Selected Financial Data

The selected historical consolidated and combined financial data set out below as of December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018 and for the years ended December 31, 2019, December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017 have been derived from the consolidated and combined audited financial statements included in this annual report. The selected historical consolidated and combined financial data set out below as of December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 and for the year ended December 31, 2016 and 2015 have been derived from our audited consolidated and combined financial statements that can be found in the Registration Statement on Form 20-F (Registration No. 001-384401), initially filed with the SEC on March 23, 2018, as amended, or the Registration Statement. The financial statements of the company represent, prior to June 18, 2018, the combined financial statements of GSSA and GSPL and, on and subsequent to June 18, 2018, the consolidated financial statements of Grindrod Shipping as a separate publicly traded company following the Spin-Off. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” for additional information. The other financial and operating data presented has been calculated as described in the footnotes to the table below. This table contains certain information regarding TCE per day, vessel operating costs per day and long-term charter-in costs per day, which are non-GAAP measures. For a discussion and reconciliation of these measures, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Non-GAAP Financial Measures”. 

The following table sets forth certain other financial and operating data for key segments⁽¹⁾ of our drybulk carriers and tankers businesses. This data should be read together with “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.”

Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not applicable.

RISK FACTORS

In addition to the other information included in this annual report, the considerations listed below could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations, or cash flows, or ability to pay dividends, or future prospects, or financial performance, resulting in a decline in the trading price of Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares. The risks set forth below comprise all material risks currently known to us. These factors should be considered carefully, together with the information and financial data set forth in this annual report.

Risks Related to Our Industry

Weak economic conditions throughout the world, in particular in China and the rest of the Asia-Pacific region, could negatively affect the markets in which we operate which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows, results of operations and ability to obtain financing.

Negative trends in the global economy that emerged in 2008 continue to adversely affect global economic conditions. In addition, the world economy is currently facing a number of new challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and recent turmoil and hostilities in various regions, including Russia, North Korea, the Middle East, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Egypt and North Africa. The weakness in the global economy has caused, and may cause, a decrease in worldwide demand for certain goods, and, thus, shipping. Additionally, there has historically been a strong link between the development of the world economy and demand for energy, including oil and gas, and other commodities. An extended period of deterioration in the outlook for the world economy could reduce the overall demand for oil and gas and other commodities and for our services. Continuing economic instability could have a material adverse effect on our ability to implement our business strategy.

The United States, Europe and other parts of the world have exhibited weak economic trends. The credit markets in the United States and Europe have experienced significant contraction, deleveraging and reduced liquidity, and the U.S. federal and state governments and European authorities have implemented and/or are considering a broad variety of governmental action and/or new regulation of the financial markets and may implement additional regulations in the future. Securities and futures markets and the credit markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and other requirements. The Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, other regulators, self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies, and may effect changes in law or interpretations of existing laws.

Continued economic slowdown in the Asia Pacific region, particularly in China, may exacerbate the effect on us, as we anticipate a significant number of the port calls made by our vessels and those of our competitors will continue to involve the loading or discharging of drybulk and liquid bulk commodities in ports in the Asia Pacific region. Before the global financial crisis that began in 2008, China had one of the world’s fastest growing economies in terms of GDP, which had a significant impact on shipping demand. The growth rate of China’s GDP is estimated to have decreased to approximately 6.1% for the year ended December 31, 2019 and it continues to remain below pre-2008 levels despite the overall level of demand for seaborne cargoes from China having increased since 2008. It is possible that China and other countries in the Asia Pacific region will continue to experience slowed or even negative economic growth in the future. Moreover, economic slowdown in the economies of the United States, Europe and other Asian countries may further adversely affect economic growth in China and elsewhere. Our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations, as well as our future prospects, will likely be materially and adversely affected by a further economic downturn in any of these countries or geographic regions.

Global financial markets and economic conditions have been and continue to be volatile. Credit markets and the debt and equity capital markets have been distressed and the uncertainty surrounding the future of the global credit markets has resulted in reduced access to credit worldwide. These issues, along with significant write-offs in the financial services sector, the re-pricing of credit risk and the current weak economic conditions, have made, and will likely continue to make, it challenging to obtain additional financing. In addition, the current state of global financial markets and current economic conditions might adversely impact our ability to issue additional equity at prices which will not be dilutive to our existing shareholders or preclude us from issuing equity at all.

Also, as a result of concerns about the stability of financial markets generally and the solvency of counterparties specifically, the cost of obtaining money from the credit markets has increased as many lenders have increased interest rates, enacted tighter lending standards, refused to refinance existing debt at all or on terms similar to current debt and reduced, and in some cases ceased to provide, funding to borrowers. Due to these factors, we cannot be certain that financing will be available to the extent required to implement our business strategy, or that we will be able to refinance our credit facilities in due course, on acceptable terms or at all. If financing or refinancing is not available when needed, or is available only on unfavorable terms, we may be unable to meet our obligations as they become due or we may be unable to enhance our existing business, acquire newbuildings and additional vessels or otherwise take advantage of business opportunities as they arise.

We face risks attendant to changes in economic environments, changes in interest rates, and instability in the banking and securities markets around the world, among other factors. Major market disruptions and adverse changes in market conditions and regulatory climate in the United States and worldwide may adversely affect our business or affect our ability to borrow amounts under credit facilities or any future financial arrangements. The recent and developing economic and governmental factors, together with possible further declines in charter rates and vessel values, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

In the global economy, operating businesses have recently faced tightening credit, weakening demand for goods and services, weak international liquidity conditions, and declining markets. In particular, lower demand growth for drybulk and tanker cargoes as well as diminished trade credit available for the delivery of such cargoes have led to decreased demand for drybulk carriers and tankers, creating downward pressure on charter rates, the spot market and vessel values. These global economic conditions have and may continue to have a number of adverse consequences for drybulk, tanker and other shipping sectors, including, among other things:

The occurrence of one or more of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Outbreaks of epidemic and pandemic diseases, and governmental responses thereto, could adversely affect our business. The COVID-19 pandemic, and measures to contain its spread, have impacted the markets in which we operate and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The COVID-19 pandemic, and measures to contain its spread, have negatively impacted regional and global economies and trade patterns in markets in which we operate, the way we operate our business, and the businesses of our customers and suppliers. Governments in affected countries are imposing travel bans, quarantines and other emergency public health measures and a number of countries have implemented lockdown measures. Companies, including us, are also taking precautions, such as requiring employees to work remotely, and imposing travel restrictions. These restrictions have had an adverse impact on global economic conditions, resulted in turmoil in the shipping, credit and other markets which affect us, and introduced new risks to our operations, some of which may not yet have become evident to us. As a result of these measures, our vessels may not be able to call on ports, or may be restricted from departing from ports, and the duration of voyages may increase in order to accommodate mandatory minimum periods between port calls which could increase our costs and delay the due date for payment of freight to us. In addition we may experience severe operational disruptions and delays, unavailability of normal port infrastructure and services including limited access to equipment, critical goods and personnel, closure of ports and customs offices, inability to renew or maintain the required classifications of our vessels, difficulty in executing vessel purchases or sales, potential decreases in the market values of vessels and related impairment charges, disruptions to crew change, quarantine of ships and/or crew, counterparty credit strength, limitations on sources of cash and liquidity, noncompliance with covenants in our credit facilities and financing lease obligations, as well as disruptions in the supply chain and industrial production which may lead to reduced cargo supply and/or the demand for such cargo, including oil, and thus to a decline in the demand for our services, among other potential consequences. Ongoing prevention and mitigation measures, and negative economic and trade impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak could materially and adversely affect our future operations, our business, financial condition and cash flows. The extent of the COVID-19 outbreak’s effect on our operational and financial performance will depend on future developments, including the duration, spread and intensity of the outbreak, all of which are uncertain and difficult to predict considering the rapidly evolving situation. As a result, the ultimate severity of the COVID-19 outbreak is uncertain at this time and therefore we cannot predict the impact it may have on our future operations, which impact could be material and adverse.

Charter rates for drybulk carriers are volatile and have declined significantly since their historic highs and may remain at relatively low levels or decrease in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The drybulk shipping industry is cyclical with high volatility in charter rates and profitability. The degree of charter rate volatility among different types of drybulk carriers has varied widely; however, the downturn in the drybulk charter market has severely affected the entire drybulk shipping industry and charter rates for drybulk carriers have declined significantly from historically high levels. In the past, time charter and voyage charter rates for drybulk carriers have declined below operating costs of vessels. The Baltic Dry Index, or the BDI, an index of daily average of charter rates for key drybulk routes published by the Baltic Exchange Limited, which has long been viewed as the main benchmark to monitor the movements of the drybulk vessel charter market and the performance of the entire drybulk shipping market, declined approximately 97.5% from its high of 11,793 in May 2008 to 290 on February 10, 2016 and has remained volatile since then. During the year ended December 31, 2019, the BDI fluctuated in a range between 595 and 2,518. As of April 30, 2020, the BDI was 635. 

Fluctuations in charter rates result from changes in the supply of and demand for vessel capacity and changes in the supply of and demand for the major drybulk commodities carried by water internationally. Because the factors affecting the supply of and demand for vessels are outside of our control and are unpredictable, the nature, timing, direction and degree of changes in industry conditions are also unpredictable. Since we currently employ our vessels primarily in the spot market or spot market-oriented pools and do not have a significant amount of fixed revenue cover, we are exposed to the cyclicality and volatility of the spot market. Spot rates may fluctuate significantly based upon the supply of and demand for seaborne shipping capacity, and we may employ our vessels in these short-term markets at lower rates. Alternatively, charter rates available in the spot market may be insufficient to enable our vessels to operate profitably. A significant decrease in charter rates would adversely affect asset values and our profitability, cash flows and ability to pay dividends, if any, in the future, on our ordinary shares, and capital and interest on our indebtedness. Furthermore, a significant decrease in charter rates would cause asset values to decline and we may have to record an impairment charge in our financial statements which could adversely affect our financial results.

Factors that influence demand for drybulk carrier capacity include:

Factors that influence the supply of drybulk carrier capacity include:

In addition to the prevailing and anticipated charter rates, factors that affect the rate of newbuilding, scrapping and laying-up include newbuilding prices, secondhand vessel values in relation to newbuilding and scrap prices, costs of bunkers and other operating costs, costs associated with classification society surveys, normal maintenance and insurance coverage costs, the efficiency and age profile of the existing drybulk fleet in the market and government and industry regulation of maritime transportation practices, particularly environmental protection laws and regulations. These and other factors influencing the supply of and demand for shipping capacity are outside of our control, and we may not be able to correctly assess the nature, timing and degree of changes in industry conditions.

We anticipate that the future demand for our drybulk carriers will be dependent upon economic growth in the world’s economies, mainly China and India, seasonal and regional changes in demand, changes in the capacity of the global drybulk fleet and the sources and supply of drybulk cargo to be transported by sea. Adverse economic, political, social or other developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Charter rates for tankers are volatile, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The tanker industry is cyclical and volatile in terms of charter rates and profitability. A worsening of current global economic conditions may cause tanker charter rates to decline and thereby adversely affect our ability to employ our vessels or to sell them on the expiration or termination of their employment, or any renewal or replacement employment that we enter into may not be sufficient to allow us to operate our vessels profitably. Fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values result from changes in the supply of and demand for tanker capacity and changes in the supply of and demand for oil and oil products and other liquid bulk cargoes. The factors affecting the supply of and demand for tankers are outside of our control, and the nature, timing and degree of changes in industry conditions are unpredictable. The BCTI, an index of daily average of charter rates for key clean tanker routes published by the Baltic Exchange Limited, which has long been viewed as a main benchmark to monitor the movements of the clean tanker vessel charter market and the performance of the entire clean tanker shipping market, declined approximately 82.3% from its high of 1,955 in December 2000 to 345 in April 2009 and has remained volatile since then. During the year ended December 31, 2019, the BCTI fluctuated in a range between 448 and 1,031. As of April 30, 2020, the BCTI was 1,912.

Fluctuations in charter rates result from changes in the supply of and demand for vessel capacity and changes in the supply of and demand for the major large bulk liquid commodities carried by water internationally. Because the factors affecting the supply of and demand for vessels are outside of our control and are unpredictable, the nature, timing, direction and degree of changes in industry conditions are also unpredictable. Since we currently employ our vessels primarily in the spot market or spot market-oriented pools and do not have a significant amount of fixed revenue cover, we are exposed to the cyclicality and volatility of the spot market. Spot rates may fluctuate significantly based upon the supply of and demand for seaborne shipping capacity, and we may be unable to keep our vessels fully employed in these short-term markets. Alternatively, charter rates available in the spot market may be insufficient to enable our vessels to operate profitably. A significant decrease in charter rates would adversely affect asset values and our profitability, cash flows and ability to pay dividends, if any, in the future, on our ordinary shares, and capital and interest on our indebtedness. Furthermore, a significant decrease in charter rates would cause asset values to decline and we may have to record an impairment charge in our financial statements which could adversely affect our financial results.

The factors that influence demand for clean tanker capacity include:

The factors that influence the supply of tanker capacity include:

In addition to the prevailing and anticipated charter rates, factors that affect the rate of newbuilding, scrapping and laying-up, include newbuilding prices, secondhand vessel values in relation to scrap prices, costs of bunkers and other operating costs, costs associated with classification society surveys, normal maintenance costs, insurance coverage costs, the efficiency and age profile of the existing tanker fleet in the market, and government and industry regulation of maritime transportation practices, particularly environmental protection laws and regulations. These factors influencing the supply of and demand for shipping capacity are outside of our control, and we may not be able to correctly assess the nature, timing and degree of changes in industry conditions.

We anticipate that the future demand for our tankers will be dependent upon economic growth in the world’s economies, seasonal and regional changes in demand, changes in the capacity of the global tanker fleet and the sources and supply of oil and petroleum products and other liquid bulk cargoes to be transported by sea. Given the number of new tankers currently on order with the shipyards, the capacity of the global tanker fleet seems likely to increase and there can be no assurance as to the timing or extent of future economic growth. Adverse economic, political, social or other developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The fair market values of our drybulk carriers and tankers are volatile and may decline in the future, which could limit the amount of funds that we can borrow, cause us to breach certain financial covenants in our credit facilities, or result in an impairment charge, and we may incur a loss if we sell a vessel following a decline in its market value.

The fair market values of our drybulk carriers and tankers have generally experienced high volatility and have declined significantly from time to time. The fair market value of our vessels may continue to fluctuate depending on a number of factors, including:

If the fair market values of our vessels decline, the amount of funds we may draw down under our credit facilities may be limited and we may not be in compliance with certain covenants contained in our credit facilities, which may result in an event of default. In such circumstances, we may not be able to refinance our debt or obtain additional financing. If we are not able to comply with the covenants in our credit facilities, and are unable to remedy the relevant breach, our lenders could accelerate our debt and foreclose on the mortgaged vessels in our Fleet. In addition, if we sell one or more of our vessels at a time when vessel prices have fallen, the sale may be less than the vessel’s carrying value on our financial statements, resulting in a loss on sale and a reduction in earnings, which could be material. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Liquidity and Capital Resources”.

Conversely, if vessel values are elevated at a time when we wish to acquire additional vessels, the cost of such acquisitions may increase and this could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

An inability to effectively time investments in and divestments of vessels could prevent the implementation of our business strategy and negatively impact our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In order to maintain a young fleet we are required to replace older vessels with newer ones over time. In order to do so, we intend to grow our Fleet by entering into long-term chartering and newbuildings contracts and making acquisitions and disposals in the resale and second-hand markets. Our business is greatly influenced by long-term chartering contracts, the timing of investments and/or divestments, the exercise of our purchase options to acquire vessels and contracting of newbuildings. As of the date of this annual report, we have purchase options to acquire five vessels that we time charter, including two chartered-in vessels currently under construction. For a discussion of the terms of these purchase options, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Overview”. If we are unable to identify the optimal timing of such investments, of the exercise of our purchase options, of divestments or of contracting of newbuildings in relation to the shipping value cycle or unable to execute at the optimal timing due to capital constraints or other reasons, this could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Drybulk carrier and tanker values have generally experienced high volatility. Investors can expect the fair market value of our vessels to fluctuate, depending on general economic and market conditions affecting the drybulk and tanker industries and competition from other shipping companies, types and sizes of vessels and other modes of transportation. In addition, as vessels age, they generally decline in value. These factors will affect the value of our vessels for purposes of covenant compliance under the credit facilities and at the time of any vessel sale. If for any reason we sell a vessel at a time when vessel prices have fallen, the sale may be at less than such vessel’s carrying amount on our financial statements, with the result that we could also incur a material loss on the sale and a reduction in earnings and reserves. The carrying values of our vessels may not represent their fair market value at any point in time. At the end of each reporting period and on a continuous basis, if indicators of impairment are present, the carrying amount of tangible and intangible assets is assessed to determine whether there is any indication that those assets may have suffered an impairment loss. We also assess the carrying value of an asset when we have contracted to divest of the asset for any reason, including the age of our vessels, if a joint venture that owns vessels comes to an end in accordance with its terms or if the asset no longer fits into our strategic planning. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Critical Accounting Policies”.

An over-supply of drybulk carrier and tanker capacity may prolong or lead to a reduction or depression in drybulk carrier or tanker charter rates, as has happened in the past, and lead to a reduction in the value of our vessels, which may limit our ability to operate our drybulk carriers and tankers profitably.

The market supply of drybulk carriers has increased significantly since the beginning of 2005. As of May 2020, newbuilding orders, which extend to 2022 and beyond, had been placed for approximately 8.1% of the existing global drybulk fleet capacity for drybulk vessels greater than 10,000 dwt, and the orderbook may increase further. Drybulk carrier supply growth has been outpacing drybulk carrier demand growth over the past few years, causing downward pressure on drybulk charter rates. If the capacity of new drybulk carriers delivered exceeds the capacity of drybulk carriers being scrapped, drybulk capacity will increase. Until the new supply is fully absorbed by the market, drybulk charter rates may continue to be under pressure in the near to medium term and this could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

The market supply of tankers is affected by a number of factors, such as supply of and demand for energy resources, including oil and petroleum products, supply of and demand for seaborne transportation of such energy resources and other liquid bulk cargoes, and the current and expected purchase orders for newbuildings. If the capacity of new tankers delivered exceeds the capacity of tankers being scrapped and converted to non-trading tankers, global tanker capacity will increase. As of May 2020, the newbuilding oil tanker orderbook, which extends to 2022 and beyond, equaled approximately 7.8% of the existing global oil tanker fleet and the order book may increase further in proportion to the existing global oil tanker fleet. If the supply of tanker capacity increases and if the demand for tanker capacity does not increase correspondingly or declines, charter rates could materially decline. A reduction in charter rates and the value of our vessels could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, tankers may be “cleaned up” from “dirty/crude” trades and swapped back into the clean tanker market which would increase the available clean tanker tonnage which may affect the supply and demand balance for clean tankers and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We operate in the highly competitive international shipping industry and we may not be able to compete for charters and contracts of affreightment, or COAs, with new entrants or established companies with greater resources, and, as a result, we may be unable to employ our vessels profitably.

Our vessels are employed in a highly competitive market that is capital intensive and highly fragmented. The competition in the market is based primarily on supply and demand and we compete for charters and COAs on the basis of price, vessel location, size, age, the condition of the vessel, our and our third-party commercial managers’ reputations, and, particularly in the tanker sector, the acceptability of the vessel and its technical managers and operators to the charterers.

We compete primarily with other independent and state-owned drybulk and tanker vessel-owners. Our competitors may have more resources than us and may operate vessels that are newer, and therefore more attractive to charterers, than our vessels. Ownership and control of drybulk carriers and tankers is highly fragmented and is divided among a large number of players including publicly listed and privately owned shipping companies, major oil companies, mining companies, commodity trading houses, private equity and other investment funds and state-controlled owners. In the tanker market a part of the trade is captive especially to major and national oil company fleets. Ownership and control in the drybulk sector is rather more fragmented than in the case of the tanker sector. Due in part to the highly fragmented markets in which we operate, competitors with greater resources could enter the drybulk or tanker shipping industries and operate larger fleets through consolidations or acquisitions and may be able to offer lower charter rates and higher quality vessels than we are able to offer. If we are unable to successfully compete with other drybulk or tanker shipping companies, our competitors may be able to offer better prices than us, which could result in our achieving lower revenue from our vessels and our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Our drybulk and tanker shipping charter rates will be subject to seasonal fluctuations, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We operate our drybulk carriers and tankers in markets that have historically exhibited seasonal variations in demand and, as a result, in charter rates. This seasonality may result in volatility in our operating results to the extent that we enter into new charter agreements or renew existing agreements during a time when charter rates are weaker or we operate our vessels in the spot market or on index-based time charters or have index-based COAs, which may result in quarter-to-quarter volatility in our operating results.

The drybulk sector is typically stronger in the northern hemisphere fall and winter months in anticipation of increased consumption of coal and other raw materials in the northern hemisphere. The celebration of Chinese New Year in the first quarter of each year, also results in lower volumes of seaborne trade into China during this period.

The tanker sector is typically stronger in the northern hemisphere winter months as a result of increased oil consumption in the northern hemisphere but can be weaker in the summer months as a result of lower oil consumption in the northern hemisphere and refinery maintenance that is typically conducted in the summer months. The oil price volatility resulting from these factors has historically led to increased oil trading activities in the winter months.

In addition, unpredictable weather patterns tend to disrupt vessel routing and scheduling as well as the supply of certain commodities. 

We are subject to complex laws and regulations, including environmental and safety regulations that can adversely affect the cost, manner or feasibility of doing business.

Our operations are subject to numerous international, national, state and local laws, regulations, treaties and conventions in force in international waters and the jurisdictions in which our vessels operate or are registered, which can significantly affect the ownership and operation of our vessels. These laws and regulations include, but are not limited to, the U.S. Oil Pollution Act of 1990, or OPA, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, or CERCLA, the U.S. Clean Air Act of 1970, as amended by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977 and 1990, or the CAA, the U.S. Clean Water Act, or the CWA, and the U.S. Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, or the MTSA, and regulations of the UN International Maritime Organization, or IMO, including the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships of 1973 (as from time to time amended and generally referred to as MARPOL) including the designation of Emission Control Areas, or ECAs, thereunder, the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea of 1974 (as from time to time amended and generally referred to as SOLAS), the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage of 2001 (as from time to time amended and generally referred to as BUNKER), the International Convention of Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage of 1969 (as from time to time amended and generally referred to as CLC), the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, or the ISPS code, and the International Convention on Load Lines of 1966 (as from time to time amended), or the LL Convention.

Compliance with such laws, regulations and standards, where applicable, may require installation of costly equipment or implementation of operational changes, such as the purchase of low-sulfur fuel to comply with the IMO 2020 regulations, and the need for such actions may affect the resale value or useful lives of our vessels. These costs could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations, or our ability to offer competitive charter rates. A failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations may result in administrative and civil penalties, criminal sanctions or the suspension or termination of our operations. Because such conventions, laws, and regulations are often revised, we cannot predict the ultimate cost of complying with them or the impact thereof on the fair market values or useful lives of our vessels. Additional conventions, laws and regulations may be adopted which could limit our ability to do business or increase the cost of our doing business and which may materially adversely affect our operations. For example, the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, or the BWM Convention, adopted by the IMO in February 2004, calls for the phased introduction of mandatory reducing living organism limits in ballast water over time (as discussed further below). In order to comply with these living organism limits, vessel owners may have to install expensive ballast water treatment systems or make port facility disposal arrangements and modify existing vessels to accommodate those systems. The BWM Convention entered into force on September 8, 2017 and while we believe that our vessels have been or will be fitted with systems that will comply with the standards, we cannot be assured that these systems will be approved by the regulatory bodies of every jurisdiction in which we may wish to conduct our business. If they are not approved it could have a materially adverse impact on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations depending on the available ballast water treatment systems and the extent to which existing vessels must be modified to accommodate such systems, the direct costs thereof and the time our vessels may be off hire to effect such modifications.

Environmental laws often impose strict liability for remediation of spills and releases of oil and hazardous substances, which could subject us to liability without regard to whether we were negligent or at fault. Under OPA, for example, owners, operators and bareboat charterers are jointly and severally strictly liable for the discharge of oil within the 200-mile exclusive economic zone around the United States (unless the spill results solely from, under certain limited circumstances, the act or omission of a third party, an act of God or an act of war). An oil spill could result in significant liability, including fines, penalties, criminal liability and remediation costs for natural resource damages under other international and U.S. federal, state and local laws, as well as third-party damages, including punitive damages, and could harm our reputation with current or potential charterers of our drybulk carriers and tankers.

We are required by various governmental and quasi-governmental agencies to obtain certain permits, licenses, and certificates with respect to our operations, and satisfy insurance and financial responsibility requirements for potential oil (including marine fuel) spills and other pollution incidents. Although we have insurance to cover certain environmental risks, there can be no assurance that such insurance will be sufficient to cover all such risks or that any claims will not have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows, or results of operations. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Business Overview—Environmental and Other Regulations”.

Our growth depends on continued growth in demand for oil and coal and the continued demand for seaborne transportation of such cargoes. A shift in consumer demand from oil and coal towards other energy sources or changes to trade patterns for refined oil products or coal could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

A significant portion of our earnings are related, directly or indirectly, to the global demand for oil and coal. A shift in the consumer demand from oil and coal towards other energy resources such as liquefied natural gas, wind energy, solar energy, or water energy will potentially affect the demand for our drybulk carriers and tankers. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In addition, our growth depends on continued growth in world and regional demand for refined petroleum products and bulk liquid chemicals and the transportation of such cargoes by sea, which could be negatively affected by a number of factors, including:

Seaborne trading and distribution patterns are primarily influenced by the relative advantage of the various sources and locations of production, locations of consumption, pricing differentials and seasonality. Changes to the trade patterns of refined oil products or coal may have a significant negative or positive impact on our revenue. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The refining and chemical industries may respond to any economic downturn and demand weakness by reducing operating rates, partially or completely closing refineries and plants and by reducing or cancelling certain investment expansion plans, including plans for additional refining capacity, in the case of the refining industry. Continued reduced demand for refined petroleum products and other bulk liquids and the shipping of such cargoes or the increased availability of pipelines used to transport refined petroleum products and bulk liquid chemicals would have a material adverse effect on our future growth and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

If we cannot meet our customers’ quality and compliance requirements we may not be able to operate our vessels profitably which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Customers, and in particular those in the oil industry, have a high and increasing focus on quality and compliance standards with their suppliers across the entire value chain, including the shipping and transportation segment. Our continuous compliance with these 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 a continuous decrease in the quality concerning one or more vessels occurring over time. Moreover, continuously increasing requirements from oil industry constituents can further complicate our ability to meet the standards. Any noncompliance by us, either suddenly or over a period of time, on one or more vessels, or an increase in requirements by oil operators above and beyond what we deliver, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

World events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Past terrorist attacks, as well as the threat of future terrorist attacks around the world, continue to cause uncertainty in the world’s financial markets and may affect our business, operating results and financial condition. Continuing conflicts and recent developments in Russia, North Korea, the Middle East, including Iran, Iraq, Syria, Egypt and North Africa, and the presence of the United States or other armed forces in the Middle East, may lead to additional acts of terrorism and armed conflict around the world, which may contribute to further economic instability in the global financial markets. Recently, government leaders have declared that their countries may turn to trade barriers to protect or revive their domestic industries in the face of foreign imports. These uncertainties could also adversely affect our ability to obtain additional financing on terms acceptable to us or at all. War in a country in which a material supplier, including crew supply services, or customer of ours is located could impact that supply to us or our ability to earn revenue from that customer. In the past, political conflicts have also resulted in attacks on vessels, mining of waterways and other efforts to disrupt international shipping, particularly in the Arabian Gulf region. Acts of terrorism and piracy have also affected vessels trading in regions such as the South China Sea, the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia and West Africa. Restrictions on imports, including in the form of tariffs, as discussed further below, have had and could have a major impact on global trade and demand for shipping. Please also refer to “—Outbreaks of epidemic and pandemic diseases, and governmental responses thereto, could adversely affect our business. COVID-19, and measures to contain its spread, have impacted the markets we operate in and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.” above. Any of these occurrences could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

An increase in trade protectionism and the unraveling of multilateral trade agreements could have a material adverse impact on our charterers’ business and, in turn, could cause a material adverse impact on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

Our operations expose us to the risk that increased trade protectionism will adversely affect our business. Recently, government leaders have declared that their countries may turn to trade barriers to protect or revive their domestic industries in the face of foreign imports, thereby depressing the demand for shipping. The United Kingdom left the European Union on January 31, 2020, and its international trade arrangements with the European Union and other trade partners may change. In the United States, the current administration has created significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the United States and other exporting countries, including with respect to trade policies, treaties, government regulations and tariffs. The U.S. presidential administration has stated that it rejects multilateral trade agreements in favor of bilateral relations and purports to seek more favorable terms in its dealings with its trade partners. The U.S. administration has in certain instances resorted to aggressive tactics, such as the imposition of punitive tariffs, in order to achieve these goals. 

Restrictions on imports, including in the form of tariffs, has had and could continue to have a major impact on global trade and demand for shipping. Specifically, increasing trade protectionism in the markets that our charterers serve may cause an increase in (i) the cost of goods exported from exporting countries such as China and Mexico, (ii) the length of time required to deliver goods from exporting countries, (iii) the costs of such delivery and (iv) the risks associated with exporting goods. These factors may result in a decrease in the quantity of goods to be shipped. Protectionist developments, or the perception they may occur, may have a material adverse effect on global economic conditions, and has and may continue to significantly reduce or otherwise impact global trade, including trade between the United States and China. These developments would have an adverse impact on our charterers’ business, operating results and financial condition. This could, in turn, affect our charterers’ ability to make timely charter hire payments to us and impair our ability to renew charters and grow our business. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition, as well as our cash flows

Acts of piracy on ocean-going vessels may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Acts of piracy have historically affected ocean-going vessels trading in regions of the world such as the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia and, in more recent times, the Gulf of Guinea. Sea piracy incidents continue to occur, particularly in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Guinea and the west coast of Africa, with drybulk carriers and tankers particularly vulnerable to such attacks. Acts of piracy may result in death or injury to persons or damage to property. If these piracy attacks result in regions in which our vessels are deployed being characterized as “war risk” zones by insurers or by the Joint War Committee of Lloyds Insurance and IUA Company, or Joint War Committee, as “war and strikes” listed areas, premiums payable for such coverage could increase significantly and such insurance coverage may be more difficult to obtain. In addition, crew costs, including costs of employing on-board security guards, could increase in such circumstances. In some circumstances where one of our vessels is chartered-out or on time charter, the time charterer may have limited liability for charter payments in the event of an act of piracy and may also claim that a vessel seized by pirates is not “on-hire” for a certain number of days and that they are therefore entitled to cancel the charter party, a claim that we would dispute. Voyage charterers do not bear any of the liability relating to acts of piracy except for possible contributions in general average. We may not be adequately insured to cover losses from these incidents, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, any hijacking as a result of an act of piracy against our vessels, or an increase in cost, or unavailability, of insurance for our vessels, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We are subject to international safety regulations and requirements imposed by our classification societies and the failure to comply with these regulations and requirements may subject us to increased liability, may adversely affect our insurance coverage and may result in a denial of access to, or detention in, certain ports.

The operation of our vessels is affected by the requirements set forth in the International Management Code for the Safe Operation of Ships and for Pollution Prevention, or the ISM Code. The ISM Code requires vessel owners, vessel managers and bareboat charterers to develop and maintain an extensive “Safety Management System” that includes the adoption of a safety and environmental protection policy setting forth instructions and procedures for safe operation of vessels and describing procedures for dealing with emergencies. In addition, vessel classification societies impose significant safety and other requirements on our vessels. The failure of a vessel owner or bareboat charterer to comply with the ISM Code may subject it to increased liability, may invalidate existing insurance or decrease available insurance coverage for the affected vessels and may result in a denial of access to, or detention in, certain ports. Each of our vessels is ISM Code-certified or will be ISM Code-certified when delivered to us. However, if we are subject to increased liability for non-compliance, if our insurance coverage is adversely impacted as a result of non-compliance or if any of our vessels are denied access to, or are detained in, certain ports as a result of non-compliance with the ISM Code, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In addition, the hull and machinery of every commercial vessel must be classed by a classification society authorized by its country of registry. The classification society certifies that a vessel is safe and seaworthy in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of the country of registry of the vessel and SOLAS. The cost of maintaining our vessels’ classifications, or class, may be substantial. If any vessel does not maintain its class or fails any annual, intermediate or special survey, the vessel will be unable to trade between ports and will be unemployable and uninsurable, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Increased inspection procedures and tighter import and export controls could increase costs and disrupt our business.

International shipping is subject to various security and customs inspection and related procedures in countries of origin and destination and trans-shipment points. Inspection procedures may result in the seizure of contents of our vessels, delays in the loading, offloading, trans-shipment or delivery and the levying of customs duties, fines or other penalties against us.

It is possible that changes to inspection procedures could impose additional financial and legal obligations on us. Changes to inspection procedures could also impose additional costs and obligations on our customers and may, in certain cases, render the shipment of certain types of cargo uneconomical or impractical. Any such changes or developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Changes in fuel, or bunker, prices may adversely affect our profits.

Fuel, or bunkers, is a significant portion of our expenses when we are responsible for voyage expenses in operating our vessels and changes in the price of fuel may adversely affect our profitability. The price and supply of fuel is unpredictable and fluctuates based on events outside our control, including geopolitical developments, supply of and demand for oil and gas, actions by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, and other oil and gas producers, war and unrest in oil producing countries and regions, regional production patterns and environmental concerns. Further, fuel may become much more expensive in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In addition, the purchase of more costly fuels for our vessels to comply with IMO 2020 regulations limiting sulfur content in fuels could negatively affect our business to the extent we are unable to recover the higher costs from our customers, though it is not yet possible to ascertain material trends in the effect the IMO 2020 regulations are having on the market.

A number of vessel owners have ordered so-called “eco-type” vessel designs, which may offer substantial bunker savings as compared to older designs. Increased demand for and supply of “eco-type” vessels could reduce demand for those of our vessels that are not considered as such and expose us to lower vessel utilization and/or decreased charter rates.

New vessel designs purport to offer material bunker savings compared to older designs, which include certain of our vessels. Such savings could result in a substantial reduction of bunker cost for charterers compared to vessels of ours. As the supply of “eco-type” vessels increases and if charterers prefer such vessels over our vessels that are not classified as such, this may reduce demand for our non-“eco-type” vessels, impair our ability to re-charter such vessels at competitive rates and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We operate drybulk carriers and tankers worldwide and, as a result, our business has inherent operational risks, which may reduce our revenue or increase our expenses, and we may not be adequately covered by insurance.

The international shipping industry is an inherently risky business involving global operations of ocean-going vessels. Our vessels and their cargoes are at risk of being damaged or lost because of events such as marine disasters, bad weather, mechanical failures, human error, environmental accidents, war, terrorism, piracy and other circumstances or events. In addition, transporting cargoes across a wide variety of international jurisdictions creates a risk of business interruptions due to political circumstances in foreign countries, hostilities, labor strikes and boycotts, the potential for changes in tax rates or policies, and the potential for government expropriation of our vessels. Any of these events may result in loss of revenue, increased costs and decreased cash flows to our customers, which could impair their ability to make payments to us under our charters.

Changing economic, regulatory and political conditions in some countries, including political and military conflicts, have from time to time resulted in attacks on vessels, mining of waterways, piracy, terrorism, labor strikes and boycotts. These hazards may result in death or injury to persons, loss of revenue or property, payment of ransoms, environmental damage, higher insurance rates, damage to our customer relationships, market disruptions, and interference with shipping routes (such as delay or rerouting), which may reduce our revenue or increase our expenses and also subject us to litigation.

If our vessels suffer damage, they may need to be repaired at a drydocking facility. The costs of drydock repairs are unpredictable and can be substantial. We may have to pay drydocking costs that our insurance does not cover in full. In addition, space at drydocking facilities is sometimes limited and not all drydocking facilities are conveniently located. We may be unable to find space at a suitable drydocking facility or we may be forced to travel to a drydocking facility that is distant from the relevant vessel’s position. The loss of earnings while our vessels are being repaired and repositioned or from being forced to wait for space, as well as the actual cost of repairs, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Additionally, in certain cases we bareboat charter our vessels. Such vessels could require significant repairs when the vessel is returned to us. 

The operation of any vessel is subject to the inherent possibility of marine disaster, including oil spills and other environmental mishaps, and the liabilities arising from owning and operating vessels in international trade.

In addition, the operation of tankers has unique operational risks associated with the transportation of oil, including, among other things, oil spills, which we have experienced in the past and may experience in the future. An oil spill may cause significant environmental damage, and the associated costs could exceed the insurance coverage available to us. Compared to other types of vessels, tankers are exposed to a higher risk of damage and loss by fire, whether ignited by a terrorist attack, collision, or other cause, due to the high flammability and high volume of the oil transported in tankers.

Furthermore, the operation of certain vessel types, such as drybulk carriers, also has certain unique risks. With a drybulk carrier, the cargo itself and its interaction with the vessel can be an operational risk. By their nature, drybulk cargoes are often heavy, dense, easily shifted, and react badly to water exposure. In addition, drybulk carriers are often subjected to battering treatment during unloading operations with grabs, jackhammers (to pry encrusted cargoes out of the hold) and small bulldozers. This treatment may cause damage to the vessel. Vessels damaged due to treatment during unloading procedures may be more susceptible to breach at sea. Hull breaches in drybulk carriers may lead to the flooding of the vessel’s holds. If a drybulk carrier suffers flooding in its forward holds, the bulk cargo may become so dense and waterlogged that its pressure may buckle the vessel’s bulkheads, leading to the loss of a vessel. If we are unable to adequately maintain our vessels, we may be unable to prevent these events. Other bulk cargoes will include a certain amount of moisture and may “liquefy” under certain conditions which can cause the cargo to shift, render the vessel unstable and cause it to sink or suffer damage. Any of these circumstances or events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, the loss of any of our vessels could harm our reputation as a safe and reliable vessel owner and operator.

In the event of a casualty to a vessel or other catastrophic event, we will rely on our insurance to pay the insured value of the vessel or the damages incurred. We procure insurance for the vessels in our Fleet against those risks that we believe the shipping industry commonly insures against. These insurances include marine hull and machinery insurance, protection and indemnity insurance, war risk insurance and freight, demurrage and defense insurance, or FD&D insurance. We insure our vessels for third-party liability claims subject to and in accordance with the rules of the P&I Associations in which the vessels are entered. In this regard we are insured against some contractual claims and tort claims, including environmental damage, pollution and crew personal injury and illness claims (currently the amount of insurance coverage for pollution claims available to us on commercially reasonable terms through P&I Associations is limited to $1 billion per vessel per incident). The objective of a P&I Association is to provide mutual insurance based on the aggregate tonnage of a member’s vessels entered into the association. Claims are paid through the aggregate premiums of all members of the association, although members remain subject to calls for additional funds if the aggregate premiums are insufficient to cover claims payable by the association. Claims payable by the association may include those incurred by members of the association, as well as claims payable by the association from other P&I Associations with which our P&I Association has entered into inter-association agreements. We cannot assure you that the P&I Associations to which we belong will remain viable or that we will not become subject to additional funding calls which could adversely affect us.

We do not currently maintain insurance against loss of hire on our vessels resulting from business interruptions that result from the loss of use of a vessel other than limited loss coverage relating to defined war risk events. The insurers may not pay particular claims as the payment of some claims may be treated as discretionary by the board of directors of the P&I Association. Our insurance policies may contain deductibles for which we will be responsible and limitations and exclusions which may increase our costs or lower our revenue or prevent recovery. Moreover, insurers may default on claims they are required to pay.

We cannot assure you that we will be adequately insured against all risks or that we will be able to obtain adequate insurance coverage at reasonable rates for our vessels in the future, or that we will be able to obtain certain insurance coverage. For example, in the past more stringent environmental regulations have led to increased costs for, and in the future may result in the lack of availability of, insurance against risks of environmental damage or pollution. Additionally, our insurers may refuse to pay particular claims. Any significant loss or liability for which we are not insured could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Maritime claimants could arrest or attach one or more of our vessels, which could interrupt our cash flows.

In certain jurisdictions, an extensive range of claims may give rise to maritime liens, such as claims by suppliers of goods and services to a vessel and cargo claims, and maritime liens against a vessel maybe granted for claims against the time charterer of that vessel. The holder of a maritime lien is entitled to enforce the claim against the vessel notwithstanding that the claim may be against another party that has an interest in the vessel. In addition, in some jurisdictions, such as South Africa under the “associated ship” procedures, a claimant may arrest either the vessel that is subject to the claimant’s maritime claim or any “associated” vessel, which is any other vessel owned by the same owner or is owned by a company that is controlled, directly or indirectly by any person or persons through the owning company or the chartering company, whomever was liable, at the time the claim arose. 

The arrest or attachment of one or more of our vessels could require us to pay large sums of money to have the arrest or attachment lifted. The occurrence of any of the above events could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Labor interruptions could disrupt our business.

We could be subject to industrial action or other labor unrest that could prevent or hinder our operations from being carried out normally. If not resolved in a timely and cost-effective manner, such business interruptions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. These effects would be exacerbated if such a disruption were to occur on one of our vessels that are manned by masters, officers and crews that are employed by third parties that we do not control.

Our vessels may call on ports located in countries that are subject to restrictions imposed by the United States, United Kingdom, United Nations or other governments, which could adversely affect our reputation and the market for our ordinary shares.

Although we do not expect that our vessels will call on ports located in countries subject to sanctions and embargoes imposed by the U.S. government and other authorities or countries identified by the U.S. government or other authorities as state sponsors of terrorism, from time to time on charterers’ instructions, our vessels may call on ports located in such countries in the future. Our vessels have called on ports in Cuba and Sudan on very limited occasions in compliance with applicable sanctions, including with respect to humanitarian shipments arranged by the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID. Prior to each voyage on behalf of USAID, we confirmed that the charterer possessed a license authorizing the transactions under U.S. sanctions laws. The U.S. sanctions and embargo laws and regulations vary in their application, as they do not all apply to the same covered persons or proscribe the same activities, and such sanctions and embargo laws and regulations may be amended or strengthened over time. In 2010, the United States enacted the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions Accountability and Divestment Act, or CISADA, which amended the Iran Sanctions Act. Among other things, CISADA introduced limits on 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. 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. Any persons found to be in violation of Executive Order 13608 will be deemed a foreign sanctions evader and will be banned from all contacts with the United States, including conducting business in U.S. dollars. Also in 2012, President Obama signed into law the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012, or the Iran Threat Reduction Act, which created new sanctions and strengthened existing sanctions. Among other things, the Iran Threat Reduction Act intensifies existing sanctions regarding the provision of goods, services, infrastructure or technology to Iran’s petroleum or petrochemical sector. The Iran Threat Reduction Act 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 that person’s vessels from U.S. ports for up to two years.

On November 24, 2013, the P5+1 (the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia and China) entered into an interim agreement with Iran entitled the “Joint Plan of Action”, or the JPOA. Under the JPOA it was agreed that, in exchange for Iran taking certain voluntary measures to ensure that its nuclear program is used only for peaceful purposes, the United States and E.U. would voluntarily suspend certain sanctions for a period of six months. On January 20, 2014, the United States and E.U. indicated that they would begin implementing the temporary relief measures provided for under the JPOA. These measures included, among other things, the suspension of certain sanctions on the Iranian petrochemicals, precious metals, and automotive industries from January 20, 2014 until July 20, 2014. The JPOA was subsequently extended twice. 

On July 14, 2015, the P5+1 and the E.U. announced that they reached a landmark agreement with Iran titled the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action Regarding the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Nuclear Program, or the JCPOA, which is intended to significantly restrict Iran’s ability to develop and produce nuclear weapons for 10 years while simultaneously easing sanctions directed toward non-U.S. persons for conduct involving Iran, but taking place outside of U.S. jurisdiction and does not involve U.S. persons. On January 16, 2016, which we refer to as Implementation Day, the United States joined the E.U. and the UN in lifting a significant number of their nuclear-related sanctions on Iran following an announcement by the International Atomic Energy Agency, or the IAEA, that Iran had satisfied its respective obligations under the JCPOA. 

On August 2, 2017, the United States enacted the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA. CAATSA authorizes secondary sanctions on persons worldwide who conduct certain business with Iran, Russia, and North Korea. These include secondary sanctions on persons (1) dealing with most sectors of the North Korean economy, including the transportation sector, (2) engaging in any activity related to Iran’s ballistic missile program, including transportation, and (3) dealing with certain activities in the Russian energy sector, including support of Russian energy export pipelines and certain energy projects. On September 21, 2017, President Trump issued an executive order imposing additional sanctions against North Korea, including a prohibition on vessels calling at ports in the United States that have called at North Korean ports within the past 180 days or that have engaged in vessel-to-vessel transfers with vessels that have called at North Korean ports within the past 180 days. On April 6, 2018, the United States imposed sanctions on seven Russian oligarchs and certain companies they own or control, 17 senior Russian government officials, a state-owned Russian weapons trading company, and a Russian bank. These sanctions were imposed in part under CAATSA, and some were specifically for persons operating in the energy sector of the Russian Federation economy. CAATSA also requires the mandatory imposition of secondary sanctions on any non-U.S. person that knowingly facilitates significant transactions for or on behalf of these designated Russian persons or any entities in which they own, directly or indirectly, a 50% or greater interest.

On October 13, 2017, President Trump declined to certify Iran’s compliance with the JCPOA. On January 12, 2018, President Trump announced that the United States did not intend to renew its sanctions waivers under the JCPOA when the waivers next expire on May 12, 2018 unless significant changes were made to the JCPOA. On May 8, 2018, President Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the JCPOA and begin the process of reimposing sanctions that were waived under the JCPOA. The United States determined that these sanctions would be reimposed in two tranches. One set of sanctions was reimposed after a 90-day wind down period that ended August 6, 2018, and the remainder was reimposed after a 180-day wind down period that ended November 4, 2018. All sanctions that were suspended or waived under the JCPOA, including those under CISADA and the Iran Threat Reduction Act, have been in force since November 5, 2018 at the latest. The secondary sanctions related to Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical sectors, energy sector, and port operators, shipping, and shipbuilding sectors were reimposed after the 180-day wind down period that ended November 4, 2018. Since such time, Iran has breached certain of its undertakings in the JCPOA, although the remaining parties to the JCPOA all continue formally to be participants in the JCPOA. On February 21, 2020, Iran was placed on the blacklist of High-Risk Jurisdictions subject to a Call for Action by the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”).

Although we believe that we are in compliance with all applicable sanctions and embargo laws and regulations, and intend to maintain such compliance, there can be no assurance that we will be in compliance in the future, particularly as the scope of certain laws may be unclear and may be subject to changing interpretations. Any such violation could result in an occurrence of an event of default under our credit facilities, fines or other penalties and could severely impact our ability to access U.S. capital markets and conduct our business, and could result in some investors deciding, or being required, to divest their interest, or not to invest, in us. In addition, certain institutional investors may have investment policies or restrictions that prevent them from holding securities of companies that have contracts with countries identified by the U.S. government as state sponsors of terrorism. The determination by these investors not to invest in, or to divest from, our securities may adversely affect the price at which our securities trade. Moreover, our charterers may violate applicable sanctions and embargo laws and regulations as a result of actions that do not involve us or our vessels, and those violations could in turn negatively affect our reputation. In addition, our reputation and the market for our securities may be adversely affected if we engage in certain other activities, such as entering into charters with individuals or entities in countries subject to U.S. sanctions and embargo laws that are not controlled by the governments of those countries, or engaging in operations associated with those countries pursuant to contracts with third parties that are unrelated to those countries or entities controlled by their governments. Investor perception of the value of our securities may be adversely affected by the consequences of war, the effects of terrorism, civil unrest and governmental actions in these and surrounding countries.

We could be adversely affected by violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, U.K. Bribery Act, and other applicable worldwide anti-corruption laws.

We are subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and other applicable worldwide anti-corruption laws, which generally prohibit corrupt payments by us, our employees, vendors, or agents. These laws include the U.K. Bribery Act, which became effective on July 1, 2011 and which is broader in scope than the FCPA, as it prohibits bribes to any person and contains no facilitating payments exception. Under the FCPA and other applicable anti-corruption laws, we may be held liable for some actions taken by strategic or local partners and agents. We operate our vessels in some jurisdictions that international corruption monitoring groups have identified as having high levels of corruption and may utilize vendors and agents to act on our behalf in those jurisdictions. Our activities create the risk of unauthorized payments or offers of payments by one of our employees, vendors, or agents that could be in violation of the FCPA or other applicable anti-corruption laws. While we devote substantial resources to our global compliance program and have implemented policies, training, and internal controls designed to reduce the risk of corrupt payments and to comply with the FCPA and other applicable anti-corruption laws, our employees, vendors, and agents may violate our policies. We also may not be able to adequately prevent or detect all possible violations of the FCPA and other applicable anti-corruption laws. If we are found to be responsible for violations of the FCPA or other applicable anti-corruption laws (either due to our own acts or our inadvertence, or due to the acts or inadvertence of others), our company and our employees could suffer from substantial civil and criminal penalties, including fines, incarceration, prohibitions or limitations on the conduct of our business, the loss of our financing facilities and significant reputational damage, including our relationships with our customers, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Government or regulatory investigations into potential violations of the FCPA or other applicable anti-corruption laws by Grindrod Shipping or its employees, vendors, or agents could also have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Furthermore, detecting, investigating, and resolving actual or alleged violations of the FCPA and other applicable anti-corruption laws is expensive and can consume significant time and attention of our senior management. 

The smuggling of drugs or other contraband onto our vessels may lead to governmental claims against us.

We expect that our vessels will call in ports where smugglers attempt to hide drugs and other contraband on vessels, with or without the knowledge of crew members. To the extent our vessels are found with contraband, whether inside or attached to the hull of our vessel and whether with or without the knowledge of any of our crew, we may face reputational damage and governmental or other regulatory claims which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Governments could requisition our vessels during a period of war or emergency, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

A government could requisition one or more of our vessels for title or for hire. Requisition for title occurs when a government takes control of a vessel and becomes its owner, while requisition for hire occurs when a government takes control of a vessel and effectively becomes its charterer at dictated charter rates. Generally, requisitions occur during periods of war or emergency, although governments may elect to requisition vessels in other circumstances. Although we may be entitled to compensation in the event of a requisition of one or more of our vessels, the amount and timing of payment would be uncertain. Government requisition of one or more of our vessels could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Business

A substantial number of our vessels are employed in either the spot market or in drybulk and tanker pools and any decrease in spot rates in the future could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

A substantial number of our drybulk carriers and tankers are currently employed in either the spot market or in spot market-oriented drybulk and tanker pools, some of which are managed by third parties. This exposes us to fluctuations in spot rates. During the year ended December 31, 2019, we earned a substantial portion of our revenue from spot market-oriented pools and spot market charters. The spot market may fluctuate significantly based upon drybulk carrier, tanker, cargo, energy resources, commodities, industrial products and oil supply and demand. The successful operation of our vessels in the competitive spot charter market, depends on, among other things, obtaining profitable spot contracts and minimizing, to the extent possible, time spent waiting for employment and time spent traveling unemployed to a demand area. The spot market is very volatile, and, in the past, there have been periods when spot market rates have declined below the operating cost of vessels. If future spot market rates decline, then we may be unable to operate our vessels trading in the spot market profitably, meet our obligations, including payments on indebtedness, or pay dividends in the future. Furthermore, as spot charters may last up to several weeks, during periods in which spot rates are rising we will generally experience delays in realizing the benefits from such increases.

Our ability to renew expiring contracts or obtain new contracts on favorable terms or at all will depend on the prevailing market conditions at the time. If we are not able to extend contracts in direct continuation of current contracts or we are not able to obtain new contracts for existing or new owned vessels or new chartered-in vessels upon their delivery to us, or if new charters are entered into with our customers at charter rates substantially below the existing charter rates or on terms otherwise less favorable compared to current charter terms, this could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In addition, we cannot assure you that the drybulk and tanker pools our vessels operate in or pools that we manage will be successful in finding employment for all such vessels in the volatile spot market or whether any such employment will be at profitable rates. We cannot assure you that our vessels will be profitably operated by such pool or by ourselves where we commercially manage our vessels outside of pools.

Furthermore, vessels operated by unaffiliated third-parties may participate in such pools and may not be of a comparable design or quality to our vessels, negatively impacting the profitability of such pools. If such unaffiliated third-parties withdraw from the pools which we manage or participate in, such pools may no longer be able to operate profitability, or at all, due to the decreased number of vessels in the pool, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

A reduction in charter rates, spot market rates and other market deterioration or the aging of our Fleet may require us to record impairment charges related to our long-lived assets (our vessels) and such charges may be large and have a material impact on our financial statements.

At December 31, 2019, we had vessels of $303.6 million in total on our consolidated and combined statements of financial position, representing approximately 120% of our shareholders’ equity. 

At the end of each reporting period, and on a continuous basis, if indicators of impairment are present, the carrying amount of tangible and intangible assets is assessed to determine whether there is any indication that those assets may have suffered an impairment loss. We also assess the carrying value of an asset when we have contracted to divest of the asset for any reason, including the age of our vessels, if a joint venture that owns vessels comes to an end in accordance with its terms or if the asset no longer fits into our strategic planning. During 2016, we recorded an impairment loss of approximately $12.6 million relating to the reduction of the carrying value of our vessels based on value in use calculations. The impairments were largely due to the depressed charter rates and vessel values as a result of an oversupply of vessel capacity. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we impaired the vessels to the extent of $16.5 million because we determined certain vessels were likely to be sold as they no longer fit into our strategic planning, and during 2018 one of our 50% held joint ventures impaired its vessels by $5.7 million when it determined to sell them. During the year ended December 31, 2019, we impaired vessels to the extent of $15.4 million as we contracted to sell them, we impaired a handysize vessel where the recoverable amount was below the carrying value to the extent of $1.6 million and we impaired right-of-use assets to the extent of $2.3 million where the recoverable amount was below the carrying value.

If there is a reduction in our estimated charter rates, or if we intend to divest additional vessels, we may be required to record further impairment charges on our vessels, which would require us to write down the carrying value of these assets to their fair value. Since vessels and from time to time vessels under construction comprise a substantial portion of our consolidated and combined statements of financial position, such charges could have a material impact on our financial statements. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Critical Accounting Policies”. 

We depend on certain customers for our revenue. Customers may terminate or default on their obligations to us and the terms of charters may be difficult to enforce.

For the years ended December 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, no customers accounted for 10% or more of our drybulk business revenue, and for the year ended December 31, 2016, one customer accounted for 10% or more of our drybulk business revenue in the amount of approximately $40.9 million. For the year ended December 31, 2019, five customers accounted for 10% or more of our tankers business revenue in amounts of approximately $21.2 million, $15.5 million, $8.5 million, $7.9 million and $7.4 million, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2018, three customers accounted for 10% or more of our tankers business revenue in amounts of approximately $17.3 million, $14.3 million and $6.3 million, respectively. For each of the years ended December 31, 2017, and 2016, four customers accounted for 10% or more of tankers business revenue, in the amounts of approximately $17.8 million, $15.7 million, $10.9 million and $8.9 million, respectively, in 2017, and $33.2 million, $12.3 million, $9.9 million and $9.1 million, respectively, in 2016. Each of the foregoing with respect to the drybulk carrier business and tankers business has been calculated excluding revenue attributable to the OACL and Unicorn Bunker businesses, respectively, which were sold on January 1, 2018. The loss of any of our significant customers, a customer’s failure to make payments or perform under any of the applicable contracts, a customer’s termination of any of the applicable contracts, or a decline in payments under the contracts could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Our contracts are governed by the law of a number of jurisdictions and provide for a variety of dispute resolution mechanisms and arbitration proceedings. There can be no assurance that we would be able to enforce any judgments against these charterers in jurisdictions where they are based or have their primary assets and operations. Even after a charter contract is entered, charterers may terminate charters early under certain circumstances.

A charterer may also terminate a charter for events that may or may not be within our control. The events or occurrences that will cause a charter to terminate or give the charterer the option to terminate the charter generally include a total or constructive total loss of the related vessel, the requisition for hire of the related vessel, the event of war in specified countries, the vessel becoming subject to seizure for more than a specified number of days, our failure to deliver the related vessel within a fixed period of time or the failure of the related vessel to meet specified performance criteria.

The ability of a customer to perform its obligations under a contract will depend on a number of factors that are beyond our control. These factors may include general economic conditions, conditions specific to the customer, the condition of the drybulk and tankers sectors of the shipping industry to which the customer is exposed, and the charter rates received for specific types of vessels. The costs associated with the default by a customer may be considerable and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Our customers may go bankrupt or fail to perform their obligations under the contracts, they may delay payments or suspend payments altogether, they may terminate the contracts prior to the agreed-upon expiration date or they may attempt to renegotiate the terms of the contracts. The failure of a customer to perform its obligations under a contract may mean we increase our exposure to the spot market, which is subject to greater rate fluctuation than the time charter market. If we receive lower rates under replacement contracts or are unable to re-employ all of our vessels, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

A drop in spot market rates may provide an incentive for some charterers and other customers to default on their charters and contracts.

If spot market rates decline, charterers may no longer need a vessel that is then under charter or may be able to obtain a comparable vessel at lower rates. Currently, and in the future, we may employ certain of our vessels in fixed rate time charters. When we enter into a time charter, as well as bareboat charter or COA, charter rates under that charter or contract may be fixed for the term of the charter or contract. If the spot market or term charter rates available in the drybulk shipping market or tanker shipping market become significantly lower than the rates that a customer is obliged to pay us under our existing charters or contracts, the customer may have incentive to default under that charter or contract or attempt to renegotiate the charter or contract. If our charterers fail to meet their obligations to us or attempt to renegotiate our charter agreements, it may be difficult to secure substitute employment for such vessel, and any new employment we secure in the spot market or on time charters, or as bareboat charters or under COAs, may be at lower rates. As a result, we could sustain significant losses which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We are subject to certain risks with respect to our counterparties to contracts, and failure of such counterparties to meet their obligations could cause us to suffer losses or could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We have entered into, and may enter into, various contracts, including pooling arrangements, time charters, spot voyage charters, shipbuilding contracts, credit facilities and other agreements. Such agreements subject us to counterparty risks. The ability and willingness of each of our counterparties to perform its obligations under a contract with us will depend on a number of factors that are beyond our control and may include, among other things, general economic conditions, the condition of the maritime industries and the overall financial condition of the counterparty. Should a counterparty fail to honor its obligations under agreements with us, or seek to renegotiate the terms of the contract, we could sustain significant losses that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Circumstances beyond our control could affect our customers’ financial strength, and because many of our customers are privately held companies, information about the financial strength of our customers may not always be available. As a result, we might have little advance warning of financial or other problems affecting our customers and their non-performance, financial or other problems could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We may be unable to attract and retain key management personnel and other employees in the shipping industry, which may negatively affect the effectiveness of our management and our results of operations.

Our success depends to a significant extent upon the abilities and efforts of our management team and our ability to hire and retain key members of our management team. We do not maintain “key man” life insurance on any of our officers. The loss of any of these individuals and difficulty in hiring and retaining personnel, including key personnel, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

The aging of our vessels may result in increased operating costs in the future, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In general, the cost of maintaining a vessel in good operating condition increases with the age of the vessel. As our vessels age typically they will become less fuel-efficient and more costly to maintain than more recently constructed vessels due to improvements in engine and other technology. Cargo insurance rates increase with the age of a vessel, making older vessels less desirable to charterers. Governmental regulations and safety or other equipment standards related to the age of vessels may also require expenditures for alterations or the addition of new equipment to our vessels and may restrict the type of activities in which our vessels may engage. We cannot assure you that, as our vessels age, market conditions will justify those expenditures or enable us to operate our vessels profitably during the remainder of their useful lives. See “—A reduction in charter rates, spot market rates and other market deterioration or the aging of our Fleet may require us to record impairment charges related to our long-lived assets (our vessels) and such charges may be large and have a material impact on our financial statements.” above.

The employment of our tankers could be adversely affected by an inability to clear the oil majors’ risk assessment process, and we could be in breach of our charter agreements.

The shipping industry, and especially the shipment of crude oil, refined petroleum products (clean and dirty) and bulk liquid chemicals, has been, and will remain, heavily regulated. The oil majors, together with a number of commodities traders, represent a significant percentage of the production, trading and shipping logistics (terminals) of crude oil and refined products worldwide. Concerns for the environment have led the oil majors to develop and implement a strict ongoing due diligence process when selecting their commercial partners. This vetting process has evolved into a sophisticated and comprehensive risk assessment of both the vessel operator and the vessel, including physical vessel inspections, completion of vessel inspection questionnaires performed by accredited inspectors and the production of comprehensive risk assessment reports. In the case of term charter relationships, additional factors are considered when awarding such contracts, including:

Under the terms of our charter agreements, our charterers require that these vessels and their technical managers are vetted and approved to transport oil products by multiple oil majors. Our failure to maintain any of our tankers to the standards required by the oil majors could put us in breach of the applicable charter agreement and lead to termination of such agreement, and could give rise to impairment in the value of our tankers.

If we are not able to successfully clear the oil majors’ risk assessment processes on an ongoing basis, the future employment of our tankers, as well as our ability to obtain charters or freight contracts, whether spot, medium- or long-term, could be adversely affected. Such a situation may lead to the oil majors terminating existing charters and contracts and refusing to use our tankers in the future, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We may not have adequate insurance to compensate us if we lose our vessels or to compensate third parties.

There are a number of risks associated with the operation of ocean-going vessels, including mechanical failure, collision, human error, war, terrorism, piracy, loss of life, property loss, cargo loss or damage and business interruption due to political circumstances in foreign countries, hostilities and labor strikes. Any of these events may result in loss of revenue, increased costs and decreased cash flows. In addition, the operation of any vessel is subject to the inherent possibility of marine disaster, including oil spills and other environmental mishaps, and the liabilities arising from owning and operating vessels in international trade.

We are insured against some contractual claims and tort claims (including claims related to environmental damage and pollution) through memberships in protection and indemnity associations or clubs, or P&I Associations. As a result of such membership, the P&I Associations provide us coverage for such tort and contractual claims. We also carry hull and machinery insurance and war risk insurance for our vessels. We insure our vessels for third-party liability claims subject to and in accordance with the rules of the P&I Associations in which the vessels are entered. We do not maintain cover for loss of hire or earnings arising out of insured peril events other than limited loss coverage relating to defined war risk events. We can give no assurance that we will be adequately insured against all risks. We may not be able to obtain adequate insurance coverage for our vessels in the future. The insurers may not pay particular claims. Our insurance policies contain deductibles for which we will be responsible and limitations and exclusions which may increase our costs or lower our revenue or prevent recovery.

The objective of a P&I Association is to provide mutual insurance based on the aggregate tonnage of a member’s vessels entered into the association. Claims are paid through the aggregate premiums of all members of the association and the P&I Association’s retained earnings, although members remain subject to calls for additional funds if the aggregate premiums are insufficient to cover claims payable by the association. Claims payable by the association may include those incurred by members of the association, as well as claims payable by the association from other P&I Associations with which our P&I Association has entered into interassociation agreements. We cannot assure you that the P&I Associations to which we belong will remain viable or that we will not become subject to additional funding calls which could adversely affect us.

We cannot assure you that we will be able to renew our insurance policies on the same or commercially reasonable terms, or at all, in the future. For example, more stringent environmental regulations have led in the past to increased costs for, and in the future may result in the lack of availability of, protection and indemnity insurance against risks of environmental damage or pollution. Any uninsured or underinsured loss could harm our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, our insurance may be voidable by the insurers as a result of certain of our actions, such as our vessels failing to maintain certification with applicable maritime self-regulatory organizations. Further, we cannot assure you that our insurance policies will cover all losses that we incur, or that disputes over insurance claims will not arise with our insurance carriers. Any claims covered by insurance would be subject to deductibles, and since it is possible that a large number of claims may be brought, the aggregate amount of these deductibles could be material. In addition, our insurance policies are subject to limitations and exclusions, which may increase our costs or lower our revenue, and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

We may have difficulty managing our planned growth properly.

Our Fleet consists of 25 owned drybulk carriers, six long-term chartered-in drybulk carriers (excluding two under construction), five owned tankers and two long-term chartered-in tankers. One of our principal strategies is to continue to grow by expanding our operations while prioritizing risk management and balance sheet flexibility, and we may, in the future, increase the size of our Fleet through acquisitions. Our future growth will primarily depend upon a number of factors, some of which may not be within our control. These factors include our ability to:

Our failure to effectively identify, acquire, develop and integrate any drybulk or tanker vessels or businesses, or our inability to effectively manage our Fleet, could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Furthermore, the number of employees that perform services for us and our current operating and financial systems may not be adequate as we expand the size of our Fleet, and we may not be able to effectively hire more employees or adequately improve those systems. In addition, if we further expand our Fleet, we will need to recruit suitable additional seafarers and shoreside administrative and management personnel. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to hire suitable employees as we expand our Fleet. If we or our crewing agent encounters business or financial difficulties, we may not be able to adequately staff our vessels. If we are unable to enhance our financial and operating systems or to recruit suitable employees as we expand our Fleet, it could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Growing any business by acquisition presents numerous risks such as undisclosed liabilities and obligations, difficulty in obtaining additional qualified personnel and managing relationships with customers and suppliers and integrating newly acquired operations into existing infrastructures. Acquisitions may require additional equity issuances, which may dilute our ordinary shareholders, or debt issuances (with amortization payments). The effect of an acquisition may be to lower our available cash. If any such events occur, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We cannot give any assurance that we will be successful in executing our growth plans or that we will not incur significant expenses and losses in connection with our future growth.

Grindrod Shipping is a holding company and depends on the ability of its subsidiaries to distribute funds to it in order to satisfy its financial obligations and to make dividend payments.

Grindrod Shipping is a holding company and its subsidiaries conduct all of its operations and own all of its operating assets. Grindrod Shipping has no significant assets other than the equity interests in and loans to its subsidiaries. As a result, its ability to satisfy its financial obligations and to pay dividends to its shareholders depend on its subsidiaries and their ability to distribute funds to it. If Grindrod Shipping is unable to obtain funds from its subsidiaries, its board of directors may exercise its discretion not to declare or pay dividends. 

Our future capital needs are uncertain and we may need to raise additional funds in the future. If we are unable to fund our future capital expenditure needs, we may not be able to continue to operate some of our vessels or continue with some or all of our Fleet expansion plans, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We may face liquidity issues if poor market conditions in the drybulk and/or tanker markets persist for a prolonged period. In addition, we may need to raise additional capital to maintain, replace and expand the operating capacity of our Fleet and fund our operations. Our future funding requirements will depend on many factors, including the cost and timing of vessel acquisitions, and the cost of retrofitting or modifying existing vessels as a result of technological advances in vessel design or equipment, changes in applicable environmental or other regulations or standards, customer requirements or otherwise.

In order to fund our capital expenditures, we may be required to incur borrowings or raise capital through the sale of debt or equity securities. Our ability to borrow money and access the capital markets through future offerings may be limited by a number of factors, including:

We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain additional funds on acceptable terms, or at all. If we raise additional funds by issuing equity or equity-linked securities, our shareholders may experience dilution or reduced distributions. Any additional debt or equity financing that we raise may contain terms that are not favorable to us or our shareholders, including, in the case of debt financing, making us subject to more restrictive covenants than those applicable to our existing credit facilities.

Our failure to obtain the funds for necessary future capital expenditures could limit our ability to continue to operate some or all of our vessels or could cause us to impair the value of our vessels as well as limit our ability to continue with some or all of our fleet expansion plans. Any of these factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Even if we are successful in obtaining such funds through financings, the terms of such financings could further limit our ability to pay dividends.

Servicing our current or future indebtedness and meeting certain financing obligations limits funds available for other purposes and if we cannot service our debt and meet our other financing obligations, we may lose our vessels.

Borrowing under our credit facilities requires us to dedicate a part of our cash flow to paying interest and repaying capital on our indebtedness under such facilities.

These payments and certain financing obligations limit funds available for working capital, capital expenditures and other purposes, including further equity investments in our joint venture or debt financing in the future. Amounts borrowed under our credit facilities bear interest at variable rates. Increases in prevailing rates could increase the amounts that we would have to pay to our lenders, even though the outstanding principal amount remains the same, and our net income and cash flows would decrease. We expect our earnings and cash flow to vary from year to year due to the cyclical nature of the drybulk and tanker industries. If we do not generate or reserve enough cash flow from operations to satisfy our debt obligations, we may have to undertake alternative financing plans, such as:

However, these alternative financing plans, if necessary, may not be sufficient to allow us to meet our debt obligations. In addition, our 30 owned vessels are pledged as collateral to secure our various debt obligations. If we are unable to meet our debt and other financing, lenders could elect to declare that debt, together with accrued interest and fees, to be immediately due and payable and proceed against the collateral vessels securing that debt or other assets. 

We are exposed to volatility in LIBOR and may selectively enter into derivative contracts, which can result in higher than market interest rates and charges against our income.

The loans under our credit facilities are generally advanced at a floating rate based on LIBOR, which was volatile in prior years and may rise in the future. LIBOR can affect the amount of interest payable on our debt, which, in turn, could have an adverse effect on our earnings and cash flow. Our financial condition could be materially adversely affected as we have not entered into interest rate hedging arrangements to hedge our exposure to the interest rates applicable to our credit facilities and may not enter into interest rate hedging arrangements for these or any other financing arrangements we may enter into in the future, including those we may enter into to finance a portion of the amounts payable with respect to newbuildings or acquisitions.

We may enter into derivative contracts to hedge our overall exposure to interest rate risk. Entering into swaps and other derivatives transactions is inherently risky and presents possibilities for incurring significant expenses. The derivatives strategies that we may employ may not be successful or effective, and we could, as a result, incur substantial additional interest and breakage costs.

Uncertainty about the future of LIBOR may adversely affect our business and financial results.

As noted above, the loans under our credit facilities are generally advanced at a floating rate based on LIBOR. LIBOR has been the subject of recent national, international and other regulatory guidance and proposals for reform. These reforms and other pressures are anticipated to cause LIBOR to cease being published from the end of 2021 and until such time may cause LIBOR to perform differently than in the past. The consequences of these developments cannot be entirely predicted, but could include an increase in the cost of our variable rate indebtedness and obligations. In July 2017, the Chief Executive of the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced its intent to stop persuading or compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR to the administrator of LIBOR after 2021. This and other announcements indicate that the publication of LIBOR as currently constructed should be expected to cease after 2021. Further, the viability of Secured Overnight Financing Rate, or SOFR, as an alternative reference rate and the availability and acceptance of other alternative reference rates are unclear and also may have adverse effects on market rates of interest and the value of securities and other financial arrangements. These uncertainties, proposals and actions to resolve them, and their ultimate resolution also could negatively impact our funding costs, loan and other asset values, asset-liability management strategies, and other aspects of our business and financial results. No assurance can be provided that the uncertainties around LIBOR or their resolution will not adversely affect the use, level, and volatility of our loans under our credit facilities generally advanced at a floating rate based on LIBOR.

We are leveraged, which could significantly limit our ability to execute our business strategy and we may be unable to comply with our covenants in our credit facilities that impose operating and financial restrictions on us, which could result in a default under the terms of these agreements.

As of December 31, 2019, we had $165.2 million of outstanding indebtedness under our credit facilities and other borrowings and in the first quarter of 2020 we increased our credit facilities through two new facilities totaling $127.3 million in respect of vessels owned by IVS Bulk and we entered into a new credit facility for $35.8 million in connection with the purchase of an additional interest in IVS Bulk.

Our credit facilities impose operating and financial restrictions on us that limit our ability, or the ability of our subsidiaries party thereto, among other things, to:

Therefore, we may need to seek permission from our lenders in order to engage in some corporate actions. Our lenders’ interests may be different from ours and we may not be able to obtain our lenders’ permission when needed. This may limit our ability to pay dividends on our ordinary shares if we determine to do so in the future, pay interest on our indebtedness, finance our future operations or capital requirements, make acquisitions or pursue business opportunities.

In addition, our credit facilities require us to maintain specified financial ratios and satisfy financial covenants, including ratios and covenants based on the market value of the vessels in our Fleet. Should our charter rates or vessel values materially decline in the future or for other reasons, we may seek to obtain waivers or amendments from our lenders with respect to such financial ratios and covenants, or we may be required to take action to reduce our debt or to act in a manner contrary to our business objectives to meet any such financial ratios and satisfy any such financial covenants.

Events beyond our control, including changes in the economic and business conditions in the shipping markets in which we operate, may affect our ability to comply with these covenants. We cannot assure you that we will meet these ratios or satisfy these covenants or that our lenders will waive any failure to do so or amend these requirements. A breach of any of the covenants in, or our inability to maintain the required financial ratios under, our credit facilities would prevent us from borrowing additional money under our credit facilities and could result in a default under our credit facilities. If a default occurs under our credit facilities, the lenders could elect to declare the outstanding debt, together with accrued interest and other fees, to be immediately due and payable and foreclose on the collateral securing that debt, which could constitute all or substantially all of our assets. Additionally, if not repaid the interest rate on the outstanding debt can be increased. Moreover, in connection with any waivers or amendments to our credit facilities that we may obtain, our lenders may impose additional operating and financial restrictions on us or modify the terms of our existing credit facilities including an increase in the interest rate. These restrictions may further restrict our ability to, among other things, pay dividends, repurchase our ordinary shares, make capital expenditures, or incur additional indebtedness.

Furthermore, certain of our debt agreements contain cross-default provisions that may be triggered if we default under the terms of other of our financing agreements. In the event of default by us under one of our debt agreements, the lenders under our other debt agreements could determine that we are in default under such other financing agreements. Such cross defaults could result in the acceleration of the maturity of such debt under these agreements and the lenders thereunder may foreclose upon any collateral securing that debt, including our vessels, even if we were to subsequently cure such default. In the event of such acceleration or foreclosure, we might not have sufficient funds or other assets to satisfy all of our obligations, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Please see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—Liquidity and Capital Resources”.

We may be subject to litigation that, if not resolved in our favor and not sufficiently insured against, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We may be, from time to time, involved in various litigation matters. These matters may include, among other things, contract disputes, personal injury claims, environmental claims or proceedings, toxic tort claims, employment matters, governmental claims for taxes or duties, and other litigation that arises in the ordinary course of our business. Although we intend to defend these matters vigorously, we cannot predict with certainty the outcome or effect of any claim or other litigation matter, and the ultimate outcome of any litigation or the costs and time to resolve them could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Insurance may not be applicable or sufficient in all cases and/or insurers may not remain solvent which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—Business Overview—Legal Proceedings”.

Some of the vessels in our Fleet are operated by third-party technical managers. Any failure of these technical managers to perform their obligations to us could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We have contracted the technical management for a portion of our Fleet, including crewing, maintenance and repair services, to third-party technical management companies. The failure of these technical managers to perform their obligations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Although we may have rights against our third-party managers if they default on their obligations to us, we will receive the benefit of that recourse only to the extent that we recover funds. 

Some of the third-party managers for our vessels are privately held companies and there is little or no publicly available information about them.

Some of our vessels are managed by third parties. The ability of these third-party managers to render management services will depend in part on their own financial strength. Circumstances beyond our control could affect our third-party managers’ financial strength. Because some of our third-party managers are privately held companies, we might have little advance warning of financial or other problems affecting our commercial manager or technical manager and if they are unable to provide the technical or commercial management services we have contracted for, we may have delays in operating our vessels which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Security breaches and disruptions to our information technology infrastructure could interfere with our operations and expose us to liability which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In the ordinary course of business, we rely heavily on information technology networks and systems to process, transmit, and store information electronically, and to manage or support a variety of business processes and activities. Additionally, we collect and store certain data, including proprietary business information and customer and employee data, and may have access to other confidential information in the ordinary course of our business. Despite our cybersecurity measures (including monitoring of networks and systems, and maintenance of backup and protective systems) which are continuously reviewed and upgraded, our information technology networks and infrastructure may still be vulnerable to damage, disruptions, or shutdowns due to attack by hackers or breaches, employee error or malfeasance, data leakage, power outages, computer viruses and malware, telecommunication or utility failures, systems failures, natural disasters, or other catastrophic events. Any such events could result in legal claims or proceedings, liability or penalties under privacy or other laws, disruption in operations, and damage to our reputation, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

In addition, some of our technology networks and systems are managed by third-party service providers (including cloud-service providers) for a variety of reasons, and such providers also may have access to proprietary business information and customer and employee data, and may have access to confidential information on the conduct of our business. Like us, these third-party providers are subject to risks imposed by data breaches and disruptions to their technology infrastructure. A cyber-attack could defeat one or more of our third-party service providers’ security measures, allowing an attacker access to proprietary information from our company including our employees’, customers’ and suppliers’ data. Any such security breach or disruption to our third-party service providers could result in a disruption in operations and damage to our reputation and liability claims, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Because international shipping companies often generate most or all of their revenue in U.S. dollars, but incur a portion of their expenses in other currencies, exchange rate fluctuations could cause us to suffer exchange rate losses, thereby increasing expenses and reducing income.

We engage in worldwide commerce with a variety of entities. Although our operations may expose us to certain levels of foreign currency risk, our transactions are predominantly U.S. dollar-denominated. The U.S. dollar is our functional currency and the functional currency of nearly all our subsidiaries and joint ventures. Transactions in currencies other than the functional currency are translated at the exchange rate on the transaction date and the relevant payment is translated on the payment date, with the difference being reported in the income statement as an exchange gain or loss. Expenses incurred in foreign currencies against which the U.S. dollar falls in value can increase, decreasing our earnings. A greater percentage of our transactions and expenses in the future may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Assets and liabilities denominated in currencies different from the functional currency are translated into the functional currency for the preparation of the statements of financial position at the exchange rate prevailing on the statements of financial position date. Differences in exchange rates between statements of financial position dates may lead to gains or losses being reported in the income statement. Extraordinary transactions, and the translation of the financial statements of our subsidiaries whose functional currencies are not the U.S. dollar for purposes of preparing our consolidated accounts, may follow different translation procedures. The determination of the functional currency of a company is based on various factors and a company’s functional currency may change depending on its circumstances. As part of our overall risk management policy, we may attempt to hedge these risks in exchange rate fluctuations from time to time. We may not always be successful in such hedging activities and, as a result, our operating results could suffer as a result of losses incurred as a result of un-hedged exchange rate fluctuations. We may enter into derivative contracts to hedge our overall exposure to exchange rate risk. Entering into swaps and other derivatives transactions is inherently risky and presents various possibilities for incurring significant expenses. The derivatives strategies that we may employ may not be successful or effective, and we could, as a result, incur substantial additional exchange rate costs. 

If we are unable to operate our financial and operations systems effectively or to recruit suitable employees as we expand our Fleet, our performance may be adversely affected.

Our current financial and operating systems may not be adequate as we implement our plan to expand the size of our Fleet, and our attempts to improve those systems may be ineffective. If our current financial and operating systems infrastructure is unable to manage the additional volume of our operations as our business grows, our operating efficiency could decline. If we fail to hire and retain qualified personnel to implement, protect and maintain our financial and operating systems or if we fail to upgrade our systems to meet our customers’ demands we may experience a disruption in operations and damage to our reputation, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

In addition, as we expand our Fleet, we or our third-party technical managers may have to recruit suitable additional seafarers or shore-based administrative and management personnel. We cannot assure you that we or our third-party technical managers will be able to continue to hire suitable employees as we expand our Fleet.

We need to maintain our relationships with local shipping agents.

Our drybulk carrier and tankers businesses are dependent upon our relationships with local shipping agents operating in the ports where our customers ship and unload their products. We believe our local shipping agent relationships will remain critical to our success in the future and the loss of one or more of which could materially and negatively impact our ability to retain and service our customers. We cannot be certain that we will be able to maintain and expand our existing local shipping agent relationships or enter into new local shipping agent relationships, or that new or renewed local shipping agent relationships will be available on commercially reasonable terms. If we are unable to maintain and expand our existing local shipping agent relationships, renew existing local shipping agent relationships, or enter into new local shipping agent relationships, we may lose customers or cause delays in the ports in which we operate, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Prolonged disruption or slowdown in the loading and unloading of our vessels could affect our ability to operate our vessels in a timely manner and may result in a loss of revenue.

We rely on third parties for the loading and unloading process of our vessels at ports. A disruption in loading and unloading logistics could disrupt our ability to operate our vessels in a timely manner. Significant disruptions or slowdowns could result in a loss of revenue which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

If we acquire and / or operate secondhand vessels, we could be exposed to increased operating costs which could adversely affect our earnings and, as our Fleet ages, the risks associated with older vessels could adversely affect our ability to obtain profitable charters.

Although none of the vessels in our Fleet are secondhand vessels, we may acquire and / or operate secondhand vessels in the future. While we expect that we would typically inspect secondhand vessels prior to acquisition, this does not provide us with the same knowledge about their condition that we would have had if these vessels had been built for and operated exclusively by us and therefore we cannot assure you that the quality of any secondhand vessels that we buy will be acceptable. Generally, purchasers of secondhand vessels do not receive the benefit of warranties from the builders for the secondhand vessels that they acquire. We cannot assure you that, if we acquire and operate second hand vessels in the future, as our secondhand vessels age, market conditions will justify expenditures or enable us to operate our secondhand vessels profitably during the remainder of their useful lives.

Technological innovation could reduce our charter hire income and the value of our vessels.

The charter hire rates and the value and operational life of a vessel are determined by a number of factors including the vessel’s efficiency, operational flexibility and physical life. Efficiency includes speed, fuel economy and the ability to load and discharge cargo quickly. Flexibility includes the ability to carry a variety of cargoes, enter harbors, utilize related docking facilities and pass through canals and straits. The length of a vessel’s physical life is related to its original design and construction, its maintenance and the impact of the stress of operations. If new drybulk carriers or tankers are built that are more efficient or more flexible or have longer physical lives than our vessels, competition from these more technologically advanced vessels could adversely affect the amount of charter hire payments we receive for our vessels once their initial charters expire and the resale value of our vessels could significantly decrease. As a result, our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Newbuilding projects are subject to risks that could cause delays, cost overruns or cancellation of our newbuilding contracts.

We have and may in the future enter into or acquire newbuilding contracts for drybulk carriers or tankers. Construction projects are subject to risks of delay or cost overruns inherent in any large construction project from numerous factors, including shortages of equipment, materials or skilled labor, unscheduled delays in the delivery of ordered materials and equipment or shipyard construction, failure of equipment to meet quality and/or performance standards, financial or operating difficulties experienced by equipment vendors or the shipyard, unanticipated actual or purported change orders, inability to obtain required permits or approvals, unanticipated cost increases between order and delivery, design or engineering changes and work stoppages and other labor disputes, adverse weather conditions or any other events of force majeure. Significant cost overruns or delays could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. Additionally, failure to complete a project on time may result in the delay of revenue from that vessel. 

We have and may in the future contract with a trading house or a shipyard for the construction of a newbuilding. In the event the seller or the shipyard does not perform under its contract and we are unable to enforce the refund guarantee with a third-party bank for any reason, or we have not obtained such a guarantee, we may lose all or part of our investment, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

We currently bank with a limited number of financial institutions, which subjects us to credit risk.

We currently bank with a limited number of financial institutions. An event of default by any of these financial institutions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, our financial institutions are subject to internal and regulatory compliance protocols, which may delay access to our accounts. Such a delay could impact our ability to consummate transactions and operate our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Our Ordinary Shares

There may not be a liquid market for the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares.

Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares are listed on the NASDAQ in the United States and quoted on the main board of the JSE in South Africa. There can be no assurance as to the liquidity of those markets for the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares or the price at which the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares may trade. The liquidity and the market for the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares may be affected by a number of factors including variations in exchange and interest rates, the deterioration and volatility of the markets for similar securities, and/or any changes in Grindrod Shipping’s liquidity, financial condition, creditworthiness, results and profitability and future prospects. In addition, our shareholder base consists primarily of South African residents who, subject to certain allowances in terms of the Exchange Control Regulations in South Africa, will generally be required to hold their ordinary shares on the JSE, and therefore the liquidity of the ordinary shares on the NASDAQ may be adversely impacted. In addition, in connection with the Spin-Off, we entered into lock-up agreements with two of our shareholders pursuant to which they generally agreed, subject to certain exceptions, not to offer or sell any ordinary shares. One lock-up agreement expired in December 2018 and the other lock-up agreement, which is with our largest shareholder, expired in June 2019. The expiration of these lock-up agreements and the ability of these and other shareholders to sell their ordinary shares in the market could have a material adverse effect on the trading price of our ordinary shares. Furthermore, ordinary shares owned by our “affiliates,” as that term is defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act, will be subject to certain restrictions on transfer under the U.S. securities laws. Affiliates will only be permitted to sell their shares pursuant to a valid exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act or pursuant to an effective registration statement, which may impact the liquidity of the ordinary shares.

The Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares are traded on more than one stock exchange and this may result in price variations between the markets.

The Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares are listed on each of NASDAQ and the JSE. Trading in the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares therefore takes place in different currencies (U.S. dollars on the NASDAQ and South African Rand on the JSE), and at different times (resulting from different time zones, different trading days and different public holidays in the United States and South Africa). The trading prices of the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares on these two markets may differ as a result of these, or other, factors. Any decrease in the price of Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares on either of these markets could cause a decrease in the trading prices of Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares on the other market.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about Grindrod Shipping’s business, or publish negative reports about its business, Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary share price and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares depends, in part, upon the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about Grindrod Shipping or its businesses. If securities or industry analysts do not cover Grindrod Shipping, it could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause its share price or trading volume to decline.

Grindrod Shipping may not have sufficient distributable profits to pay dividends or otherwise distribute cash or assets to shareholders.

Under Singapore law and Grindrod Shipping’s constitution, dividends, whether in cash or in specie, must be paid out of Grindrod Shipping’s profits available for distribution. Grindrod Shipping has no immediate plans to pay a cash dividend. See “Item 8. Financial Information—Dividend Policy and Dividend Distributions”. As a holding company, Grindrod Shipping may earn distributable profits when it receives dividends or other income, including management fees or interest, if any. Grindrod Shipping currently does not have distributable profits from which dividends may be declared. The availability of distributable profits is assessed on the basis of Grindrod Shipping’s standalone unconsolidated accounts, which are based upon IFRS. There is no assurance that Grindrod Shipping will not incur losses, that it will become profitable, or that it will have sufficient distributable income that might be distributed to its shareholders as a dividend or other distribution in the foreseeable future. Therefore, Grindrod Shipping will be unable to pay dividends to its shareholders unless and until it has generated sufficient distributable reserves. Accordingly, it may not be legally permissible for Grindrod Shipping to pay dividends to its shareholders. 

Notwithstanding that sufficient profits may be available for distribution, there are other conditions which may limit Grindrod Shipping’s ability to pay dividends. Grindrod Shipping’s board of directors may, without the approval of the shareholders under Singapore law, declare interim dividends during a fiscal year and any final dividends declared by Grindrod Shipping’s board of directors after the close of a fiscal year must be approved by shareholders at a general meeting. As such, any determination to pay dividends will be at the discretion of Grindrod Shipping’s board of directors, which may exercise its discretion to retain Grindrod Shipping’s future earnings for use in the development of Grindrod Shipping’s business, in reducing Grindrod Shipping’s indebtedness and for general corporate purposes. As a result, it is possible that only an appreciation of the price of our ordinary shares, if any, will provide a return to investors in our ordinary shares for the foreseeable future. Such potential appreciation is uncertain and unpredictable.

In addition, under Singapore law, it is possible to effect a capital reduction exercise to return cash and/or assets to shareholders by way of shareholder approval if Grindrod Shipping meets the relevant solvency requirements, which will be attested to by Grindrod Shipping’s board of directors. The completion of the capital reduction exercise will depend on whether Grindrod Shipping’s directors can execute a solvency statement, as well as whether there are any creditor objections raised. A reduction of capital is also possible by way of a shareholder approval if approved by an order of the court.

Any dividend payments on the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares would be declared in U.S. dollars, and any shareholder whose principal currency is not the U.S. dollar would be subject to risks of exchange rate fluctuations.

The Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares are, and any cash dividends or other distributions to be declared in respect of them, if any, will be denominated in U.S. dollars. Shareholders whose principal currency is not the U.S. dollar will be exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk. Any depreciation of the U.S. dollar in relation to such foreign currency will reduce the value of such shareholders’ ordinary shares and any appreciation of the U.S. dollar will increase the value in foreign currency terms. In addition, Grindrod Shipping will not offer its shareholders the option to elect to receive dividends, if any, in any other currency. Consequently, shareholders may be required to arrange their own foreign currency exchange, either through a brokerage house or otherwise, which could incur additional commissions or expenses.

Grindrod Shipping is a Singapore company, and because the rights of shareholders under Singapore law differ from those under U.S. law, you may have difficulty in protecting your shareholder rights or enforcing any judgment obtained in the United States against Grindrod Shipping or its affiliates.

Grindrod Shipping’s corporate affairs are governed by its constitution and by the applicable laws governing corporations incorporated in Singapore. The rights of Grindrod Shipping shareholders and the responsibilities of members of its board of directors under Singapore law are different from those applicable to a corporation incorporated in the United States and, therefore, Grindrod Shipping shareholders may have more difficulty protecting their interests in connection with actions by the management or members of the board of directors than they would as shareholders of a corporation incorporated in the United States.

All of Grindrod Shipping’s directors and senior management reside outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States upon Grindrod Shipping or any of these persons or to enforce in the United States any judgment obtained in the U.S. courts against Grindrod Shipping or any of these persons, including judgments based upon the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws or the laws of any state or territory of the United States.

There is no treaty between the United States and Singapore providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters and a final judgment for the payment of money rendered by any federal or state court in the United States based on civil liability, whether or not predicated solely upon the federal securities laws, would, therefore, not be automatically enforceable in Singapore. It is not clear whether a Singapore court may impose civil liability on Grindrod Shipping or Grindrod Shipping’s directors and officers in a suit brought in the Singapore courts against Grindrod Shipping or such persons with respect to a violation solely of the federal securities laws of the United States. 

In addition, only registered shareholders reflected in the register of members are recognized under Singapore law as shareholders of a company. As a result, only registered shareholders have legal standing to institute shareholder actions or otherwise seek to enforce their rights as shareholders. Holders of dematerialised interests in Grindrod Shipping’s shares will be required to be registered shareholders as reflected in Grindrod Shipping’s register of members in order to institute or enforce any legal proceedings or claims as shareholders against Grindrod Shipping, its directors or its officers in the Singapore courts. Holders of dematerialised interests in the ordinary shares may become registered shareholders by exchanging their dematerialised interests in our ordinary shares for certificated shares and being registered in our register of members. The administrative process of becoming a registered holder could result in delays prejudicial to any legal proceedings or enforcement action. Consequently, it may be difficult for investors to enforce against Grindrod Shipping, its directors or its officers in Singapore judgments obtained in the United States which are predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States.

Grindrod Shipping is subject to the laws of Singapore, which differ in certain material respects from the laws of the United States.

As a company incorporated under the laws of Singapore, Grindrod Shipping is required to comply with the laws of Singapore, certain of which are capable of extraterritorial application, as well as Grindrod Shipping’s constitution. In particular, Grindrod Shipping is required to comply with certain provisions of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore, or the Singapore Securities and Futures Act, which prohibit certain forms of market conduct and information disclosures, and impose criminal and civil penalties on corporations, directors and officers in respect of any breach of such provisions. Grindrod Shipping is also required to comply with the Singapore Code on Take-Overs and Mergers, or the Singapore Code, which specifies, among other things, certain circumstances in which a general offer is to be made upon a change in effective control, and further specifies the manner and price at which voluntary and mandatory general offers are to be made.

The laws of Singapore and of the United States differ in certain significant respects. The rights of Grindrod Shipping’s shareholders and the obligations of its directors and officers under Singapore law are different from those applicable to a company incorporated in the United States in material respects, and Grindrod Shipping’s shareholders may have more difficulty and less clarity in protecting their interests in connection with actions taken by Grindrod Shipping’s management, directors or controlling shareholders than would otherwise apply to a company incorporated in the United States. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Comparison of Shareholder Rights” for a discussion of differences between Singapore and U.S. corporation law.

In addition, the application of Singapore law, in particular, the Companies Act, Chapter 50 of Singapore, or the Singapore Companies Act, may in certain circumstances impose more restrictions on Grindrod Shipping and its shareholders, directors and officers than would otherwise be applicable to a company incorporated in the United States. For example, the Singapore Companies Act requires directors to act with a reasonable degree of diligence and, in certain circumstances, imposes criminal liability for specified contraventions of particular statutory requirements or prohibitions. In addition, pursuant to the provisions of the Singapore Companies Act, shareholders holding 10% or more of the total number of paid-up shares carrying the right of voting in general meetings may require the convening of an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders by the directors. If the directors fail to comply with such request within 21 days of the receipt thereof, shareholders holding more than 50% of the voting rights represented by the original requisitioning shareholders may proceed to convene such meeting, and Grindrod Shipping will be liable for the reasonable expenses incurred by such requisitioning shareholders. Grindrod Shipping is also required by the Singapore Companies Act to deduct corresponding amounts from fees or other remuneration payable by Grindrod Shipping to such non-complying directors.

Anti-takeover provisions under the Singapore Securities and Futures Act and the Singapore Code on Take-overs and Mergers may delay, deter or prevent a future takeover or change of control of Grindrod Shipping, which could adversely affect the price of our ordinary shares.

The Singapore Code, issued pursuant to Section 321 of the Singapore Securities and Futures Act, regulates the acquisition of ordinary shares of, inter alia, listed public companies and contains certain provisions that may delay, deter or prevent a future takeover or change of control of Grindrod Shipping. Any person acquiring an interest, either on his own or together with parties acting in concert with him or her, in 30% or more of the voting shares in Grindrod Shipping must, except with the prior consent of the Singapore Securities Industry Council, or the SIC, extend a takeover offer for the remaining voting shares in Grindrod Shipping in accordance with the provisions of the Singapore Code. Likewise, any person holding between 30% and 50% of the voting shares in Grindrod Shipping, either on his own or together with parties acting in concert with him or her, must, except with the prior consent of the SIC, make a takeover offer in accordance with the provisions of the Singapore Code if that person together with parties acting in concert with him or her acquires additional voting shares in excess of one percent of the total number of voting shares in any six-month period. Therefore, any investor seeking to acquire a significant stake in Grindrod Shipping may be deterred from doing so if, as a result, such investor would be required to conduct a takeover offer for all of Grindrod Shipping’s voting shares.

Under the Singapore Code, an offeror must treat all shareholders of the same class in an offeree company equally. A fundamental requirement is that shareholders in the company subject to the takeover offer must be given sufficient information, advice and time to consider and decide on the offer.

These provisions contained in the Singapore Code may discourage or prevent transactions that involve an actual or threatened change of control of Grindrod Shipping, and may impede or delay a takeover of Grindrod Shipping by a third party. This may adversely affect the market price of Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares and impede the ability of Grindrod Shipping’s shareholders to realize any benefits from a potential change of effective control of Grindrod Shipping. 

Under Singapore law, shareholder approval is required to allow us to issue new shares which could impact our ability to raise capital or consummate acquisitions. Any issuance of new shares would dilute the percentage ownership of existing shareholders and could adversely impact the market price of the ordinary shares.

Under Singapore law, Grindrod Shipping may only issue new shares with the prior approval of its shareholders. At our last annual general meeting on May 29, 2019, Grindrod Shipping’s shareholders provided authority for our directors to issue ordinary shares pursuant to the vesting of awards under our 2018 Forfeitable Share Plan, or 2018 FSP, which is subject to the condition that the aggregate number of ordinary shares at any one time which may be granted in an award under the 2018 FSP, together with all existing awards that have not yet vested under the 2018 FSP, shall not exceed 5% of the number of ordinary shares in issue (excluding treasury shares), as determined in reference to the day preceding the award. Such authority shall continue in force until the earliest of (i) the conclusion of our next annual general meeting, (ii) the expiration of the period within which our next annual general meeting is required by law to be held, or (iii) the point at which the maximum number of awards permitted to be made in terms of the 2018 FSP as per the abovementioned limit has been reached. Notwithstanding that the abovementioned authority may have ceased to be in force, ordinary shares may be issued after the expiry of the approval in pursuance of awards made under the 2018 FSP whilst the authority was in force (subject always to the abovementioned limit on the maximum number of shares). At our annual general meeting, expected to be held on July 14, 2020, we plan to seek the approval of our shareholders for issuances of ordinary shares only for the purposes of our forfeitable share plan at the same maximum 5%, based on the number of ordinary shares in issue (excluding treasury shares) as determined in reference to the date proceeding the award. Any issuance of additional shares for any other purpose or in future years (other than shares to be issued under an existing prior approval that remains in effect) will require the approval of shareholders. Because new issuances of ordinary shares are subject to shareholder approval, or in some circumstances, other regulatory approvals, if no or an insufficient number of shares have been approved for issuance in advance, we may be delayed in raising capital through equity offerings or delayed or prevented from consummating an acquisition using our ordinary shares. We may seek to raise capital in the future, including to fund acquisitions, future investments and other growth opportunities. We may, for these and other purposes, such as in connection with share incentive and share option plans (such as our forfeitable share plan), issue additional ordinary shares or securities convertible into ordinary shares. Any additional issuances of new shares could dilute the percentage ownership of our existing shareholders and could also adversely impact the market price of Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares. In addition, under the provisions of the Singapore Companies Act and Grindrod Shipping’s constitution, the board of directors may, with the applicable shareholder approval, issue new shares on terms and conditions and with the rights (including preferential voting rights) and restrictions as they may determine and may contain terms adverse to the ordinary shares.

The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or JOBS Act, allows Grindrod Shipping to postpone the date by which it must comply with some of the laws and regulations intended to protect investors and to reduce the amount of information provided in Grindrod Shipping’s reports filed with the SEC, which could undermine investor confidence in Grindrod Shipping and adversely affect the market price of Grindrod Shipping’s ordinary shares.

For so long as Grindrod Shipping remains an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, it intends to take advantage of certain exemptions from various requirements that are applicable to public companies that are not emerging growth companies including:

Grindrod Shipping intends to continue to take advantage of these exemptions until it is no longer an “emerging growth company”. Grindrod Shipping will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the date of its first sale of equity securities pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act, (b) in which it has total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which it is deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) the date on which it issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period.

We cannot predict if investors will find our ordinary shares less attractive because Grindrod Shipping does and may continue to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares, and the market price may be more volatile and may decline. 

As a “foreign private issuer” Grindrod Shipping is permitted, and intends to continue, to follow certain home country corporate governance practices instead of otherwise applicable SEC and NASDAQ requirements, which may result in less protection than is accorded to investors under rules applicable to domestic U.S. issuers.

Grindrod Shipping’s status as a foreign private issuer also exempts it from compliance with certain SEC laws and regulations and certain regulations of the NASDAQ, including the proxy rules, the short-swing profits recapture rules of Section 16 of the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, certain rules relating to disclosure regarding executive compensation, and certain governance requirements such as independent director oversight of the nomination of directors and executive compensation. In addition, we are not required under the Exchange Act to file current reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. domestic companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act and we are generally exempt from filing quarterly reports with the SEC. As a foreign private issuer, Grindrod Shipping is required to file (i) its annual financial statements on Form 20-F within four months of the end of each fiscal year so long as it is subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act and (ii) furnish on Form 6-K an interim statement of financial position and income statement as of the end of its second fiscal quarter within six months of the end of the second quarter so long as it is listed on NASDAQ. We may also consider furnishing quarterly financial information on Form 6-K to the SEC, although there can be no assurance as to the timing or adoption of the reporting of such quarterly financial information. Further, the information Grindrod Shipping files or furnishes will not be the same as the information that is required in annual and quarterly reports on Form 10-K or Form 10-Q for U.S. domestic issuers. Furthermore, as a foreign private issuer, Grindrod Shipping is also not subject to the requirements of Regulation Fair Disclosure, or Regulation FD, promulgated under the Exchange Act, which restricts the selective disclosure of material information.

These exemptions and leniencies reduce the frequency and scope of information and protections to which you are otherwise entitled as an investor.

Grindrod Shipping may lose its foreign private issuer status, which would then require it to comply with the Exchange Act’s domestic reporting regime and cause Grindrod Shipping to incur additional legal, accounting and other expenses.

Grindrod Shipping is required to determine its status as a foreign private issuer on an annual basis at the end of its second fiscal quarter. In order to maintain its current status as a foreign private issuer, either (1) a majority of Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares must be either directly or indirectly owned of record by non-residents of the United States or (2) (a) a majority of Grindrod Shipping’s executive officers or directors must not be U.S. citizens or residents, (b) more than 50 percent of Grindrod Shipping’s assets cannot be located in the United States and (c) Grindrod Shipping’s business must be administered principally outside the United States. If Grindrod Shipping loses this status, it would be required to comply with the Exchange Act reporting and other requirements applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, which are more detailed and extensive than the requirements for foreign private issuers. Grindrod Shipping may also be required to make changes in its corporate governance practices in accordance with various SEC rules and the NASDAQ listing standards. Further, Grindrod Shipping would be required to comply with U.S. GAAP, as opposed to IFRS, in the preparation and issuance of its financial statements for historical and current periods. The regulatory and compliance costs to Grindrod Shipping under U.S. securities laws if it is required to comply with the reporting requirements applicable to a U.S. domestic issuer may be higher than the cost it would incur as a foreign private issuer. As a result, Grindrod Shipping expects that a loss of foreign private issuer status would increase its legal and financial compliance costs.

If Grindrod Shipping fails to establish and maintain proper internal controls, its ability to produce accurate financial statements or comply with applicable regulations could be impaired.

Section 404(a) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that, beginning with Grindrod Shipping’s annual report for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2019, Grindrod Shipping’s management assess and report annually on the effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting and identify any material weaknesses in its internal controls over financial reporting. Although Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires Grindrod Shipping’s independent registered public accounting firm to issue an annual report that addresses the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting, Grindrod Shipping has opted to rely on the exemptions provided to it by virtue of being an “emerging growth company”, and consequently we will not be required to comply with SEC rules that implement Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act until we are no longer an “emerging growth company”.

If either Grindrod Shipping is unable to conclude that it has effective internal controls over financial reporting or, if required, Grindrod Shipping’s independent auditors are unwilling or unable to provide it with an unqualified report on the effectiveness of its internal controls over financial reporting as required by Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, investors may lose confidence in Grindrod Shipping’s operating results, the price of the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares could decline and Grindrod Shipping may be subject to litigation or regulatory enforcement actions. 

Grindrod Shipping has incurred and will continue to incur significant increased costs as a result of operating as a company whose ordinary shares are publicly traded in the United States, and its management is required to devote substantial time to compliance initiatives.

As a company whose ordinary shares are publicly traded in the United States, Grindrod Shipping incurs significant legal, accounting, insurance and other expenses that it had not incurred prior to the Spin-Off. In addition, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and related rules implemented by the SEC, have imposed various requirements on public companies including requiring establishment and maintenance of effective disclosure and internal controls. Grindrod Shipping’s management and other personnel devote a substantial amount of time to these compliance initiatives, and Grindrod Shipping may need to add additional personnel to continue to enhance its internal compliance infrastructure. Moreover, these rules and regulations have increased Grindrod Shipping’s legal and financial compliance costs and make some activities more time-consuming and costly. These laws and regulations could also make it more difficult and expensive for Grindrod Shipping to attract and retain qualified persons to serve on the board of directors, board committees or as senior management. Furthermore, if Grindrod Shipping is unable to satisfy its obligations as a public company in the United States, it could be subject to delisting of the ordinary shares, fines, sanctions and other regulatory action and potentially civil litigation.

Risks Related to the Spin-Off From Former Parent

Former Parent’s historical performance may not be representative of Grindrod Shipping’s performance as a separate company.

Grindrod Shipping’s audited consolidated and combined financial statements presented in this annual report represent the combined financial statements of GSPL and GSSA prior to June 18, 2018 and the consolidated financial statements of the company as a separate publicly traded company on and subsequent to June 18, 2018 following the Spin-Off. In addition, for periods prior to January 1, 2018 the financial statements include components of Former Parent’s shipping business which were not transferred to us in the Spin-Off and therefore those businesses are not part of our results of operations for periods following the disposal on January 1, 2018, however, the proceeds from these sales remained with us. Accordingly, the Grindrod Shipping audited consolidated and combined financial statements do not necessarily reflect what Grindrod Shipping’s financial condition, results of operations and cash flows would have been had it been a separate, stand-alone entity during the financial periods prior to the Spin-Off. Former Parent did not account for Grindrod Shipping, and Grindrod Shipping was not operated, as a single, stand-alone entity for the financial periods prior to the Spin-Off. Please refer to “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” and “Item 18. Financial Statements—Audited Consolidated and Combined Financial Statements” and the notes to those statements included elsewhere in this annual report.

While we have some ability to seek a claim against Former Parent for certain liabilities relating to the Spin-Off or otherwise attributable to Former Parent’s businesses, available remedies may be limited.

Although Grindrod Shipping may be able to seek a claim against Former Parent in connection with the Spin-Off or Former Parent’s operation of GSPL and GSSA prior to the Spin-Off, Former Parent is not obligated to indemnify Grindrod Shipping for any claims made against us that are properly attributable to Former Parent and is entitled to assert certain defenses to such a claim by agreement and applicable law. As such, there can be no assurance that such a claim would succeed. Any liabilities relating to such claims may be significant and could negatively impact Grindrod Shipping’s business. Even if Grindrod Shipping ultimately succeeds in recovering from Former Parent any amounts for which Grindrod Shipping is held liable, it may be temporarily required to bear these losses itself. Each of these risks could negatively affect Grindrod Shipping’s business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. See “Item 10. Additional Information—Material Contracts—Contracts Relating to the Spin-Off”.

After the Spin-Off, certain of Grindrod Shipping’s executive officers and directors may have actual or potential conflicts of interest because of their current or former positions in Former Parent or their ownership of Former Parent equity.

Certain of Grindrod Shipping’s executive officers and directors are also former directors, officers or employees of Former Parent and thus have professional relationships with Former Parent’s executive officers and directors. In addition, two members of our board of directors and our alternate director are members of Former Parent’s board of directors. In addition, certain of our executive officers and directors have a financial interest in Former Parent as a result of their beneficial ownership of Former Parent’s equity. These relationships and financial interests may create, or may create the appearance of, conflicts of interest when these directors and executive officers face decisions that could have different implications for Former Parent than for Grindrod Shipping.

The ongoing costs of the Spin-Off may continue to be greater than expected.

Grindrod Shipping has incurred and will continue to incur significant costs in connection with the transition to being a stand-alone public company that relate primarily to accounting, tax, legal and other professional costs; cost of our new employee share scheme; recruiting costs associated with hiring senior management personnel; and costs to separate information systems. These costs may be greater than anticipated and could have a material adverse effect on Grindrod Shipping’s business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. 

As Grindrod Shipping builds its stand-alone information technology infrastructure and transitions its data to its own systems, it could incur substantial additional costs and experience business interruptions.

Grindrod Shipping continues to install and implement its stand-alone information technology infrastructure to support its critical business functions, including accounting and reporting, inventory control and distribution. Grindrod Shipping may incur interruptions in business operations if it cannot transition effectively from Former Parent’s existing transactional and operational systems and data centers. Grindrod Shipping may not be successful in implementing new systems and transitioning data, and it may incur substantially higher costs for implementation than anticipated. Operational interruptions that result from the implementation of these new systems and replacement of Former Parent’s information technology services, or our failure to implement the new systems and replace Former Parent’s services successfully or on the timetable contemplated for such transition, could significantly increase the costs associated with the transition, disrupt Grindrod Shipping’s business and could have a material adverse effect on its business, financial condition, cash flows and results of operations. In addition, if Grindrod Shipping is unable to replicate or transition certain systems, its ability to comply with regulatory requirements could be impaired.

Tax Risks

We may have to pay tax on U.S. source income, which would reduce our earnings.

Under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, 50% of the gross income derived by a non-U.S. corporation from, or in connection with, the use (or hiring or leasing for use) of a vessel, or the performance of services directly related to the use of a vessel that is attributable to transportation that either begins or ends, but that does not both begin and end, in the United States is characterized as U.S. source international transportation income. U.S. source international transportation income generally is subject to a 4% U.S. federal income tax without allowance for deduction or, if such U.S. source international transportation income is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States, or Effectively Connected Income, U.S. federal corporate income tax (imposed at a 21% rate) as well as a branch profits tax (presently imposed at a 30% rate on effectively connected earnings), unless the non-U.S. corporation qualifies for the statutory exemption from tax under Section 883 of the Code, or the Section 883 Exemption. The Section 883 Exemption applies separately to us and each of our subsidiaries that is treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes and earns U.S. source international transportation income (which we refer to below as our “applicable subsidiaries”).

It is uncertain whether we will qualify for the Section 883 Exemption for any taxable year. If we qualify for the Section 883 Exemption for a taxable year, then we expect that each of our applicable subsidiaries that is more than 50%-owned (by value) by us for at least half of the number of days in such taxable year would also qualify for the Section 883 Exemption for such taxable year. We believe that we will qualify for the Section 883 Exemption if (i) our ordinary shares satisfy certain listing and trading volume requirements and (ii) less than 50% of our ordinary shares are owned, actually or constructively under specified share attribution rules, on more than half the number of days in the relevant taxable year, by persons who each own 5% or more of our ordinary shares, or 5% shareholders. However, we expect that one or more 5% shareholders may own 50% or more of our ordinary shares for more than half of the number of days during our current taxable year and/or future taxable years. In this case, we would not be eligible for the Section 883 Exemption unless we can establish that a sufficient proportion of such 5% shareholders are “qualified shareholders” for purposes of the Section 883 Exemption so as to preclude other persons who are 5% shareholders from owning 50% or more of our ordinary shares for more than half the days during the relevant taxable year. We would be required to satisfy certain substantiation requirements regarding the identity of any 5% shareholders that are “qualified shareholders”, and these substantiation requirements are onerous and there is no assurance that we would be able to satisfy them. In particular, we would be required to obtain certifications of “qualified shareholder” status from any 5% shareholders that we rely upon for this purpose, which our 5% shareholders may not be willing or able to provide. Given the factual nature of the issues involved and the practical uncertainties, we can give no assurances as to our or our applicable subsidiaries’ qualification for the exemption from tax under Section 883 of the Code for any taxable year. Furthermore, our board of directors could determine that it is in our best interests to take an action that would result in our and our applicable subsidiaries not being able to qualify for the exemption from tax under Section 883 of the Code in the future. Even if we qualify for the Section 883 Exemption for a taxable year, our applicable subsidiaries that are not more than 50%-owned (by value) by us for at least half of the number of days in such taxable year may not qualify for the Section 883 Exemption. There can be no assurance that we or any of our applicable subsidiaries will qualify for the Section 883 Exemption for any taxable year.

If we or our subsidiaries were not entitled to the Section 883 Exemption for any taxable year, we and our subsidiaries generally would be subject to a 4% U.S. federal income tax with respect to our and our subsidiaries’ gross U.S. source international transportation income or, if such U.S. source international transportation income were Effectively Connected Income, U.S. federal corporate income tax as well as a branch profits tax for any such taxable year or years. Our and our subsidiaries’ failure to qualify for the Section 883 Exemption could have a negative effect on our business and would result in decreased earnings available for distribution to our shareholders. Please see the discussion under “Item 10. Additional Information—Taxation—Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—Taxation of Operating Income”. 

U.S. tax authorities could treat us as a “passive foreign investment company,” which could have adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. shareholders.

In general, 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 a PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, for any taxable year, if, taking into account certain look-through rules, at least 75% of its gross income for such taxable year consists of certain types of “passive income,” or at least 50% of the average value of the entity’s assets during such taxable year produce or are held for the production of those types of “passive income”. For purposes of these tests, “passive income” generally includes dividends, interest, capital gains and rents derived other than in the active conduct of rental business. For purposes of these tests, income earned from the performance of services would not constitute “passive income”. By contrast, rental income generally would constitute “passive income” unless it were treated as derived in the active conduct of a trade or business under applicable rules. 

U.S. shareholders 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 shares in the PFIC, as well as additional U.S. federal income tax filing obligations.

Based on our current and projected income, assets and methods of operation, we believe that we should not be treated as a PFIC with respect to our current taxable year and we expect that we should not become a PFIC for the foreseeable future. In this regard, we expect that substantially all of the vessels in our Fleet will be engaged in time or voyage chartering activities and we intend to treat our income from those activities as non-passive income, and the vessels engaged in those activities as non-passive assets, for PFIC purposes.

There is a significant amount of legal authority consisting of the Code, legislative history, and U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, pronouncements and administrative rulings supporting our position that the income derived from time charters and voyage charters constitutes services income (rather than rental income) for other tax purposes. There is, however, no direct legal authority under the PFIC rules addressing whether income from time chartering activities is services income or rental income. Moreover, it should be noted that there is also authority which characterizes time charter income as rental income rather than services income for other tax purposes. Accordingly, no assurance can be given that the IRS or a court of law will accept our position and there is a risk that the IRS or a court of law could determine that we are a PFIC. In addition, no assurance can be given as to our current and future PFIC status, because such status requires an annual factual determination based upon the composition of our income and assets for the entire taxable year. In particular, because the total value of our assets for purposes of the asset test described above will generally be calculated using the market price of our ordinary shares, our PFIC status may depend in large part on the market price of our ordinary shares. Accordingly, fluctuations in the market price of the ordinary shares may cause us to become a PFIC. In addition, the composition of our income and assets will be affected by how, and how quickly, we use the cash generated by our business operations and any net proceeds that we receive from any future financing or capital transactions. The PFIC determination also depends on the application of complex U.S. federal income tax rules concerning the classification of our assets and income for this purpose, and these rules are uncertain in some respects. Further, the PFIC determination is made annually and our circumstances or the nature of our operations may change. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that we will not be classified as a PFIC for the current taxable year or any future taxable year, and no ruling from the IRS or opinion of counsel has been issued or has been or will be sought with respect to our potential status as a PFIC.

If the IRS were to determine that we are a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. shareholder owned our ordinary shares, the U.S. shareholder generally would be subject to special tax rules resulting in increased tax liability with respect to any “excess distribution” the U.S. shareholder receives on, and any gain the U.S. shareholder realizes from a sale or other disposition (including a pledge) of, our ordinary shares, unless a “mark-to-market” election is available and a U.S. shareholder makes such election with respect to the ordinary shares. In addition, if we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. shareholder owned our ordinary shares, the U.S. shareholder would be required to file IRS Form 8621 with the U.S. shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax return for each year to report the U.S. shareholder’s ownership of such ordinary shares. Please see the discussion under “Item 10. Additional Information—Taxation—Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations—U.S. Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders—PFIC Status and Significant Tax Consequences”.

We may be subject to taxes, which may reduce our cash available for distribution to our shareholders.

We, our subsidiaries and our joint ventures 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.

Our wholly owned subsidiary, GSPL, is incorporated under the laws of Singapore and has been accepted under the Singapore Approved International Shipping Enterprise Scheme, or the Singapore AIS Scheme, pursuant to which it has the benefit of various tax exemptions in Singapore. In particular, qualifying income, including income from the operation of foreign-flagged vessels plying in international waters, would be tax exempt in Singapore. Other benefits under the Singapore AIS Scheme include the automatic withholding tax exemption on qualifying payments made in respect of qualifying loans entered into on or before December 31, 2026 to finance the purchase or construction of Singapore-flagged and foreign-flagged vessels, subject to conditions. The Singapore AIS Scheme is awarded for an initial period of 10 years, subject to an interim review of compliance after five years, and may be extended at the end of the term. GSPL’s initial Singapore AIS Scheme expired in 2014 and has been renewed through 2024 subject to compliance with specified conditions. There is no assurance that for any subsequent renewal we will be able to meet the qualifying conditions for the Singapore AIS Scheme at the time of renewal, that the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore will grant us such approval, or that the Singapore AIS Scheme will continue to be available under Singapore laws. In the event that our award of the Singapore AIS Scheme is not renewed, we will no longer enjoy the tax exemptions described above, and unless we are able to utilize other similar tax exemption initiatives in the future, whether in Singapore or otherwise, our income may be subject to Singapore corporate income tax. As such, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may be materially and adversely affected if our acceptance under the Singapore AIS Scheme is revoked, suspended, not renewed or otherwise terminated.

Grindrod Shipping shareholders may be subject to Singapore taxes.

Singapore tax law may differ from the tax laws of other jurisdictions, including the United States. Gains from the sale of Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares by a person not tax resident in Singapore may be taxable in Singapore if such gains are considered as being part of the profits of any business carried on in Singapore. For additional information, see “Item 10. Additional Information—Taxation—Singapore Tax Considerations” in this annual report. You should consult your tax advisors concerning the overall tax consequences of acquiring, owning or selling the Grindrod Shipping ordinary shares.