$475 mi Committed Financing for Ocean Rig Apollo

DryShips Inc.  a global provider of marine transportation services for drybulk and petroleum cargoes, and through its majority owned subsidiary, Ocean Rig UDW Inc. (ORIG) of offshore deepwater drilling services, today announced that Ocean Rig has received firm commitments from lenders for up to a $475 million syndicated secured term loan to partially finance the construction costs of the Ocean Rig Apollo.

The facility amount is for the lesser of $475 million and 70% of the fair market value of the drillship. This facility has a 5 year term, and approximate 12 year repayment profile, and bears interest at LIBOR plus a margin. This financing is led by DNB and the lending syndicate consists of DVB Bank and potentially other commercial lenders as well as the Import-Export Bank of Korea (KEXIM).

This agreement is subject to definitive documentation which Ocean Rig expects to complete in the following weeks.