Diana Shipping inc.

Greetings and welcome to the Diana Shipping third quarter 2024 conference call and webcast. At this time, all participants are in listen-only mode. If anyone should require operator assistance, please press star zero on your telephone keypad. A question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. You may be placed into question queue at any time by pressing star one on your telephone keypad. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. It's now my pleasure to turn the call over to Ed Nebb, Investor Relations. Please go ahead, Ed.

Thank you, Kevin, and thanks to everyone who is joining us today for the Diana Shipping, Inc. 2024 Third Quarter Conference Call. With us today from management is Ms. Samira Mispaliu, Chief Executive Officer, who will introduce the other members of the management team. And so without further ado, I will turn the call now over to Samira Mispaliu. Please go ahead.

Thank you, Ed. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Diana Shipping Inc.' 's third quarter 2024 financial results conference call. As Ed said, I'm Tamira Mispalou, the chief executive officer of the company. It's a pleasure to address you today alongside our esteemed team, Mr. Ioannis Zafirakis, director, chief financial officer and chief strategy officer, Mrs. Maria Veve, chief accounting officer, and Mr. Dave Vanderlinden, Chief Commercial Officer of Steamship Shiproking Enterprises, Inc. Before we begin, I kindly remind you to review the forward-looking statements on page 4 of the accompanying investor presentation. The third quarter of the year has been a tale of two markets. Cape-sized vessels maintained their relative strength, averaging higher returns than in the previous quarter, while the smaller segments weakened significantly. This disconnect has persisted throughout the year, but became more pronounced as the market struggled to absorb the steady flow of CancerMax and Ultramax new buildings. That said, we successfully secured period employment for nine vessels during the quarter, achieving an overall average rate higher than their previous fixtures. Turning to slide five, Let's review our company's snapshot. Diana Shipping Inc., founded in 1972 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange since 2005, operates a fleet of 38 dry bulk vessels, seven of which are mortgage-free. Our fleet has an average age of 11 years and a total deadweight capacity of approximately 4.2 million tons. We anticipate the delivery of two methanol dual fuel new building CAMSAR MAX dry bulk vessels at the end of 2027 and early 2028 respectively. Fleet utilization reached 99.7% in the nine months period of 2024, highlighting our effective vessel management. As of the end of September, we employed 984 individuals at sea and ashore. Financially, our net debt stands at 37% of market value, supported by US$186.8 million in cash reserves and total secured revenues of approximately US$135.3 million as of November 19th. On slide six, we outlined the key developments from the third quarter through November. In July, we issued 150 million senior unsecured bonds that are listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, maturing in July, 2029, with a fixed coupon of 8.75%. The net proceeds were used to refinance the company's a $125 million senior unsecured bond due in 2026. The approval and publication of the company's prospectus for the bond listing on the Oslo Exchange was completed in October. In July, we signed a term loan facility with Nordia Bank, secured by 10 vessels. drawing $167.3 million to refinance two existing term loan facilities. This refinancing released two previously financed vessels. In October, we entered $80.2 million seven-year secured term loan facility with Danish Ship Finance, maturing in April 2031, secured by seven vessels. This proceeds, refinanced our existing loan with Danish Ship Finance, releasing two previously mortgaged vessels. In November, completed a $25 million US tap issue under our outstanding senior and secure bond due July, 2029. Issued at 102% of our value with a fixed coupon of 8.75%. This was the total outstanding amount of the 2029 bond to $175 million. As of November 19th, we have raised $25.5 million through the exercise of 6,381,900 warrants under our ongoing warrant program with the potential to raise an additional $64.9 million under the full scope of the program. As of November 19th, we have secured revenue for 78% of the remaining ownership days of 2024, amounting to approximately 22.1 million US dollars and 38% of available ownership days in 2025, amounting to approximately 95.8 million US dollars Yanis will provide further details on our cash flow generation potential. Earlier this month, we released our 2023 ESG report, the fifth in a row, underscoring our ESG strategy and commitment to sustainability. For the quarter ending September 30th, 2024, we're pleased to declare a quarterly cash dividend of one cent per common share, totaling approximately 1.3 million US dollars. On slide seven, we summarize our current chartering activity. Since our last earnings presentation, we have secured favorable time charters for nine vessels. Three Ultramax vessels at a weighted average daily rate of $14,539 for 379 days. Five Panamax, Campsamax, and post-Panamax vessels at the weighted average daily rate of 12,664 US dollars for 155 days. One, Newcastle-Mexico at 26,800 US dollars for 699 days. Slide eight highlights our disciplined chartering strategy. We focus on staggered medium to long-term charters to avoid clustered maturities ensuring earnings visibility and resilience against market downturns. Now I'll pass the floor to Yanis for a detailed financial analysis.