HOUSTON, July 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Kirby Corporation
("Kirby") (NYSE: KEX) announced today the completion of the
acquisition of K-Sea Transportation Partners L.P. ("K-Sea") (NYSE:
KSP), with K-Sea becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Kirby.
K- Sea is an operator of tank barges and tugboats
participating in the coastwise transportation primarily of refined
petroleum products in the United
States.
The total value of the transaction is approximately $604 million (before transaction fees),
consisting of $228 million of cash
paid to K-Sea common and preferred unit holders and the general
partner, $263 million of cash to
retire K-Sea's outstanding debt, and $113
million through the issuance of approximately 1,939,000
shares of Kirby common stock valued at $58.28 per share, Kirby's closing share price on
July 1, 2011. The transaction
was financed through a combination of a new $540 million bank term loan and the issuance of
Kirby common stock.
K-Sea's fleet, comprised of 58 tank barges with a capacity of
3.8 million barrels and 63 tugboats, operates along the East Coast,
West Coast and Gulf Coast of the United
States, as well as in Alaska and Hawaii. K-Sea's tank barge fleet, 54 of
which are doubled hulled, has an average age of approximately nine
years and is one of the youngest fleets in the coastwise trade.
K-Sea's customers include major oil companies and refiners,
many of which are current Kirby customers for inland tank barge
services. Headquartered in East
Brunswick, New Jersey, K-Sea has major operating facilities
in New York, Philadelphia, Norfolk, Seattle and Honolulu.
Kirby Corporation, based in Houston,
Texas, operates inland tank barges and towing vessels,
transporting petrochemicals, black oil products, refined petroleum
products and agricultural chemicals throughout the United States inland waterway system, and
operates offshore tank barges and tugboats transporting primarily
refined petroleum products in the United
States coastwise trade. Through the diesel engine
services segment, Kirby provides after-market service for
medium-speed and high-speed diesel engines and reduction gears used
in marine and power generation applications, and distribute and
services high-speed diesel engines and transmissions, including
hydraulic fracturing equipment, for land-based pressure pumping and
oilfield service markets.
Statements contained in this press release with respect to the
future are forward-looking statements. These statements
reflect management's reasonable judgment with respect to future
events. Forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from
those anticipated as a result of various factors, including
cyclical or other downturns in demand, significant pricing
competition, unanticipated additions to industry capacity, changes
in the Jones Act or in U.S. maritime policy and practice, fuel
costs, interest rates, weather conditions, and timing, magnitude
and number of acquisitions made by Kirby. Forward-looking
statements are based on currently available information and Kirby
assumes no obligation to update such statements. A list of
additional risk factors can be found in Kirby's annual report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2010, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE Kirby Corporation