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February 16, 2022 - Hamilton, BermudaFlex LNG Ltd. ("Flex LNG" or the “Company”) today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2021.
Highlights:
Øystein M Kalleklev, CEO of Flex LNG Management AS, commented:“We are pleased to deliver knock-out results for the fourth quarter as guided. Fueled by four ships exposed to a red-hot spot market, revenues for the fourth quarter jumped from $82 million to $115 million, slightly ahead of our guidance of approximately $110 million.
Our average Time Charter Equivalent earnings came in at a solid $95,908 per day, beating the $94,000 per day we managed to achieve during fourth quarter 2019 and close to the $97,571 per day achieved in fourth quarter 2018. In the past, we had significantly higher spot exposure so by being able to beat previous trading results also reflects that during 2021 we have secured an outstanding portfolio of fixed hire Time Charters.
Higher top line also resulted in a fatter bottom line in fourth quarter with our Net Income and Adjusted Net Income coming in at a healthy $69.4 million and $62.8 million respectively. Overall, for the year we delivered Net Income and Adjusted Net Income of $162 million and $145 million respectively which we deem attractive. Strong earnings coupled with a sizeable backlog to first class charterers and a sound financial position put us in position to distribute very shareholder friendly dividends. Consequently, for the fourth quarter 2021, we are paying out $75 cents per share of dividends which provide our shareholder with an attractive yield of around 15 per cent p.a.
In November, we announced a balance sheet optimization program. By de-risking our commercial strategy through adding substantial long-term backlog we reached out to financiers with the aim of unlocking $100 million of cash from our balance sheet. Today we are announcing $695 million of new financing. These financings will release another $87 million in cash on top of the $38 million announced in November through the Flex Volunteer sale and charterback. We have thus already over-delivered on the program initiated in November with $125 million unlocked overall, which will contribute to further growth of our cash balance which stood at a lofty $201 million at year end. Hence, we have a super strong liquidity position, enabling us to act quickly on opportunities if they arise.
The spot freight market went from red-hot in November to ice cold in January, despite elevated gas prices. The primary reason for the spot market slump was that the European gas market went haywire in December due to concerns about gas availability, coupled with a tense security situation in Ukraine with potential implications for Russian pipeline flows to Europe. This resulted in European gas prices trading at a premium to Asian gas prices which effectively closed the West/East arbitrage, having a detrimental effect on sailing distances and thus increased the availability of ships. As the market shake out subsides, we do however think the freight market will re-balance as volume growth in 2022 is expected to exceed 2021, while the number of newbuildings set for delivery this year is about half of last year. In any case, we remain very well positioned. We are guiding revenues for 2022 in line with what we achieved in 2021 despite the soft spot market at the beginning of the first quarter 2022.”
FourthQuarter 2021 Result PresentationIn connection with the earnings release, a webcast and conference call will be held at 15:00 CET (9:00 a.m. EST) today, Wednesday February 16, 2022.
In order to attend the webcast and/or conference call you may do one of the following:
Attend by Webcast:Use to the follow link prior to the webcast:
https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/42dfa2a2
Attend by Conference Call:Applicable dial-in telephone numbers are as follows:
Norway: +47 21 56 30 15United Kingdom: +44 (0) 2071 928 338United Kingdom, local: 08444 819 752United States: +1 646 741 3167United States (toll free): +1 877 870 9135
Confirmation Code: 3025688
A Q&A session will be held after the conference/webcast. Information on how to submit questions will be given at the beginning of the session.
The presentation material which will be used in the conference/webcast will be published separetely and also made available on www.flexlng.com. Replay details of the webcast will be available at this website.
For further information, please contact:Knut Traaholt, Chief Financial Officer of Flex LNG Management ASTelephone: +47 23 11 40 00Email: ir@flexlng.com
Forward-Looking StatementsMatters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words "believe," "expect," "forecast," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "possible," "potential," "pending," "target," "project," "likely," "may," "will," "would," "should," "could" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Company’s records and other data available from third parties. Although management believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Company’s control, there can be no assurance that the Company will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. As such, these forward-looking statements are not guarantees of the Company’s future performance, and actual results and future developments may vary materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation, and specifically declines any obligation, except as required by applicable law or regulation, to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company to predict all of these factors. Further, the Company cannot assess the effect 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.In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in the Company’s view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include: unforeseen liabilities, future capital expenditures, the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the LNG tanker market, the length and severity of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the LNG tanker market, the impact of public health threats and outbreaks of other highly communicable diseases, changes in the Company’s operating expenses, including bunker prices, dry-docking and insurance costs, the fuel efficiency of the Company’s vessels, the market for the Company’s vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, ability to comply with covenants in such financing arrangements, failure of counterparties to fully perform their contracts with the Company, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, including those that may limit the commercial useful lives of LNG tankers, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessel breakdowns and instances of off-hire, and other factors, including those that may be described from time to time in the reports and other documents that the Company files with or furnishes to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“Other Reports”). For a more complete discussion of certain of these and other risks and uncertainties associated with the Company, please refer to the Other Reports.
1 Time Charter Equivalent rate, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted net income/(loss) and Adjusted earnings/(loss) per share are non-GAAP measures. A reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP measure is included in the end of this earnings report.
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