Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ/OSE: GOGL) (the "Company" or "Golden Ocean"), the world's largest listed owner of large size dry bulk vessels, today announced its unaudited results for the quarter ended March 31, 2023.

Highlights

Net loss of $8.8 million and loss per share of $0.04 (basic) for the first quarter of 2023, including vessel impairment loss of $11.8 million relating to the sale of two older vessels. This compares with a net income of $68.2 million and earnings per share of $0.34 (basic) for the fourth quarter of 2022.
Adjusted EBITDA of $54.7 million for the first quarter of 2023, compared with $112.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2022.
Reported TCE rates for Capesize and Panamax/Ultramax vessels of $13,620 per day and $16,630 per day, respectively, and $14,929 per day for the entire fleet in the first quarter of 2023, or approximately $5,000 per day per vessel above the benchmark indices.
In February 2023, entered into an agreement to acquire six modern Newcastlemax vessels, three of which have been delivered as of the date of this report. In March 2023, entered into a $233.0 million two-year credit facility to partially finance the acquisition.
Entered into an agreement to sell two older Capesize vessels, Golden Feng and Golden Shui, to an unrelated third party for an aggregate net sale price of $43.6 million.
Entered into a $80.0 million facility agreement to partially finance four Kamsarmax newbuildings being delivered during the second quarter of 2023.
Took delivery of the first of ten Kamsarmax newbuildings under construction.
Published our fifth consecutive annual Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report. We measured a 9.1% drop in CO2 emissions since 2019, a big step towards our goals of reaching 15% by 2026 and 30% by 2030.
Estimated TCE rates, inclusive of charter coverage calculated on a load-to-discharge basis, are approximately:
- $20,010 per day for 74% of Capesize available days and $14,600 per day for 76% of Panamax available days for the second quarter of 2023.
- $22,300 per day for 26% of Capesize days and $19,600 per day for 38% of Panamax days for the third quarter of 2023.
Announced a cash dividend of $0.10 per share for the first quarter of 2023, which is payable on or about June 6, 2023 to shareholders of record on May 26, 2023. Shareholders holding the Company's shares through Euronext VPS may receive this cash dividend later on or about June 8, 2023.

Ulrik Andersen, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"Following a period of seasonal weakness in the first quarter, freight rates have rebounded, and the outlook for the rest of the year is positive, driven by the gradual recovery of the Chinese economy.

We took advantage of a temporary softening in asset prices in the first quarter to acquire six modern and high-efficient vessels. Upon completion, Golden Ocean will have acquired 34 vessels in two years, bringing down the average age of the fleet to just 6.5 years and cementing our market-leading position in the large-sized segment bulkers.

Over the next two years, demand is forecast to increase as fleet supply growth reaches historic lows. This dynamic will support high fleet utilization, which has historically led to strong freight rates.

The Company has a proven track record of generating healthy cash flows due to our industry-leading cash breakeven levels and the fuel efficiency of our fleet. This provides a unique level of downside protection in periods of market weakness. Equally important, it supports our mission to deliver value to our shareholders through consistent dividends in the strong markets we expect in the coming years."

The Board of Directors

Golden Ocean Group Limited

Hamilton, Bermuda

May 16, 2023

Questions should be directed to:

Ulrik Andersen: Chief Executive Officer, Golden Ocean Management AS

+47 22 01 73 40

Peder Simonsen: Chief Financial Officer, Golden Ocean Management AS

+47 22 01 73 40

The full report is available in the link below.

Forward Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this earnings report may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, or the PSLRA, provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.

The Company is taking advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the PSLRA and is including this cautionary statement in connection therewith. This document and any other written or oral statements made by the Company or on its behalf may include forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and financial performance. This earnings report includes assumptions, expectations, projections, intentions and beliefs about future events. These statements are intended as "forward-looking statements." The Company cautions that assumptions, expectations, projections, intentions and beliefs about future events may and often do vary from actual results and the differences can be material. When used in this document, the words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "targets," "projects," "likely," "will," "would," "could" and similar expressions or phrases may identify forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements in this report are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, management's examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Company's records and other data available from third parties. Although the Company believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Company's control, the Company cannot assure you that it will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. As a result, you are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statements.

In addition to these important factors and matters discussed elsewhere herein, important factors that, in the Company's view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements, include among other things: the Company's future operating or financial results; the Company's continued borrowing availability under its debt agreements and compliance with the covenants contained therein; the Company's ability to procure or have access to financing, the Company's liquidity and the adequacy of cash flows for the Company's operations; the Company's ability to successfully employ its existing and newbuilding dry bulk vessels and replace its operating leases on favorable terms, or at all; changes in the Company's operating expenses and voyage costs, including bunker prices, fuel prices (including increases costs for low sulfur fuel), dry docking, crewing and insurance costs; the Company's ability to fund future capital expenditures and investments in the construction, acquisition and refurbishment of the Company's vessels (including the amount and nature thereof and the timing of completion thereof, the delivery and commencement of operations dates, expected downtime and lost revenue); planned, pending or recent acquisitions, business strategy and expected capital spending or operating expenses, including drydocking, surveys, upgrades and insurance costs; risks associated with vessel construction; the Company's expectations regarding the availability of vessel acquisitions and its ability to complete acquisition transactions planned; delays or defaults in the construction of our newbuildings that could increase our expenses and diminish our net income and cash flows; vessel breakdowns and instances of off-hire; potential differences in interest by or among certain members of the Company's board of directors, executive officers, senior management and shareholders; potential liability from pending or future litigation; potential exposure or loss from investment in derivative instruments; general dry bulk shipping market trends, including fluctuations in charter hire rates and vessel values; changes in supply and demand in the dry bulk shipping industry, including the market for the Company's vessels and the number of newbuildings under construction; the strength of world economies; stability of Europe and the Euro; central bank policies intended to combat overall inflation and the rising interest rates and foreign exchange rates; changes in seaborne and other transportation; changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities; general domestic and international political conditions; potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, climate-related (acute and chronic), damage to storage or receiving facilities, political instability, terrorist attacks, piracy. international sanctions or international hostilities, including the ongoing aggression between Russia and Ukraine; the length and severity of epidemics and pandemics, including COVID-19 and its impact on the demand for seaborne transportation in the dry bulk sector; impacts of supply chain disruptions that began during the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting inflationary environment; the impact of increasing scrutiny and changing expectations from investors, lenders, charterers and other market participants with respect to our Environmental, Social and Governance practices; new environmental regulations and restrictions, whether at a global level stipulated by the International Maritime Organization, and/or regional/national imposed by regional authorities such as the European Union or individual countries; and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022.

The Company cautions readers of this report not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates. Except to the extent required by applicable law or regulation, the Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this report or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of the Company's future performance, and actual results and future developments may vary materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

Attachment

GOGL - 1st Quarter 2023 Results

GOGL – First Quarter 2023 Results