After several months of bidding and much market speculation, Teekay daughter company, Teekay LNG Partners, announced a joint venture (JV) with Marubeni to acquire ownership interest in eight new LNG carriers. The aggregate purchase price of approximately $1.4 billion will be financed through a combination of secured loan facilities and partner equity contributions.

Teekay will take over technical management of all eight vessels, three of which are employed on short-term charters and five of which are on fixed rate contracts with an average term of 17 years remaining.

With the strong LNG market, we should benefit from near-term demand on LNG carriers. Over the long term, we are broadening our customer base and increasing the portfolio of stable cash flows at TGP.

The transaction has been competitive and has taken a complete Teekay team effort. We now focus on integrating all eight vessels and their crews into the Teekay fleet.