Ltd. (“Blenheim Holdings”), which is wholly owned by the Livanos family, and a wholly owned affiliate of the Onassis Foundation (collectively, the “Rolling Shareholders”) continue to hold approximately 55% of the outstanding common shares of GasLog Ltd. and GEPIF holds approximately 45%; |
● | “Shell” refers to Shell plc or any one or more of its subsidiaries; |
● | “MSL” refers to Methane Services Limited, a subsidiary of Shell; |
● | “DSME” refers to Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co., Ltd.; |
● | “Cheniere” refers to Cheniere Marketing International LLP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cheniere Energy, Inc.; |
● | “CDBL” refers to CL Gas Three Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of China Development Bank Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.; |
● | “Trafigura” refers to Trafigura Maritime Logistics PTE Ltd.; |
● | “Woodside” refer to Woodside Energy Shipping Singapore Pte. Ltd.; |
● | “CNTIC VPower” refers to CNTIC VPower Energy Ltd., an independent Chinese energy company; |
● | “SEA charterer” refers to a Southeast Asian charterer; |
● | “Naturgy” refers to Naturgy Aprovisionamentos S.A.; |
● | “Venice” refers to Venice Regas Pty Ltd.; |
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● | “ATM Programme” refers to our at-the-market common equity offering programme which commenced in May 2017; |
● | “Class B Units” refers collectively to the 1,245,000 Class B units issued on June 30, 2019 which remain outstanding, of which 415,000 are Class B-4 units, 415,000 are Class B-5 units and 415,000 are Class B-6; |
● | “Series A Preference Units” refers to our 8.625% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Fixed to Floating Rate Preference Units; |
● | “Series B Preference Units” refers to our 8.200% Series B Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Fixed to Floating Rate Preference Units; |
● | “Series C Preference Units” refers to our 8.500% Series C Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Fixed to Floating Rate Preference Units; |
● | “Preference Units” refers to our Series A Preference Units, our Series B Preference Units and our Series C Preference Units; |
● | “LNG” refers to liquefied natural gas; |
● | “FSRUs” refers to Floating Storage and Regasification Units; |
● | “FSUs” refers to Floating Storage Units; |
● | “NYSE” refers to the New York Stock Exchange; |
● | “SEC” refers to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; |
● | “IPO” refers to the initial public offering of GasLog Partners on May 12, 2014; |
● | “IFRS” refers to International Financial Reporting Standards; |
● | “dollars” and “$” refer to, and amounts are presented in, U.S. dollars; |
● | “TFDE” refers to tri-fuel diesel electric engine propulsion; |
● | “Steam” refers to steam turbine propulsion; and |
● | “cbm” refers to cubic meters. |
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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
All statements in this annual report that are not statements of historical fact are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements that address activities, events or developments that the Partnership expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future, particularly in relation to our operations, cash flows, financial position, liquidity and cash available for distributions and the impact of changes to cash distributions on the Partnership’s business and growth prospects, plans, strategies, and changes and trends in our business and the markets in which we operate. In some cases, predictive, future-tense or forward-looking words such as “believe”, “intend”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “project”, “forecast”, “plan”, “potential”, “may”, “should”, “could”, “target” and “expect” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. In addition, we and our representatives may from time to time make other oral or written statements which are forward-looking statements, including in our periodic reports that we file with the SEC, other information sent to our security holders, and other written materials. We caution that these forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this annual report or the date on which such oral or written statements are made, as applicable, about factors that are beyond our ability to control or predict, and are not intended to give any assurance as to future results. Any of these factors or a combination of these factors could materially affect future results of operations and the ultimate accuracy of the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, you should not unduly rely on any forward-looking statements.
Factors that might cause future results and outcomes to differ include, but are not limited to, the following:
● | general LNG shipping market conditions and trends, including spot and multi-year charter rates, ship values, factors affecting supply and demand of LNG and LNG shipping, including geopolitical events, technological advancements and opportunities for the profitable operations of LNG carriers; |
● | fluctuations in charter hire rates, vessel utilization and vessel values; |
● | our ability to secure new multi-year charters at economically attractive rates; |
● | our ability to maximize the use of our vessels, including the re-deployment or disposition of vessels which are not operating under multi-year charters, including the risk that certain of our vessels may no longer have the latest technology at such time which may impact our ability to secure employment for such vessels as well as the rate at which we can charter such vessels; |
● | changes in our operating expenses, including crew wages, maintenance, dry-docking and insurance costs and bunker prices; |
● | number of off-hire days and dry-docking requirements including our ability to complete scheduled dry-dockings on time and within budget; |
● | planned capital expenditures and availability of capital resources to fund capital expenditures; |
● | the duration and effects of COVID-19 and any other pandemics on our workforce, business, operations and financial condition; |
● | fluctuations in prices for crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas, including LNG; |
● | fluctuations in exchange rates, especially the U.S. dollar and Euro; |
● | our response to GasLog’s non-binding proposal to acquire all of the outstanding common units representing limited partner interests of the Partnership not already beneficially owned by GasLog, and any potential resulting transaction; |
● | our ability to expand our portfolio by acquiring vessels through our drop-down pipeline with GasLog or by acquiring other assets from third parties; |
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● | our ability to leverage GasLog’s relationships and reputation in the shipping industry and the ability of GasLog to maintain long-term relationships with major energy companies and major LNG producers, marketers and consumers to obtain new charter contracts; |
● | GasLog’s relationships with its employees and ship crews, its ability to retain key employees and provide services to us, and the availability of skilled labor, ship crews and management; |
● | changes in the ownership of our charterers; |
● | our customers’ performance of their obligations under our time charters and other contracts; |
● | our future operating performance, financial condition, liquidity and cash available for distributions; |
● | our distribution policy and our ability to make cash distributions on our units or the impact of changes to cash distributions on our financial position; |
● | our ability to obtain debt and equity financing on acceptable terms to fund capital expenditures, acquisitions and other corporate activities, funding by banks of their financial commitments and our ability to meet our restrictive covenants and other obligations under our credit facilities; |
● | future, pending or recent acquisitions of ships or other assets, business strategy, areas of possible expansion and expected capital spending; |
● | risks inherent in ship operation, including the discharge of pollutants; |
● | any malfunction or disruption of information technology systems and networks that our operations rely on or any impact of a possible cybersecurity event; |
● | the expected cost of and our ability to comply with environmental and regulatory requirements related to climate change, including regulatory requirements with respect to emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gases, as well as future changes in such requirements or other actions taken by regulatory authorities, governmental organizations, classification societies and standards imposed by our charterers applicable to our business; |
● | potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, diseases, pandemics, political events, piracy or acts by terrorists; |
● | potential liability from future litigation; and |
● | other factors discussed in “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors” of this annual report. |
We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this annual report, whether as a result of new information, future events, a change in our views or expectations or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of these factors. Further, we cannot assess the impact of each such factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to be materially different from those contained in any forward-looking statement.
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PART I
ITEM 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS
Not applicable.
ITEM 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE
Not applicable.
ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION
A. | Reserved |
B.Capitalization and Indebtedness
Not applicable.
C. | Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds |
Not applicable.
D. | Risk Factors |
Summary of Risk Factors
An investment in our common units or preference units is subject to a number of risks, including risks related to our business and corporate structure. The following summarizes some, but not all, of these risks. Please carefully consider all of the information discussed in “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors” in this annual report for a more thorough description of these and other risks.
Risks Related to the LNG Carrier Business
● | Our results of operations and financial condition depend significantly on charter rates for LNG carriers which may be highly volatile and depend on factors outside of our control. Operating vessels in the spot market, or being unable to recharter the vessels on long-term charters with similar or better rates, means our revenues and cash flows from these vessels will decline following expiration of our current charter arrangements. These factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, the value of our assets, and could further reduce or eliminate our ability to pay distributions on our common or Preference Units. |
● | If the number of vessels available in the short-term or spot LNG carrier market continues to expand and results in reduced opportunities to secure multi-year charters for our vessels, our revenues and cash flows may become more volatile and may decline following expiration or early termination of our current charter arrangements and may adversely impact our ability to pay distributions on our common units. |
● | An oversupply of LNG carriers as a result of excessive new ordering in previous years may lead to a reduction in the charter hire rates we are able to obtain when seeking charters in the future which could adversely affect our results of operations and cash flows, especially in relation to our Steam vessels that are less efficient compared to newer vessels. |
● | The LNG shipping industry is subject to substantial environmental and other regulations which may be increased further by the growing global focus on a lower carbon economy, the effects of climate change (physical and transition) and the increasing demand for environmental, social and governance disclosures by investors, lenders and regulators. We may incur substantial costs in complying with new or changing environmental regulations which may affect our results of operations, financial condition and ability to pay distributions on our common units. |
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● | Ship values may fluctuate substantially which has resulted in non-cash impairment charges on our Steam vessels in previous years, including in 2022. A further decline in ship values could impact our compliance with the covenants in our loan agreements and, if the values are lower at a time when we are attempting to dispose of ships, cause us to incur a loss. |
● | The continuing COVID-19 pandemic, the spread of new variants and related governmental responses thereto may have further negative effects on the global economy, energy demand and on our results of operations and financial condition. |
Risks Related to Us
● | Our future success depends on our own and GasLog’s ability to maintain relationships with existing customers, establish new customer relationships and obtain new time charter contracts, for which we face considerable competition from other established companies with significant resources, as well as recent and potential future new entrants. We are reliant on the commercial skills of GasLog to develop, establish and maintain customer relationships on our behalf. |
● | We derive a substantial majority of our revenues from a limited number of customers, and the loss of any customer, charter or vessel would result in a significant loss of revenues and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. |
● | We rely on our information systems to conduct our business and failure to protect these systems against security breaches could materially disrupt our business and results of operations. |
● | In 2020, we reduced our quarterly cash distribution rate on our common shares to $0.01 per unit. We have maintained this distribution rate throughout 2021 and 2022 and may continue to do so for the foreseeable future; future distributions may remain at this level for an indefinite period or be eliminated entirely, which could impact our ability to raise capital. |
● | We are subject to certain risks with respect to our relationship with GasLog, and failure of GasLog to comply with certain of its financial covenants under its debt instruments could, among other things, result in a default under the loan facilities related to four of our vessels, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. |
● | GasLog and its affiliates may compete with us. |
● | The price of our common units is unpredictable and may be volatile. |
● | Common unitholders have limited voting rights, and our partnership agreement restricts the voting rights of unitholders owning more than 4.9% of our common units. |
● | GasLog and our general partner own a controlling interest in us and have conflicts of interest and limited fiduciary and contractual duties to us and our unitholders, which may permit them to favor their own interests to your detriment. |
● | The transaction proposed by GasLog may not occur, may increase the volatility of the market price of our common units and will result in certain costs and expenses. |
● | Our officers are employed by GasLog and face conflicts in the allocation of their time to our business. |
● | Our partnership agreement limits our general partner’s and our directors’ fiduciary duties to our unitholders and restricts the remedies available to unitholders for actions taken by our general partner or our directors. |
● | We may issue additional equity securities, including securities senior to the common units, without the approval of our common unitholders, which would dilute the ownership interests of the common unitholders. |
● | Our general partner has a limited call right that may require you to sell your common units at an undesirable time or price. |
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● | We are a “foreign private issuer” under NYSE rules, and as such we are entitled to exemption from certain NYSE corporate governance standards, and you may not have the same protections afforded to unitholders of similarly organized limited partnerships that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements. |
Risks Related to our Preference Units
● | Unitholders may have liability to repay distributions. |
● | Our Preference Units are subordinated to our debt obligations, and investors’ interests could be diluted by the issuance of additional preference units and by other transactions. |
● | Holders of our Preference Units have extremely limited voting rights. |
● | The Preference Units represent perpetual equity interests, and holders have no right to receive any greater payment than the liquidation preference regardless of the circumstances. |
● | The Preference Units have not been rated, and ratings of any other of our securities may affect the trading price of the Preference Units. |
● | Market interest rates may adversely affect the value of our Preference Units. |
● | The Preference Units are redeemable at our option. |
● | Fluctuations in interest rates and the impact of the discontinuation of remaining London Interbank Offered Rate tenors for U.S. Dollars, or “LIBOR” after June 30, 2023 may adversely affect the value of and return on our Preference Units. |
Risks Inherent in the LNG Carriers Business
Our results of operations and financial condition depend significantly on charter rates for LNG carriers which may be highly volatile and depend on factors outside of our control. Operating vessels in the spot market, or being unable to recharter the vessels on long-term charters with similar or better rates, means our revenues and cash flows from these vessels will decline following expiration of our current charter arrangements. These factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, the value of our assets, and could further reduce or eliminate our ability to pay distributions on our common or Preference Units.
The GasLog Geneva and the GasLog Gibraltar are due to come off their long-term charters in September and October 2023, respectively, unless their charterer exercises its extension options. Six of the nine vessels operating in the short-term spot market (defined as vessels under contracts with initial duration of more than three years) are due to come off charter between April 2023 and December 2023. Our Steam vessels are less efficient and have higher CO2 emissions than larger, more technologically advanced modern LNG carriers and it may be more challenging to find spot and/or term employment for these vessels in the future. Unless we are able to secure longer term charters at attractive rates we will have exposure to the spot market which is highly competitive and subject to significant price fluctuations. In addition, there may be extended periods of idle time between charters. Moreover, any longer-term charters we are able to secure for our vessels may not be as long in duration as the multi-year charters we have enjoyed in the past and are likely to be at lower charter rates. In recent years, as a result of more LNG being traded on a short-term basis and greater liquidity in the LNG shipping market than was historically the case, the duration of term charters for on-the-water vessels with such charters now generally being anywhere between six months and three years. If we are unable to secure employment for a vessel, we will not receive any revenues from that vessel but we will be required to pay expenses necessary to maintain the vessel in proper operating condition, as well as servicing the debt attached to the vessel.
Failure to secure new term charters could adversely affect our future liquidity, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders, as well as our ability to meet certain of our debt obligations and covenants.
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As of December 31, 2022, we had a total of 671 open vessel days during 2023. A failure to obtain charters at acceptable rates on our vessels could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for dividends to our unitholders.
On February 6, 2020, in light of reduced expectations for Steam vessel utilization and earnings due to these risks, we announced that GasLog Partners will focus its capital allocation on debt repayment and prioritizing balance sheet strength. The Partnership reduced its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.125 per unit for the first quarter of 2020, from $0.561 per unit for the fourth quarter of 2019 and then further decreased its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.01 per unit for the third quarter of 2020 onwards. Today, our capital allocation strategy remains unchanged with a focus on balance sheet strength, deleveraging, reducing the all-in break-even rates in our fleet and repurchasing our Preference Units on an opportunistic basis in the open market. In addition, as part of our capital allocation priorities we have set leverage targets to monitor our performance. While we have reduced our leverage in recent years, we have not yet achieved those targets and there can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to reduce leverage in order to meet those targets.
If the number of vessels available in the short-term or spot LNG carrier market continues to expand and results in reduced opportunities to secure multi-year charters for our vessels, our revenues and cash flows may become more volatile and may decline following expiration or early termination of our current charter arrangements and may adversely impact our ability to pay distributions on our common units.
Most shipping requirements for new LNG projects continue to be secured on a multi-year basis, although the level of spot voyages and short-term time charters of less than 12 months in duration has grown in recent years. As vessels currently operating under multi-year charters redeliver, the number of vessels available in the short-term or spot charter market is likely to continue to expand which may result in reduced opportunities to secure multi-year charters for our vessels. With our vessels trading in the short-term or spot market upon expiration or early termination of our current charters, our revenues and cash flows may become more volatile and may decline. These factors could result in a decrease in our revenues and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
An oversupply of LNG carriers as a result of excessive new ordering in previous years may lead to a reduction in the charter hire rates we are able to obtain when seeking charters in the future which could adversely affect our results of operations and cash flows, especially in relation to our Steam vessels that are less efficient compared to newer vessels.
Based on current levels of demand, we currently believe that the global LNG carrier fleet may experience high levels of utilization over the next one to two years, though the supply of LNG carriers has been increasing as a result of the ordering and delivery of new ships. Ordering increased significantly in 2022, despite shipyard prices for newbuild vessels rising substantially, as a result of a renewed focus on energy security, diversification and investment in LNG infrastructure after the geopolitical events surrounding the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the decline of Russian pipeline flows to Europe by about 90%.
According to Poten & Partners Group, Inc. (“Poten”), as of January 31, 2023, the global trading fleet of conventional LNG carriers (>100,000 cbm) consisted of 606 vessels, with another 288 LNG carriers on order (with delivery up to 2028, 174 were ordered in 2022), of which 22 do not have multi-year charters. The majority of these vessels are tied to new projects, including about 20% of confirmed vessel orders tied to Qatar’s North Field Expansion project, and therefore likely to not negatively impact the supply-demand for vessels.
Any future expansion of the global LNG carrier fleet in excess of the demand for LNG shipping will likely have a negative impact on charter hire rates, vessel utilization and vessel values, however it has become difficult to secure additional berths and with prices for new vessels exceeding $250.0 million ordering may subside in 2023. If charter hire rates are lower when we are seeking new time charters, or if we are unable to secure employment for our vessels trading in the spot and short-term markets, as a result of increased competition from modern vessels, our revenues and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders, may further decline.
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The LNG shipping industry is subject to substantial environmental and other regulations which may be increased further by the growing global focus on a lower carbon economy, the effects of climate change (physical and transition) and the increasing demand for environmental, social and governance disclosures by investors, lenders and regulators. We may incur substantial costs in complying with new or changing environmental regulations which may affect our results of operations, financial condition and ability to pay distributions on our common units.
Our operations are materially affected by extensive and changing international, national, state and local environmental laws, regulations, treaties, conventions and standards which are in force in international waters, or in the jurisdictional waters of the countries in which our ships operate and in the countries in which our ships are registered. These requirements include those relating to equipping and operating ships, providing security and minimizing or addressing impacts on the environment from ship operations. These requirements may introduce regulations which affect the operation profile of our vessels and could impact our existing charters. We may incur substantial costs in complying with these requirements, including costs for ship modifications and changes in operating procedures. We also could incur substantial costs, including clean-up costs, civil and criminal penalties and sanctions, the suspension or termination of operations and third party claims as a result of violations of, or liabilities under, such laws and regulations. The higher emissions of our Steam vessels relative to more modern vessels could make it more difficult to secure employment for these vessels and reduce the rates at which we can charter these vessels to our customers.
In addition, these requirements can affect the resale value or useful lives of our ships, require a reduction in cargo capacity, operating speed, necessitate ship modifications or operational changes or restrictions or lead to decreased availability of insurance coverage for environmental matters. They could further result in the denial of access to certain jurisdictional waters or ports or detention in certain ports. We are required to obtain governmental approvals and permits to operate our ships. Delays in obtaining such governmental approvals may increase our expenses, and the terms and conditions of such approvals could materially and adversely affect our operations.
Additional laws, regulations, taxes or levies may be adopted that could limit our ability to do business or increase our operating costs, which could materially and adversely affect our business. New or amended legislation relating to ship recycling, sewage systems, emission control (including emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants) as well as ballast water treatment and ballast water handling may be adopted. For example, the United States has enacted legislation, and more recently a convention adopted by the International Maritime Organisation (“IMO”) has become effective, governing ballast water management systems on oceangoing ships. The IMO has also established progressive standards limiting emissions from ships (ratified in the MEPC75) starting from 2023 towards 2030 and 2050 goals. The EU is trying to incorporate shipping within the carbon Emission Trading Scheme already existing for other sectors. These and other laws or regulations may require additional capital expenditures or operating expenses (such as increased costs for low sulfur fuel or pollution controls) in order for us to maintain our ships’ compliance with international and/or national regulations. We may also become subject to additional laws and regulations if we enter new markets or trades.
The EU’s Taxonomy Regulation establishes an EU framework for the classification of sustainable economic activities with the aim of providing transparency to investors and business as the EU moves towards its 2050 climate neutrality goal. In February 2022, proposed new rules announced by the EU named natural gas and nuclear power generation as “transitional technologies” (provided they meet certain criteria, such as replacing coal plants, and subject to certain limits and phase put periods) and set out new disclosure rules for companies regarding annul reporting about compliance with green criteria. The rules came into effect on January 1, 2023.
We also believe that the heightened environmental, quality and security concerns of insurance underwriters, regulators and charterers will generally lead to additional regulatory requirements and/or contractual requirements, including enhanced risk assessment and security requirements, as well as greater inspection and safety requirements on all LNG carriers in the marine transportation market. These requirements are likely to add incremental costs to our operations, and the failure to comply with these requirements may affect the ability of our ships to obtain and, possibly, recover from, insurance policies or to obtain the required certificates for entry into the different ports where we operate.
Some environmental laws and regulations, such as the U.S. Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (“OPA”), provide for potentially unlimited joint, several and/or strict liability for owners, operators and demise or bareboat charterers for oil pollution and related damages. OPA applies to discharges of any oil from a ship in U.S. waters, including discharges of fuel and lubricants from an LNG carrier, even if the ships do not carry oil as cargo. In addition, many states in the United States bordering a navigable waterway have enacted legislation providing for potentially unlimited strict liability without regard to fault for the discharge of pollutants within their waters. We also are subject to other laws and conventions outside the United States that provide for an owner or operator of LNG carriers to bear strict liability for pollution, such as the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims of 1976, (the “London Convention”).
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Some of these laws and conventions, including OPA and the London Convention, may include limitations on liability. However, the limitations may not be applicable in certain circumstances, such as where a spill is caused by a ship owner’s or operator’s intentional or reckless conduct. These limitations are also subject to periodic updates and may otherwise be amended in the future.
Compliance with OPA and other environmental laws and regulations may also require ship owners and operators to incur increased costs for additional maintenance and inspection requirements, develop contingency arrangements for potential spills, obtain mandated insurance coverage and meet financial responsibility requirements.
Increased concern over climate change could lead to a more negative perception of the oil and gas industry which could impact our ability to attract investors, access financing in the bank and capital markets and attract and retain talent.
Ship values may fluctuate substantially, which has resulted in non-cash impairment charges on our Steam vessels in previous years, including in 2022. A further decline in ship values could impact our compliance with the covenants in our loan agreements and, if the values are lower at a time when we are attempting to dispose of ships, cause us to incur a loss.
Values for ships can fluctuate substantially over time due to a number of different factors, including:
● | prevailing economic conditions in the natural gas and energy markets; |
● | a substantial or extended decline in demand for LNG; |
● | the level of worldwide LNG production and exports; |
● | changes in the supply and demand balance of the global LNG carrier fleet and the size and contract profile of the LNG carrier orderbook; |
● | changes in prevailing charter hire rates; |
● | declines in levels of utilization of the global LNG carrier fleet and of our vessels; |
● | the physical condition of the ship; |
● | the size, age and technical specifications of the ship; and |
● | the cost of retrofitting or modifying existing ships, as a result of technological advances in ship design or equipment, changes in applicable environmental or other regulations or standards, customer requirements or otherwise. |
If the market values of our ships decline, we may be required to record additional impairment charges in our financial statements, which could adversely affect our results of operations. For a discussion of impairment charges for the year ended December 31, 2022, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—E. Critical Accounting Estimates—Impairment of Vessels”. Deterioration in the market value of our ships may trigger a breach of some of the covenants contained in our credit facilities. If we do breach such covenants and we are unable to remedy the relevant breach, our lenders could accelerate our indebtedness and seek to foreclose on the ships in our fleet securing those credit facilities. In addition, if a charter contract expires or is terminated by the customer, we may be unable to redeploy the affected ships at attractive rates and, rather than continue to incur costs to maintain and finance them, we may seek to dispose of them. Any foreclosure on our ships, or any disposal by us of a ship at a time when ship values have fallen, could result in a loss and could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
Climate change and greenhouse gas restrictions may adversely impact our results of operations, financial condition and ability to pay distributions on our common units.
Due to concern over the risks of climate change, a number of countries and the IMO, have adopted, or are considering the adoption of, regulatory frameworks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships. These regulatory measures may include adoption of cap and trade regimes, carbon taxes, increased efficiency standards and incentives or mandates for renewable energy. Although
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emissions of greenhouse gases, or “GHGs”, from international shipping are not currently subject to agreements under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, such as the “Kyoto Protocol” and the “Paris Agreement”, a new treaty may be adopted in the future that includes additional restrictions on shipping emissions to those already adopted under the International Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Ships, or the “MARPOL Convention”. Compliance with future changes in laws and regulations relating to climate change could increase the costs of operating and maintaining our ships and could require us to install new emission controls, as well as acquire allowances, pay taxes related to our greenhouse gas emissions or administer and manage a greenhouse gas emissions program. Such compliance could also affect our revenues and change significantly the market in which we compete, which may adversely affect any strategic growth opportunities.
There is increasing focus on the environmental footprint of the energy and transportation sectors from governments, regulators, shareholders, customers, environmental pressure groups and other stakeholders. This has been manifested recently by the fact that some of our charterers have set specific carbon emissions targets, covering all of their activities and products and those of their suppliers. GasLog’s vessels on charter to those charterers and other energy companies form part of their supply chain and may be captured within their targets. In addition, many large financial institutions are under pressure to both reduce their own environmental footprints and to monitor the environmental footprints of the companies and projects to which they lend. While LNG is among the cleanest marine transportation fuels, the focus and pressure on the environmental footprint of the marine transportation sector is likely to remain high and may increase. For example, in June 2021, the IMO adopted amendments to MARPOL Annex VI that entered into force on November 1, 2022 and require ships to reduce GHG emissions using technological and operational approaches to improve energy efficiency and that provide important building blocks for future GHG reduction measures. Any specific requirements imposed on GasLog by regulators, governments, customers or other stakeholders may impact the useful life of our vessels, increase our operating costs or require us to undertake significant investments in our vessels which may reduce our revenues, profits and cash flows and may impact our ability to pay distributions to our unitholders.
Adverse effects upon the oil and gas industry relating to climate change, including growing public concern about the environmental impact of climate change, may also have an effect on demand for our services. For example, increased regulation of greenhouse gases or other concerns relating to climate change may reduce the demand for oil and natural gas in the future or create greater incentives for use of alternative energy sources. Any long-term material adverse effect on the oil and gas industry could have significant financial and operational adverse impacts on our business that we cannot predict with certainty at this time.
The continuing COVID-19 pandemic, the spread of new variants and related governmental responses thereto may have further negative effects on the global economy, energy demand and on our results of operations and financial condition.
The COVID-19 pandemic introduced uncertainty in a number of areas of our business, including operational, commercial, administrative and financial activities. Initially, the COVID-19 pandemic and governmental responses thereto negatively impacted global economic activity and demand for energy, including LNG. As a result of significantly lower demand for oil and refined products and the failure of the principal producers of oil to reduce production in line with the fall in demand, oil prices were pressured downward in 2020. Oil prices recovered by the end of 2020 and continued to recover during 2021 due to oil production cuts, as well as a more favorable economic outlook following the distribution of several COVID-19 vaccines around the world which helped to balance the market. Similarly global natural gas prices were impacted by lower industrial demand at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly during the second and third quarters of 2020, as well as increasing gas production in export markets such as the United States. Although the LNG market continued to improve throughout 2022 and remains on a positive trend, this improvement may not be sustainable in the long-term.
The ongoing spread of the COVID-19 virus, and emergence of new variants, may negatively affect our business and operations, the health of our crews and the availability of our fleet, particularly if crew members contract COVID-19, as well as our financial position and prospects. The onset of the pandemic resulted in numerous actions taken by governments and governmental agencies in an attempt to mitigate the spread or any resurgence of the virus, including travel bans, quarantines and other emergency public health measures such as lockdowns. While many of these measures have since been relaxed, we cannot predict whether and to what degree such measures will be reinstated in the event of any resurgence in the COVID-19 virus or any variants thereof. Any future reduction in LNG demand and further closure of, or restricted access to, ports and terminals in regions affected by the virus may lead to reduced chartering activity and, in the extreme, an inability of our charterers to meet their obligations under the terms of their term charters. If this were to occur, we may be unable to secure charters for our vessels at rates that are sufficient to meet our financial obligations. With nine of our vessels currently trading in the short-term spot market, any additional exposure to the spot market or extended periods of idle time between charters could adversely affect our future liquidity, results of operations and cash flows.
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Additionally, if the COVID-19 pandemic again causes declines in the LNG market this could negatively impact our estimates regarding future charter rates for non-contracted revenue days and the discount rate in our future impairment assessments. This would negatively affect the future carrying values of our vessels, which could cause significant negative impacts on our liquidity and financial condition.
Although we have taken extensive measures to limit the impact of COVID-19 on business continuity, including implementation of a “work from home” policy for shore-based employees, as required depending on each location, and the commencement of select rotations of offshore personnel where possible, giving effect to local restrictions on the movement of offshore staff, these measures may not be sufficient to protect our business against the impact of COVID-19.
The occurrence or reoccurrence of any of the foregoing events or other epidemics, an increase in the severity or duration of the COVID-19 pandemic or other epidemic or a recession or market correction resulting from the spread of COVID-19 could have a material adverse effect on the global economy, energy demand and our business.
We may experience operational problems with vessels that reduce revenues and increase costs. In addition, there are risks associated with operating ocean-going ships. Any limitation in the availability or operation of our ships could have a material adverse effect on our business, our reputation, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Our owned and bareboat fleet consists of 14 LNG carriers that are in operation. LNG carriers are complex and their operations are technically challenging. Marine transportation operations are subject to mechanical risks and problems. Operational problems may lead to loss of revenues or higher than anticipated operating expenses or require additional capital expenditures.
Furthermore, the operation of ocean-going ships carries inherent risks. These risks include the possibility of:
● | marine disaster; |
● | piracy; |
● | cyber attacks or other failures of operational and information technology systems; |
● | environmental accidents; |
● | adverse weather conditions; |
● | grounding, fire, explosions and collisions; |
● | cargo and property loss or damage; |
● | business interruptions caused by mechanical failure, human error, war, terrorism, disease (such as the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus and variants that may emerge) and related government responses thereto, or political action in various countries; |
● | declining operational performance due to physical degradation as a result of extensive idle time or other factors; and |
● | work stoppages or other labor problems with crew members serving on our ships. |
An accident involving any of our owned ships could result in any of the following:
● | death or injury to persons, damage to our ships, loss of property or environmental damage; |
● | delays in the delivery of cargo; |
● | loss of revenues from termination of charter contracts; |
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● | governmental fines, penalties or restrictions on conducting business; |
● | litigation with our employees, customers or third parties; |
● | higher insurance rates; and |
● | damage to our reputation and customer relationships generally. |
If any of our ships are unable to generate revenues for any significant period of time for any reason, including unexpected periods of off-hire or early charter termination (which could result from damage to our ships), our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders, could be materially and adversely affected. The impact of any limitation in the operation of our ships or any early charter termination would be amplified, as a substantial portion of our cash flows and income is dependent on the revenues earned by the chartering of our 14 LNG carriers in operation. In addition, the costs of ship repairs are unpredictable and can be substantial. In the event of repair costs that are not covered by our insurance policies, we may have to pay for such costs, which would decrease our earnings and cash flows. Any of these results could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and our ability to make cash distributions to our unitholders.
All vessels in our fleet are required to be dry-docked at least once every five years for inspection and repairs. The dry-docking of our vessels may be longer and more costly than normal as a result of required repairs or regulatory requirements at the time of the dry-docking. Any delay or cost overrun of the dry-docking could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition and could significantly reduce or eliminate our ability to pay distributions on our common or Preference Units.
Dry-dockings of our vessels require significant expenditures and result in loss of revenue as our vessels are off-hire during such period. Any significant increase in either the number of off-hire days or in the costs of any repairs or investments carried out during the dry-docking period could have a material adverse effect on our profitability and our cash flows. Given the potential for unforeseen issues arising during dry-docking, we may not be able to predict accurately the time required to dry-dock any of our vessels. If more than one of our ships is required to be out of service at the same time, or if a ship is dry-docked longer than expected or if the cost of repairs is greater than budgeted, our results of operations and our cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders, could be adversely affected. The upcoming dry-dockings of our vessels are expected to be carried out in 2023 (four vessels), 2024 (one vessel), 2025 (four vessels) and 2026 (five vessels).
Further technological advancements and other innovations affecting LNG carriers could reduce the charter hire rates we are able to obtain when seeking new employment for our vessels and this could adversely impact the value of our assets and our results of operations and cash flows.
The charter rates, asset value and operational life of an LNG carrier are determined by a number of factors, including the ship’s efficiency, operational flexibility and physical life. Efficiency is reflected in unit freight costs (“UFC”) which are driven by the size of the vessel, its fuel economy and the rate at which LNG in the cargo tanks naturally evaporates (“boil-off ratio” or “BOR”). Flexibility is primarily driven by the size of the ship and includes the ability to enter harbors, utilize related docking facilities and pass through canals and straits. Physical life is related to the original design and construction, the ongoing maintenance and the impact of operational stresses on the asset. Ship, cargo containment and engine designs are continually evolving. At such time as newer designs are developed and accepted in the market, these newer vessels may be more efficient or more flexible or have longer physical lives than our ships. Competition from these more technologically advanced LNG carriers compared to our vessels with older technology could adversely affect our ability to charter or re-charter our ships and the charter hire rates we will be able to secure when we seek to charter or re-charter our ships, and could also reduce the resale value of our ships. This could adversely affect our revenues and cash flows, including cash distributions to our unitholders, as well as our ability to obtain debt financing for ships with older technology whose market values have experienced a significant decline.
Our future performance and ability to secure future employment for our vessels depends on continued growth in LNG production and demand for LNG and LNG shipping and declines in the demand for LNG and LNG shipping may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and ability to pay distributions.
Our future performance, including our ability to strengthen our balance sheet and to profitably employ and expand our fleet, will depend on continued growth in LNG supply and demand, and the demand for shipping. A complete LNG project includes natural gas
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production, liquefaction, storage, regasification and distribution facilities, in addition to marine transportation of LNG. Growth in LNG demand and increased infrastructure investment has led to an expansion of LNG production capacity in recent years, but material delays in the construction of new liquefaction facilities could constrain the amount of LNG available for shipping, reducing ship utilization. The rate of growth of the LNG industry has fluctuated due to several factors, including the rate of global economic growth, fluctuations in global commodity prices, including natural gas, oil and coal as well as other sources of energy, and energy and environmental policy in markets which produce and/or consume LNG. Continued growth in LNG production and demand for LNG and LNG shipping could be negatively affected by a number of factors, including:
● | prices for crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas. A return to low natural gas prices globally may limit the willingness and ability of developers of new LNG infrastructure projects to approve the development of such new projects; |
● | the cost of natural gas derived from LNG relative to the cost of natural gas generally and to the cost of alternative fuels, including renewables and coal, and the impact of increases in the cost of natural gas derived from LNG on consumption of LNG; |
● | increases in the production levels of lower cost domestic natural gas in natural gas consuming markets, which could further depress prices for natural gas in those markets and make LNG uneconomical; |
● | increases in the production of natural gas in areas linked by pipelines to consuming areas, the extension of existing pipelines, or the development of new pipeline systems in markets we may serve; |
● | infrastructure constraints such as delays in the construction of liquefaction or regasification facilities, the inability of project owners or operators to obtain governmental approvals to construct or operate LNG facilities, as well as community or political action group resistance to new LNG infrastructure due to concerns about the environment; |
● | concerns regarding the spread of disease, for example, the COVID-19 virus, safety and terrorism; |
● | changes in weather patterns leading to warmer winters in the northern hemisphere and lower gas demand in the traditional peak heating season; |
● | the availability and allocation of capital by developers to new LNG projects, especially the major oil and gas companies and other leading participants in the LNG industry; |
● | increases in interest rates, capital market volatility, changes in bank regulations or other events that may affect the availability of sufficient financing for LNG projects on commercially reasonable terms; |
● | negative global or regional economic or political conditions, particularly in LNG consuming regions, which could reduce energy consumption or its growth; |
● | new taxes or regulations affecting LNG production or liquefaction that make LNG production less attractive; |
● | labor or political unrest or military conflicts affecting existing or proposed areas of LNG production or regasification; |
● | any significant explosion, spill or other incident involving an LNG facility or carrier; or |
● | regional, national or international energy policies that constrain the production or consumption of hydrocarbons including natural gas. |
In recent years, global natural gas and crude oil prices have been volatile. Any decline in oil prices can depress natural gas prices and lead to a narrowing of the difference in pricing between geographic regions, which can adversely affect the length of voyages in the spot LNG shipping market and the spot rates and medium term charter rates for charters which commence in the near future.
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Natural gas and oil prices are subject to volatility due to global events outside of our control, including the recent events in Russia and Ukraine. A continuation of the recent volatility in natural gas and oil prices may adversely affect our growth prospects and results of operations.
Natural gas prices are likely to continue to face volatility given the constrained supply outlook following the cessation of pipeline flows from Russia to Europe and suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines. Given the lead time for new LNG infrastructure, supply deficit and seasonal nature of LNG demand, prices are likely to continue being volatile and dependent on demand reduction measures, weather impact on demand and availability/price of alternative sources of energy such as coal. Natural gas prices are affected by numerous factors beyond our control, including but not limited to the following:
● | price and availability of crude oil and petroleum products; |
● | worldwide and regional supply of, demand for and price of natural gas; |
● | the costs of exploration, development, production, transportation and distribution of natural gas; |
● | expectations regarding future energy prices for both natural gas and other sources of energy, including renewable energy sources; |
● | the level of worldwide LNG production and exports; |
● | government laws and regulations, including but not limited to environmental protection laws and regulations; |
● | local and international political, economic and weather conditions; |
● | political and military conflicts; and |
● | the availability and cost of alternative energy sources, including alternate sources of natural gas in gas importing and consuming countries as well as alternate sources of primary energy such as renewables. |
With nine vessels operating in the short-term spot market (defined as vessels under contracts of less than three years) the significant global natural gas and crude oil price volatility referenced above may adversely affect our future business, results of operations and financial condition and our ability to make cash distributions, as a result of, among other things:
● | a reduction in exploration for or development of new natural gas reserves or projects, or the delay or cancellation of existing projects as energy companies lower their capital expenditures budgets, which may reduce our growth opportunities; |
● | volatile oil prices negatively affecting the market price of natural gas, to the extent that natural gas prices are benchmarked to the price of crude oil, in turn negatively affecting the economics of potential new LNG production projects, which may reduce our growth opportunities; |
● | high oil prices negatively affecting the competitiveness of natural gas to the extent that natural gas prices are benchmarked to the price of crude oil; |
● | low gas prices globally and/or weak differentials between prices in the Atlantic Basin and the Pacific Basin leading to reduced inter-basin trading of LNG and reduced demand for LNG shipping; |
● | lower demand for vessels of the types we own and operate, which may reduce available charter rates and revenue to us upon redeployment of our vessels following expiration or termination of existing contracts or upon the initial chartering of vessels; |
● | customers potentially seeking to renegotiate or terminate existing vessel contracts, or failing to extend or renew contracts upon expiration; |
● | the inability or refusal of customers to make charter payments to us due to financial constraints or otherwise; or |
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● | declines in vessel values, which may result in losses to us upon vessel sales or impairment charges against our earnings and could impact our compliance with the covenants in our loan agreements. |
Compliance with new IMO measures related to the reduction of GHG emissions from international shipping could adversely impact our fleet and operations. Technical and operational measures implemented by regulations include the Energy Efficiency Existing Ships Index (“EEXI”) and Carbon Intensity Indicator (“CII”).
The IMO, the United Nations’ agency for regulating shipping, introduced and adopted two new measures, the EEXI and CII, which entered into force on January 1, 2023 and are expected to have an impact on our fleet in the short and long-term. Pursuant to the EEXI regulation, Steam vessels require an Engine Power Limitation which will have an impact on the vessels’ maximum attainable speed. The CII regulation may also have an impact on our Steam and TFDE vessels, although the operative form of the regulatory framework and the consequences of non-compliance have yet to be defined by IMO, making it difficult to assess the size and timing of any associated risks. However, any impact of the CII is likely to impact smaller and less efficient Steam vessels first.
Changes in global and regional economic conditions and capital markets volatility could adversely impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Weak global or regional economic conditions may negatively impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows in ways that we cannot predict. Our ability to expand our fleet will be dependent on our ability to obtain financing to fund the acquisition of additional ships. In addition, uncertainty about current and future global economic conditions may cause our customers to defer projects in response to tighter credit, decreased capital availability and declining customer confidence, which may negatively impact the demand for our ships and services and could also result in defaults under our current charters. Global financial markets and economic conditions have been volatile in recent years and remain subject to significant vulnerabilities such as the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and high inflation experienced in 2022. A further tightening of the credit markets may negatively impact our operations by affecting the solvency of our suppliers or customers, which could lead to disruptions in delivery of supplies such as equipment for conversions, cost increases for supplies, accelerated payments to suppliers, customer bad debts or reduced revenues. Similarly, such market conditions could affect lenders participating in our financing agreements, making them unable to fulfill their commitments and obligations to us. Any reduction in activity owing to such conditions or failure by our customers, suppliers or lenders to meet their contractual obligations to us could adversely affect our business, financial position, results of operations and ability to make cash distributions to our unitholders.
Compliance with safety and other requirements imposed by classification societies may be very costly and may adversely affect our business.
The hull and machinery of every commercial LNG carrier must be classed by a classification society. The classification society certifies that the ship has been built and subsequently maintained in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of that classification society. Moreover, every ship must comply with all applicable international conventions and the regulations of the ship’s flag state as verified by a classification society. Finally, each ship must successfully undergo periodic surveys, including annual, intermediate and special surveys performed under the classification society’s rules.
If any ship does not maintain its class, it will lose its insurance coverage and be unable to trade, and the ship’s owner will be in breach of relevant covenants under its financing arrangements. Failure to maintain the class of one or more of our ships could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
We operate our ships worldwide, which could expose us to political, governmental and economic instability that could harm our business.
Because we operate our ships in the geographic areas where our customers do business, our operations may be affected by political, governmental and economic conditions in the countries where our ships operate or where they are registered. Any disruption caused by these factors could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders. In particular, our ships frequent LNG terminals in countries including Egypt, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea and Trinidad, as well as transit through the Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Hormuz. Future hostilities or other political instability in the geographic regions where we operate or may operate could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders. General trade tensions between the U.S. and
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China escalated in 2018, with three rounds of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods taking effect in 2018 and a further round taking effect in September 2019, each followed by a round of retaliatory Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods. Despite a phase one trade deal being signed in January 2020, tensions continue to exist. The recent hostilities between Russia and Ukraine and attendant sanctions promulgated by the United States, the European Union (“EU”) and other countries may also adversely impact our business, given Russia’s role as a major global exporter of crude oil and natural gas and the imposition of a price cap on Russian-origin oil announced by the U.S., EU and several other countries in December 2022. In addition, political tensions between China and Taiwan may adversely affect our business and may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described in our risk factors, such as those relating to data security, supply chain and market conditions, any of which could negatively affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Our business could be harmed by trade tariffs, as well as any trade embargoes or other economic sanctions by the United States or other countries against Russia, the Middle East, Asia or elsewhere as a result of terrorist attacks, hostilities or diplomatic or political pressures that limit trading activities with those countries.
Terrorist attacks, international hostilities, political change and piracy could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Terrorist attacks, piracy and the current conflicts in Ukraine, the Middle East and elsewhere, as well as other current and future conflicts and political change, may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine may lead to further regional and international conflicts or armed action. The invasion of Ukraine has disrupted supply chains and caused instability in the global economy; these effects are likely to continue and possibly compound as the conflict remains ongoing. Additionally, the ongoing conflict could result in the imposition of further economic sanctions by the United States and the European Union against Russia. While much uncertainty remains regarding the global impact of the conflict in Ukraine, it is possible that such tensions could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operation and cash flows. Furthermore, it is possible that third parties with whom we have charter contracts may be impacted by events in Russia and Ukraine, which could adversely affect our operations.
The continuing hostilities in the Middle East may lead to additional acts of terrorism, further regional conflicts, other armed actions around the world and civil disturbance in the United States or elsewhere, which may contribute to further instability in the global financial markets. These uncertainties could also adversely affect our ability to obtain additional financing on terms acceptable to us, or at all.
In the past, political conflicts have also resulted in attacks on ships, mining of waterways and other efforts to disrupt international shipping, particularly in the Arabian Gulf region. Acts of terrorism and piracy have also affected ships trading in regions such as the South China Sea, West Africa and the Gulf of Aden. Any terrorist attacks targeted at ships may in the future have a material negative effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows and could directly impact our ships or our customers.
We currently employ armed guards onboard certain vessels operating in areas that may be prone to hijacking or terrorist attacks. The presence of armed guards may increase the risk of damage, injury or loss of life in connection with any attacks on our vessels, in addition to increasing crew costs.
We may not be adequately insured to cover losses from acts of terrorism, piracy, regional conflicts and other armed actions, including losses relating to the employment of armed guards.
LNG facilities, shipyards, ships, pipelines and gas fields could be targets of future terrorist attacks or piracy. Any such attacks could lead to, among other things, bodily injury or loss of life, as well as damage to the ships or other property, increased ship operating costs, including insurance costs, reductions in the supply of LNG and the inability to transport LNG to or from certain locations. Terrorist attacks, war or other events beyond our control that adversely affect the production, storage or transportation of LNG to be shipped by us could entitle our customers to terminate our charter contracts in certain circumstances, which would harm our cash flows and our business.
Terrorist attacks, or the perception that LNG facilities and LNG carriers are potential terrorist targets, could materially and adversely affect expansion of LNG infrastructure and the continued supply of LNG. Concern that LNG facilities may be targeted for attack by terrorists has contributed significantly to local community and environmental group resistance to the construction of a number of LNG facilities, primarily in North America. If a terrorist incident involving an LNG facility or LNG carrier did occur, in
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addition to the possible effects identified in the previous paragraph, the incident may adversely affect the construction of additional LNG facilities and could lead to the temporary or permanent closing of various LNG facilities currently in operation.
In the future, the ships we own or lease could be required to call on ports located in countries that are subject to restrictions imposed by the United States and other governments.
The United States and other governments and their agencies impose sanctions and embargoes on certain countries and maintain lists of countries they consider to be state sponsors of terrorism. For example, in 2010, the United States enacted the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions Accountability and Divestment Act, (“CISADA”), which expanded the scope of the former Iran Sanctions Act. Among other things, CISADA expanded the application of the prohibitions imposed by the U.S. government to non-U.S. companies, such as us, and limits the ability of companies and persons to do business or trade with Iran when such activities relate to the investment, supply or export of refined petroleum or petroleum products, as well as LNG.
In 2012, President Obama signed Executive Order 13608, which prohibits foreign persons from violating or attempting to violate, or causing a violation of, any sanctions in effect against Iran, or facilitating any deceptive transactions for or on behalf of any person subject to U.S. sanctions. The Secretary of the Treasury may prohibit any transactions or dealings, including any U.S. capital markets financing, involving any person found to be in violation of Executive Order 13608. Also in 2012, the U.S. enacted the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012, (the “ITRA”), which created new sanctions and strengthened existing sanctions. Among other things, the ITRA intensifies existing sanctions regarding the provision of goods, services, infrastructure or technology to Iran’s petroleum or petrochemical sector. The ITRA also includes a provision requiring the President of the United States to impose five or more sanctions from Section 6(a) of the Iran Sanctions Act, as amended, on a person the President determines is a controlling beneficial owner of, or otherwise owns, operates, or controls or insures a vessel that was used to transport crude oil from Iran to another country and (1) if the person is a controlling beneficial owner of the vessel, the person had actual knowledge the vessel was so used or (2) if the person otherwise owns, operates, or controls, or insures the vessel, the person knew or should have known the vessel was so used. Such a person could be subject to a variety of sanctions, including exclusion from U.S. capital markets, exclusion from financial transactions subject to U.S. jurisdiction, and exclusion of such person’s vessels from U.S. ports for up to two years. The ITRA also includes a requirement that issuers of securities must disclose to the SEC in their annual and quarterly reports filed after February 6, 2013 whether the issuer or “any affiliate” has “knowingly” engaged in certain sanctioned activities involving Iran during the timeframe covered by the report. Finally, in January 2013, the U.S. enacted the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012 or the “IFCA”, which expanded the scope of U.S. sanctions on any person that is part of Iran’s energy, shipping or shipbuilding sector and operators of ports in Iran, and imposes penalties on any person who facilitates or otherwise knowingly provides significant financial, material or other support to these entities.
On January 16, 2016, the United States suspended certain sanctions against Iran applicable to non-U.S. companies, such as us, pursuant to the nuclear agreement reached between Iran, China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. To implement these changes, beginning on January 16, 2016, the United States waived enforcement of many of the sanctions against Iran’s energy and petrochemical sectors described above, among other things, including certain provisions of CISADA, ITRA, and IFCA. However, in May 2018, the United States announced its withdrawal of the U.S. from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and almost all of the U.S. sanctions waived and lifted in January 2016 were reinstated in August 2018 and November 2018, respectively. These sanctions also encompass significant transactions to sell, supply or transfer to Iran goods or services related to the aforementioned sanctioned sections.
Although the ships we own have not called on ports in countries subject to sanctions or embargoes or in countries identified as state sponsors of terrorism, including Iran, North Korea and Syria, we cannot assure you that these ships will not call on ports in these countries in the future. While we intend to maintain compliance with all sanctions and embargoes applicable to us, U.S. and international sanctions and embargo laws and regulations do not necessarily apply to the same countries or proscribe the same activities, which may make compliance difficult. Additionally, the scope of certain laws may be unclear, and these laws may be subject to changing interpretations and application and may be amended or strengthened from time to time, including by adding or removing countries from the proscribed lists. Violations of sanctions and embargo laws and regulations could result in fines or other penalties and could result in some investors deciding, or being required, to divest their investment, or not to invest, in us.
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Failure to comply with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the UK Bribery Act and other anti-bribery legislation in other jurisdictions could result in fines, criminal penalties, contract terminations and an adverse effect on our business.
We operate our ships worldwide, requiring our ships to trade in countries known to have a reputation for corruption. We are committed to doing business in accordance with applicable anti-corruption laws and have adopted a code of business conduct and ethics which is consistent and in full compliance with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, (the “FCPA”), and the Bribery Act 2010 of the United Kingdom (the “UK Bribery Act”). We are subject, however, to the risk that we, our affiliated entities or our or their respective officers, directors, employees and agents may take actions determined to be in violation of such anti-corruption laws, including the FCPA and the UK Bribery Act. Any such violation could result in substantial fines, sanctions, civil and/or criminal penalties, or curtailment of operations in certain jurisdictions, and might adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial condition. In addition, actual or alleged violations could damage our reputation and ability to do business. Furthermore, detecting, investigating, and resolving actual or alleged violations is expensive and can consume significant time and attention of our senior management.
Changing laws and evolving reporting requirements could have an adverse effect on our business.
Changing laws, regulations and standards relating to reporting requirements may create additional compliance requirements for us. To maintain high standards of corporate governance and public disclosure, GasLog has invested in, and intends to continue to invest in, reasonably necessary resources to comply with evolving standards.
The European Union Code of Conduct Group has assessed the tax policies of a range of countries including Bermuda, where our vessel owning entities are incorporated and the Marshall Islands where we also have affiliated entities incorporated. Bermuda and the Marshall Islands committed to comply with the European Union Code of Conduct Group’s requirements on economic substance and passed legislation in the form of the Bermuda Economic Substance Act of 2018 and the Marshall Islands Economic Substance Regulations, 2018, as amended.
GasLog has filed the required returns confirming we have appropriate economic substance in Bermuda and the Marshall Islands. However, it is not possible to accurately predict the outcome of any review by the authorities as to whether or not GasLog and its business has accurately interpreted the requirements. Whilst we believe we have taken appropriate advice and counsel from the relevant authorities and external legal advisors; the requirements may increase the complexity and costs of carrying on GasLog’s business with entities incorporated in Bermuda and the Marshall Islands.
Our insurance may be insufficient to cover losses that may occur to our property or result from our operations which could adversely affect our results of operations and cash flows.
The operation of any ship includes risks such as mechanical failure, personal injury, collision, fire, contact with floating objects, property loss or damage, cargo loss or damage, failure of or disruption to information and operational technology systems and business interruption due to a number of reasons, including political circumstances in foreign countries, hostilities, cyber attacks and labor strikes. In addition, there is always an inherent possibility of a marine disaster, including collision, explosion, spills and other environmental mishaps, and other liabilities arising from owning, operating or managing ships in international trade. Although we carry protection and indemnity, hull and machinery and loss of hire insurance covering our ships consistent with industry standards, we can give no assurance that we are adequately insured against all risks or that our insurers will pay a particular claim. In addition, we may be unable to insure against certain cyber events that may disrupt our information and operational technology systems. We also may be unable to procure adequate insurance coverage at commercially reasonable rates in the future. Even if our insurance coverage is adequate to cover our losses, we may not be able to obtain a timely replacement ship in the event of a loss of a ship. Any uninsured or underinsured loss could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
In addition, some of our insurance coverage is maintained through mutual protection and indemnity associations and, as a member of such associations, we may be required to make additional payments over and above budgeted premiums if member claims exceed association reserves.
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Reliability of suppliers may limit our ability to obtain supplies and services when needed.
We rely, and will in the future rely, on a significant supply of consumables, spare parts and equipment to operate, maintain, repair and upgrade our fleet of ships. Delays in delivery or unavailability of supplies could result in off-hire days due to consequent delays in the repair and maintenance of our fleet. This would negatively impact our revenues and cash flows. Cost increases could also negatively impact our future operations, although the impact of significant cost increases may be mitigated to some extent with respect to the vessels that are employed under charter contracts with automatic periodic adjustment provisions or cost review provisions.
Governments could requisition our ships during a period of war or emergency, resulting in loss of earnings.
The government of a jurisdiction where one or more of our ships are registered could requisition for title or seize our ships. Requisition for title occurs when a government takes control of a ship and becomes its owner. Also, a government could requisition our ships for hire. Requisition for hire occurs when a government takes control of a ship and effectively becomes the charterer at dictated charter rates. Generally, requisitions occur during a period of war or emergency, although governments may elect to requisition ships in other circumstances. Although we would expect to be entitled to government compensation in the event of a requisition of one or more of our ships, the amount and timing of payments, if any, would be uncertain. A government requisition of one or more of our ships would result in off-hire days under our time charters, may cause us to breach covenants in certain of our credit facilities and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
Maritime claimants could arrest our ships, which could interrupt our cash flows.
Crew members, suppliers of goods and services to a ship, shippers or receivers of cargo and other parties may be entitled to a maritime lien against a ship for unsatisfied debts, claims or damages. In many jurisdictions, a maritime lienholder may enforce its lien by arresting a ship. The arrest or attachment of one or more of our ships which is not timely discharged could cause us to default on a charter or breach covenants in certain of our credit facilities and, to the extent such arrest or attachment is not covered by our protection and indemnity insurance, could require us to pay large sums of money to have the arrest or attachment lifted. Any of these occurrences could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
Additionally, in some jurisdictions, such as the Republic of South Africa, under the “sister ship” theory of liability, a claimant may arrest both the ship that is subject to the claimant’s maritime lien and any “associated” ship, which is any ship owned or controlled by the same owner. Claimants could try to assert “sister ship” liability against one ship in our fleet for claims relating to another of our ships.
We may be subject to litigation that could have an adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and ability to pay distributions.
We may in the future be involved from time to time in litigation matters. These matters may include, among other things, contract disputes, personal injury claims, environmental claims or proceedings, toxic tort claims, employment matters and governmental claims for taxes or duties, as well as other litigation that arises in the ordinary course of our business. We cannot predict with certainty the outcome of any claim or other litigation matter. The ultimate outcome of any litigation matter and the potential costs associated with prosecuting or defending such lawsuits, including the diversion of management’s attention to these matters, could have an adverse effect on us and, in the event of litigation that could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on us, could lead to an event of default under certain of our credit facilities.
Risks Related to Us
Our future success depends on our own and GasLog’s ability to maintain relationships with existing customers, establish new customer relationships and obtain new time charter contracts, for which we face considerable competition from other established companies with significant resources, as well as recent and potential future new entrants. We are reliant on the commercial skills of GasLog to develop, establish and maintain customer relationships on our behalf.
One of our principal objectives is to enter into additional multi-year, fixed rate charters. The process of obtaining multi-year, fixed rate charters for LNG carriers is highly competitive and generally involves an intensive screening process by potential customers
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and the submission of competitive bids. The process is lengthy and the LNG carrier time charters are awarded based upon a variety of factors relating to the ship and the ship operator, including:
● | size, age, technical specifications and condition of the ship; |
● | LNG shipping experience and quality and efficiency of ship operations, including level of emissions; |
● | shipping industry relationships and reputation for customer service; |
● | technical ability and reputation for operation of highly specialized ships; |
● | quality and experience of officers and crew; |
● | safety record; |
● | the ability to finance ships at competitive rates and financial stability generally; |
● | relationships with shipyards and the ability to get suitable berths; |
● | construction and dry-docking management experience, including the ability to obtain on-time delivery of new ships according to customer specifications; and |
● | competitiveness of the bid in terms of charter rate and other economic and commercial terms. |
We expect substantial competition from a number of experienced companies and recent and potential future new entrants to the LNG shipping market. Competitors may include other independent ship owners, state sponsored entities and major energy companies that own and operate LNG carriers, all of whom may compete with independent owners by using their own fleets to carry LNG for third parties. Some of these competitors have significantly greater financial resources and larger fleets than we or GasLog have, and some have particular relationships that may provide them with competitive advantages. In recent years, a number of marine transportation companies, including companies with strong reputations and extensive resources and experience, have either entered or significantly increased their presence in the LNG transportation market. There are other ship owners, managers and investors who may also attempt to participate in the LNG market in the future. This increased competition may cause greater price competition for time charters. As a result, we may be unable to expand our relationships with existing customers or to obtain new customers on a profitable basis and we may not be successful in executing any future growth plans, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
We derive a substantial majority of our contracted revenues from a limited number of customers, and the loss of any customer, charter or vessel would result in a significant loss of revenues and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
For the year ended December 31, 2022, 44.2% of our revenues derived from wholly owned subsidiaries of Shell. In 2023, the initial terms of the time charters of two vessels with Shell are expected to expire unless Shell exercises their option to extend. We could lose a customer or the benefits of our time charter arrangements for many different reasons. The customer may be unable or unwilling to make charter hire or other payments to us because of a deterioration in its financial condition, commercial disputes with us, long-term force majeure events or otherwise. If a customer terminates its charters, chooses not to re-charter our ships or is unable to perform under its charters and we are not able to find replacement charters on similar or more favorable terms, we will suffer a loss of revenues.
Our charterer has the right to terminate a ship’s time charter in certain circumstances, such as:
● | loss of the ship or damage to it beyond repair; |
● | if the ship is off-hire for any reason other than scheduled dry-docking for a period exceeding 90 consecutive days, or for more than 90 days in any one year period; |
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● | defaults by us in our obligations under the charter; or |
● | the outbreak of war or hostilities involving two or more major nations, such as the United States or the People’s Republic of China, that would materially and adversely affect the trading of the ship for a period of at least 30 days. |
A termination right under one ship’s time charter would not automatically give the charterer the right to terminate its other charter contracts with us. However, a charter termination could materially affect our relationship with the customer and our reputation in the LNG shipping industry, and in some circumstances the event giving rise to the termination right could potentially impact multiple charters.
Accordingly, the existence of any right of termination or the loss of any customer, charter or vessel could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
If we cannot meet our charterers’ quality and compliance requirements, including regulations or costs associated with the environmental impact of our vessels, we may not be able to operate our vessels profitably which could have an adverse effect on our future performance, results of operations, cash flows and financial position.
Customers, and in particular those in the LNG industry, have a high and increasing focus on quality, emissions and compliance standards with their suppliers across the entire value chain, including the shipping and transportation segment. There is also increasing focus on the environmental footprint of marine transportation. Our continuous compliance with existing and new standards and quality requirements is vital for our operations. Related risks could materialize in multiple ways, including a sudden and unexpected breach in quality and/or compliance concerning one or more vessels and/or a continuous decrease in the quality concerning one or more LNG carriers occurring over time. Moreover, continuously increasing requirements from LNG industry constituents can further complicate our ability to meet the standards. We are largely dependent on GasLog for our compliance with the requirements of our customers. Any non-compliance by us, either suddenly or over a period of time, on one or more LNG carriers, or an increase in requirements by our charterers above and beyond what we deliver, may have a material adverse effect on our future performance, results of operations, cash flows, financial position and our ability to make cash distributions to our unitholders.
Due to our lack of diversification, adverse developments in the LNG market and/or in the LNG transportation industry could adversely affect our business, particularly if such developments occur at a time when we are seeking new charters for our vessels.
We rely exclusively on the cash flow generated from charters for our LNG vessels, either spot/short-term or long-term. Due to our lack of diversification, an adverse development in the LNG market and/or the LNG transportation industry could have a significantly greater impact on our business, particularly if such developments occur at a time when our ships are not under charter or nearing the end of their charters, than if we maintained more diverse assets or lines of businesses.
We rely on our information systems to conduct our business and failure to protect these systems against security breaches could materially disrupt our business and results of operations.
The Partnership relies on information technology systems and networks, the majority of which are hosted by GasLog, in its operations and the administration of its business. The Partnership’s business operations, or those of GasLog, could be targeted by individuals or groups seeking to sabotage or disrupt the Partnership’s or GasLog’s information and operational technology systems and networks, or to steal data. A successful cyber-attack could materially disrupt the Partnership’s operations, including the safety and integrity of its operations, or lead to unauthorized release of information or alteration of information on its systems. Any such attack or other breach of the Partnership’s information technology systems could have a material adverse effect on the Partnership’s business and results of operations. While we have insurance policies in place to cover losses in the event of a cyber related event, there can be no assurance that any specific event would be covered by these policies or that the losses would be covered in full.
War, terrorism and geopolitical conflicts could be accompanied by cyber-attacks against instruments of the government and/or cyber-attacks on surrounding countries. Cyber-attacks against the Ukrainian government and other countries in the region were reported in connection with the ongoing conflict between Russian and Ukraine in 2022. It is possible that such attacks could have collateral effects on additional critical infrastructure and financial institutions globally, which could hinder our ability to conduct our business effectively and adversely impact our revenues. It is difficult to assess the likelihood of such threat and any potential impact at this time.
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We are subject to laws, directives, and regulations relating to the collection, use, retention, disclosure, security and transfer of personal data. These laws, directives and regulations, as well as their interpretation and enforcement, continue to evolve and may be inconsistent from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which regulates the use of personally identifiable information, went into effect in the EU on May 25, 2018 and applies globally to all of our activities conducted from an establishment in the EU, to related products and services that we offer to EU customers and to non-EU customers which offer services in the EU. The GDPR requires organizations to report on data breaches within 72 hours and be bound by more stringent rules for obtaining the consent of individuals on how their data can be used. Complying with the GDPR and similar emerging and changing privacy and data protection requirements may cause us to incur substantial costs or require us to change our business practices. Non-compliance with our legal obligations relating to privacy and data protection could result in penalties, fines, legal proceedings by governmental entities or others, loss of reputation, legal claims by individuals and customers and significant legal and financial exposure and could affect our ability to retain and attract customers.
Changes in the nature of cyber threats and/or changes to industry standards and regulations might require us to adopt additional procedures for monitoring cybersecurity, which could require significant additional expenses and/or capital expenditures. Most recently, cyber-attacks against the Ukrainian government and other countries in the region were reported in connection with the ongoing conflict between Russian and Ukraine in 2022. It is possible that these attacks could have collateral effects on additional critical infrastructure and financial institutions globally, which could adversely affect our operations. It is difficult to assess the likelihood of such threat and any potential impact at this time.
In 2020, we reduced our quarterly cash distribution rate on our common shares to $0.01 per unit. We have maintained this distribution rate throughout 2021 and 2022 and may continue to do so for the foreseeable future; future distributions may remain at this level for an indefinite period or be eliminated entirely, which could impact our ability to raise capital.
Our board of directors and management have been proactive in revising our capital allocation strategy, prioritizing preserving liquidity, deleveraging our balance sheet, raising equity through our ATM Programme and buying back Preference Units. As a result, starting in the third quarter of 2020, in light of the continued COVID-19 related uncertainty, we reduced our quarterly cash distributions on our common units to $0.01 per unit. While we believe that this action will allow us to preserve liquidity, strengthen our balance sheet, make progress towards our leverage targets and improve the break evens of our fleet, there is some risk that we may not be able to substantially increase the amount of distribution in coming periods, which could have a negative impact on our unit price. Any negative impact on our unit price could ultimately impact our ability to raise capital.
We must make substantial capital expenditures to maintain and replace our fleet, which will reduce cash available for distribution. In addition, each quarter we are required to deduct estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures from operating surplus, which may result in less cash available to unitholders than if actual maintenance and replacement capital expenditures were deducted.
We must make substantial capital expenditures to maintain and replace, over the long-term, the operating capacity of our fleet. Maintenance and replacement capital expenditures include capital expenditures associated with (i) the removal of a vessel from the water for inspection, maintenance and/or repair of submerged parts (or dry-docking) and (ii) modifying an existing vessel or acquiring a new vessel, to the extent these expenditures are incurred to maintain, enhance or replace the operating capacity of our fleet. These expenditures could vary significantly from quarter to quarter and could increase as a result of changes in:
● | the cost of labor and materials; |
● | the time required to carry out any investments; |
● | customer requirements; |
● | the size of our fleet; |
● | the cost of replacement vessels; |
● | the length and terms of our charters; |
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● | governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards relating to safety, security or the environment; |
● | competitive standards; and |
● | the age of our ships. |
Significant capital expenditures, including to maintain and replace, over the long-term, the operating capacity of our fleet, may reduce or eliminate the amount of cash available for distribution to our unitholders. Our partnership agreement requires our board of directors to deduct estimated, rather than actual, maintenance and replacement capital expenditures from operating surplus each quarter in an effort to reduce fluctuations in operating surplus (as defined in our partnership agreement). The amount of estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures deducted from operating surplus is subject to review and change by our conflicts committee at least once a year. In years when estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures are higher than actual maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, the amount of cash available for distribution to unitholders will be lower than if actual maintenance and replacement capital expenditures were deducted from operating surplus. If our board of directors underestimates the appropriate level of estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, we may have less cash available for distribution in future periods when actual capital expenditures exceed our previous estimates.
We may not have sufficient cash from operations following the establishment of cash reserves and payment of fees and expenses to enable us to pay the quarterly distributions on our common units, Preference Units and general partner units, or to redeem our Preference Units.
Our board of directors makes determinations regarding the payment of distributions in its sole discretion and in accordance with our partnership agreement and applicable law. On February 6, 2020, in light of reduced expectations for Steam vessel utilization and earnings, as well as our increased exposure to the spot market, we announced that GasLog Partners will focus its capital allocation on debt repayment and prioritizing balance sheet strength. The Partnership reduced its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.125 per unit for the first quarter of 2020, from $0.561 per unit for the fourth quarter of 2019 and then further decreased its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.01 per unit for the third quarter of 2020 onwards. As of February 28, 2023, our capital allocation strategy remains unchanged with a focus on balance sheet strength, deleveraging, reducing the all-in break-even rates in our fleet and repurchasing our Preference Units on an opportunistic basis (subject to Preference Unit prices). In addition, as part of our capital allocation priorities we have set leverage targets to monitor our performance. While we have reduced our leverage in recent years, we have not yet achieved those targets and there can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to reduce leverage in order to meet those targets. There is no guarantee that we will continue to make distributions to our unitholders in the future (including cumulative distributions payable with respect to our Preference Units). The LNG carrier market is volatile and we cannot predict with certainty the amount of cash, if any, that will be available for distribution in any period. We may not have sufficient cash from operations to pay quarterly distributions on our common units and general partner units or to pay the quarterly preference distributions on our Preference Units. The amount of cash we can distribute on our units depends upon the amount of cash we generate from our operations as well as our capital allocation priorities as described above, which may fluctuate from quarter to quarter based on the risks described in this section, including, among other things:
● | the utilization levels of our vessels trading in the spot or short-term market; |
● | the rates we obtain from our charters and the performance by our charterers of their obligations under the charters; |
● | the expiration of charter contracts; |
● | the charterers’ options to terminate charter contracts; |
● | the number of off-hire days for our fleet and the timing of, and number of days required for, dry-docking of vessels; |
● | the level of our operating costs, such as the cost of crews, vessel maintenance and insurance; |
● | the supply of LNG carriers; |
● | prevailing global and regional economic and political conditions; and |
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● | the effect of governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards on the conduct of our business. |
In addition, the actual amount of cash available for distribution will depend on other factors, including:
● | the level of capital expenditures we make, including for maintaining or replacing vessels and complying with regulations and customer requirements; |
● | our debt service requirements, including fluctuations in interest rates, and restrictions on distributions contained in our debt instruments; |
● | our financial covenants, especially as concerns the minimum liquidity that we are required to maintain at all times; |
● | the level of debt we will incur to fund future acquisitions, including if we exercise our options to purchase any additional vessels from GasLog; |
● | fluctuations in our working capital needs; |
● | our ability to make, and the level of, working capital borrowings; and |
● | the amount of any cash reserves, including reserves for future maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, working capital and other matters, established by our board of directors, which cash reserves are not subject to any specified maximum dollar amount. |
The amount of cash we generate from our operations may differ materially from our profit or loss for a specified period, which will be affected by non-cash items. As a result of this and the other factors mentioned above, we may make cash distributions during periods in which we record losses and may not make cash distributions during periods when we record a profit.
The derivative contracts used to hedge our exposure to fluctuations in interest rates and foreign exchange rates could result in reductions in our partners’ equity as well as charges against our profit.
We enter into derivative contracts from time to time for purposes of managing our exposure to fluctuations in interest rates applicable to floating rate indebtedness and in foreign exchange rates relating to our operating expenditures that are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. As of December 31, 2022, there were no foreign exchange derivatives outstanding. Nonetheless, we had four interest rate swaps with an aggregate notional amount of $133.3 million with DNB Bank ASA, London Branch and ING Bank N.V., London Branch. None of the existing derivative contracts were designated as a cash flow hedging instrument. The changes in their fair value are recognized in our statement of profit or loss. Changes in the fair value of any derivative contracts that do not qualify for treatment as cash flow hedges for financial reporting purposes would affect, among other things, our profit and earnings per unit.
There is no assurance that our derivative contracts will provide adequate protection against adverse changes in interest rates or foreign exchange rates or that our bank counterparties will be able to perform their obligations. In addition, as a result of the implementation of new regulation of the swaps markets in the United States, the European Union and elsewhere over the next few years, the cost and availability of interest rate and currency hedges may increase or suitable hedges may not be available.
Our earnings and business are subject to the credit risk associated with our contractual counterparties and if our counterparties fail to perform their obligations we could sustain significant losses which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
We will enter into, among other things, time charters and other contracts with our customers, credit facilities and commitment letters with banks, insurance contracts and interest rate swaps and foreign exchange forward contracts. Such agreements subject us to counterparty credit risk. For example, for the year ended December 31, 2022, 44.2% of our revenues derived from subsidiaries of Shell. We also have vessels on charter to Trafigura, Cheniere, Naturgy, CNTIC VPOWER and Woodside. While we believe all our customers to be strong counterparties, their creditworthiness as assessed by independent parties such as credit rating agencies is less strong than that of Shell. In the future, we may enter into new charters with these and other counterparties who are less creditworthy.
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The ability and willingness of each of our counterparties to perform its obligations under a contract with us will depend upon a number of factors that are beyond our control and may include, among other things, general economic conditions, the condition of the natural gas and LNG markets and charter hire rates. Should a counterparty fail to honor its obligations under agreements with us, we could sustain significant losses which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distribution to unitholders.
Our debt levels may limit our flexibility in obtaining additional financing, pursuing other business opportunities and paying distributions to unitholders.
Our level of debt could have important consequences to us, including the following:
● | our ability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, for working capital, capital expenditures, ship acquisitions or other purposes may be impaired or such financing may not be available on favorable terms; |
● | we will need a substantial portion of our cash flow to make principal and interest payments on our debt, reducing the funds that would otherwise be available for operations, future business opportunities and distributions to unitholders; |
● | the requirement on us to maintain minimum levels of liquidity, reducing the funds that would otherwise be available for operations, future business opportunities and distributions to unitholders; |
● | our debt level may make us more vulnerable than our competitors with less debt to competitive pressures, changes in financial market conditions or a downturn in our industry or the economy generally; |
● | our debt level may limit our flexibility in responding to changing business and economic conditions; and |
● | if we are unable to satisfy the restrictions included in any of our financing agreements or are otherwise in default under any of those agreements, as a result of our debt levels or otherwise, we will not be able to make cash distributions to our unitholders, notwithstanding our stated cash distribution policy. |
Our ability to service our debt depends upon, among other things, our future financial and operating performance, which will be affected by prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, regulatory and other factors, some of which are beyond our control. As of December 31, 2022, we had an aggregate of $921.9 million of indebtedness outstanding under our credit facilities, of which $90.4 million is repayable within one year. As of December 31, 2022, we also had an aggregate of $62.6 million of lease liabilities mainly related to the sale and leaseback of the GasLog Shanghai and the Methane Heather Sally, of which $17.4 million was payable within one year. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources”.
If our operating results are not sufficient to service our current or future indebtedness, we will be forced to take actions such as reducing distributions, reducing or delaying our business activities, acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures, selling assets, restructuring or refinancing our debt, or seeking additional equity capital or bankruptcy protection. We may not be able to effect any of these remedies on satisfactory terms, or at all.
Financing agreements containing operating and financial restrictions may restrict our business and financing activities. A failure by us to meet our obligations under our financing agreements would result in an event of default under such credit facilities which could lead to foreclosure on our ships.
The operating and financial restrictions and covenants in our credit facilities and any future financing agreements could adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage, expand or pursue our business activities. For example, the financing agreements may restrict the ability of us and our subsidiaries to:
● | incur or guarantee indebtedness; |
● | change ownership or structure, including mergers, consolidations, liquidations and dissolutions; |
● | pay dividends or distributions; |
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● | make certain negative pledges and grant certain liens; |
● | sell, transfer, assign or convey assets; |
● | make certain investments; and |
● | enter into a new line of business. |
In addition, such financing agreements may require us to comply with certain financial ratios and tests, including, among others, maintaining a minimum liquidity, and a minimum collateral value. Our ability to comply with the restrictions and covenants, including financial ratios and tests, contained in such financing agreements is dependent on future performance and may be affected by events beyond our control, including prevailing economic, financial and industry conditions. If market or other economic conditions deteriorate, our ability to comply with these covenants may be impaired.
If we are unable to comply with the restrictions and covenants in the agreements governing our indebtedness or in current or future debt financing agreements, there could be a default under the terms of those agreements. If a default occurs under these agreements, lenders could terminate their commitments to lend and/or accelerate the outstanding loans and declare all amounts borrowed due and payable. We have pledged our vessels as security for our outstanding indebtedness. If our lenders were to foreclose on our vessels in the event of a default, this may adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage, expand or pursue our business activities. If any of these events occur, we cannot guarantee that our assets will be sufficient to repay in full all of our outstanding indebtedness, and we may be unable to find alternative financing. Even if we could obtain alternative financing, that financing might not be on terms that are favorable or acceptable. Any of these events would adversely affect our ability to make distributions to our unitholders and could cause a decline in the market price of our common units and Preference Units. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources—Credit Facilities”.
Restrictions in our debt agreements may prevent us or our subsidiaries from paying distributions.
The payment of principal and interest on our debt reduces cash available for distribution to our unitholders. In addition, our credit facilities prohibit the payment of distributions to our unitholders upon the occurrence of the following events, among others:
● | failure to pay any principal, interest, fees, expenses or other amounts when due; |
● | breach or lapse of any insurance with respect to vessels securing the facilities; |
● | breach of certain financial covenants; |
● | failure to observe any other agreement, security instrument, obligation or covenant beyond specified cure periods in certain cases; |
● | default under other indebtedness; |
● | bankruptcy or insolvency events; |
● | failure of any representation or warranty to be correct; |
● | a change of ownership of the borrowers or GasLog Partners Holdings; and |
● | a material adverse effect. |
Furthermore, we expect that our future financing agreements will contain similar provisions. For more information regarding these financing agreements, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources—Credit Facilities”.
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The failure to consummate or integrate acquisitions in a timely and cost-effective manner could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
Under the terms of the omnibus agreement, we have the right to purchase Five-Year Vessels within 30 days following receipt of notice from GasLog. In each case, our option to purchase is at fair market value as determined pursuant to the omnibus agreement. See “Item 7. Major Unitholders and Related Party Transactions—B. Related Party Transactions—Omnibus Agreement—Noncompetition” for the definitions of “Five-Year Vessel”.
We will not be obligated to purchase any of these vessels and, accordingly, we may not complete the purchase of any of such vessels. Furthermore, even if we are able to agree on a price with GasLog, there are no assurances that we will be able to obtain adequate financing on terms that are acceptable to us. In light of recent master limited partnership (“MLP”) market volatility and the fall in the value of our common and Preference units, it may be more difficult for us to complete an accretive acquisition.
We believe that other acquisition opportunities may arise from time to time, and any such acquisition could be significant. Any acquisition of a vessel or other asset or business may not be profitable at or after the time of acquisition and may not generate cash flow sufficient to justify the investment. In addition, any acquisition exposes us to risks that may harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and ability to make cash distributions to our unitholders, including risks that we may:
● | fail to realize anticipated benefits, such as new customer relationships, cost-savings or cash flow enhancements; |
● | be unable to attract, hire, train or retain qualified shore and seafaring personnel to manage and operate our growing business and fleet; |
● | decrease our liquidity by using a significant portion of available cash or borrowing capacity to finance acquisitions; |
● | significantly increase our interest expense or financial leverage if we incur additional debt to finance acquisitions; |
● | incur or assume unanticipated liabilities, losses or costs associated with the business or vessels acquired; or |
● | incur other significant charges, such as impairment of goodwill or other intangible assets, asset devaluation or restructuring charges. |
In addition, unlike newbuildings, existing vessels typically do not carry warranties as to their condition. While we generally inspect existing vessels prior to purchase, such an inspection would normally not provide us with as much knowledge of a vessel’s condition as we would possess if it had been built for us and operated by us during its life. Repairs and maintenance costs for existing vessels are difficult to predict and may be substantially higher than for vessels we have operated since they were built. These costs could decrease our cash flow and reduce our liquidity.
Certain acquisition and investment opportunities may not result in the consummation of a transaction. In addition, we may not be able to obtain acceptable terms for the required financing for any such acquisition or investment that arises. We cannot predict the effect, if any, that any announcement or consummation of an acquisition would have on the trading price of our common units or Preference Units. Our future acquisitions could present a number of risks, including the risk of failing to integrate successfully and on a timely basis the operations or management of any acquired vessels or businesses and the risk of diverting management’s attention from existing operations or other priorities. We may also be subject to additional costs related to compliance with various international laws in connection with such acquisition. If we fail to consummate and integrate our acquisitions in a timely and cost-effective manner, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash available for distribution could be adversely affected.
Increased regulatory oversight, uncertainty relating to the nature and timing of the phasing out of LIBOR, and agreement on any new alternative reference rates may adversely impact our ability to manage our exposure to fluctuations in interest rates and borrowing costs.
As a result of the majority of our debt being primarily based on LIBOR and certain other interest rate benchmarks, fluctuations in interest rates could have a material effect on our interest expense and borrowing costs. LIBOR and certain other interest rate benchmarks may be subject to regulatory guidance and/or reform that could cause interest rates under our current or future debt
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agreements to perform differently than in the past or cause other unanticipated consequences. On March 5, 2021, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority announced the future cessation or loss of representativeness of LIBOR benchmark as currently published by the ICE Benchmark Administration with a target date immediately after June 30, 2023. The Alternative Reference Rates Committee (“ARRC”), a steering committee comprised of U.S. financial market participants, has selected the Secured Overnight Finance Rate (“SOFR”) as published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as the preferred alternative to LIBOR. SOFR is a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash in the overnight U.S. treasury repo market. The manner and impact of this transition may materially adversely affect the trading market for LIBOR based agreements, including our credit facilities, interest rate swaps and Preference Units. As of December 31, 2022, our obligations under our secured credit facilities which accrue interest based on LIBOR with maturities extending past June 30, 2023 amounted to approximately $805.0 million. We will need to negotiate the replacement benchmark rate on our credit facilities and interest rate swaps and the use of an alternative rate or benchmark, may negatively impact our interest rate expense. Any other contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business which currently refer to, use or include LIBOR may also be impacted.
Further, if a LIBOR rate is not available on a determination date during the floating rate period for any of our LIBOR based agreements, the terms of such agreements will require alternative determination procedures which may result in interest or distribution payments differing from expectations and could affect our profit and the market value of our Preference Units.
In addition, any changes announced by the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), including the FCA Announcement, the Intercontinental Exchange (“ICE”) Benchmark Administration Limited (the independent administrator of LIBOR) or any other successor governance or oversight body, or future changes adopted by such body, in the method pursuant to which LIBOR rates are determined may result in a sudden or prolonged increase or decrease in reported LIBOR rates. If that were to occur, the level of interest or distribution payments during the floating rate period for our LIBOR based agreements would be affected and could affect our profit or the market value of our Preference Units.
As of December 31, 2022, the GasLog Partners’ credit agreement of $193.7 million with DNB Bank ASA, London branch and ING Bank N.V., London branch, each an original lender signed on July 16, 2020 (the “GasLog Partners $193.7M Facility”) had been transitioned to the three-month Chicago Mercantile Exchange (“CME”) Term SOFR Reference Rate as administered by CME Group Benchmark Administration Limited (“CBA”). In February 2023, the transition documentation for the GasLog Partners’ facility for up to $450.0 million signed on February 20, 2019 (the “2019 GasLog Partners Facility”) was also signed. We are in discussions with the agent and lenders related to transitioning the facility agreement dated October 16, 2015 and assumed by the Partnership following the acquisitions of GAS-eleven Ltd. on May 3, 2017, GAS-thirteen Ltd. on July 3, 2017, GAS-fourteen Ltd. on April 26, 2018 and GAS-twelve Ltd. on April 1, 2019 (the “Assumed October 2015 Facility”) to a SOFR rate, and we currently expect to enter into definitive documentation to transition the credit agreement of $260.3 million that GasLog Partners signed on July 16, 2020 (the “ GasLog Partners $260.3M Facility”) to a SOFR rate in March 2023.
We cannot guarantee that we will be able to refinance our credit facilities in full or on similar or more favorable terms as they become due in the future which may increase our cost of borrowing or cause us to issue additional equity securities, which would be dilutive to existing unitholders. Our ability to refinance our existing debt or to obtain incremental debt financing for future acquisitions of ships may depend on the creditworthiness of our charterers, the terms of our future charters and the performance of our vessels operating in the spot market.
Securing access to replacement funds in advance of the maturity of three of our current debt facilities in 2024 and 2025 cannot be assured in the same amount or on the same or similar terms, especially in the current interest rate environment. Debt financing, if available, may involve covenants restricting our operations or our ability to incur additional debt or to pay distributions to unitholders and may be more expensive to service than in recent years. Any future debt or equity financing raised may contain unfavorable terms to us or our unitholders. If we are unable to raise adequate funds, we may have to liquidate some or all of our assets, or delay, reduce the scope of, or eliminate some or all of our investment plans, including potential fleet growth. Any of these factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distributions to our unitholders.
Furthermore, our ability to borrow against the ships in our existing fleet and any ships we may acquire in the future largely depends on the value of the ships, which in turn depends in part on charter hire rates, charter lengths and the ability of our charterers to comply with the terms of their charters. The actual or perceived credit quality of our charterers, and any defaults by them, may materially affect our ability to obtain the additional capital resources that we will require to purchase additional ships and to refinance our existing debt as balloon payments come due, or may significantly increase our costs of obtaining such capital. Reduced
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expectations for the utilization and earnings of our vessels operating in the short-term spot market may also impact our ability to access additional capital resources. Our inability to obtain additional financing or having to commit to financing on unattractive terms could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, including cash available for distributions to our unitholders.
Our future ability to raise capital to repay or refinance our debt obligations or to fund our maintenance or capital expenditures will depend on certain financial, business and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. To the extent that we are unable to finance these obligations and expenditures with cash from operations or incremental bank loans or by issuing debt or equity securities, our ability to make cash distributions may be diminished, or our financial leverage may increase, or our unitholders may be diluted. Our business may be adversely affected if we need to access sources of funding which are more expensive and/or more restrictive and may adversely impact our ability to pay distributions on our common units.
To fund our existing and future debt obligations and capital expenditures and any future growth, we will be required to use cash from operations, incur borrowings, and/or seek to access other financing sources including the capital markets. Our access to potential funding sources and our future financial and operating performance will be affected by prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, regulatory and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. Continuing concerns over COVID-19, inflation, rising interest rates, energy costs, geopolitical issues, including acts of war and the availability and cost of credit have contributed to increased volatility and diminished expectations for the economy and the markets going forward. These factors, combined with volatile oil prices and declining business and consumer confidence, have precipitated fears of a possible economic recession and a tightening in the credit markets, low levels of liquidity in financial markets and volatility in credit and equity markets. If we are unable to access the capital markets or raise additional bank financing or generate sufficient cash flow to meet our debt, capital expenditure and other business requirements, we may be forced to take actions such as:
● | seeking waivers or consents from our creditors; |
● | restructuring our debt; |
● | seeking additional debt or equity capital; |
● | selling assets; |
● | reducing, delaying or cancelling our business activities, acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures; or |
● | seeking bankruptcy protection. |
Such measures might not be successful, available on acceptable terms or enable us to meet our debt, capital expenditure and other obligations. Some of these measures may adversely affect our business and reputation. In addition, our financing agreements may restrict our ability to implement some of these measures. Use of cash from operations and possible future sale of certain assets will reduce cash available for distribution to unitholders. Our ability to obtain bank financing or to access the capital markets may be limited by our financial condition at the time of any such financing or offering as well as by adverse market conditions. Depending on the prevailing price of our common units, we may not be able to access the equity or equity-linked capital markets. Even if we are successful in obtaining the necessary funds, the terms of such financings could limit our ability to pay cash distributions to unitholders or operate our business as currently conducted. In addition, incurring additional debt may significantly increase our interest expense and financial leverage, and issuing additional equity securities may result in significant unitholder dilution and would increase the aggregate amount of cash required to maintain our quarterly distributions to unitholders. Our liquidity position could be challenged in the future, and we may need to raise equity in order to remain in compliance with the financial covenants within our loan facilities.
We are subject to certain risks with respect to our relationship with GasLog, and failure of GasLog to comply with certain of its financial covenants under its debt instruments could, among other things, result in a default under the loan facilities related to four of our vessels, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Any default by GasLog under its corporate guarantees could result in a default under the loan facility related to the GasLog Greece, the GasLog Geneva, the GasLog Gibraltar, and the GasLog Glasgow. In the event of such a default, the lenders in the facility could terminate their commitments to lend and/or accelerate the outstanding loans and declare all amounts borrowed due and payable.
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If our lenders were to foreclose on our vessels in the event of such a default, this may adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage, expand or pursue our business activities. If any of these events occur, we cannot guarantee that our assets will be sufficient to repay in full all of our outstanding indebtedness, and we may be unable to find alternative financing. Even if we could obtain alternative financing, such financing might not be on terms that are favorable or acceptable. Any of these events would adversely affect our ability to make distributions to our unitholders and could cause a decline in the market price of our common units and Preference Units.
GasLog and its affiliates may compete with us.
Pursuant to the omnibus agreement between us and GasLog, GasLog and its controlled affiliates (other than us, our general partner and our subsidiaries) generally have agreed not to acquire, own, operate or charter certain LNG carriers operating under charters of five full years or more. The omnibus agreement, however, contains significant exceptions that may allow GasLog or any of its controlled affiliates to compete with us, which could harm our business. For example, these exceptions result in GasLog not being restricted from: acquiring, owning, operating or chartering Non-Five-Year Vessels; acquiring a non-controlling equity ownership, voting or profit participation interest in any company, business or pool of assets; acquiring, owning, operating or chartering a Five-Year Vessel that GasLog would otherwise be restricted from owning if we are not willing or able to acquire such vessel from GasLog within the periods set forth in the omnibus agreement; or owning or operating any Five-Year Vessel that GasLog owns on the closing date of the IPO and that was not part of our fleet as of such date. See “Item 7. Major Unitholders and Related Party Transactions—B. Related Party Transactions—Omnibus Agreement—Noncompetition” for a detailed description of those exceptions and the definitions of “Five-Year Vessel” and “Non-Five-Year Vessel”.
The price of our common units is unpredictable and may be volatile.
The price of our common units may be volatile and may fluctuate due to factors including:
● | our payment of cash distributions to our unitholders; |
● | the amount of cash distributions paid to our unitholders; |
● | repurchases by us of our common units pursuant to our unit repurchase programme; |
● | actual or anticipated fluctuations in quarterly and annual results; |
● | fluctuations in oil and natural gas prices; |
● | fluctuations in the seaborne transportation industry, including fluctuations in the charter rates and utilization of vessels in the LNG carrier market; |
● | fluctuations in supply of and demand for LNG; |
● | mergers and strategic alliances in the shipping industry; |
● | changes in governmental regulations or maritime self-regulatory organizations standards; |
● | shortfalls in our operating results from levels forecasted by securities analysts; |
● | announcements concerning us or our competitors or other MLPs; |
● | the failure of securities analysts to publish research about us, or analysts making changes in their financial estimates; |
● | general economic conditions including fluctuations in interest rates; |
● | terrorist acts; |
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● | future sales of our units or other securities, including sales under our ATM Programme; |
● | investors’ perceptions of us, the LNG market, the LNG shipping industry and the energy industry more broadly; |
● | significant cash redemptions from funds invested in the MLP sector; |
● | inclusion or exclusion of our units in equity market indices and exchange traded funds; |
● | the general state of the securities markets; and |
● | other developments affecting us, our industry or our competitors. |
Securities markets worldwide are experiencing price and volume fluctuations. The market price for our common units may also be volatile. This market volatility, as well as general economic, market or political conditions, could reduce the market price of our common units despite our operating performance.
Common unitholders have limited voting rights, and our partnership agreement restricts the voting rights of unitholders owning more than 4.9% of our common units.
Unlike the holders of common stock in a corporation, holders of common units have only limited voting rights on matters affecting our business. We will hold a meeting of the limited partners every year to elect one or more members of our board of directors and to vote on any other matters that are properly brought before the meeting. Our general partner has appointed three of our five directors and the common unitholders elected the remaining two directors. Four of our directors meet the independence standards of the NYSE, and two of the four also qualify as independent of GasLog under our partnership agreement, so as to be eligible for membership on our conflicts committee. If our general partner exercises its right to transfer the power to elect a majority of our directors to the common unitholders, an additional director will thereafter be elected by our common unitholders. Our general partner may exercise this right in order to permit us to claim, or continue to claim, an exemption from U.S. federal income tax under Section 883 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the “Code”. See “Item 4. Information on the Partnership—B. Business Overview—Taxation of the Partnership”.
The partnership agreement also contains provisions limiting the ability of common unitholders to call meetings or to acquire information about our operations, as well as other provisions limiting the common unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management. Unitholders have no right to elect our general partner, and our general partner may not be removed except by a vote of the holders of at least 662/3% of the outstanding common units, including any units owned by our general partner and its affiliates, voting together as a single class.
Our partnership agreement further restricts unitholders’ voting rights by providing that if any person or group owns beneficially more than 4.9% of any class or series of units (other than the Preference Units) then outstanding, any such units owned by that person or group in excess of 4.9% may not be voted on any matter and will not be considered to be outstanding when sending notices of a meeting of limited partners, calculating required votes (except for purposes of nominating a person for election to our board of directors), determining the presence of a quorum or for other similar purposes, unless required by law.
Effectively, this means that the voting rights of any common unitholders not entitled to vote on a specific matter will be redistributed pro rata among the other common unitholders. Our general partner, its affiliates and persons who acquired common units with the prior approval of our board of directors will not be subject to the 4.9% limitation, except with respect to voting their common units in the election of the elected directors.
GasLog and our general partner own a controlling interest in us and have conflicts of interest and limited fiduciary and contractual duties to us and our unitholders, which may permit them to favor their own interests to your detriment.
GasLog currently owns partnership units representing a 33.2% partnership interest, including a 2.0% general partner interest in us, and owns and controls our general partner. In addition, our general partner has the right to appoint three of five, or a majority, of our directors. Certain of our directors and officers are directors and officers of GasLog or its affiliates, and, as such, they have fiduciary duties to GasLog or its affiliates that may cause them to pursue business strategies that disproportionately benefit GasLog or its
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affiliates or which otherwise are not in the best interests of us or our unitholders. Conflicts of interest may arise between GasLog and its affiliates (including our general partner), on the one hand, and us and our unitholders, on the other hand. As a result of these conflicts, our general partner and its affiliates may favor their own interests over the interests of our unitholders. See “—Our partnership agreement limits our general partner’s and our directors’ fiduciary duties to our unitholders and restricts the remedies available to unitholders for actions taken by our general partner or our directors”. These conflicts include, among others, the following situations:
● | neither our partnership agreement nor any other agreement requires our general partner or GasLog or its affiliates to pursue a business strategy that favors us or utilizes our assets, and GasLog’s officers and directors have a fiduciary duty to make decisions in the best interests of the shareholders of GasLog, which may be contrary to our interests; |
● | our partnership agreement permits our general partner to make a number of decisions in its individual capacity, as opposed to in its capacity as our general partner. Specifically, our general partner will be considered to be acting in its individual capacity if it exercises its call right, pre-emptive rights or registration rights, consents or withholds consent to any merger or consolidation of the partnership, appoints any directors or votes for the election of any director, votes or refrains from voting on amendments to our partnership agreement that require a vote of the outstanding units, voluntarily withdraws from the partnership, transfers (to the extent permitted under our partnership agreement) or refrains from transferring its units or general partner interest or votes upon the dissolution of the partnership; |
● | under our partnership agreement, as permitted under Marshall Islands law, our general partner and our directors have limited fiduciary duties. The partnership agreement also restricts the remedies available to our unitholders; as a result of purchasing units, unitholders are treated as having agreed to the modified standard of fiduciary duties and to certain actions that may be taken by our general partner and our directors, all as set forth in the partnership agreement; |
● | our general partner is entitled to reimbursement of all reasonable costs incurred by it and its affiliates for our benefit; |
● | our partnership agreement does not restrict us from paying our general partner or its affiliates for any services rendered to us on terms that are fair and reasonable or entering into additional contractual arrangements with any of these entities on our behalf; |
● | our general partner may exercise its right to call and purchase our common units if it and its affiliates own more than 80% of our common units; and |
● | our general partner is not obligated to obtain a fairness opinion regarding the value of the common units to be repurchased by it upon the exercise of its limited call right. |
Even if our general partner relinquishes the power to elect one director to the common unitholders, so that they will elect a majority of our directors, our general partner will have substantial influence on decisions made by our board of directors. See “Item 7. Major Unitholders and Related Party Transactions—B. Related Party Transactions”.
The transaction proposed by GasLog may not occur, may increase the volatility of the market price of our common units and will result in certain costs and expenses.
On January 25, 2023, we announced that the Partnership’s board of directors received an unsolicited non-binding proposal from GasLog to acquire all of the outstanding common units representing limited partner interests of the Partnership not already beneficially owned by GasLog. In connection with the proposed transaction, each common unit would receive overall value of $7.70 per common unit in cash, consisting in part of a special distribution by the Partnership of $2.33 per common unit in cash to be distributed to the Partnership’s unitholders immediately prior to the closing of the proposed transaction and the remainder to be paid by GasLog as merger consideration at the closing of the proposed transaction.
The Partnership’s board of directors has authorized its conflicts committee, consisting only of non-GasLog affiliated directors, to retain advisors and to review, evaluate, negotiate and accept or reject the proposed transaction. GasLog’s proposal is non-binding and is subject to the negotiation and execution of mutually acceptable definitive documentation. There can be no assurance that any definitive documentation will be executed or that any transaction will materialize.
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The market price of our common units may reflect various assumptions as to whether the proposed transaction with GasLog will occur. Variations in the market price of our common units may occur as a result of changing assumptions regarding the proposed transaction, independent of changes in our business, financial condition or prospects or changes in general market or economic conditions. As a result, a definitive agreement regarding a transaction, or a failure to reach a definitive agreement regarding a transaction, could result in a significant change in the market price of our common units.
We expect to incur costs in connection with the consideration of GasLog’s proposal, including costs of financial and legal advisors to the conflicts committee of our board of directors. Mergers such as the one proposed often attract litigation. If any litigation is commenced regarding the proposed transaction, the Partnership will be required to expend additional resources defending such litigation. It is difficult to estimate the aggregate amount of such costs, although they could be substantial. In addition, uncertainty associated with the potential transaction could adversely affect our ability to attract, retain and motivate key employees, which could have a negative effect on our operations and business plans.
Our officers are employed by GasLog and face conflicts in the allocation of their time to our business.
Our officers are all employed by GasLog or its applicable affiliate and are performing executive officer functions for us pursuant to the administrative services agreement. Our officers are not required to work full-time on our affairs and also perform services for affiliates of our general partner (including GasLog). As a result, there could be material competition for the time and effort of our officers who also provide services to our general partner’s affiliates, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. See “Item 6. Directors, Senior Management and Employees”.
The Merger between GasLog and GEPIF, completed in June 2021, could create uncertainty over the future management and direction of the Partnership and could adversely impact the Partnership and our unitholders.
There could be disagreement among major shareholders of GasLog, including the Rolling Shareholders and GEPIF, with respect to the short- and long-term management, direction and strategy of the Partnership. GasLog has the right to appoint three of five, or a majority, of our directors and officers, therefore any such disagreements with respect to the Partnership’s strategic direction may have an adverse effect on our business, operations, financial results and unit price.
Furthermore, since GasLog completed its merger with GEPIF, GasLog has limited public reporting obligations, which could adversely impact our unitholders’ ability to assess the management and direction of the Partnership, which may have a negative effect on our unit price.
Our partnership agreement limits our general partner’s and our directors’ fiduciary duties to our unitholders and restricts the remedies available to unitholders for actions taken by our general partner or our directors.
Under the partnership agreement, our general partner has delegated to our board of directors the authority to oversee and direct our operations, management and policies on an exclusive basis, and such delegation will be binding on any successor general partner of the partnership. Our partnership agreement also contains provisions that reduce the standards to which our general partner and directors would otherwise be held by Marshall Islands law. For example, our partnership agreement:
● | permits our general partner to make a number of decisions in its individual capacity, as opposed to in its capacity as our general partner. Where our partnership agreement permits, our general partner may consider only the interests and factors that it desires, and in such cases, it has no fiduciary duty or obligation to give any consideration to any interest of, or factors affecting, us, our affiliates or our unitholders. Decisions made by our general partner in its individual capacity will be made by its sole owner, GasLog. Specifically, pursuant to our partnership agreement, our general partner will be considered to be acting in its individual capacity if it exercises its call right, pre-emptive rights or registration rights, consents or withholds consent to any merger or consolidation of the partnership, appoints any directors or votes for the election of any director, votes or refrains from voting on amendments to our partnership agreement that require a vote of the outstanding units, voluntarily withdraws from the partnership, transfers (to the extent permitted under our partnership agreement) or refrains from transferring its units or general partner interest or votes upon the dissolution of the partnership; |
● | provides that our general partner and our directors are entitled to make other decisions in “good faith” if they reasonably believe that the decision is in our best interests; |
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● | generally provides that transactions with our affiliates and resolutions of conflicts of interest not approved by the conflicts committee of our board of directors and not involving a vote of unitholders must be on terms no less favorable to us than those generally being provided to or available from unrelated third parties or be “fair and reasonable” to us and that, in determining whether a transaction or resolution is “fair and reasonable”, our board of directors may consider the totality of the relationships between the parties involved, including other transactions that may be particularly advantageous or beneficial to us; and |
● | provides that neither our general partner nor our officers or directors will be liable for monetary damages to us, our limited partners or assignees for any acts or omissions, unless there has been a final and non-appealable judgment entered by a court of competent jurisdiction determining that our general partner or our officers or directors or those other persons engaged in actual fraud or willful misconduct. |
In order to become a limited partner of our partnership, a unitholder is required to agree to be bound by the provisions in the partnership agreement, including the provisions discussed above.
Fees and cost reimbursements, which GasLog or its applicable affiliate will determine for services provided to us and our subsidiaries, will be substantial, may be higher for future periods than reflected in our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2022, will be payable regardless of our profitability and will reduce our cash available for distribution to our unitholders.
Pursuant to the ship management agreements, our subsidiaries pay fees for technical and vessel management services provided to them by GasLog LNG Services and reimburse GasLog LNG Services for all expenses incurred on their behalf. These fees and expenses include all costs and expenses incurred in providing the crew and technical management of the vessels in our fleet to our subsidiaries. In addition, our operating subsidiaries pay GasLog LNG Services a fixed management fee for costs and expenses incurred in connection with providing these services to our operating subsidiaries.
Pursuant to an administrative services agreement, GasLog provides us with certain administrative services. We pay a fixed fee to GasLog for its reasonable costs and expenses incurred in connection with the provision of the services under the administrative services agreement.
Pursuant to the commercial management agreements, GasLog LNG Services provides us with commercial management services for which we pay to GasLog a fixed commission of 1.25% on gross charter revenues in U.S. dollars for costs and expenses incurred in connection with providing services.
For a description of the ship management agreements, commercial management agreements and the administrative services agreement, see “Item 7. Major Unitholders and Related Party Transactions—B. Related Party Transactions”. The aggregate fees and expenses payable for services under the ship management agreements, commercial management agreements and administrative services agreement for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $6.5 million, $4.6 million and $8.5 million, respectively. Additionally, these fees and expenses will be payable without regard to our business, results of operation and financial condition. The payment of fees to and the reimbursement of expenses of GasLog or its applicable affiliate, including GasLog LNG Services, could adversely affect our ability to pay cash distributions to our unitholders.
Our partnership agreement contains provisions that may have the effect of discouraging a person or group from attempting to remove our current management or our general partner and, even if public unitholders are dissatisfied, it will be difficult for them to remove our general partner without GasLog’s consent, all of which could diminish the trading price of our common units and Preference Units.
Our partnership agreement contains provisions that may have the effect of discouraging a person or group from attempting to remove our current management or our general partner.
● | It is difficult for unitholders to remove our general partner without its consent. The vote of the holders of at least 662/3% of all outstanding common units, including any units owned by our general partner and its affiliates, voting together as a single class is required to remove the general partner. As of February 28, 2023, GasLog owns 30.2% of our outstanding common units. Common unitholders are entitled to elect only two of the five members of our board of directors. Our general partner, |
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by virtue of its general partner interest, in its sole discretion, appoints the remaining directors (subject to its right to transfer the power to elect a majority of our directors to the common unitholders). |
● | The election of the directors by common unitholders is staggered, meaning that the members of only one of two classes of our elected directors will be selected each year. In addition, the directors appointed by our general partner will serve for terms determined by our general partner. |
● | Our partnership agreement contains provisions limiting the ability of common unitholders to call meetings of unitholders, to nominate directors and to acquire information about our operations as well as other provisions limiting the unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management. |
● | Unitholders’ voting rights are further restricted by the partnership agreement provision providing that if any person or group owns beneficially more than 4.9% of any class or series of units (other than the Preference Units) then outstanding, any such units owned by that person or group in excess of 4.9% may not be voted on any matter and will not be considered to be outstanding when sending notices of a meeting of limited partners, calculating required votes (except for purposes of nominating a person for election to our board of directors), determining the presence of a quorum or for other similar purposes, unless required by law. Effectively, this means that the voting rights of any such common unitholders in excess of 4.9% will be redistributed pro rata among the other common unitholders holding less than 4.9% of the voting power of all classes of units entitled to vote. Our general partner, its affiliates and persons who acquired common units with the prior approval of our board of directors will not be subject to this 4.9% limitation, except with respect to voting their common units in the election of the elected directors. |
● | There are no restrictions in our partnership agreement on our ability to issue equity securities. |
The effect of these provisions may be to diminish the price at which the common units and Preference Units will trade.
We may have difficulty obtaining consents that are necessary to acquire vessels with an existing charter or a financing agreement.
Under the omnibus agreement, we have certain options to acquire vessels with existing charters from GasLog. The omnibus agreement provides that our ability to consummate the acquisition of any such vessels from GasLog will be subject to obtaining all relevant consents including the consent of the existing charterers, lenders, governmental authorities and other non-affiliated third parties to those agreements. While GasLog will be obligated to use reasonable efforts to obtain any such consents, we cannot assure you that in any particular case the necessary consent will be obtained from the required parties.
We are a holding company and we depend on the ability of our subsidiaries to distribute funds to us in order to satisfy our financial obligations and to make distributions to unitholders.
We are a holding company. Our subsidiaries conduct all of our operations and own all of our operating assets, including our ships. We have no significant assets other than the equity interests in our subsidiaries. As a result, our ability to pay our obligations and to make distributions to unitholders depends entirely on our subsidiaries and their ability to distribute funds to us. The ability of a subsidiary to make these distributions could be affected by a claim or other action by a third party, including a creditor, or by the law of its jurisdiction of incorporation which regulates the payment of distributions. If we are unable to obtain funds from our subsidiaries, our board of directors may exercise its discretion not to make distributions to unitholders.
The control of our general partner may be transferred to a third party without unitholder consent.
Our general partner may transfer its general partner interest to a third party in a merger or in a sale of all or substantially all of its assets without the consent of the unitholders. In addition, our partnership agreement does not restrict the ability of the members of our general partner from transferring their respective membership interests in our general partner to a third party.
Substantial future sales of our common units in the public market could cause the price of our common units to fall.
We have granted registration rights to GasLog and certain of its affiliates. These unitholders have the right, subject to some conditions, to require us to file registration statements covering any of our common or other equity securities owned by them or to include those securities in registration statements that we may file for ourselves or other unitholders. As of February 28, 2023, GasLog
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owns 15,621,602 common units and 1,245,000 Class B units (of which 415,000 are Class B-4 units, 415,000 are Class B-5 units and 415,000 are Class B-6 units). The Class B units will convert to common units at a rate of 415,000 per year between 2023 and 2025. Following their registration and sale under the applicable registration statement, those securities will become freely tradable. By exercising their registration rights and selling a large number of common units or other securities, these unitholders could cause the price of our common units to decline.
We may issue additional equity securities, including securities senior to the common units, without the approval of our common unitholders, which would dilute the ownership interests of the common unitholders.
We may, without the approval of our common unitholders, issue an unlimited number of additional units or other equity securities. In addition, we may issue an unlimited number of units that are senior to the common units in right of distribution, liquidation and voting. For example on June 30, 2019, we issued 2,532,911 common units and 2,490,000 Class B units to GasLog in exchange for GasLog’s incentive distribution rights (“IDRs”). Refer to “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources”.
On May 16, 2017, the Partnership commenced its ATM Programme under which we may, from time to time, raise equity through the issuance and sale of new common units. Following an increase in the size of the ATM Programme completed on November 3, 2017, and again on February 26, 2019, we can issue up to $250.0 million in new common units. As of February 28, 2023 8,486,705 common units have been issued through the ATM Programme.
During the year ended December 31, 2022, there have been no common units issuances through the ATM Programme. Since the commencement of the ATM Programme through December 31, 2022, GasLog Partners has issued and received payment for a total of 8,486,705 common units, with cumulative gross proceeds of $133.6 million at a weighted average price of $15.75 per unit and net proceeds of $132.4 million, after deducting commissions. In connection with the issuance of common units under the ATM Programme during this period, the Partnership also issued 164,145 general partner units to its general partner. The net proceeds from the issuance of the general partner units were $2.7 million. The issuance by us of additional common units or other equity securities of equal or senior rank will have the following effects:
● | our common unitholders’ proportionate economic ownership interest in us will decrease; |
● | the amount of cash available for distribution on each common unit may decrease; |
● | the relative voting strength of each previously outstanding common unit may be diminished; |
● | we may not be able to pay our distributions to common unitholders if we have failed to pay the distributions on our Preference Units; and |
● | the market price of the common units may decline. |
The Preference Units are senior to the common units and as such receive priority over the common units in distributions and liquidation.
Our general partner has a limited call right that may require you to sell your common units at an undesirable time or price.
If at any time our general partner and its affiliates own more than 80% of the common units, our general partner will have the right, which it may assign to any of its affiliates or to us, but not the obligation, to acquire all, but not less than all, of the common units held by unaffiliated persons at a price not less than the then-current market price of our common units. Our general partner is not obligated to obtain a fairness opinion regarding the value of the common units to be repurchased by it upon the exercise of this limited call right. As a result, you may be required to sell your common units at an undesirable time or price and may not receive any return on your investment. You may also incur a tax liability upon a sale of your common units. GasLog, which owns and controls our general partner, owns 30.2% of our outstanding common units as of February 28, 2023.
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You may not have limited liability if a court finds that unitholder action constitutes control of our business.
As a limited partner in a partnership organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands, you could be held liable for our obligations to the same extent as a general partner if you participate in the “control” of our business. Our general partner generally has unlimited liability for the obligations of the partnership, such as its debts and environmental liabilities, except for those contractual obligations of the partnership that are expressly made without recourse to our general partner. In addition, the limitations on the liability of holders of limited partner interests for the obligations of a limited partnership have not been clearly established in some jurisdictions in which we do business.
We can borrow money to pay distributions, which would reduce the amount of credit available to operate our business.
Our partnership agreement allows us to make working capital borrowings to pay distributions.Accordingly, if we have available borrowing capacity, we can make distributions on all our units even though cash generated by our operations may not be sufficient to pay such distributions. Any working capital borrowings by us to make distributions will reduce the amount of working capital borrowings we can make for operating our business. For more information, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources—Credit Facilities”.
Increases in interest rates may cause the market price of our common units to decline.
An increase in interest rates may cause a corresponding decline in demand for equity investments in general, and in particular for yield-based equity investments such as our common units. Any such increase in interest rates or reduction in demand for our common units resulting from other relatively more attractive investment opportunities may cause the trading price of our common units to decline.
We are a “foreign private issuer” under the securities laws of the United States and the NYSE rules, and as such we are entitled to exemption from certain NYSE corporate governance standards, and you may not have the same protections afforded to unitholders of similarly organized limited partnerships that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
We are a “foreign private issuer” under the securities laws of the United States and the rules of the NYSE. Under the securities laws of the United States, “foreign private issuers” are subject to different disclosure requirements than U.S. domiciled registrants, as well as different financial reporting requirements. Under the NYSE rules, a “foreign private issuer” is subject to less stringent corporate governance requirements. Subject to certain exceptions, the rules of the NYSE permit a “foreign private issuer” to follow its home country practice in lieu of the listing requirements of the NYSE, including (i) the requirement that a majority of the board of directors consists of independent directors and (ii) the requirement that a compensation committee to a nominating/corporate governance committee can be established.
Accordingly, in the future you may not have the same protections afforded to unitholders of similarly organized limited partnerships that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
We have been organized as a limited partnership under the laws of the Marshall Islands, which does not have a well-developed body of partnership law.
We are a partnership formed in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, which does not have a well-developed body of case law or bankruptcy law and, as a result, unitholders have fewer rights and protections under Marshall Islands law than under a typical jurisdiction in the United States. As such, in the case of a bankruptcy of the Partnership, there may be a delay of bankruptcy proceedings and the ability of unitholders and creditors to receive recovery after a bankruptcy proceeding. Our partnership affairs are governed by our partnership agreement and by the Marshall Islands Act. The provisions of the Marshall Islands Act resemble provisions of the limited partnership laws of a number of states in the United States, most notably Delaware. The Marshall Islands Act also provides that it is to be applied and construed to make it uniform with the Delaware Revised Uniform Partnership Act and, so long as it does not conflict with the Marshall Islands Act or decisions of the Marshall Islands courts, interpreted according to the non-statutory law (or case law) of the State of Delaware. There have been, however, few, if any, court cases in the Marshall Islands interpreting the Marshall Islands Act, in contrast to Delaware, which has a well-developed body of case law interpreting its limited partnership statute. Accordingly, we cannot predict whether Marshall Islands courts would reach the same conclusions as the courts in Delaware. For example, the rights of our unitholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our general partner under Marshall Islands law are not as clearly established as under judicial precedent in existence in Delaware. As a result, unitholders may have more
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difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions by our general partner and its officers and directors than would unitholders of a similarly organized limited partnership in the United States.
Because we are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands, it may be difficult to serve us with legal process or enforce judgments against us, our directors or our management.
We are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands and substantially all of our assets are located outside of the United States. In addition, our general partner is a Marshall Islands limited liability company, our directors and officers generally are or will be non-residents of the United States, and all or a substantial portion of the assets of these non-residents are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individuals in the United States if you believe that your rights have been infringed under securities laws or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the laws of the Marshall Islands and of other jurisdictions may prevent or restrict you from enforcing a judgment against our assets or the assets of our general partner or our directors or officers.
Our partnership agreement designates the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum, unless otherwise provided for by Marshall Islands law, for certain litigation that may be initiated by our unitholders, which could limit our unitholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our general partner.
Our partnership agreement provides that, unless otherwise provided for by Marshall Islands law, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for any claims that:
● | arise out of or relate in any way to the partnership agreement (including any claims, suits or actions to interpret, apply or enforce the provisions of the partnership agreement or the duties, obligations or liabilities among limited partners or of limited partners to us, or the rights or powers of, or restrictions on, the limited partners or us); |
● | are brought in a derivative manner on our behalf; |
● | assert a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee of us or our general partner, or owed by our general partner, to us or the limited partners; |
● | assert a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the Marshall Islands Act; or |
● | assert a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine regardless of whether such claims, suits, actions or proceedings sound in contract, tort, fraud or otherwise, are based on common law, statutory, equitable, legal or other grounds, or are derivative or direct claims. Any person or entity otherwise acquiring any interest in our common units or Preference Units shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the provisions described above. This forum selection provision may limit our unitholders’ ability to obtain a judicial forum that they find favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees or unitholders. |
Risks Related to our Preference Units
Unitholders may have liability to repay distributions.
Under some circumstances, unitholders may have to repay amounts wrongfully returned or distributed to them. Under the Marshall Islands Limited Partnership Act, or the “Marshall Islands Act”, we may not make a distribution to you if the distribution would cause our liabilities to exceed the fair value of our assets. Marshall Islands law provides that for a period of three years from the date of the impermissible distribution, limited partners who received the distribution and who knew at the time of the distribution that it violated Marshall Islands law will be liable to the limited partnership for the distribution amount. Assignees who become substituted limited partners are liable for the obligations of the assignor to make contributions to the partnership that are known to the assignee at the time it became a limited partner and for unknown obligations if the liabilities could be determined from the partnership agreement. Liabilities to partners on account of their partnership interest and liabilities that are non-recourse to the partnership are not counted for purposes of determining whether a distribution is permitted.
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Our Preference Units are subordinated to our debt obligations and investors’ interests could be diluted by the issuance of additional preference units and by other transactions.
Our Preference Units are subordinated to all of our existing and future indebtedness. As of December 31, 2022, we had an aggregate of $921.9 million of outstanding indebtedness under our credit facilities. As of December 31, 2022, we also had an aggregate of $62.6 million of lease liabilities mainly related to the sale and leaseback of the GasLog Shanghai and the Methane Heather Sally. Our existing indebtedness restricts, and our future indebtedness may include restrictions on, our ability to pay distributions to unitholders. Our partnership agreement authorizes the issue of an unlimited number of preference units in one or more class of units. The issuance of additional preference units on a parity with or senior to our Preference Units would dilute the interests of the holders of our Preference Units, and any issuance of preference units senior to or on a parity with our Preference Units or of additional indebtedness could affect our ability to pay distributions on, redeem or pay the liquidation preference on our Preference Units. No provisions relating to our Preference Units protect the holders of our Preference Units in the event of a highly leveraged or other transaction, including the sale, lease or conveyance of all or substantially all our assets or business, which might adversely affect the holders of our Preference Units.
Each series of our Preference Units ranks pari passu with any other class or series of units established after the original issue date of such series that is not expressly subordinated or senior to the Preference Units as to the payment of distributions and amounts payable upon liquidation or reorganization. If less than all distributions payable with respect to a series of Preference Units and any parity securities are paid, any partial payment shall be made pro rata with respect to such Preference Units and any parity securities entitled to a distribution payment at such time in proportion to the aggregate amounts remaining due in respect of such units at such time.
Holders of our Preference Units have extremely limited voting rights.
Holders of the Preference Units generally have no voting rights. However, if and whenever distributions payable on a series of Preference Units are in arrears for six or more quarterly periods, whether or not consecutive, holders of such series of Preference Units (voting together as a class with all other classes or series of parity securities upon which like voting rights have been conferred and are exercisable) will be entitled to elect one additional director to serve on our board of directors, and the size of our board of directors will be increased as needed to accommodate such change (unless the size of our board of directors already has been increased by reason of the election of a director by holders of parity securities upon which like voting rights have been conferred and with which the Preference Units voted as a class for the election of such director). The right of such holders of Preference Units to elect a member of our board of directors will continue until such time as all accumulated and unpaid distributions on the applicable series of Preference Units have been paid in full.
The Preference Units represent perpetual equity interests and holders have no right to receive any greater payment than the liquidation preference regardless of the circumstances.
The Preference Units represent perpetual equity interests in us and, unlike our indebtedness, will not give rise to a claim for payment of a principal amount at a particular date. As a result, holders of the Preference Units may be required to bear the financial risks of an investment in the Preference Units for an indefinite period of time. In addition, the Preference Units rank junior to all our indebtedness and other liabilities, and any other senior securities we may issue in the future with respect to assets available to satisfy claims against us.
The payment due to a holder of any of our Series A Preference Units, Series B Preference Units or Series C Preference Units upon a liquidation is fixed at the redemption preference of $25.00 per unit plus accumulated and unpaid distributions to the date of liquidation. If, in the case of our liquidation, there are remaining assets to be distributed after payment of this amount, holders of Preference Units will have no right to receive or to participate in these amounts. Furthermore, if the market price for Preference Units is greater than the liquidation preference, holders of Preference Units will have no right to receive the market price from us upon our liquidation.
The Preference Units have not been rated, and ratings of any other of our securities may affect the trading price of the Preference Units.
We have not sought to obtain a rating for any series of Preference Units, and the units may never be rated. It is possible, however, that one or more rating agencies might independently determine to assign a rating to the Series A, Series B or Series C Preference
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Units or that we may elect to obtain a rating of our Series A, Series B or Series C Preference Units in the future. In addition, we may elect to issue other securities for which we may seek to obtain a rating. If any ratings are assigned to a series of Preference Units in the future or if we issue other securities with a rating, such ratings, if they are lower than market expectations or are subsequently lowered or withdrawn, or if ratings for such other securities would imply a lower relative value for the Preference Units, could adversely affect the market for, or the market value of, the Preference Units. Ratings only reflect the views of the issuing rating agency or agencies and such ratings could at any time be revised downward or withdrawn entirely at the discretion of the issuing rating agency. A rating is not a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold any particular security, including the Preference Units. Ratings do not reflect market prices or suitability of a security for a particular investor and any future rating of either the Series A, Series B or Series C Preference Units may not reflect all risks related to us and our business, or the structure or market value of the Preference Units.
Market interest rates may adversely affect the value of our Preference Units.
One of the factors that will influence the price of our Preference Units will be the distribution yield on the Preference Units (as a percentage of the price of our Series A, Series B or Series C Preference Units, as applicable) relative to market interest rates. In response to high levels of inflation, interest rates rose globally in 2022 and may be sustained or increase further in 2023. An increase in market interest rates may lead prospective purchasers of our Preference Units to expect higher distribution yields, and higher interest rates would likely increase our borrowing costs and potentially decrease funds available for distributions. Accordingly, higher market interest rates could cause the market price of our Preference Units to decrease.
The Preference Units are redeemable at our option.
We may, at our option, redeem all or, from time to time, part of the Series A Preference Units on or after June 15, 2027, the Series B Preference Units on or after March 15, 2023 or the Series C Preference Units on or after March 15, 2024. If we redeem Series A, Series B or Series C Preference Units, redeemed unitholders will be entitled to receive a redemption price equal to $25.00 per unit plus accumulated and unpaid distributions to the date of redemption. We may elect to exercise our partial redemption right on multiple occasions.
Fluctuations in interest rates and the impact of the discontinuation of LIBOR after June 30, 2023 may adversely affect the value of and return on our Preference Units.
The distribution rates for the Series B Preference Units and the Series C Preference Units will be determined based on three-month LIBOR, from and including March 15, 2023 and March 15, 2024, respectively. The distribution rate for the Series A Preference Units will be determined based on three- month LIBOR from and including June 15, 2027. In the past, the level of three-month LIBOR has experienced significant fluctuations. Historical levels, fluctuations and trends of three-month LIBOR are not necessarily indicative of future levels. Any historical upward or downward trend in three-month LIBOR is not an indication that three-month LIBOR is more or less likely to increase or decrease at any time during the floating rate period for a series of Preference Units, and you should not take the historical levels of three-month LIBOR as an indication of its future performance. Although the actual three-month LIBOR on a distribution payment date or at other times during a distribution period with respect to a series of Preference Units may be higher than the three-month LIBOR on the applicable distribution determination date for such series, you will not benefit from the three-month LIBOR at any time other than on the distribution determination date for such distribution period. As a result, changes in the three-month LIBOR may not result in a comparable change in the market value of the Series B Preference Units on or after March 15, 2023, the Series C Preference Units on or after March 15, 2024 or the Series A Preference Units on or after June 15, 2027.
Upon discontinuance of the LIBOR base rate, the appointed calculation agent will use a substitute or successor base rate that it has determined in its discretion, after consultation with the Partnership, and which is most comparable to the LIBOR base rate. This may result in distribution payments differing from expectations and could materially affect the value of such Preference Units.
Tax Risks
In addition to the following risk factors, you should read “Item 10. Additional Information—E. Tax Considerations” for a more complete discussion of the expected material U.S. federal and non-U.S. income tax considerations relating to us and the ownership and disposition of our common units and Preference Units.
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We may be subject to taxes, which may reduce our cash available for distribution to you.
We and our subsidiaries may be subject to tax in the jurisdictions in which we are organized or operate, reducing the amount of cash available for distribution. In computing our tax obligation in these jurisdictions, we are required to take various tax accounting and reporting positions on matters that are not entirely free from doubt and for which we have not received rulings from the governing authorities. We cannot assure you that upon review of these positions the applicable authorities will agree with our positions. A successful challenge by a tax authority could result in additional tax imposed on us or our subsidiaries, further reducing the cash available for distribution. In addition, changes in our operations or ownership could result in additional tax being imposed on us or our subsidiaries in jurisdictions in which operations are conducted. See “Item 4. Information on the Partnership—B. Business Overview—Taxation of the Partnership”.
U.S. tax authorities could treat us as a “passive foreign investment company” under certain circumstances, which would have adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. unitholders.
A non-U.S. entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes will be treated as a “passive foreign investment company”, or “PFIC”, for U.S. federal income tax purposes if at least 75.0% of its gross income for any tax year consists of “passive income” or at least 50.0% of the average value of its assets produce, or are held for the production of, “passive income”. For purposes of these tests, “passive income” includes dividends, interest, gains from the sale or exchange of investment property and rents and royalties other than rents and royalties that are received from unrelated parties in connection with the active conduct of a trade or business. For purposes of these tests, income derived from the performance of services does not constitute “passive income”. U.S. unitholders of a PFIC are subject to a disadvantageous U.S. federal income tax regime with respect to the income derived by the PFIC, the distributions they receive from the PFIC, and the gain, if any, they derive from the sale or other disposition of their interests in the PFIC.
Based on our past, current and projected methods of operation, and an opinion of our U.S. counsel, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, we believe that we will not be a PFIC for our current tax year and we expect that we will not be treated as a PFIC for any future tax year. We have received opinions of our U.S. counsel in support of this position that conclude that the income our subsidiaries earn from certain of our time-chartering activities should not constitute passive income for purposes of determining whether we are a PFIC. In addition, we have represented to our U.S. counsel that more than 25.0% of our gross income for each of our previous years arose and that we expect that more than 25.0% of our gross income for our current and each future year will arise from such time-chartering activities, and more than 50.0% of the average value of our assets for each such year was or will be held for the production of such non-passive income. Assuming the composition of our income and assets is consistent with these expectations, and assuming the accuracy of other representations we have made to our U.S. counsel for purposes of their opinion, our U.S. counsel is of the opinion that we should not be a PFIC for our current tax year or any future year. This opinion is based and its accuracy is conditioned on representations, valuations and projections provided by us regarding our assets, income and charters to our U.S. counsel. While we believe these representations, valuations and projections to be accurate, the shipping market is volatile and no assurance can be given that they will continue to be accurate at any time in the future.
Moreover, there are legal uncertainties involved in determining whether the income derived from time-chartering activities constitutes rental income or income derived from the performance of services. In Tidewater Inc. v. United States, 565 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2009), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, or the “Fifth Circuit”, held that income derived from certain time-chartering activities should be treated as rental income rather than services income for purposes of a provision of the Code relating to foreign sales corporations. In that case, the Fifth Circuit did not address the definition of passive income or the PFIC rules; however, the reasoning of the case could have implications as to how the income from a time charter would be classified under such rules. If the reasoning of this case were extended to the PFIC context, the gross income we derive or are deemed to derive from our time-chartering activities may be treated as rental income, and we would likely be treated as a PFIC. In published guidance, the Internal Revenue Service, or “IRS”, stated that it disagreed with the holding in Tidewater, and specified that time charters similar to those at issue in the case should be treated as service contracts. We have not sought, and we do not expect to seek, an IRS ruling on the treatment of income generated from our time-chartering activities, and the opinion of our counsel is not binding on the IRS or any court. As a result, the IRS or a court could disagree with our position. No assurance can be given that this result will not occur. In addition, although we intend to conduct our affairs in a manner to avoid, to the extent possible, being classified as a PFIC with respect to any tax year, we cannot assure you that the nature of our operations will not change in the future, or that we will not be a PFIC in the future. If the IRS were to find that we are or have been a PFIC for any tax year (and regardless of whether we remain a PFIC for any subsequent tax year), our U.S. unitholders would face adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences. See “Item 10. Additional Information—E. Tax Considerations—Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—U.S. Federal Income Taxation of U.S.
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Holders—PFIC Status and Significant Tax Consequences” for a more detailed discussion of the U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. unitholders if we are treated as a PFIC.
We may have to pay tax on U.S.-source income, which will reduce our cash flow.
Under the Code, the U.S. source gross transportation income of a ship-owning or chartering corporation, such as ourselves, is subject to a 4% U.S. federal income tax without allowance for deduction, unless that corporation qualifies for exemption from tax under a tax treaty or Section 883 of the Code and the Treasury Regulations promulgated thereunder. U.S. source gross transportation income consists of 50% of the gross shipping income that is attributable to transportation that begins or ends, but that does not both begin and end, in the United States.
We do not expect to qualify for an exemption from such U.S. federal income tax under a tax treaty nor do we expect to qualify for the exemption under Section 883 of the Code during the 2022 tax year, unless our general partner exercises the “GasLog option” described in “Item 4. Information on the Partnership—B. Business Overview—Taxation of the Partnership—U.S. Taxation of Shipping”. Even if we do not qualify for such an exemption, we do not currently expect any resulting U.S. federal income tax liability to be material or materially reduce the earnings available for distribution to our unitholders. For 2022, the U.S. source gross transportation tax was $1.5 million. For a more detailed discussion, see the section entitled “Item 4. Information on the Partnership—B. Business Overview—Taxation of the Partnership—United States”.
You may be subject to income tax in one or more non-U.S. jurisdictions as a result of owning our common units or Preference Units if, under the laws of any such jurisdiction, we are considered to be carrying on business there. Such laws may require you to file a tax return with, and pay taxes to, those jurisdictions.
We intend to conduct our affairs and cause each of our subsidiaries to operate its business in a manner that minimizes income taxes imposed upon us and our subsidiaries. Furthermore, we intend to conduct our affairs and cause each of our subsidiaries to operate its business in a manner that minimizes the risk that unitholders may be treated as having a permanent establishment or tax presence in a jurisdiction where we or our subsidiaries conduct activities simply by virtue of their ownership of our common units or Preference Units. However, because we are organized as a partnership, there is a risk in some jurisdictions that our activities or the activities of our subsidiaries may rise to the level of a tax presence that is attributed to our unitholders for tax purposes. If you are attributed such a tax presence in a jurisdiction, you may be required to file a tax return with, and to pay tax in, that jurisdiction based on your allocable share of our income. In addition, we may be required to obtain information from you in the event a tax authority requires such information to submit a tax return. We may be required to reduce distributions to you on account of any tax withholding obligations imposed upon us by that jurisdiction in respect of such allocation to you. The United States may not allow a tax credit for any foreign income taxes that you directly or indirectly incur by virtue of an investment in us.
ITEM 4. INFORMATION ON THE PARTNERSHIP
A.History and Development of the Partnership
GasLog Partners was formed on January 23, 2014 as a Marshall Islands limited partnership. GasLog Partners and its subsidiaries are primarily engaged in the ownership, operation and acquisition of LNG carriers engaged in LNG transportation. The Partnership conducts its operations through its vessel-owning subsidiaries and, as of February 28, 2023, we have a fleet of 14 LNG carriers, including two vessels sold and leased back under bareboat charters, comprised of ten vessels with modern TFDE propulsion technology and four Steam vessels.
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On May 12, 2014, we completed our IPO and our common units began trading on the NYSE on May 7, 2014 under the ticker symbol “GLOP”. A portion of the proceeds of our IPO was paid as partial consideration for GasLog’s contribution to us of the interests in its subsidiaries which owned the GasLog Shanghai, the GasLog Santiago and the GasLog Sydney. Since the IPO we have completed additional equity offerings as set forth below, the proceeds of which have been used (i) to partially fund the acquisition of GasLog vessel owning subsidiaries, (ii) to pay down debt or (iii) for general corporate purposes:
Date Vessel Acquisition | ||||||
Date of Equity Offering |
| Equity Offering |
| Principal Use of Proceeds |
| Completed |
November 15, 2018 |
| Preference equity offering, Series C Preference Units |
| Acquisition of the GasLog Glasgow | April 1, 2019 | |
January 17, 2018 |
| Preference equity offering, Series B Preference Units |
| Acquisition of the GasLog | April 26, 2018 | |
May 16, 2017 onwards |
| Common equity offering through our ATM Programme |
| Acquisition of the Solaris Acquisition of the Methane Becki Anne | October 20, 2017 | |
May 15, 2017 |
| Preference equity offering, Series A Preference Units |
| Acquisition of the GasLog Geneva | July 3, 2017 | |
January 27, 2017 |
| Follow-on common equity |
| Acquisition of the GasLog | May 3, 2017 | |
August 5, 2016 |
| Follow-on common equity offering |
| Acquisition of the GasLog | November 1, 2016 | |
June 26, 2015 |
| Follow-on common equity offering |
| Acquisition of the Methane Alison Victoria, Methane Shirley Elisabeth and Methane Heather Sally | July 1, 2015 | |
September 29, 2014 |
| Follow-on common equity |
| Acquisition of the Methane Rita Andrea and Methane Jane Elizabeth | September 29, 2014 |
We maintain our principal executive offices at 69 Akti Miaouli, 18537 Piraeus, Greece. Our telephone number at that address is +30 210 459 1000.
We are subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). In accordance with these requirements, we file reports and other information as a foreign private issuer with the SEC. You may obtain copies of all or any part of such materials from the SEC upon payment of prescribed fees. You may also inspect reports and other information regarding registrants, such as us, that file electronically with the SEC without charge at a website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. These documents and other important information on our governance are posted on our website and may be viewed at http://www.gaslogmlp.com.
B.Business Overview
Overview
Since our IPO in May 2014, we have been an owner, operator and acquirer of LNG carriers. The Partnership’s fleet consists of 12 wholly owned LNG carriers, nine vessels with modern TFDE propulsion technology and three Steam vessels. In addition, GasLog Partners has leased back under two bareboat charters (a) for a period of five years one TFDE vessel sold to CBDL in October 2021 and (b) until the middle of 2025 one Steam vessel sold to another unrelated party in October 2022.
On February 6, 2020, in light of reduced expectations for Steam vessel utilization and earnings due to these risks, we announced that GasLog Partners will focus its capital allocation on debt repayment and prioritizing balance sheet strength. The Partnership reduced its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.125 per unit for the first quarter of 2020, from $0.561 per unit for the fourth quarter of 2019 and then further decreased its quarterly common unit distribution to $0.01 per unit for the third quarter of 2020 onwards. Today, our capital allocation strategy remains unchanged with a focus on balance sheet strength, deleveraging, reducing the all-in- break-even rates in our fleet and repurchasing our Preference Units on an opportunistic basis in the open market. In addition, as part of our capital allocation priorities we have set leverage targets to monitor our performance. While we have reduced our leverage
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in recent years, we have not yet achieved those targets and there can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to reduce leverage in order to meet those targets.
All of our vessels were contributed to us by, or acquired by us from, GasLog, which controls us through its ownership of our general partner. All vessels have fixed charter terms expiring between April 2023 and March 2029. Five of our vessels currently operate under long-term time charters (defined as charters with initial duration of more than three years) and nine vessels trade in the short-term spot market (defined as vessels under contracts with initial duration of less than three years). On redelivery, if the charterers do not exercise any extension option, the vessels will operate in the short-term spot market unless we are able to secure new long-term time charters.
Since the formation of the Partnership and the contribution of the three initial vessels in our fleet, we have grown our fleet and our cash flows through the acquisition from GasLog of vessels with multi-year charters. However, as a result of the significant challenges facing the listed midstream energy MLP industry, our cost of equity capital has remained elevated for a prolonged period, making the funding of new acquisitions challenging. As a result, while we do have options and other rights under which we may acquire additional LNG carriers from GasLog and which provide us with significant built-in growth opportunities as described below, our high cost of capital is not currently conducive to the funding of such acquisitions on acceptable terms.
We believe that the actions taken to prioritize balance sheet strength, deleveraging and lowering our cash break-evens, combined with our priority to balance our overall debt leverage in the Company compared to our increased operational leverage through the higher spot exposure, will strengthen our balance sheet over time. As a result, we believe we will be able to position the Partnership to take advantage of growth opportunities in the future, assuming we will be able to raise new debt or equity capital on acceptable terms in the future. For further discussion of the risks that we face in growing our assets and cash flows, please read “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors”.
GasLog is, we believe, a leading independent international owner, operator and manager of LNG carriers which provides support to international energy companies as part of their LNG logistics chain. GasLog was founded by its chairman, Peter G. Livanos, whose family’s shipping activities commenced more than 100 years ago. On April 4, 2012, GasLog completed its initial public offering, and its common shares began trading on the NYSE on March 30, 2012 under the ticker symbol “GLOG”. As of February 28, 2023, GasLog’s wholly owned and bareboat fleet includes 24 LNG carriers, including 19 ships on the water, four LNG carriers on order from DSME and one vessel undergoing conversion into an FSRU, as well as a 33.2% ownership in the Partnership. See “—Our Fleet”.
On February 22, 2021, GasLog announced that it had entered into a Merger Agreement with GEPIF. Under the Merger Agreement, GEPIF would acquire all of the outstanding common shares of GasLog that are not held by the Rolling Shareholders of GasLog in exchange for $5.80 in cash per common share. On June 9, 2021, GasLog announced the completion of the Transaction with GEPIF following the special general meeting of GasLog’s shareholders held virtually on June 4, 2021, where the Transaction and the related agreements (i) the previously announced Merger Agreement, (ii) the merger and (iii) the statutory merger agreement contemplated by the Merger Agreement, received the requisite approval of GasLog’s shareholders required by the Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of February 21, 2021 (and subsequently amended on April 20, 2021). Trading in GasLog’s common shares on the NYSE, was suspended with immediate effect and the delisting of the common shares from the NYSE became effective on June 21, 2021. GasLog’s 8.75% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preference Shares remain outstanding and continue to trade on NYSE. Following the consummation of the Transaction on June 9, 2021, certain existing shareholders, including Blenheim Holdings, which is wholly owned by the Livanos family, and a wholly owned affiliate of the Onassis Foundation, hold approximately 55.2% of the outstanding common shares of GasLog Ltd. and GEPIF holds approximately 44.8%.
On October 26, 2021, we completed the sale and leaseback of the GasLog Shanghai, a 155,000 cbm TFDE LNG carrier built in 2013 with a wholly owned subsidiary of CDBL. The vessel was sold and leased back under a bareboat charter with CDBL for a period of five years with no repurchase option or obligation.
On September 14, 2022, we completed the sale of the Methane Shirley Elisabeth, a 145,000 cbm Steam LNG carrier built in 2007, to an unrelated third party.
Οn October 31, 2022, we completed the sale and leaseback of the Methane Heather Sally, a 145,000 cbm Steam LNG carrier built in 2007. The vessel was sold to an unrelated third party and leased back under a bareboat charter until the middle of 2025 with no repurchase option or obligation.
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On January 24, 2023, the Partnership’s board of directors received an unsolicited non-binding proposal from GasLog to acquire all of the outstanding common units representing limited partner interests of the Partnership not already beneficially owned by GasLog. In connection with the proposed transaction, each common unit would receive overall value of $7.70 per common unit in cash, consisting in part of a special distribution by the Partnership of $2.33 per common unit in cash to be distributed to the Partnership’s unitholders immediately prior to the closing of the proposed transaction and the remainder to be paid by GasLog as merger consideration at the closing of the proposed transaction.
The Partnership’s board of directors has authorized its conflicts committee, consisting only of non-GasLog affiliated directors, to retain advisors and to review, evaluate, negotiate and accept or reject the proposed transaction. GasLog’s proposal is non-binding and is subject to the negotiation and execution of mutually acceptable definitive documentation. There can be no assurance that any definitive documentation will be executed or that any transaction will materialize.
In March 2023, the board of directors of GasLog Partners approved management’s recommendation to proceed with the sale and leaseback of the GasLog Sydney, a 155,000 cbm TFDE LNG carrier built in 2013, with CDBL for a period of five years under a bareboat charter with no purchase option or obligation, but including a profit share mechanism. The completion of the sale and leaseback is subject to the signing of final documentation with CDBL.
Our subsidiary, GAS-seventeen Ltd., owner of Methane Jane Elizabeth, is currently in advanced stages of negotiations with Venice for the provision of an FSRU to be deployed at Outer Harbor in Adelaide, South Australia. Subject to final agreement of the charter terms and the satisfaction of customary conditions precedent including the project taking Final Investment Decision (“FID”), the Methane Jane Elizabeth will undergo modifications and conversion to an FSRU and is expected to be delivered to Venice no later than the fourth quarter of 2025 for a ten-year time charter.
Our Fleet
Owned Fleet
The following table presents information about our fleet as of February 28, 2023:
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||
Charter | ||||||||||||
LNG Carrier | Year Built | cbm | Charterer | Propulsion | Expiration | Optional Period | ||||||
1 GasLog Sydney |
| 2013 |
| 155,000 |
| Naturgy |
| TFDE |
| April 2023 |
| — |
2 GasLog Geneva |
| 2016 |
| 174,000 |
| Shell |
| TFDE |
| September 2023 |
| 2028–2031 (1) |
3 Methane Rita Andrea |
| 2006 |
| 145,000 |
| Energy Major |
| Steam |
| October 2023 |
| — |
4 Methane Alison Victoria |
| 2007 |
| 145,000 |
| CNTIC Vpower |
| Steam |
| October 2023 |
| 2024–2025 (2) |
5 GasLog Gibraltar |
| 2016 |
| 174,000 |
| Shell |
| TFDE |
| October 2023 |
| 2028–2031 (1) |
6 Solaris |
| 2014 |
| 155,000 |
| Energy Major |
| TFDE |
| October 2023 |
| — |
7 GasLog Santiago |
| 2013 |
| 155,000 |
| Trafigura |
| TFDE |
| December 2023 |
| 2028 (3) |
8 GasLog Seattle |
| 2013 |
| 155,000 |
| Major Trading House |
| TFDE |
| March 2023 |
| — |
Energy Trading Company(4) | March 2024 | — | ||||||||||
9 Methane Jane Elizabeth |
| 2006 |
| 145,000 |
| Cheniere |
| Steam |
| March 2024 |
| 2025 (5) |
10 GasLog Greece |
| 2016 |
| 174,000 |
| Shell |
| TFDE |
| March 2026 |
| 2031 (6) |
11 GasLog Glasgow |
| 2016 |
| 174,000 |
| Shell |
| TFDE |
| June 2026 |
| 2031 (6) |
12 Methane Becki Anne |
| 2010 |
| 170,000 |
| Shell |
| TFDE |
| March 2029 (7) |
| — |
(1) | Charterer may extend the term of the time charters by two additional periods of five and three years, respectively, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of declaration. The period shown reflects the expiration of the minimum optional period and the maximum optional period. |
(2) | Charterer may extend the term of the related charter by two additional periods of one year, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of its exercise of any extension option. The period shown reflects the expiration of the minimum optional period and the maximum optional period. |
(3) | Charterer may extend the term of this time charter for a period of five years, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of declaration. |
(4) | The vessel is expected to commence its time charter with a Swiss-headquartered energy trading company following expiration of its current charter with a major trading house. |
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(5) | Charterer may extend the term of the time charter by an additional period of one year, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of declaration. The period shown reflects the expiration of the minimum optional period and the maximum optional period. |
(6) | Charterer may extend the term of these time charters for a period of five years, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of declaration. |
(7) | Charterer extended the term of the related charter from March 2024 to March 2029 exercising the five-year extension option. |
Bareboat Vessel
Charterer (for | Charter | |||||||||||
contracts of more | Expiration | |||||||||||
LNG Carrier |
| Year Built |
| cbm |
| than six months) |
| Propulsion |
| (Firm Period) |
| Optional Period |
1 GasLog Shanghai (1) | 2013 | 155,000 | Woodside | TFDE | February 2025 | 2026 (2) | ||||||
2 Methane Heather Sally (3) | 2007 | 145,000 | SEA charterer | Steam | July 2025 | — |
(1) | In October 2021, the vessel was sold and leased back from CDBL for a period of five years, with no repurchase option or obligation. |
(2) | Charterer may extend the term of this time charter by an additional period of one year, provided that the charterer gives us advance notice of declaration. |
(3) | In October 2022, the vessel was sold and leased back from an unrelated party until the middle of 2025 with no repurchase option or obligation. |
The key characteristics of our current fleet include the following:
● | each ship is sized at between approximately 145,000 cbm and 174,000 cbm capacity, which places our ships in the medium-size class of LNG carriers; we believe this size range maximizes their operational flexibility, as these ships are compatible with most existing LNG terminals around the world; |
● | each ship is double-hulled, which is standard in the LNG industry; |
● | each ship has a membrane containment system incorporating current industry construction standards, including guidelines and recommendations from Gaztransport and Technigaz (the designer of the membrane system) as well as updated standards from our classification society; |
● | each of our ships is equipped with a steam turbine or TFDE propulsion technology; |
● | Bermuda is the flag state of each ship; |
● | each of our ships has received an ENVIRO+ notation from our classification society, which denotes compliance with its published guidelines concerning the most stringent criteria for environmental protection related to design characteristics, management and support systems, sea discharges and air emissions; and |
● | our owned and bareboat fleet has an average age of 10.7 years, making it one of the youngest in the industry, compared to a current average age of approximately 10.58 years for the global trading LNG carrier fleet including LNG carriers of all sizes as of December 31, 2022. |
Additional Vessels
Five-Year Vessel Business Opportunities
GasLog has agreed, and has caused its controlled affiliates (other than us, our general partner and our subsidiaries) to agree, not to acquire, own, operate or charter any LNG carrier with a cargo capacity greater than 75,000 cbm engaged in oceangoing LNG transportation under a charter for five full years or more without, within 30 calendar days after the consummation of the acquisition or
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