Gulf Navigation Holding sets sights on a 30 per cent expansion for 2007

After the acquisition of six double hulled product tankers at the end of last year, and the successful conclusion of their financing arrangement for the six tankers and two chemical tankers to be built in Shina shipyard totaling USD186 Million with Nordea bank, the company plans to acquire and build additional oil and chemical tankers this year.

Gulf Navigation Holding has completed all formalities for the listing of its shares on the DFM. The company is in the final stages of securing the regulatory approvals, and plans to start trading soon.

Engineer Abdullah Abdulrahman Al Shuraim, Chairman of Gulf Navigation Holding said: "We are confident of the inherent strength of our company and about its growth prospects. Our expansion plans for 2007 are aggressive and we expect to grow rapidly, thereby enhancing shareholder value. We have completed all the formalities and requirements of the listing process and are awaiting final approvals from the regulators. We hope that our shareholders will be able to trade on the DFM shortly."

Subscriptions for the company's IPO closed in August 2006. GCC nationals, companies, establishments and general firms under the Federal and Local Governments were invited to subscribe to the offer.

The nominal value per share was AED1.00 and the offer consisted of 910,000,000 ordinary shares representing 55 per cent of the company's total issued share capital. Over 46,000 applied for shares and AED 3.1 billion were collected and the offering was coverd 3.5 times

Gulf Navigation Holding, the region's rapidly growing oil and chemical carrier, operates through a fully-integrated organisation structure. It provides the full spectrum of services for maritime liquid cargo transportation, maritime commercial agencies, vessels technical management and vessels in-port agency services.