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Prospectus Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(5) (424b5)
Date : 11/18/2016 @ 4:46PM
Source : Edgar (US Regulatory)
Stock : Navios Maritime Partners LP Common Units Representing Limited Partner Interests (NMM)
Quote : 2.06 0.07 (3.52%) @ 6:32PM
Prospectus Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(5) (424b5)
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Table of Contents
Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(5)
Registration File No. 333-192176
PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
(To Prospectus, dated January 15, 2014)
LOGO
Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
Common Units Representing Limited Partnership Interests Having an Aggregate Offering Price of up to $25,000,000
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relate to the offer and sale from time to time of our common units, which represent limited partnership interests in us, having an aggregate offering price of up to $25,000,000 through the sales agent named in this prospectus supplement. We are a Marshall Islands limited partnership formed by Navios Maritime Holdings Inc. Although we are a partnership, we have elected to be taxed as a corporation solely for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Sales of our common units, if any, will be made from time to time, by means of ordinary broker’s transactions on the New York Stock Exchange, or otherwise at market prices, in block transactions, or as otherwise agreed with the sales agent. All offers and sales of our common units will be made pursuant to a continuous offering program sales agreement, between us and the sales agent, which has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an exhibit to a Current Report on Form 6-K. In accordance with the terms of the continuous offering program sales agreement, we may offer and sell our common units having an aggregate gross sales price of up to $25,000,000. The compensation of the sales agent for sales of our common units will be at a fixed commission of 2.5% of the gross sales price of the common units sold through the sales agent under the continuous offering program sales agreement.
Under the terms of the continuous offering program sales agreement, we also may sell common units to the sales agent as principal for its own account, at a price agreed upon at the time of the sale. If we sell common units to the sales agent as principal, we will enter into a separate terms agreement with the sales agent, and we will describe that agreement in a separate prospectus supplement or pricing supplement.
The sales agent is not required to sell any specific number or dollar amount of our common units, but will use its commercially reasonable efforts, as our sales agent and subject to the terms of the continuous offering program sales agreement, to sell the common units offered, as instructed by us.
The net proceeds we receive from any sales under this prospectus supplement will be the gross proceeds from such sales less the commissions and any other costs we may incur in offering the common units. See “Use of Proceeds” and “Plan of Distribution” for additional information.
Our common units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NMM”. The last reported sale price of our common units on the New York Stock Exchange on November 17, 2016 was $1.99 per common unit.
Investing in our common units involves a high degree of risk. See “ Risk Factors ” beginning on page S-9 of this prospectus supplement and page 5 of the accompanying prospectus and in the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus.
Neither the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus supplement or the accompanying prospectus are truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Sales Agent
S. Goldman Capital LLC
The date of this prospectus supplement is November 18, 2016
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This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus are part of a registration statement that we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, utilizing a “shelf” registration process. This document is in two parts. The first part is this prospectus supplement, which describes the specific terms of this offering of common units representing limited partnership interests and also adds to and updates information contained in the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus. The second part, the accompanying prospectus, gives more general information and disclosure about the securities we may offer from time to time, some of which may not apply to this offering of common units. Generally, when we refer to the “prospectus,” we are referring to both parts combined.
If the description of this offering varies between this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, you should rely on the information in this prospectus supplement. This prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated into each by reference include important information about us and the common stock being offered and other information you should know before investing. You should read this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus together with the additional information described under the heading, “Where You Can Find More Information” in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus before investing in our common units.
You should rely only on the information contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus or any “free writing prospectus” we may authorize to be delivered to you. We have not, and the sales agent has not, authorized anyone to provide you with additional information or information different from that contained in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus and any such “free writing prospectus.” If anyone provides you with additional, different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus or any “free writing prospectus” we may authorize to be delivered to you, as well as the information we previously filed with the SEC that is incorporated by reference herein, is accurate as of any date other than its respective date. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since such dates.
This prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus do not contain all of the information included in the registration statement as permitted by the rules and regulations of the SEC. For further information, we refer you to the registration statement on Form F-3, including its exhibits, of which this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus form a part. We are subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, and therefore file reports and other information with the SEC. Statements contained in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus about the provisions or contents of any agreement or other document are only summaries. If SEC rules require that any agreement or document be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement, you should refer to that agreement or document for its complete contents.
We are offering to sell the common units, and are seeking offers to buy the common units, only in jurisdictions where offers and sales are permitted. The distribution of this prospectus and the offering of the common units in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by applicable law. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about and observe any restrictions relating to the offering of the common units and the distribution of this prospectus outside the United States. This prospectus does not constitute, and may not be used in connection with, an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to purchase, the securities offered by this prospectus in any jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation is not authorized or in which the person making such offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or solicitation.
Unless otherwise indicated, all references to “$” and “dollars” in this prospectus are to United States dollars, and financial information presented in this prospectus is derived from financial statements that are incorporated by reference and were prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or U.S. GAAP. We have a fiscal year end of December 31.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Prospectus Supplement
Where You Can Find More Information
S-1
Incorporation Of Documents By Reference
S-1
Forward-Looking Statements
S-2
Prospectus Supplement Summary
S-5
Risk Factors
S-9
Use Of Proceeds
S-10
Capitalization
S-11
Price Range Of Common Units And Distributions
S-12
Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations
S-14
Marshall Islands Tax Consequences
S-21
Other Tax Jurisdictions
S-21
Sales Agent
S-22
Plan Of Distribution
S-23
Service Of Process And Enforcement Of Civil Liabilities
S-25
Legal Matters
S-25
Experts
S-25
Expenses
S-26
Prospectus
Summary
1
Risk Factors
5
Forward-Looking Statements
33
Use of Proceeds
35
Capitalization
36
Price Range of Common Units and Distributions
37
The Securities We May Offer
39
Plan of Distribution
49
Our Cash Distribution Policy and Restrictions on Distributions
50
Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations
52
Marshall Islands Tax Consequences
58
Legal Matters
59
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a Registration Statement on Form F-3 regarding the securities covered by this prospectus. This prospectus does not contain all of the information found in the Registration Statement. For further information regarding us and the securities offered in this prospectus, you may wish to review the full Registration Statement, including its exhibits. In addition, we file annual, quarterly and other reports with and furnish information to the SEC. You may inspect and copy any document we file with or furnish to the SEC at the public reference facilities maintained by the SEC at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20549, at prescribed rates or from the SEC’s web site on the Internet at www.sec.gov free of charge. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on public reference rooms. You can also obtain information about us at the offices of the New York Stock Exchange, Inc., or the NYSE, 20 Broad Street, New York, New York 10005.
We are subject to the information requirements of the Exchange Act, and, in accordance therewith, are required to file with the SEC Annual Reports on Form 20-F and provide to the SEC other material information on Current Reports on Form 6-K. These reports and other information may be inspected and copied at the public reference facilities maintained by the SEC or obtained from the SEC’s website as provided above. As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt under the Exchange Act from, among other things, certain rules prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our directors and principal unitholders and the executive officers of our general partner are exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we are not required under the Exchange Act to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently, or as promptly, as U.S. companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act, including the filing of quarterly reports or current reports on Form 8-K. However, we furnish or make available to our unitholders annual reports containing our audited consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP and make available to our unitholders quarterly reports containing our unaudited interim financial information for the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year.
We make our periodic reports as well as other information filed with or furnished to the SEC available, free of charge, through our website, at www.navios-mlp.com , as soon as reasonably practicable after those reports and other information are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC.
INCORPORATION OF DOCUMENTS BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” into this prospectus information that we file with the SEC. This means that we can disclose important information to you without actually including the specific information in this prospectus by referring you to other documents filed separately with the SEC. The information incorporated by reference is an important part of this prospectus. Information that we later provide to the SEC, and which is deemed to be “filed” with the SEC, automatically will update information previously filed with the SEC, and may replace information in this prospectus.
We incorporate by reference into this prospectus the documents listed below:
• our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, filed on March 23, 2016;
• our Current Reports Form 6-K, filed on February 5, 2016, May 12, 2016, June 28, 2016, August 12, 2016, October 19, 2016 and November 14, 2016;
• all of our subsequent Reports on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC prior to the termination of this offering only to the extent that we expressly state in such Reports that they are being incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement of which this prospectus is a part; and
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• the description of our common units contained in our Registration Statement on Form 8-A12B, initially filed on November 7, 2007 and incorporating by reference our Registration Statement on Form F-1 (Registration No. 333-146972), including any subsequent amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description.
• These reports contain important information about us, our financial condition and our results of operations.
• You may obtain any of the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus from the SEC through its public reference facilities or its website at the addresses provided above. You also may request a copy of any document incorporated by reference into this prospectus (excluding any exhibits to those documents, unless the exhibit is specifically incorporated by reference into this document), at no cost by visiting our internet website at www.navios-mlp.com or by writing or calling us at the following address:
Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
7 Avenue de Grande Bretagne, Office 11B2
Monte Carlo MC 98000 Monaco
Attn: Corporate Secretary
(011) + (377) 9798-2140
You should rely only on the information incorporated by reference into or provided in this prospectus. We have not, and the sales agent has not, authorized anyone else to provide you with any information. You should not assume that the information incorporated by reference into or provided in this prospectus is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of each document. The information contained in our website is not incorporated by reference into this prospectus and should not be considered as part of this prospectus.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements included in this prospectus that are not historical facts (including our statements concerning plans and objectives of management for future operations or economic performance, or assumptions related thereto) are forward-looking statements. In addition, we and our representatives may from time to time make other oral or written statements which are also forward-looking statements. Such statements include, in particular, statements about our plans, strategies, business prospects, changes and trends in our business, and the markets in which we operate as described in this annual report. In some cases, you can identify the forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “may,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “forecast,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “propose,” “potential,” “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places in this prospectus, and include statements with respect to, among other things:
• our ability to make cash distributions on our common units;
• our future financial condition or results of operations and our future revenues and expenses;
• future levels of operating surplus and levels of distributions, as well as our future cash distribution policy;
• our current and future business and growth strategies and other plans and objectives for future operations;
• future charter hire rates and vessel values;
• the repayment of debt;
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• our ability to access debt and equity markets;
• planned capital expenditures and availability of capital resources to fund capital expenditures;
• future supply of, and demand for, dry cargo commodities;
• increases in interest rates;
• our ability to maintain long-term relationships with major commodity traders, operators and liner companies;
• our ability to leverage to our advantage Navios Maritime Holdings Inc.’s, or Navios Holdings’, relationships and reputation in the shipping industry;
• our ability to maximize the use of our vessels, including the re-deployment or disposition of vessels no longer under long-term time charters;
• timely purchases and deliveries of newbuilding vessels;
• future purchase prices of newbuildings and secondhand vessels;
• our ability to compete successfully for future chartering and newbuilding opportunities;
• our future financial condition or results of operations and our future revenues and expenses, including revenues from any profit sharing arrangements, and required levels of reserves;
• potential liability and costs due to environmental, safety and other incidents involving our vessels;
• our track record, and past and future general and administrative expenses as a publicly traded limited partnership and our expenses under the management agreement, as amended, performance, in safety, environmental and regulatory matters;
• our anticipated incremental general and administrative expenses as a publicly traded limited partnership and our expenses under the management agreement and the administrative services agreement with Navios ShipManagement Inc., a subsidiary of Navios Holdings, and for reimbursements for fees and costs of our general partner;
• estimated future maintenance and replacement capital expenditures;
• future sales of our common units in the public market;
• a lack of sufficient cash to pay the quarterly distribution on our common units;
• the cyclical nature of the international dry cargo and container shipping industry;
• fluctuations in charter rates for dry cargo carriers and container vessels;
• the high numbers of newbuildings currently under construction in the dry cargo industry;
• changes in the market values of our vessels and the vessels for which we have purchase options;
• an inability to expand relationships with existing customers and obtain new customers;
• the loss of any customer or charter or vessel;
• the aging of our fleet and resultant increases in operations costs;
• damage to our vessels;
• global economic outlook and growth and changes in general economic and business conditions;
• general domestic and international political conditions, including wars, terrorism and piracy;
• increases in costs and expenses, including but not limited to: crew wages, insurance, provisions, port expenses, lube oil, bunkers, repairs, maintenance and general and administrative expenses;
• the adequacy of our insurance arrangements and our ability to obtain insurance and required certifications;
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• the expected cost of, and our ability to comply with, governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards, as well as standard regulations imposed by our charterers applicable to our business;
• the changes to the regulatory requirements applicable to the shipping industry, including, without limitation, stricter requirements adopted by international organizations, such as the International Maritime Organization and the European Union, or by individual countries or charterers and actions taken by regulatory authorities and governing such areas as safety and environmental compliance;
• the anticipated taxation of our partnership and our unitholders;
• expected demand in the dry cargo shipping sector in general and the demand for our Panamax, Capesize, Ultra-Handymax and Container vessels in particular;
• our ability to retain key executive officers;
• customers’ increasing emphasis on environmental and safety concerns;
• changes in the availability and costs of funding due to conditions in the bank market, capital markets and other factors; and
• other factors detailed from time to time in our periodic reports filed with the SEC.
These and other forward-looking statements are made based upon management’s current plans, expectations, estimates, assumptions and beliefs concerning future events impacting us and therefore involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including those set forth under the heading “Risk Factors” in this prospectus supplement, the accompany prospectus, and the documents incorporate by reference therein.
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PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT SUMMARY
The following summary highlights selected information contained elsewhere in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, and does not contain all the information you will need in making your investment decision. You should carefully read this entire prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein.
We urge you to carefully read this entire prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference herein and therein, including our financial statements and the related notes and the information in the section entitled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” As an investor or prospective investor, you should also review carefully the sections entitled “Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2015, which is incorporated by reference herein. Unless otherwise indicated, all data regarding our fleet and the terms of our charters in this prospectus supplement is as of September 30, 2016.
References in this prospectus supplement to “Navios Maritime Partners L.P.,” “the Company,” “we,” “our,” “us” or similar terms refer to Navios Maritime Partners L.P. and its subsidiaries. References in this prospectus to “Navios Holdings” refer, depending on the context, to Navios Holdings and its subsidiaries, including Navios ShipManagement; provided, however, it shall not include Navios Maritime Partners L.P. to the extent it may otherwise be deemed a subsidiary. Navios ShipManagement (an affiliate of our general partner) manages the commercial and technical operation of our fleet pursuant to a management agreement and provides administrative services to us pursuant to an administrative services agreement.
Overview
Navios Maritime Partners L.P. is a publicly traded master limited partnership that owns and operates container and dry cargo vessels, which was formed on August 7, 2007 under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands by Navios Holdings, a vertically integrated seaborne shipping and logistics company with over 55 years of operating history in the drybulk shipping industry. Navios GP L.L.C., our general partner, a wholly owned subsidiary of Navios Holdings, was also formed on that date to act as the general partner of Navios Partners and received a 2% general partner interest in Navios Partners.
Since the beginning of 2016, we did not declare any cash distributions for the quarters ended March 31, 2016, June 30, 2016 or September 30, 2016.
Our Fleet
Our fleet consists of twelve Panamax vessels, nine Capesize vessels, three Ultra-Handymax vessels and eight Container vessels, including the one Container vessel, which we agreed to sell in June 2016, and the Capesize vessel, which is expected to be delivered in December 2016 (the “ New Capesize Vessel ”). The average age of the vessels in our fleet (including the New Capesize Vessel) approximates the average age of the world drybulk fleet. Our combined fleet had an average age of 9.5 years as of November 11, 2016 (average age of 9.6 years for drybulk fleet (including the New Capesize Vessel) and 9.4 years for containers fleet).
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The following table provides summary information about our fleet as of November 11, 2016:
Owned Drybulk Vessels
Type
Built Capacity
(DWT) Charter
Expiration
Date(2) Charter-Out
Rate(1)
Navios Apollon
Ultra-Handymax 2000 52,073 December 2016 $ 4,465
Navios Soleil
Ultra-Handymax 2009 57,337 December 2016 $ 5,415
Navios La Paix
Ultra-Handymax 2014 61,485 February 2017 $ 125% of pool earnings
Navios Gemini S
Panamax 1994 68,636 November 2016 $ 6,033
Navios Libra II
Panamax 1995 70,136 December 2016 $ 12,160
Navios Felicity
Panamax 1997 73,867 April 2017 $ 4,750
Navios Galaxy I
Panamax 2001 74,195 February 2018 $ 21,938
Navios Hyperion
Panamax 2004 75,707 December 2016 $ 5,558
Navios Alegria
Panamax 2004 76,466 April 2017 $ 6,413
Navios Orbiter
Panamax 2004 76,602 December 2016 $ 9,986
December 2018 $ Index (3)
Navios Helios
Panamax 2005 77,075 January 2017 $ Index (4)
Navios Sun
Panamax 2005 76,619 November 2016 $ 9,986
November 2018 $ Index (3)
Navios Hope
Panamax 2005 75,397 November 2016 $ 9,986
November 2018 $ Index (3)
Navios Sagittarius
Panamax 2006 75,756 November 2018 $ 26,125
Navios Harmony
Panamax 2006 82,790 May 2017 $ 4,750 + Index (5)
Navios Fantastiks
Capesize 2005 180,265 November 2016 $ 12,825
December 2017 $ 4,675 + Index (6)
Navios Aurora II
Capesize 2009 169,031 August 2017 $ Index (7)
Navios Pollux
Capesize 2009 180,727 November 2016 $ 100% of pool earnings
Navios Fulvia
Capesize 2010 179,263 February 2017 $ 13,443
Navios Melodia
Capesize 2010 179,132 September 2022 $ 29,356 (8)
Navios Luz
Capesize 2010 179,144 December 2017 $ 5,250 + Index (9)
Navios Buena Ventura
Capesize 2010 179,259 December 2017 $ Index (10)
February 2017 6,175
Navios Joy
Capesize 2013 181,389 March 2018 $ 5,000 + Index (9)
Vessel to be Delivered
Type
Built Capacity
(DWT) Charter Expiration
Date(2) Charter-Out
Rate(1)
Navios TBN(11)
Capesize 2004 180,310 September 2017 Index (7)
Owned Container Vessels
Type
Built TEU Charter
Expiration
Date(2) Charter-Out
Rate(1)
Hyundai Hongkong
Container 2006 6,800 December 2019 $ 24,095
December 2023 $ 30,119 (12)
Hyundai Singapore
Container 2006 6,800 December 2019 $ 24,095
December 2023 $ 30,119 (12)
Hyundai Tokyo
Container 2006 6,800 December 2019 $ 24,095
December 2023 $ 30,119 (12)
Hyundai Shanghai
Container 2006 6,800 December 2019 $ 24,095
December 2023 $ 30,119 (12)
Hyundai Busan
Container 2006 6,800 December 2019 $ 24,095
December 2023 $ 30,119 (12)
YM Utmost
Container 2006 8,204 August 2018 $ 34,266
YM Unity
Container 2006 8,204 October 2018 $ 34,266
December 2016—
MSC Cristina
Container 2011 13,100 January 2017 $ 60,275 (13)
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(1) Daily charter-out rate per day, net of commissions or settlement and insurance proceeds, where applicable.
(2) Expected redelivery basis midpoint of full redelivery period, excluding Navios Partners’ extension options, not declared yet.
(3) Average BPI 4TC minus $2,488 net per day.
(4) 106% average BPI 4TC.
(5) 52% average BPI 4TC.
(6) 50% average BCI 5TC.
(7) $9,480/day adjusted for 50% pool earnings or weighted average BCI 5TC.
(8) Profit sharing 50% above $37,500/day based on Baltic Exchange Capesize TC Average.
(9) 52% average BCI 5TC.
(10) 100% average BCI 5TC.
(11) Expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2016.
(12) Upon acquisition, the vessels were fixed on ten/twelve year charters with Navios Partners’s option to terminate after year seven.
(13) The vessel has been classified as held for sale and is expected to be delivered to the buyer by the first quarter of 2017.
Recent Developments
On November 14, 2016, the Company filed a Form 6-K disclosing its financial results for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2016, which is incorporated by reference herein.
Corporate Information
We are incorporated under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. We maintain our principal executive offices at 7 Avenue de Grande Bretagne, Office 11B2 Monte Carlo, MC 98000 Monaco. Our telephone number at that address is (011) + (377) 9798-2140. Our website address is www.navios-mlp.com. The information on our website is not a part of this prospectus supplement or accompanying prospectus.
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The Offering
Issuer
Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
Securities offered by us
Common units having an aggregate offering price of up to $25.0 million.
Manner of offering
A continuous offering that may be made from time to time through our sales agent. See “Plan of Distribution”.
Use of proceeds
We use the net proceeds of approximately $24.1 million from this offering, after deducting the sales agent’s commission and our offering expenses, to fund our fleet expansion and/or for general partnership purposes.
General Partner Units
The net proceeds from this offering identified above do not include any proceeds we may receive from the sale to our general partner of general partner units to allow it to maintain its 2.0% general partner interest in us, which the general partner has indicated its intent to do. The sale of general partner units is not part of this offering.
Navios Holdings currently owns a 20.1% interest in us, which includes the 2.0% interest through our general partner which Navios Holdings owns and controls.
Risk factors
Investing in our common units involves a high degree of risk. Limited partnerships are inherently different than corporations. You should carefully consider the risk factors described under “Risk Factors” on page S-9 of this prospectus supplement, on page 5 of the accompanying prospectus, in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, and in the other information included in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus before making an investment decision regarding our common units.
NYSE symbol
NMM
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RISK FACTORS
Before investing in our common units, you should carefully consider all of the information included or incorporated by reference into this prospectus. Although many of our business risks are comparable to those of a corporation engaged in a similar business, limited partner interests are inherently different from the capital stock of a corporation. When evaluating an investment in our common units, you should carefully consider the risks discussed below, those risks discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” beginning on page 5 of the accompanying prospectus, as well as the discussion of risk factors beginning on page 5 of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, and the risk factors included in our Reports on Form 6-K, as applicable, that are specifically incorporated by reference into this prospectus. If any of these risks were to occur, our business, financial condition, operating results or prospects could be materially adversely affected. In that case, our ability to pay distributions on our common units may be reduced, the trading price of our common units could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Related to This Offering
You may experience future dilution as a result of future equity offerings and other issuances of our common units or other securities.
In order to raise additional capital, we may in the future offer additional our common units or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for our common units, including convertible debt. We cannot predict the size of future issuances or sales of our common units, including those made pursuant to the continuous offering program sales agreement or in connection with future acquisitions or capital activities, or the effect, if any, that such issuances or sales may have on the market price of our common units. The issuance and sale of substantial amounts of common units, including issuance and sales pursuant to the continuous offering program sales agreement, or announcement that such issuance and sales may occur, could adversely affect the market price of our common units. In addition, we cannot assure you that we will be able to make future sales of our common units or other securities in any other offering at a price per unit that is equal to or greater than the price per unit paid by investors in this offering, and investors purchasing units or other securities in the future could have rights that are superior to existing unitholders. The price per unit at which we sell additional common units or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for our common units in future transactions may be higher or lower than the price per unit in this offering, and could adversely impact the trading price of our common units.
We will have broad discretion in the use the net proceeds from this offering and may not use them effectively.
Our management will have broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds from this offering and could spend such proceeds in ways that do not improve our results of operations or enhance the value of our common units. The failure by our management to apply these funds effectively could result in financial losses and cause the price of our common units to decline. Pending their use, we may invest the net proceeds from this offering in a manner that does not produce income or that loses value.
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USE OF PROCEEDS
We expect to receive net proceeds of approximately $24.1 million from the sale of common units we are offering (which does not include our general partner’s capital contribution to allow it to maintain its 2.0% general partner interest in us), after deducting the sales agent’s commissions and estimated expenses payable by us.
We will use the net proceeds from our sale of common units covered by this prospectus and the capital contribution by our general partner to fund our fleet expansion and/or for general partnership purposes.
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CAPITALIZATION
The following table sets forth our capitalization as of September 30, 2016:
• on a historical basis; and
• on an as adjusted basis to give effect to this offering (assuming the issuance and sale of 12,562,814 common units at the assumed public offering price of $1.99 per common unit, which is the last reported sale price of our common units on the NYSE on November 17, 2016, after deducting commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us), the capital contribution by our general partner to maintain its 2.0% general partner interest in us, and the application of the net proceeds therefrom.
• on an as adjusted basis to reflect the repayment subsequent to September 30, 2016 through November 15, 2016 of the related debt totaling $31.7 million, which includes a $2.2 million benefit in the nominal value of a portion of the debt repaid.
The as adjusted information is illustrative only and will adjust based on the actual price to the public, the actual number of common units sold and other terms of the offering determined at the time our common units are sold pursuant to this prospectus supplement.
You should read this table in conjunction with the section entitled “Use of Proceeds” elsewhere in this Prospectus. The historical data in the table is derived from our condensed consolidated financial statements, which are incorporated by reference herein from our Current Report on Form 6-K reporting operating results for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2016, furnished to the SEC on November 14, 2016.
Actual As Adjusted
(In thousands of U.S. dollars)
Long-term Debt (including current portion and excluding deferred financing fees and debt discount):
$ 559,767 $ 528,097
Partner’s Capital:
Common Unitholders (83,079,710 units issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2016, and 95,642,524 as adjusted)
678,595 702,650
General Partner(1) (1,695,509 units issued and outstanding as of September 30, 2016 and 1,951,893 as adjusted)
3,160 3,670
Total Partner’s Capital
681,755 706,320
Total Capitalization
$ 1,241,522 $ 1,234,417
(1) The number of general partner units is determined by multiplying the total number of units deemed to be outstanding (i.e., the total number of common units outstanding divided by 98.0%) by the general partner’s 2.0% general partner interest.
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PRICE RANGE OF COMMON UNITS AND DISTRIBUTIONS
Our common units were first offered on the NYSE on November 13, 2007, at an initial price of $20.00 per unit. Our common units are listed for trading on the NYSE under the symbol “NMM.”
The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the high and low closing prices for our common units, as reported on the NYSE, for the periods indicated. The last reported sale price of our common units on the NYSE on November 17, 2016 was $1.99 per common unit.
Price Range
High Low
Year Ended:
December 31, 2015
$ 13.89 $ 2.71
December 31, 2014
$ 20.40 $ 9.67
December 31, 2013
$ 19.45 $ 12.84
December 31, 2012
$ 16.94 $ 11.59
December 31, 2011
$ 21.38 $ 11.31
Quarter Ended:
September 30, 2016
$ 1.68 $ 1.28
June 30, 2016
$ 1.85 $ 1.17
March 31, 2016
$ 3.07 $ 0.80
December 31, 2015
$ 8.75 $ 2.71
September 30, 2015
$ 11.41 $ 6.96
June 30, 2015
$ 13.22 $ 10.63
March 31, 2015
$ 13.89 $ 9.75
December 31, 2014
$ 18.12 $ 9.67
Month Ended:
November 30, 2016 (through November 17, 2016)
$ 2.10 $ 1.18
October 31, 2016
$ 1.45 $ 1.28
September 30, 2016
$ 1.50 $ 1.30
August 31, 2016
$ 1.68 $ 1.36
July 31, 2016
$ 1.58 $ 1.28
June 30, 2016
$ 1.46 $ 1.17
May 31, 2016
$ 1.61 $ 1.31
April 30, 2016
$ 1.85 $ 1.19
March 31, 2016
$ 1.63 $ 1.06
February 29, 2016
$ 2.25 $ 0.80
January 31, 2016
$ 3.07 $ 1.69
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Quarterly Distributions
The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the approximate amounts of cash distributions that we have declared and paid:
Distributions for Quarter Ended
Amount of Cash Distributions Cash Distributions per Unit
September 30, 2016
— —
June 30, 2016
— —
March 31, 2016
— —
December 31, 2015
— —
September 30, 2015
$114.3 million $0.2125 per unit
June 30, 2015
$76.2 million $0.4425 per unit
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MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
The following is a discussion of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations that may be relevant to beneficial owners of our common units and, unless otherwise noted in the following discussion, is the opinion of Thompson Hine LLP, our U.S. counsel, insofar as it relates to matters of U.S. federal income tax law and legal conclusions with respect to those matters. The opinion of our counsel is dependent on the accuracy of representations made by us to them, including descriptions of our operations contained herein.
This discussion is based upon provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, or the Code, U.S. Treasury Regulations, and administrative rulings and court decisions, all as in effect or in existence on the date of this prospectus supplement and all of which are subject to change or differing interpretations by the Internal Revenue Service, IRS, or a court, possibly with retroactive effect. Changes in these authorities may cause the tax consequences of ownership of our common units to vary substantially from the consequences described below. Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this section to “we,” “our” or “us” are references to Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
The following discussion applies only to beneficial owners of common units that own the common units as “capital assets” (generally, property held for investment purposes). The following discussion does not address all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation which may be important to particular beneficial owners of common units in light of their individual circumstances, such as (i) beneficial owners of common units subject to special tax rules (e.g., banks or other financial institutions, real estate investment trusts, regulated investment companies, insurance companies, broker-dealers, traders that elect to mark-to-market for U.S. federal income tax purposes, tax-exempt organizations and retirement plans, individual retirement accounts and tax-deferred accounts, or former citizens or long-term residents of the United States) or to beneficial owners that will hold the common units as part of a straddle, hedge, conversion, constructive sale, or other integrated transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, (ii) partnerships or other entities classified as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes or their partners, (iii) U.S. Holders (as defined below) that have a functional currency other than the U.S. dollar, or (iv) beneficial owners of common units that own 2.0% or more (by vote or value) of our common units, all of whom may be subject to tax rules that differ significantly from those summarized below. If a partnership or other entity classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds our common units, the tax treatment of its partners generally will depend upon the status of the partner, the activities of the partnership and certain determinations made at the partner level. If you are a partner in a partnership holding our common units, you should consult your own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences to you of the partnership’s ownership of our common units.
No ruling has been obtained or will be requested from the IRS, regarding any matter affecting us or prospective holders of our common units. The opinions and statements made herein may be challenged by the IRS and, if so challenged, may not be sustained upon review in a court.
This discussion does not contain information regarding any state or local, estate, gift or alternative minimum tax considerations concerning the ownership or disposition of common units.
Each prospective beneficial owner of our common units should consult its own tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal, state, local, and other tax consequences of the ownership or disposition of common units.
Election to Be Treated as a Corporation
We have elected to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Consequently, among other things, U.S. Holders (as defined below) will not directly be subject to U.S. federal income tax on their shares of our income, but rather will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on distributions received from us and dispositions of common units as described below. For a further discussion of our treatment for U.S. federal income tax purposes, please see “Information about the Partnership—Taxation of the Partnership” in our
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Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, and “Risk Factors—Tax Risks” in our Prospectus, dated January 15, 2014, both of which are incorporated in this prospectus supplement by reference.
U.S. Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders
As used herein, the term “U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of our common units that:
• is an individual U.S. citizen or resident (as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes),
• a corporation (or other entity that is classified as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized under the laws of the United States or any of its political subdivisions,
• an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source, or
• a trust if (i) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more “United States persons” (as defined in the Code) have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (ii) the trust has a valid election in effect under current U.S. Treasury Regulations to be treated as a “United States person.”
Distributions
Subject to the discussion below of the rules applicable to a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, any distributions to a U.S. Holder made by us with respect to our common units generally will constitute dividends, which will be taxable as ordinary income or “qualified dividend income” as described in more detail below, to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions in excess of our current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated first as a non-taxable return of capital to the extent of the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in its common units on a dollar-for-dollar basis, and thereafter as capital gain, which will be either long-term or short-term capital gain depending upon whether the U.S. Holder held the common units for more than one year. U.S. Holders that are corporations generally will not be entitled to claim a dividend received deduction with respect to distributions they receive from us. Dividends received with respect to the common units will be treated as foreign source income and generally will be treated as “passive category income” for U.S. foreign tax credit purposes.
Dividends received with respect to our common units by a U.S. Holder who is an individual, trust or estate or a non-corporate U.S. Holder, generally will be treated as “qualified dividend income” that is taxable to such non-corporate U.S. Holder at preferential capital gain tax rates, provided that: (i) subject to the possibility that our common units may be delisted by a qualifying exchange, our common units are traded on an “established securities market” in the United States (such as the NYSE where our common units are traded) and are “readily tradeable” on such an exchange; (ii) we are not a PFIC for the taxable year during which the dividend is paid or the immediately preceding taxable year (which we do not believe we are, have been or will be, as discussed below); (iii) the non-corporate U.S. Holder has owned the common units for more than 60 days during the 121-day period beginning 60 days before the date on which the common units become ex-dividend (and has not entered into certain risk limiting transactions with respect to such common units); and (iv) the non-corporate U.S. Holder is not under an obligation to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property. Any dividends paid on our common units that are not eligible for these preferential rates will be taxed as ordinary income to a non-corporate U.S. Holder. In addition, a 3.8% tax may apply to certain investment income. See “Medicare Tax” below.
Special rules may apply to any amounts received in respect of our common units that are treated as “extraordinary dividends.” In general, an extraordinary dividend is a dividend with respect to a common unit that is equal to or in excess of 10.0% of a U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis (or fair market value upon the U.S. Holder’s election) in such common unit. In addition, extraordinary dividends include dividends received within a one-year period that, in the aggregate, equal or exceed 20.0% of a U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis (or fair market value) in a common unit. If we pay an “extraordinary dividend” on our common units that is treated as “qualified
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dividend income,” then any loss recognized by a U.S. Individual Holder from the sale or exchange of such common units will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of the amount of such dividend.
Sale, Exchange or Other Disposition of Common Units
Subject to the discussion of PFICs below, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss upon a sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized by the U.S. Holder from such sale, exchange or other disposition and the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in such units. The U.S. Holder’s initial tax basis in the common units generally will be the U.S. Holder’s purchase price for the common units and that tax basis will be reduced (but not below zero) by the amount of any distributions on the common units that are treated as non-taxable returns of capital (as discussed under “—Distributions” above). Such gain or loss will be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. Holder’s holding period is greater than one year at the time of the sale, exchange or other disposition.
A corporate U.S. Holder’s capital gains, long-term and short-term, are taxed at ordinary income tax rates. If a corporate U.S. Holder recognizes a loss upon the disposition of our common units, such U.S. Holder is limited to using the loss to offset other capital gain. If a corporate U.S. Holder has no other capital gain in the tax year of the loss, it may carry the capital loss back three years and forward five years.
Long-term capital gains of non-corporate U.S. Holders are subject to the favorable tax rate of a maximum of 20%. In addition, a 3.8% tax may apply to certain investment income. See “Medicare Tax” below. A non-corporate U.S. Holder may deduct a capital loss resulting from a disposition of our common units to the extent of capital gains plus up to $3,000 ($1,500 for married individuals filing separate tax returns) annually and may carry forward a capital loss to its succeeding taxable years until fully utilized.
PFIC Status and Significant Tax Consequences
In general, we will be treated as a PFIC with respect to a U.S. Holder if, for any taxable year in which the holder held our common units, either:
• at least 75.0% of our gross income (including the gross income of our vessel-owning subsidiaries) for such taxable year consists of passive income (e.g., dividends, interest, capital gains and rents derived other than in the active conduct of a rental business), or
• at least 50.0% of the average value of the assets held by us (including the assets of our vessel-owning subsidiaries) during such taxable year produce, or are held for the production of, passive income.
Income earned, or deemed earned, by us in connection with the performance of services would not constitute passive income. By contrast, rental income generally would constitute “passive income” unless we were treated as deriving our rental income in the active conduct of a trade or business under the applicable rules.
Based on our current and projected methods of operations, and an opinion of counsel, we believe that we will not be a PFIC with respect to any taxable year. Our U.S. counsel, Thompson Hine LLP, is of the opinion that (1) the income we receive from the time chartering activities and assets engaged in generating such income should not be treated as passive income or assets, respectively, and (2) so long as our income from time charters exceeds 25.0% of our gross income for each taxable year after our initial taxable year and the value of our vessels contracted under time charters exceeds 50.0% of the average value of our assets for each taxable year after our initial taxable year, we should not be a PFIC. This opinion is based on representations and projections provided to our counsel by us regarding our assets, income and charters, and its validity is conditioned on the accuracy of such representations and projections.
Our counsel’s opinion is based principally on their conclusion that, for purposes of determining whether we are a PFIC, the gross income we derive or are deemed to derive from the time chartering activities of our wholly
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owned subsidiaries should constitute services income, rather than rental income. Correspondingly, such income should not constitute passive income, and the assets that we or our subsidiaries own and operate in connection with the production of such income, in particular, the vessels we or our subsidiaries own that are subject to time charters, should not constitute passive assets for purposes of determining whether we are or have been a PFIC.
We expect that all of the vessels in our fleet will be engaged in time chartering activities and intend to treat our income from those activities as non-passive income, and the vessels engaged in those activities as non-passive assets, for PFIC purposes. Our counsel has advised us that there is a significant amount of legal authority consisting of the Code, legislative history, IRS pronouncements and rulings supporting our position that the income from our time chartering activities constitutes services income (rather than rental income). There is, however, no direct legal authority under the PFIC rules addressing whether income from time chartering activities is services income or rental income. Moreover, in a case not interpreting the PFIC rules, Tidewater Inc. v. United States , 565 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2009), the Fifth Circuit held that the vessel time charters at issue generated predominantly rental income rather than services income. However, the IRS stated in an Action on Decision (AOD 2010-001) that it disagrees with, and will not acquiesce to, the way that the rental versus services framework was applied to the facts in the Tidewater decision, and in its discussion stated that the time charters at issue in Tidewater would be treated as producing services income for PFIC purposes. The IRS’s AOD, however, is an administrative action that cannot be relied upon or otherwise cited as precedent by taxpayers.
The opinion of our counsel is not binding on the IRS or any court. Thus, while we have received an opinion of our counsel in support of our position, there is a possibility that the IRS or a court could disagree with this position and the opinion of our counsel. In addition, although we intend to conduct our affairs in a manner to avoid being classified as a PFIC with respect to any taxable year, we cannot assure you that the nature of our operations will not change in the future.
As discussed more fully below, if we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units, the U.S. Holder would be subject to different taxation rules depending on whether the U.S. Holder makes an election to treat us as a “Qualified Electing Fund,” which we refer to as a “QEF election.” As an alternative to making a QEF election, the U.S. Holder may be able to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, as discussed below. In addition, if we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units, the U.S. Holder generally would be required to file IRS Form 8621 with the U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax return for each year to report the U.S. Holder’s ownership of such common units. In the event a U.S. Holder does not file IRS Form 8621, the statute of limitations on the assessment and collection of U.S. federal income taxes of such U.S. Holder for the related tax year will not close before the date which is three years after the date on which such report is filed.
It should also be noted that, if we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units and any of our non-U.S. subsidiaries were also a PFIC, the U.S. Holder would be treated as owning a proportionate amount (by value) of the shares of the lower-tier PFIC for purposes of the application of these rules.
Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a Timely QEF Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, and a U.S. Holder makes a timely QEF election (any such U.S. Holder, an “Electing Holder”), the Electing Holder must report for U.S. federal income tax purposes its pro rata share of our ordinary earnings and net capital gain, if any, for our taxable year that ends with or within the Electing Holder’s taxable year, regardless of whether or not the Electing Holder received any distributions from us in that year. Such income inclusions would not be eligible for the preferential tax rates applicable to “qualified dividend income.” The Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our common units will be increased to reflect taxed but undistributed earnings and profits. Distributions to the Electing Holder of our earnings and profits that were previously taxed will result in a corresponding reduction in the Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our common units and will not be taxed again once distributed. The Electing Holder would not, however,
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be entitled to a deduction for its pro rata share of any losses that we incur with respect to any year. An Electing Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units.
Even if a U.S. Holder makes a QEF election for one of our taxable years, if we were a PFIC for a prior taxable year during which the U.S. Holder owned our common units and for which the U.S. Holder did not make a timely QEF election, the U.S. Holder would also be subject to the more adverse rules described below under “ Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election .” However, under certain circumstances, a U.S. Holder may be permitted to make a retroactive QEF election with respect to us for any open taxable years in the U.S. Holder’s holding period for our common units in which we are treated as a PFIC. Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, a U.S. Holder’s QEF election with respect to us would not be effective with respect to the U.S. Holder’s deemed ownership of the stock of such subsidiary and a separate QEF election with respect to such subsidiary would be required.
A U.S. Holder makes a QEF election with respect to any year that we are a PFIC by filing IRS Form 8621 with the U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax return. If, contrary to our expectations, we were to determine that we are treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, we would notify all U.S. Holders and would provide all necessary information to any U.S. Holder that requests such information in order to make the QEF election described above with respect to us and the relevant subsidiaries. A QEF election would not apply to any taxable year for which we are not a PFIC, but would remain in effect with respect to any subsequent taxable year for which we are a PFIC, unless the IRS consents to the revocation of the election.
Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a “Mark-to-Market” Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and, subject to the possibility that our common units may be delisted by a qualifying exchange, our common units were treated as “marketable stock,” then, as an alternative to making a QEF election, a U.S. Holder would be allowed to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, provided the U.S. Holder completes and files IRS Form 8621 in accordance with the relevant instructions and related Treasury Regulations. If that election is made, the U.S. Holder generally would include as ordinary income in each taxable year the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the U.S. Holder’s common units at the end of the taxable year over the holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units. The U.S. Holder also would be permitted an ordinary loss in respect of the excess, if any, of the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units over the fair market value thereof at the end of the taxable year, but only to the extent of the net amount previously included in income as a result of the mark-to-market election. A U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the U.S. Holder’s common units would be adjusted to reflect any such income or loss recognized. Gain recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units would be treated as ordinary income, and any loss recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of the common units would be treated as ordinary loss to the extent that such loss does not exceed the net mark-to-market gains previously included in income by the U.S. Holder. A mark-to-market election would not apply to our common units owned by a U.S. Holder in any taxable year during which we are not a PFIC, but would remain in effect with respect to any subsequent taxable year for which we are a PFIC, unless our common units are no longer treated as “marketable stock” or the IRS consents to the revocation of the election.
Even if a U.S. Holder makes a “mark-to-market” election for one of our taxable years, if we were a PFIC for a prior taxable during which the U.S. Holder owned our common units and for which the U.S. Holder did not make a timely mark-to-market election, the U.S. Holder would also be subject to the more adverse rules described below under “—Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election.” Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units would not apply to the U.S. Holder’s deemed ownership of the stock of such subsidiary.
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Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder who does not make either a timely QEF election or a timely “mark-to-market” election for that year (i.e., the taxable year in which the U.S. Holder’s holding period commences), whom we refer to as a “Non-Electing Holder,” would be subject to special rules resulting in increased tax liability with respect to (1) any excess distribution (i.e., the portion of any distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder on our common units in a taxable year in excess of 125.0% of the average annual distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder in the three preceding taxable years, or, if shorter, the Non-Electing Holder’s holding period for the common units), and (2) any gain realized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units. Under these special rules:
• the excess distribution and any gain would be allocated ratably over the Non-Electing Holder’s aggregate holding period for the common units;
• the amount allocated to the current taxable year and any year prior to the year we were first treated as a PFIC with respect to the Non-Electing Holder would be taxed as ordinary income; and
• the amount allocated to each of the other taxable years would be subject to tax at the highest rate of tax in effect for the applicable class of taxpayer for that year, and an interest charge for the deemed deferral benefit would be imposed with respect to the resulting tax attributable to each such other taxable year.
If we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and a Non-Electing Holder who is an individual dies while owning our common units, such holder’s successor generally would not receive a step-up in tax basis with respect to such common units. Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, the foregoing consequences would apply to the U.S. Holder’s deemed receipt of any excess distribution on, or gain deemed realized on the disposition of, the stock of such subsidiary deemed owned by the U.S. Holder.
Medicare Tax
A U.S. Holder that is an individual or estate, or a trust that does not fall into a special class of trusts that is exempt from such tax, will generally be subject to a 3.8% tax on the lesser of (i) the U.S. Holder’s “net investment income” (or “undistributed net investment income,” in the case of an estate or trust) for a taxable year and (ii) the excess of the U.S. Holder’s modified adjusted gross income for such taxable year over $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of joint filers). For these purposes, “net investment income” will generally include dividends paid with respect to our common units and net gain attributable to the disposition of our common units not held in connection with certain trades or businesses, but will be reduced by any deductions properly allocable to such income or net gain.
U.S. Federal Income Taxation of Non-U.S. Holders
A beneficial owner of our common units (other than a partnership or an entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) that is not a U.S. Holder is a “Non-U.S. Holder.”
Distributions
Distributions we pay to a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax or withholding tax if the Non-U.S. Holder is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business. If the Non-U.S. Holder is engaged in a U.S. trade or business, our distributions will be subject to U.S. federal income tax to the extent they constitute income effectively connected with the Non-U.S. Holder’s U.S. trade or business (and a corporate Non-U.S. Holder may also be subject to U.S. federal branch profits tax). However, distributions paid to a Non-U.S. Holder who is engaged in a trade or business may be exempt from taxation under an income tax treaty if the income arising from the distribution is not attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment maintained by the Non-U.S. Holder.
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Disposition of Units
In general, a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax or withholding tax on any gain resulting from the disposition of our common units provided the Non-U.S. Holder is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business. A Non-U.S. Holder that is engaged in a U.S. trade or business will be subject to U.S. federal income tax in the event the gain from the disposition of units is effectively connected with the conduct of such U.S. trade or business (provided, in the case of a Non-U.S. Holder entitled to the benefits of an income tax treaty with the United States, such gain also is attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment). However, even if not engaged in a U.S. trade or business, individual Non-U.S. Holders may be subject to tax on gain resulting from the disposition of our common units if they are present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year in which those units are disposed and meet certain other requirements.
Backup Withholding and Information Reporting
In general, payments to a non-corporate U.S. Holder of distributions or the proceeds of a disposition of common units may be subject to information reporting. These payments to a non-corporate U.S. Holder also may be subject to backup withholding (currently at a rate of 28%), if the non-corporate U.S. Holder:
• fails to provide an accurate taxpayer identification number;
• is notified by the IRS that he has failed to report all interest or corporate distributions required to be reported on his U.S. federal income tax returns; or
• in certain circumstances, fails to comply with applicable certification requirements.
A U.S. Holder generally is required to certify its compliance with the backup withholding rules on IRS Form W-9.
Non-U.S. Holders may be required to establish their exemption from information reporting and backup withholding by certifying their status on IRS Form W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, W-8ECI or W-8IMY, as applicable.
Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Rather, a unitholder generally may obtain a credit for any amount withheld against his liability for U.S. federal income tax (and obtain a refund of any amounts withheld in excess of such liability) by filing a U.S. federal income tax return with the IRS.
Individual U.S. Holders (and to the extent specified in applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations, certain individual Non-U.S. Holders and certain U.S. Holders that are entities) that hold “specified foreign financial assets,” including our common units, whose aggregate value exceeds $75,000 at any time during the taxable year or $50,000 on the last day of the taxable year (or such higher amounts as prescribed by applicable Treasury Regulations) are required to file a report on IRS Form 8938 with information relating to the assets for each such taxable year. Specified foreign financial assets would include, among other things, our common units, unless such common units are held in an account maintained by a U.S. “financial institution” (as defined). Substantial penalties apply to any failure to timely file IRS Form 8938, unless the failure is shown to be due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect. Additionally, in the event an individual U.S. Holder (and to the extent specified in applicable Treasury regulations, an individual Non-U.S. Holder or a U.S. entity) that is required to file IRS Form 8938 does not file such form, the statute of limitations on the assessment and collection of U.S. federal income taxes of such holder for the related tax year may not close until three years after the date that the required information is filed. U.S. Holders (including U.S. entities) and Non-U.S. Holders should consult their own tax advisors regarding their reporting obligations.
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MARSHALL ISLANDS TAX CONSEQUENCES
The following discussion is based upon the opinion of Reeder & Simpson P.C., our counsel as to matters of the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the current laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands applicable to persons who do not reside in, maintain offices in or engage in business in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Because we and our subsidiaries do not and do not expect to conduct business or operations in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and because all documentation related to this offering will be executed outside of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, no offering will be made in the Marshall Islands and because you are not a citizen or resident of the Marshall Islands, under current Marshall Islands law you will not be subject to Marshall Islands taxation or withholding on distributions, including upon distribution treated as a return of capital, we make to you as a unitholder. In addition, you will not be subject to Marshall Islands stamp, capital gains or other taxes on the purchase, ownership or disposition of common units, and you will not be required by the Republic of the Marshall Islands to file a tax return relating to your ownership of common units.
OTHER TAX JURISDICTIONS
In accordance with the currently applicable Greek law, foreign flagged vessels that are managed by Greek or foreign ship management companies having established an office in Greece are subject to duties towards the Greek state which are calculated on the basis of the relevant vessels’ tonnage. The payment of said duties exhausts the tax liability of the foreign ship owning company and the relevant manager against any tax, duty, charge or contribution payable on income from the exploitation of the foreign flagged vessel.
EACH PROSPECTIVE UNITHOLDER MUST CONSULT HIS OWN TAX, LEGAL AND OTHER ADVISORS REGARDING THE CONSEQUENCES OF OWNERSHIP OF COMMON UNITS UNDER THE UNITHOLDER’S PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES.
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SALES AGENT
S. Goldman Capital LLC is acting as sales agent for the offering to which this prospectus relates. Subject to the terms and conditions stated in the continuous offering program sales agreement, dated the date of this prospectus, the sales agent has agreed to purchase, and we have agreed to sell to that sales agent, an indeterminate number of common units from time to time, of an aggregate offering price of up to $25,000,000.
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PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
We have entered into a continuous offering program sales agreement with S. Goldman Capital LLC, or the sales agent, relating to our common units offered by this prospectus. In accordance with the terms of the continuous offering program sales agreement, we may issue and sell our common units having aggregate sales proceeds of up to $25,000,000 from time to time through the sales agent, as our sales agent for the offer and sale of the common units, or to the sales agent, for resale. The sales, if any, of the common units made under the continuous offering program sales agreement will be deemed to be “at the market” offerings as defined in Rule 415 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and will be made through the sales agent acting as sales agent or directly to the sales agent acting as principal, and will be made by means of ordinary brokers’ transactions on the NYSE, the existing trading market for our common units, or otherwise at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices related to prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices. As sales agent, the sales agent will not engage in any transactions that stabilize the price of our common units.
From time to time during the term of the continuous offering program sales agreement, in connection with the sales agent acting as our agent, we may deliver a transaction notice to the sales agent proposing a selling period and specifying, with respect to the selling period, terms such as the number (or aggregate sales proceeds) of our common units to be sold and the minimum price below which sales may not be made. Upon acceptance of such a transaction notice from us, and subject to the terms and conditions of the continuous offering program sales agreement, if acting as agent, the sales agent agrees to use its commercially reasonable efforts consistent with its normal trading and sales practices to sell such common units on such terms. We or the sale agent then acting as our agent may suspend the offering of our common units at any time upon proper notice to the other, and subject to the other conditions contained in the continuous offering program sales agreement, upon which the selling period will immediately terminate.
The sales agent will provide written confirmation to us following the close of trading on the NYSE each day in which our common units are sold by it as agent for us under the continuous offering program sales agreement. Each confirmation will include the number of common units sold on that day, the gross sales price per share and the net proceeds to us. We will report at least quarterly, commencing with our annual report for the period ending December 31, 2016, the number of common units sold through the sales agent under the continuous offering program sales agreement, the proceeds to us (before expenses) and the compensation paid by us to the sale agent in connection with such sales of our common units.
Settlement for sales of our common units are generally anticipated to occur on the third trading day following the date on which any sales were made in return for payment of the net proceeds to us, unless we agree otherwise with the sales agent in connection with a particular transaction. There is no arrangement for funds to be received in an escrow, trust or similar arrangement.
Sales of our common units as contemplated by this prospectus will be settled through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company or by such other means as we and the sales agent may agree upon.
Under the terms of the continuous offering program sales agreement, we may also sell our common units to the sales agent as principal for its own accounts at prices agreed upon at the time of sale. If we sell our common units to any of the sales agent as principal, we will enter into a separate terms agreement with the sales agent.
We will pay the sales agent a commission, or allow a discount, for its services in acting as agent and/or principal in the sale of common units, will be equal to 2.5% of the gross sales price per unit of all common units sold through it as agent under the continuous offering program sales agreement, unless the parties otherwise agree. We have agreed to reimburse the sales agent for certain expenses in certain circumstances. We estimate that the total expenses of the offering payable by us, excluding commissions or discounts payable or provided to the sales agent under the continuous offering program sales agreement and our reimbursement of the sales agent’s expenses in certain circumstances, will be approximately $0.9 million.
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In connection with the sale of our common units hereunder, the sales agent may be deemed to be an “underwriter” within the meaning of the Securities Act and the compensation paid to each of them may be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts. We have agreed to provide indemnification and contribution to the sales agent against certain civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act.
The sales agent and its affiliates have provided in the past to us and our affiliates, and may provide from time to time in the future, certain commercial banking, financial advisory, investment banking and other services for us and such affiliates in the ordinary course of their business, for which they have received and may continue to receive customary fees and commissions. In addition, from time to time, the sales agent and its affiliates may effect transactions for their own account or the account of customers, and hold on behalf of themselves or their customers, long or short positions in our debt or equity securities or loans, and may do so in the future. Certain affiliates of the sales agent are lenders under our credit facility. To the extent that we use a portion of the net proceeds of this offering to repay borrowings outstanding under our credit facility, those affiliates will receive their proportionate share of any amount of the credit facility that is repaid with the net proceeds from this offering.
Purchases made pursuant to the continuous offering program sales agreement may be terminated by the sales agent at any time in certain circumstances, including our failure to maintain a listing of our common units on the NYSE or the occurrence of a material adverse change in our company.
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SERVICE OF PROCESS AND ENFORCEMENT OF CIVIL LIABILITIES
We are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands as a limited partnership. Our general partner is organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands as a limited liability company. The Marshall Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States and provides protections for investors to a significantly lesser extent.
Most of our directors and the directors and officers of our general partner and those of our subsidiaries are residents of countries other than the United States. Substantially all of our and our subsidiaries’ assets and a substantial portion of the assets of our directors and the directors and officers of our general partner are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for United States investors to effect service of process within the United States upon us, our directors, our general partner, our subsidiaries or the directors and officers of our general partner or to realize against us or them judgments obtained in United States courts, including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States. However, we have expressly submitted to the jurisdiction of the U.S. federal and New York state courts sitting in the City of New York for the purpose of any suit, action or proceeding arising under the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States, and we have appointed the Trust Company of the Marshall Islands, Inc., Trust Company Complex, Ajeltake Island, P.O. Box 1405, Majuro, Marshall Islands MH96960, to accept service of process on our behalf in any such action.
Reeder & Simpson P.C., our counsel as to Marshall Islands law, has advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Republic of the Marshall Islands would (i) recognize or enforce against us, our general partner or our general partner’s directors or officers judgments of courts of the United States based on civil liability provisions of applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws or (ii) impose liabilities against us, our directors, our general partner or our general partner’s directors and officers in original actions brought in the Marshall Islands, based on these laws.
LEGAL MATTERS
The validity of the common units offered hereby and certain other legal matters with respect to the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands will be passed upon for us by our counsel as to Marshall Islands law, Reeder & Simpson P.C. Certain other legal matters will be passed upon for us by Thompson Hine LLP, New York, New York. Certain matters with respect to this offering will be passed upon for the sales agent by Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, New York, New York. Thompson Hine LLP and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP may rely on the opinion of Reeder & Simpson P.C. for all matters of Marshall Islands law. Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP has performed legal services for Navios Holdings and its subsidiaries from time to time.
EXPERTS
The financial statements and management’s assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting (which is included in Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting) incorporated in this Prospectus by reference to the Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2015, have been so incorporated in reliance on the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., an independent registered public accounting firm, given on the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
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EXPENSES
The following table sets forth costs and expenses, other than any sales agent commissions, we expect to incur in connection with the issuance and distribution of the common units covered by this prospectus. Other than the SEC registration fee which is set forth in the base prospectus, all amounts are estimated.
Legal fees and expenses
$ 200,000
Accounting fees and expenses
$ 60,000
Printing costs
$ 50,000
Transfer agent fees
$ 10,000
Total
$ 320,000
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PROSPECTUS
$500,000,000
LOGO
NAVIOS MARITIME PARTNERS L.P.
COMMON UNITS
REPRESENTING LIMITED PARTNERSHIP INTERESTS
DEBT SECURITIES
We may, from time to time, issue up to $500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of common units and/or debt securities. We will specify in an accompanying prospectus supplement the terms of the securities. We may sell these securities to or through underwriters and also to other purchasers or through agents. We will set forth the names of any underwriters or agents in the accompanying prospectus supplement. Our common units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NMM.” On November 6, 2013, the last reported sales price of our common units on the NYSE was $16.70 per common unit.
Investing in our common units involves risks that are described in the “ Risk Factors ” section beginning on page 5 of this prospectus.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
This prospectus may not be used to consummate sales of securities unless it is accompanied by a prospectus supplement.
The date of this prospectus is January 15, 2014.
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You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized anyone to provide you with different information. If anyone provides you with different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer to sell these securities in any jurisdiction where an offer or sale is not permitted. You should assume that the information appearing in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front cover of this prospectus. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date.
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SUMMARY
1
RISK FACTORS
5
RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES
32
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
33
USE OF PROCEEDS
35
CAPITALIZATION
36
PRICE RANGE OF COMMON UNITS AND DISTRIBUTIONS
37
THE SECURITIES WE MAY OFFER
39
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
49
OUR CASH DISTRIBUTION POLICY AND RESTRICTIONS ON DISTRIBUTIONS
50
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
52
MARSHALL ISLANDS TAX CONSEQUENCES
58
LEGAL MATTERS
59
EXPERTS
59
EXPENSES
59
INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE
59
WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
61
ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES AND INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES
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ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS
This prospectus is part of a registration statement that we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), utilizing a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf process, we may sell any combination of the securities described in this prospectus in one or more offerings up to a total dollar amount of U.S.$500,000,000. We have provided to you in this prospectus a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we sell securities, we will provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about the terms of that offering. In any applicable prospectus supplements, we may add to, update or change any of the information contained in this prospectus.
References in this prospectus to “Navios Maritime Partners L.P.,” “the Company,” “we,” “our,” “us” or similar terms when used for periods prior to our initial public offering on November 16, 2007 refer to the assets of Navios Maritime Holdings Inc. (“Navios Holdings”), and its vessels and vessel-owning subsidiaries that were sold or contributed to Navios Maritime Partners L.P. and its subsidiaries in connection with the initial public offering.
References in this prospectus to “Navios Maritime Partners L.P.,” “the Company,” “we,” “our,” “us” or similar terms when used in a present tense or for historical periods since November 16, 2007 refer to Navios Maritime Partners L.P. and its subsidiaries. References in this prospectus to “Navios Holdings” refer, depending on the context, to Navios Holdings and its subsidiaries, including Navios ShipManagement Inc. (“Navios ShipManagement”); provided, however, it shall not include Navios Maritime Partners L.P. to the extent it may otherwise be deemed a subsidiary. Navios ShipManagement (an affiliate of our general partner) manages the commercial and technical operation of our fleet pursuant to a management agreement and provides administrative services to us pursuant to an administrative services agreement. References in this prospectus supplement to our “IPO” refer to our initial public offering, which was consummated on November 16, 2007.
You should read carefully this prospectus, any prospectus supplement, and the additional information described below under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.” You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with different information. If anyone provides you with different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. We are not making an offer to sell these securities in any jurisdiction where an offer or sale is not permitted. You should assume that the information appearing in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front cover of this prospectus. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date.
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SUMMARY
The following is only a summary. We urge you to read the entire prospectus, including the more detailed financial statements, notes to the financial statements and other information incorporated by reference from our other filings with the SEC. An investment in our securities involves risks. Therefore, carefully consider the information provided under the heading “Risk Factors” beginning on page 5.
Business Overview
We are an international owner and operator of drybulk vessels, formed in August 2007 by Navios Holdings, a vertically integrated seaborne shipping and logistics company with over 55 years of operating history in the drybulk shipping industry. We completed our IPO of 10,000,000 common units and the concurrent sale of 500,000 common units to a corporation owned by Angeliki Frangou, our chairman and chief executive officer, on November 16, 2007. We used the proceeds of these sales of approximately $193.3 million, plus $160.0 million funded from our revolving credit facility as subsequently amended (the “Credit Facility”) to acquire our initial fleet of vessels. Our vessels are chartered-out under medium to long-term time charters with an average remaining term of approximately four years to a strong group of counterparties, including Cosco Bulk Carrier Co. Ltd., Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Constellation Energy Group and Rio Tinto.
Our Fleet
Our fleet consists of 14 Panamax vessels, eight Capesize vessels, three Ultra-Handymax vessels and five Post-Panamax container vessels.
In general, our vessels operate under long-term time charters of three or more years at inception with counterparties that we believe are creditworthy. We may operate vessels in the spot market until the vessels have been fixed under appropriate long-term charters.
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The following table provides summary information about our fleet:
Owned Vessels
Type Built Capacity (DWT) Charter-out Expiration Date Charter-Out Rate(1)
Navios Apollon
Ultra-Handymax 2000 52,073 February 2014 $ 13,500 (2)
Navios Soleil
Ultra-Handymax 2009 57,337 December 2013 $ 8,906
Navios La Paix(3)
Ultra-Handymax 2014 61,000 — $ —
Navios Gemini S
Panamax 1994 68,636 February 2014 $ 24,225
Navios Libra II
Panamax 1995 70,136 September 2015 $ 12,000 (2)
Navios Felicity
Panamax 1997 73,867 May 2014 $ 12,000 (4)
Navios Galaxy I
Panamax 2001 74,195 February 2018 $ 21,937
Navios Helios
Panamax 2005 77,075 December 2013 $ 7,838
Navios Hyperion
Panamax 2004 75,707 April 2014 $ 37,953
Navios Alegria
Panamax 2004 76,466 February 2014 $ 16,984 (5)
Navios Orbiter
Panamax 2004 76,602 April 2014 $ 38,052
Navios Hope
Panamax 2005 75,397 July 2014 $ 10,000
Navios Sagittarius
Panamax 2006 75,756 November 2018 $ 26,125
Navios Harmony
Panamax 2006 82,790 March 2014 $ 14,725
Navios Sun(3)
Panamax 2005 76,619 — $ —
Navios Fantastiks
Capesize 2005 180,265 March 2014 $ 14,678
Navios Aurora II
Capesize 2009 169,031 November 2019 $ 41,325
Navios Pollux
Capesize 2009 180,727 April 2019 $ 40,888
Navios Fulvia
Capesize 2010 179,263 September 2015 $ 50,588
Navios Melodia(6)
Capesize 2010 179,132 September 2022 $ 29,356 (7)
Navios Luz
Capesize 2010 179,144 November 2020 $ 29,356 (8)
Navios Buena Ventura
Capesize 2010 179,259 October 2020 $ 29,356 (8)
Navios Joy
Capesize 2013 181,389 June 2016 $ 19,000 (9)
Chartered-in Vessels
Type Built Capacity (DWT) Charter-out Expiration Date Charter-Out Rate(1)
Navios Prosperity(10)
Panamax 2007 82,535 May 2014 $ 12,000 (4)
Navios Aldebaran(11)
Panamax 2008 76,500 June 2014 $ 11,000 (12)
Container Vessels
Type Built TEU Charter-out Expiration Date Charter-Out Rate(1)
Navios TBN 1(13)
Container 2006 6,800 November 2023 $ 30,150
Navios TBN 2(13)
Container 2006 6,800 November 2023 $ 30,150
Navios TBN 3(13)
Container 2006 6,800 November 2023 $ 30,150
Navios TBN 4(13)
Container 2006 6,800 November 2023 $ 30,150
Navios TBN 5(13)
Container 2006 6,800 November 2023 $ 30,150
(1) Daily charter-out rate per day, net of commissions or net insurance or settlement proceeds, where applicable.
(2) Profit sharing 50% on the actual results above the period rates.
(3) Expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2014.
(4) Profit sharing: The owners will receive 100% of the first $1,500 in profits above the base rate and thereafter all profits will be split 50% to each party.
(5) Profit sharing 50% above $16,984/ day based on Baltic Exchange Panamax TC Average.
(6) In January 2011, Korea Line Corporation (“KLC”) filed for receivership. The charter was affirmed and will be performed by KLC on its original terms, following an interim suspension period during which Navios Partners trades the vessel directly.
(7) Profit sharing 50% above $37,500/ day based on Baltic Exchange Capesize TC Average.
(8) Profit sharing 50% above $38,500/ day based on Baltic Exchange Capesize TC Average.
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(9) The charterer has been granted an option to extend the charter for two optional years, the first at $22,325(net) per day and the second at $25,650(net) per day.
(10) The Navios Prosperity is chartered-in for seven years until June 2014 and we have options to extend for two one-year periods. We have the option to purchase the vessel after June 2012 at a purchase price that is initially 3.8 billion Yen ($38.7 million based upon the exchange rate at September 30, 2013) declining each year by 145 million Yen ($1.5 million based upon the exchange rate at September 30, 2013).
(11) The Navios Aldebaran is chartered-in for seven years until March 2015 and we have options to extend for two one-year periods. We have the option to purchase the vessel after March 2013 at a purchase price that is initially 3.6 billion Yen ($36.6 million based upon the exchange rate at September 30, 2013) declining each year by 150 million Yen ($1.5 million based upon the exchange rate at September 30, 2013).
(12) Profit sharing: The owners will receive 100% of the first $2,500 in profits above the base rate and thereafter all profits will be split 50% to each party.
(13) Expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2013. The vessels are fixed on ten-year charters with Navios Partners’ option to terminate after year seven.
Our Competitive Strengths
We believe that our future prospects for success are enhanced by the following aspects of our business:
• Stable and growing cash flows. We believe that the medium to long-term, fixed-rate nature of our charters will provide a stable base of revenue. In addition, we believe that the potential opportunity to purchase additional vessels from Navios Holdings and through the secondary market provides visible future growth in our revenue and distributable cash flow. We believe that our management agreement, which has been extended until December 31, 2017, provides for a fixed management fee until December 31, 2015, will continue to provide us with predictable expenses. From January 2016 to December 2017, we expect that we will reimburse Navios ShipManagement (the “Manager”) for all of the actual operating costs and expenses it incurs in connection with the management of our fleet, which may make our cash flows less predictable.
• Strong relationship with Navios Holdings. We believe our relationship with Navios Holdings and its affiliates provides us with numerous benefits that are key to our long-term growth and success, including Navios Holdings’ expertise in commercial management and Navios Holdings’ reputation within the shipping industry and its network of strong relationships with many of the world’s drybulk raw material producers, agricultural traders and exporters, industrial end-users, shipyards, and shipping companies. We also benefit from Navios Holdings’ expertise in technical management through its in-house technical manager, which provides efficient operations and maintenance for our vessels at costs significantly below the industry average for vessels of a similar age. Navios Holdings’ expertise in fleet management is reflected in Navios Holdings’ history of a low number of off-hire days and in its record of no material incidents giving rise to loss of life or pollution or other environmental liability.
•
High-quality, flexible fleet. Our fleet consists of 14 modern, Panamax vessels, eight modern Capesize vessels, three Ultra-Handymax vessels and five Post-Panamax container vessels. The average age of the vessels in our fleet is significantly lower than the average age of the world drybulk fleet. Our fleet had an average age of 6.6 years as of November 6, 2013, compared to a current industry average age of about 9.6 years for the drybulk fleet and 10.8 years for the containers fleet (both industry averages as of September 30, 2013). Panamax vessels are highly flexible vessels capable of carrying a wide range of drybulk commodities, including iron ore, coal, grain and fertilizer, and of being accommodated in most major discharge ports. Ultra-Handymax vessels are similar to Panamax vessels although with less carrying capacity and generally have self-loading and discharging gear on board to accommodate undeveloped ports. Capesize vessels are primarily dedicated to the carriage of iron ore and coal. Post-Panamax container vessels are designed to carry manufactured, finished or semi-finished goods in steel
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shipping containers or specific routes. We believe that our high-quality, flexible fleet provides us with a competitive advantage in the drybulk and container time charter market, where vessel age, flexibility and quality are of significant importance in competing for business.
• Operating visibility through long-term charters with strong counterparties . All of our vessels are chartered-out under medium to long-term time charters with an average remaining charter duration of approximately four years to a strong group of counterparties consisting of, amongst others: Cosco Bulk Carrier Co. Ltd., Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Rio Tinto and Constellation Energy. We believe our existing charter coverage with strong counterparties provides us with predictable contracted revenues and operating visibility.
Business Strategies
Our primary business objective is to increase quarterly distributions per unit over time by executing the following strategies:
• Pursue stable cash flows through long-term charters for our fleet . We intend to continue to utilize medium to long-term, fixed-rate charters for our existing fleet. Currently, the vessels in our fleet have an average remaining charter duration of approximately four years and have staggered charter expirations. We will seek to opportunistically re-charter our vessels in order to add incremental stable cash flow and improve the long-term charter terms.
• Continue to grow and diversify our fleet of owned and chartered-in vessels . We seek to make strategic acquisitions to expand our fleet in order to capitalize on the demand for drybulk carriers in a manner that is accretive to distributable cash flow per unit. We have the right to purchase certain additional drybulk vessels currently owned or chartered-in by Navios Holdings when those vessels are fixed under long-term charters for a period of three or more years. In addition, we may seek to expand and diversify our fleet through the open market purchase of owned and chartered-in drybulk vessels with charters of three or more years. We believe that our long-term charters and financial flexibility will assist us to make additional accretive acquisitions.
• Capitalize on our relationship with Navios Holdings and expand our charters with recognized charterers . We believe that we can use our relationship with Navios Holdings and its established reputation in order to obtain favorable long-term time charters and attract new customers. We will continue to increase the number of vessels we charter to our existing charterers, as well as enter into charter agreements with new customers, in order to develop a portfolio that is diverse from a customer, geographic and maturity perspective.
• Provide superior customer service by maintaining high standards of performance, reliability and safety . Our customers seek transportation partners that have a reputation for high standards of performance, reliability and safety. We intend to use Navios Holdings’ operational expertise and customer relationships to further expand a sustainable competitive advantage with consistent delivery of superior customer service.
Corporate Information
We are incorporated under the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. We maintain our principal executive offices at 7, Avenue de Grande Bretagne, Office 11B2 Monte Carlo MC 98000 Monaco. Our telephone number at that address is (011) + (377) 9798-2140. Our website address is www.navios-mlp.com . The information on our website is not a part of this prospectus.
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RISK FACTORS
Although many of our business risks are comparable to those a corporation engaged in a similar business would face, limited partner interests are inherently different from the capital stock of a corporation. You should carefully consider the following risk factors together with all of the other information included in this prospectus when evaluating an investment in our securities.
If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition, cash flows or operating results could be materially adversely affected. In that case, we might not be able to pay distributions on our common units, the trading price of our common units could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Inherent in Our Business
We may not have sufficient cash from operations to enable us to pay the minimum quarterly distribution on our common units following the establishment of cash reserves and payment of fees and expenses or to maintain or increase distributions.
We may not have sufficient cash available each quarter to pay the minimum quarterly distribution of $0.35 per common unit following the establishment of cash reserves and payment of fees and expenses. The amount of cash we can distribute on our common units depends principally upon the amount of cash we generate from our operations, which may fluctuate based on numerous factors including, among other things:
• the rates we obtain from our charters and the market for long-term charters when we recharter our vessels;
• the level of our operating costs, such as the cost of crews and insurance, following the expiration of the fixed term of our management agreement pursuant to which we pay a fixed daily fee until December 2015;
• the number of unscheduled off-hire days for our fleet and the timing of, and number of days required for, scheduled inspection, maintenance or repairs of submerged parts, or drydocking, of our vessels;
• demand for drybulk commodities;
• supply of drybulk vessels;
• prevailing global and regional economic and political conditions; and
• the effect of governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards on the conduct of our business.
The actual amount of cash we will have available for distribution also will depend on other factors, some of which are beyond our control, such as:
• the level of capital expenditures we make, including those associated with maintaining vessels, building new vessels, acquiring existing vessels and complying with regulations;
• our debt service requirements and restrictions on distributions contained in our debt instruments;
• interest rate fluctuations;
• the cost of acquisitions, if any;
• fluctuations in our working capital needs;
• our ability to make working capital borrowings, including the payment of distributions to unitholders; and
• the amount of any cash reserves, including reserves for future maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, working capital and other matters, established by our board of directors in its discretion.
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The amount of cash we generate from our operations may differ materially from our profit or loss for the period, which will be affected by non-cash items. As a result of this and the other factors mentioned above, we may make cash distributions during periods when we record losses and may not make cash distributions during periods when we record net income.
The cyclical nature of the international drybulk shipping industry may lead to decreases in long-term charter rates and lower vessel values, resulting in decreased distributions to our common unitholders.
The shipping business, including the dry cargo market, is cyclical in varying degrees, experiencing severe fluctuations in charter rates, profitability and, consequently, vessel values. For example, during the period from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2012, the Baltic Exchange’s Panamax time charter average daily rates experienced a low of $3,336 and a high of $17,115. Additionally, during the period from January 1, 2011 to December 31, 2012, the Baltic Exchange’s Capesize time charter average daily rates experienced a low of $2,644 and a high of $32,889 and the Baltic Dry Index experienced a low of 647 points and a high of 2,173 points. We anticipate that the future demand for our drybulk carriers and drybulk charter rates will be dependent upon demand for imported commodities, economic growth in the emerging markets, including the Asia Pacific region, India, Brazil and Russia and the rest of the world, seasonal and regional changes in demand and changes to the capacity of the world fleet. Adverse economic, political, social or other developments can decrease demand and prospects for growth in the shipping industry and thereby could reduce revenue significantly. A decline in demand for commodities transported in drybulk carriers or an increase in supply of drybulk vessels could cause a further decline in charter rates, which could materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. If we sell a vessel at a time when the market value of our vessels has fallen, the sale may be at less than the vessel’s carrying amount, resulting in a loss.
The demand for vessels has generally been influenced by, among other factors:
• global and regional economic conditions;
• developments in international trade;
• changes in seaborne and other transportation patterns, such as port congestion and canal closures;
• weather and crop yields;
• armed conflicts and terrorist activities including piracy;
• political developments; and
• embargoes and strikes.
The supply of vessel capacity has generally been influenced by, among other factors:
• the number of vessels that are in or out of service;
• the scrapping rate of older vessels;
• port and canal traffic and congestion;
• the number of newbuilding deliveries; and
• vessel casualties.
Charter rates in the drybulk shipping industry have decreased from their historically high levels and may decrease further in the future, which may adversely affect our earnings and ability to pay dividends.
The industry’s current charter rates have significantly decreased from their historic highs reached in the second quarter of 2008. If the drybulk shipping industry, which has been highly cyclical, is depressed in the future when our charters expire or at a time when we may want to sell a vessel, our earnings and available cash flow may be adversely affected. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully charter our vessels in
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the future or renew our existing charters at rates sufficient to allow us to operate our business profitably, to meet our obligations, including payment of debt service to our lenders, or to pay dividends to our unitholders. Our ability to renew the charters on our vessels on the expiration or termination of our current charters, or on vessels that we may acquire in the future, the charter rates payable under any replacement charters and vessel values will depend upon, among other things, economic conditions in the sectors in which our vessels operate at that time, changes in the supply and demand for vessel capacity and changes in the supply and demand for the transportation of commodities.
All of our time charters are scheduled to expire on dates ranging from December 2013 to November 2023. If, upon expiration or termination of these or other contracts, long-term recharter rates are lower than existing rates, particularly considering that we intend to enter into long-term charters, or if we are unable to obtain replacement charters, our earnings, cash flow and our ability to make cash distributions to our unitholders could be materially adversely affected.
The market values of our vessels, which have declined from historically high levels, may fluctuate significantly, which could cause us to breach covenants in our credit facilities and result in the foreclosure on our mortgaged vessels.
Factors that influence vessel values include:
• number of newbuilding deliveries;
• number of vessels scrapped or otherwise removed from the total fleet;
• changes in environmental and other regulations that may limit the useful life of vessels;
• changes in global drybulk commodity supply;
• types and sizes of vessels;
• development of an increase in use of other modes of transportation;
• cost of vessel acquisitions;
• governmental or other regulations;
• prevailing level of charter rates; and
• general economic and market conditions affecting the shipping industry.
If the market values of our owned vessels decrease, we may breach covenants contained in our credit facilities. We purchased the majority of our vessels from Navios Holdings based on market prices that were for certain vessels at historically high levels. If we breach the covenants in our credit facilities and are unable to remedy any relevant breach, our lenders could accelerate our debt and foreclose on the collateral, including our vessels. Any loss of vessels would significantly decrease our ability to generate positive cash flow from operations and therefore service our debt. In addition, if the book value of a vessel is impaired due to unfavorable market conditions, or a vessel is sold at a price below its book value, we would incur a loss.
We must make substantial capital expenditures to maintain the operating capacity of our fleet, which will reduce our cash available for distribution. In addition, each quarter our board of directors is required to deduct estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures from operating surplus, which may result in less cash available to unitholders than if actual maintenance and replacement capital expenditures were deducted.
We must make substantial capital expenditures to maintain, over the long term, the operating capacity of our fleet. These maintenance and replacement capital expenditures include capital expenditures associated with drydocking a vessel, modifying an existing vessel or acquiring a new vessel to the extent these expenditures are incurred to maintain the operating capacity of our fleet.
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These expenditures could increase as a result of changes in:
• the cost of our labor and materials;
• the cost of suitable replacement vessels;
• customer/market requirements;
• increases in the size of our fleet; and
• governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards relating to safety, security or the environment.
Our significant maintenance and replacement capital expenditures will reduce the amount of cash we have available for distribution to our unitholders. In October 2013, we fixed the rate with the Manager until December 31, 2015 at a daily rate of: (a) $4,000 per Ultra-Handymax vessel; (b) $4,100 per Panamax vessel; (c) $5,100 per Capesize vessel effective January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2015; and (d) $6,500 per Post-Panamax container vessel effective from the date of delivery of such vessel to the Navios Partners’ owned fleet through December 31, 2015, while the term of the management agreement is until December 31, 2017. Intermediate and special survey expenses (including drydocking expenses) will be reimbursed at cost under the management agreement. From January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2017, we expect that we will reimburse the Manager for all of the actual operating costs and expenses it incurs in connection with the management of our fleet, which may result in significantly higher fees for that period. In the event the management agreement is not renewed, we will separately deduct estimated capital expenditures associated with drydocking from our operating surplus in addition to estimated replacement capital expenditures.
Our partnership agreement requires our board of directors to deduct estimated, rather than actual, maintenance and replacement capital expenditures from operating surplus each quarter in an effort to reduce fluctuations in operating surplus. The amount of estimated capital expenditures deducted from operating surplus is subject to review and change by the conflicts committee of our board of directors at least once a year. If our board of directors underestimates the appropriate level of estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, we may have less cash available for distribution in future periods when actual capital expenditures begin to exceed previous estimates.
If we expand the size of our fleet in the future, we generally will be required to make significant installment payments for acquisitions of vessels even prior to their delivery and generation of revenue. Depending on whether we finance our expenditures through cash from operations or by issuing debt or equity securities, our ability to make cash distributions to unitholders may be diminished or our financial leverage could increase or our unitholders could be diluted.
The actual cost of a vessel varies significantly depending on the market price, the size and specifications of the vessel, governmental regulations and maritime self-regulatory organization standards.
If we purchase additional vessels in the future, we generally will be required to make installment payments prior to their delivery. If we finance these acquisition costs by issuing debt or equity securities, we will increase the aggregate amount of interest payments or minimum quarterly distributions we must make prior to generating cash from the operation of the vessel.
To fund the remaining portion of these and other capital expenditures, we will be required to use cash from operations or incur borrowings or raise capital through the sale of debt or additional equity securities. Use of cash from operations will reduce cash available for distributions to unitholders. Our ability to obtain bank financing or to access the capital markets for future offerings may be limited by our financial condition at the time of any such financing or offering as well as by adverse market conditions resulting from, among other things, general
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economic conditions and contingencies and uncertainties that are beyond our control. Our failure to obtain the funds for necessary future capital expenditures could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition and on our ability to make cash distributions. Even if we successfully obtain necessary funds, the terms of such financings could limit our ability to pay cash distributions to unitholders. In addition, incurring additional debt may significantly increase our interest expense and financial leverage, and issuing additional preferred and common equity securities may result in significant unitholder dilution and would increase the aggregate amount of cash required to meet our quarterly distributions to our preferred unitholders and minimum quarterly distribution to our common unitholders, which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to make cash distributions to all of our unitholders.
Our debt levels may limit our flexibility in obtaining additional financing and in pursuing other business opportunities and our interest rates under our credit facilities may fluctuate and may impact our operations.
As of September 30, 2013, all of our facilities were fully drawn and the total borrowings under our credit facilities amounted to $344.7 million. We have the ability to incur additional debt, subject to limitations in our credit facilities. Our level of debt could have important consequences to us, including the following:
• our ability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other purposes may be impaired or such financing may not be available on favorable terms;
• we will need a substantial portion of our cash flow to make principal and interest payments on our debt, reducing the funds that would otherwise be available for operations, future business opportunities and distributions to unitholders;
• our debt level will make us more vulnerable than our competitors with less debt to competitive pressures or a downturn in our business or the economy generally; and
• our debt level may limit our flexibility in responding to changing business and economic conditions.
Our ability to service our debt depends upon, among other things, our future financial and operating performance, which will be affected by prevailing economic conditions and financial, business, regulatory and other factors, some of which are beyond our control. Our ability to service debt under our credit facilities also will depend on market interest rates, since the interest rates applicable to our borrowings will fluctuate with the London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR, or the prime rate. We do not currently hedge against increases in such rates and, accordingly, significant increases in such rate would require increased debt levels and reduce distributable cash. If our operating results are not sufficient to service our current or future indebtedness, we will be forced to take actions such as reducing distributions, reducing or delaying our business activities, acquisitions, investments or capital expenditures, selling assets, restructuring or refinancing our debt, or seeking additional equity capital or bankruptcy protection. We may not be able to affect any of these remedies on satisfactory terms, or at all.
Our credit facilities contain restrictive covenants, which may limit our business and financing activities.
On July 31, 2012, we entered into a credit facility for $290.45 million (the “July 2012 Facility”) in order to refinance and merge two existing credit facilities. On August 8, 2012, we entered into another credit facility, and borrowed an amount of $44.0 million (the “August 2012 Facility”). On June 27, 2013, we entered into a term loan facility (the “Term Loan B Facility”), and borrowed an amount of $250.0 million to refinance and replace all outstanding amounts under our August 2012 Facility, partially prepay amounts outstanding under the July 2012 Facility and complete a previously announced vessel acquisition. In October 2013, we announced the issuance of a $189.5 million add-on to the Term Loan B Facility. As of September 30, 2013 the outstanding loan balance under Navios Partners’ credit facilities was $344.7 million.
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The operating and financial restrictions and covenants in our credit facilities and any future credit facilities could adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage, expand or pursue our business activities. For example, our credit facilities require the consent of our lenders or limit our ability to, among other items:
• incur or guarantee indebtedness;
• charge, pledge or encumber the vessels;
• merge or consolidate;
• change the flag, class or commercial and technical management of our vessels;
• make cash distributions;
• make new investments; and
• sell or change the ownership or control of our vessels.
Our credit facilities also require us to comply with the International Safety Management Code, or ISM Code, and International Ship and Port Facilities Security Code, or ISPS Code, and to maintain valid safety management certificates and documents of compliance at all times.
In addition, our credit facilities require us to:
• maintain a required security amount of over 140%;
• maintain minimum free consolidated liquidity of at least the higher of $20.0 million and the aggregate of interest and principal falling due during the previous six months;
• maintain a ratio of EBITDA to interest expense of at least 5.00 : 1.00;
• maintain a ratio of total liabilities to total assets (as defined in our credit facilities) of less than 0.65 : 1.00; and
• maintain a minimum net worth to $250.0 million.
The Term Loan B Facility is secured by first priority mortgages covering certain vessels owned by subsidiaries of Navios Partners, in addition to other collateral and guaranteed by each subsidiary of Navios Partners. The Term Loan B Facility agreement requires maintenance of a loan to value ratio of 0.8 to 1.0, and other restrictive covenants customary for facilities of this type (subject to negotiated exceptions and baskets), including restrictions on indebtedness, liens, acquisitions and investments, restricted payments and dispositions. The Term Loan B Facility agreement also provides for customary events of default.
Our ability to comply with the covenants and restrictions that are contained in our credit facilities and any other debt instruments we may enter into in the future may be affected by events beyond our control, including prevailing economic, financial and industry conditions. If market or other economic conditions deteriorate, our ability to comply with these covenants may be impaired. If we are in breach of any of the restrictions, covenants, ratios or tests in our credit facilities, especially if we trigger a cross default currently contained in certain of our loan agreements, a significant portion of our obligations may become immediately due and payable, and our lenders’ commitment to make further loans to us may terminate. We may not have, or be able to obtain, sufficient funds to make these accelerated payments. In addition, our obligations under our credit facilities are secured by certain of our vessels, and if we are unable to repay borrowings under such credit facilities, lenders could seek to foreclose on those vessels.
Restrictions in our debt agreements may prevent us from paying distributions to unitholders.
Our payment of principal and interest on the debt will reduce cash available for distribution on our common units. In addition, our credit facilities prohibit the payment of distributions if we are not in compliance with certain financial covenants or upon the occurrence of an event of default.
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Events of default under our credit facilities include, among other things, the following:
• failure to pay any principal, interest, fees, expenses or other amounts when due;
• failure to observe any other agreement, security instrument, obligation or covenant beyond specified cure periods in certain cases;
• default under other indebtedness;
• an event of insolvency or bankruptcy;
• material adverse change in the financial position or prospects of us or our general partner;
• failure of any representation or warranty to be materially correct; and
• failure of Navios Holdings or its affiliates (as defined in the credit facilities agreements) to own at least 20% of us.
We anticipate that any subsequent refinancing of our current debt or any new debt will have similar restrictions.
We depend on Navios Holdings and its affiliates to assist us in operating and expanding our business.
Pursuant to the management agreement between us and the Manager, the Manager provides to us significant commercial and technical management services (including the commercial and technical management of our vessels, vessel maintenance and crewing, purchasing and insurance and shipyard supervision). In addition, pursuant to an administrative services agreement between us and the Manager, the Manager provides to us significant administrative, financial and other support services. Our operational success and ability to execute our growth strategy depends significantly upon the Manager’s satisfactory performance of these services. Our business will be harmed if the Manager fails to perform these services satisfactorily, if the Manager cancels either of these agreements, or if the Manager stops providing these services to us. We may also in the future contract with Navios Holdings for it to have newbuildings constructed on our behalf and to incur the construction-related financing. We would purchase the vessels on or after delivery based on an agreed-upon price.
Our ability to enter into new charters and expand our customer relationships will depend largely on our ability to leverage our relationship with Navios Holdings and its reputation and relationships in the shipping industry. If Navios Holdings suffers material damage to its reputation or relationships, it may harm our ability to:
• renew existing charters upon their expiration;
• obtain new charters;
• successfully interact with shipyards during periods of shipyard construction constraints;
• obtain financing on commercially acceptable terms; or
• maintain satisfactory relationships with suppliers and other third parties.
If our ability to do any of the things described above is impaired, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition and our ability to make cash distributions.
As we expand our business, we may have difficulty managing our growth, which could increase expenses.
We intend to seek to grow our fleet, either through purchases, the increase of the number of chartered-in vessels or through the acquisitions of businesses. The addition of vessels to our fleet or the acquisition of new businesses will impose significant additional responsibilities on our management and staff. We will also have to increase our customer base to provide continued employment for the new vessels. Our growth will depend on:
• locating and acquiring suitable vessels;
• identifying and consummating acquisitions or joint ventures;
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• integrating any acquired business successfully with our existing operations;
• enhancing our customer base;
• managing our expansion; and
• obtaining required financing.
Growing any business by acquisition presents numerous risks such as undisclosed liabilities and obligations, difficulty in obtaining additional qualified personnel, and managing relationships with customers and suppliers and integrating newly acquired operations into existing infrastructures. We cannot give any assurance that we will be successful in executing our growth plans or that we will not incur significant expenses and losses in connection therewith or that our acquisitions will perform as expected, which could materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.
Our growth depends on continued growth in demand for drybulk commodities and the shipping of drybulk cargoes.
Our growth strategy focuses on expansion in the drybulk shipping sector. Accordingly, our growth depends on continued growth in world and regional demand for drybulk commodities and the shipping of drybulk cargoes, which could be negatively affected by a number of factors, such as declines in prices for drybulk commodities, or general political and economic conditions.
Reduced demand for drybulk commodities and the shipping of drybulk cargoes would have a material adverse effect on our future growth and could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition. In particular, Asian Pacific economies and India have been the main driving force behind the current increase in seaborne drybulk trade and the demand for drybulk carriers. A negative change in economic conditions in any Asian Pacific country, but particularly in China, Japan or India, may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations, as well as our future prospects, by reducing demand and resultant charter rates.
Our growth depends on our ability to expand relationships with existing customers and obtain new customers, for which we will face substantial competition.
Long-term time charters have the potential to provide income at pre-determined rates over more extended periods of time. However, the process for obtaining longer term time charters is highly competitive and generally involves a lengthy, intensive and continuous screening and vetting process and the submission of competitive bids that often extends for several months. In addition to the quality, age and suitability of the vessel, longer term shipping contracts tend to be awarded based upon a variety of other factors relating to the vessel operator, including:
• the operator’s environmental, health and safety record;
• compliance with International Maritime Organization, or IMO, standards and the heightened industry standards that have been set by some energy companies;
• shipping industry relationships, reputation for customer service, technical and operating expertise;
• shipping experience and quality of ship operations, including cost-effectiveness;
• quality, experience and technical capability of crews;
• the ability to finance vessels at competitive rates and overall financial stability;
• relationships with shipyards and the ability to obtain suitable berths;
• construction management experience, including the ability to procure on-time delivery of new vessels according to customer specifications;
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• willingness to accept operational risks pursuant to the charter, such as allowing termination of the charter for force majeure events; and
• competitiveness of the bid in terms of overall price.
It is likely that we will face substantial competition for long-term charter business from a number of experienced companies. Many of these competitors have significantly greater financial resources than we do. It is also likely that we will face increased numbers of competitors entering into our transportation sectors, including in the drybulk sector. Many of these competitors have strong reputations and extensive resources and experience. Increased competition may cause greater price competition, especially for long-term charters.
As a result of these factors, we may be unable to expand our relationships with existing customers or obtain new customers for long-term charters on a profitable basis, if at all. However, even if we are successful in employing our vessels under longer term charters, our vessels will not be available for trading in the spot market during an upturn in the drybulk market cycle, when spot trading may be more profitable. If we cannot successfully employ our vessels in profitable time charters our results of operations and operating cash flow could be adversely affected.
We may be unable to make or realize expected benefits from acquisitions, and implementing our growth strategy through acquisitions may harm our business, financial condition and operating results .
Our growth strategy focuses on a gradual expansion of our fleet. Any acquisition of a vessel may not be profitable to us at or after the time we acquire it and may not generate cash flow sufficient to justify our investment. In addition, our growth strategy exposes us to risks that may harm our business, financial condition and operating results, including risks that we may:
• fail to realize anticipated benefits, such as new customer relationships, cost-savings or cash flow enhancements;
• be unable to hire, train or retain qualified shore and seafaring personnel to manage and operate our growing business and fleet;
• decrease our liquidity by using a significant portion of our available cash or borrowing capacity to finance acquisitions;
• significantly increase our interest expense or financial leverage if we incur additional debt to finance acquisitions;
• incur or assume unanticipated liabilities, losses or costs associated with the business or vessels acquired; or
• incur other significant charges, such as impairment of goodwill or other intangible assets, asset devaluation or restructuring charges.
If we purchase any newbuilding vessels, delays, cancellations or non-completion of deliveries of newbuilding vessels could harm our operating results.
If we purchase any newbuilding vessels, the shipbuilder could fail to deliver the newbuilding vessel as agreed or their counterparty could cancel the purchase contract if the shipbuilder fails to meet its obligations. In addition, under charters we may enter into that are related to a newbuilding, if our delivery of the newbuilding to our customer is delayed, we may be required to pay liquidated damages during the delay. For prolonged delays, the customer may terminate the charter and, in addition to the resulting loss of revenues, we may be responsible for additional, substantial liquidated damages.
The completion and delivery of newbuildings could be delayed, cancelled or otherwise not completed because of:
• quality or engineering problems;
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• changes in governmental regulations or maritime self-regulatory organization standards;
• work stoppages or other labor disturbances at the shipyard;
• bankruptcy or other financial crisis of the shipbuilder;
• a backlog of orders at the shipyard;
• political or economic disturbances;
• weather interference or catastrophic event, such as a major earthquake or fire;
• requests for changes to the original vessel specifications;
• shortages of or delays in the receipt of necessary construction materials, such as steel;
• inability to finance the construction or conversion of the vessels; or
• inability to obtain requisite permits or approvals.
If delivery of a vessel is materially delayed, it could materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition and our ability to make cash distributions.
The loss of a customer, charter or vessel could result in a loss of revenues and cash flow in the event we are unable to replace such customer, charter or vessel.
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012, we had 18 charter counterparties, the most significant of which were Cosco Bulk Carrier Co., Ltd., Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. and Samsun Logix, and which accounted for approximately 22.8%, 16.0% and 13.0%, respectively, of total revenues. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2011, we had 15 charter counterparties, the most significant of which were Cosco Bulk Carrier Co., Ltd., Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. and Samsun Logix, and which accounted for approximately 22.2%, 18.5% and 13.2%, respectively, of total revenues. For the year ended December 31, 2010, we had 12 charter counterparties, the most significant of which were Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., Cargill International S.A. and Cosco Bulk Carrier Co. Ltd., and which accounted for approximately 27.7%, 11.8% and 11.2%, respectively, of total revenues. No other customers accounted for 10% or more of total revenue for any of the years presented.
We could lose a customer or the benefits of a charter if:
• the customer fails to make charter payments because of its financial inability, disagreements with us or otherwise;
• the customer exercises certain rights to terminate the charter;
• the customer terminates the charter because we fail to deliver the vessel within a fixed period of time, the vessel is lost or damaged beyond repair, there are serious deficiencies in the vessel or prolonged periods of off-hire, or we default under the charter; or
• a prolonged force majeure event affecting the customer, including damage to or destruction of relevant production facilities, war or political unrest prevents us from performing services for that customer.
If we lose a charter, we may be unable to re-deploy the related vessel on terms as favorable to us due to the long-term nature of most charters and the cyclical nature of the industry or we may be forced to charter the vessel on the spot market at then market rates which may be less favorable than the charter that has been terminated. If we are unable to re-deploy a vessel for which the charter has been terminated, we will not receive any revenues from that vessel, but we may be required to pay expenses necessary to maintain the vessel in proper operating condition. If we lose a vessel, any replacement newbuilding would not generate revenues during its construction, and we may be unable to charter any replacement vessel on terms as favorable to us as those of the terminated charter.
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The permanent loss of a customer, time charter or vessel, or a decline in payments under our charters, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition and our ability to make cash distributions in the event we are unable to replace such customer, time charter or vessel.
To mitigate this risk we have insured certain of our long-term charter-out contracts of the drybulk vessels for credit default occurring until the end of 2016, either through a “AA” rated European Union insurance provider up to a maximum cash payment of $120.0 million initially or through a separate agreement with Navios Holdings up to a maximum cash payment of $20.0 million. Our agreements provide that if the charterer goes into payment default, the respective insurer will reimburse us for the charter payments under the terms of the cover (subject to applicable deductibles and other customary limitations for such type of insurance).
The five container vessels recently acquired which are expected to be delivered into our fleet in the fourth quarter of 2013, are all chartered out to the same counterparty on long-term charters, which will have a significant impact on our future revenues.
In January 2011, Korea Line Corporation (“KLC”) which is the charterer of the Navios Melodia filed for receivership. The charter contract was affirmed and will be performed by KLC on its original terms, following an interim suspension period during which Navios Partners trades the vessel directly.
The risks and costs associated with vessels increase as the vessels age.
As of November 6, 2013, the vessels in our fleet have an average age of approximately 6.6 years and most drybulk vessels have an expected life of approximately 25-28 years. We may acquire older vessels in the future. In some instances, charterers prefer newer vessels that are more fuel efficient than older vessels. Cargo insurance rates also increase with the age of a vessel, making older vessels less desirable to charterers as well. Governmental regulations, safety or other equipment standards related to the age of the vessels may require expenditures for alterations or the addition of new equipment, to our vessels and may restrict the type of activities in which these vessels may engage. We cannot assure you that as our vessels age, market conditions will justify those expenditures or enable us to operate our vessels profitably during the remainder of their useful lives. If we sell vessels, we may have to sell them at a loss, and if charterers no longer charter out vessels due to their age, it could materially adversely affect our earnings.
Vessels may suffer damage and we may face unexpected drydocking costs, which could affect our cash flow and financial condition .
If our owned vessels suffer damage, they may need to be repaired at a drydocking facility. The costs of drydock repairs are unpredictable and can be substantial. We may have to pay drydocking costs that insurance does not cover. The loss of earnings while these vessels are being repaired and repositioned, as well as the actual cost of these repairs, could decrease our revenues and earnings substantially, particularly if a number of vessels are damaged or drydocked at the same time. Under the terms of the management agreement with the Manager, the costs of drydocking repairs are not included in the daily management fee, but will be reimbursed at cost.
We are subject to various laws, regulations and conventions, including environmental and safety laws that could require significant expenditures both to maintain compliance with such laws and to pay for any uninsured environmental liabilities including any resulting from a spill or other environmental incident.
The shipping business and vessel operation are materially affected by government regulation in the form of international conventions, national, state and local laws, and regulations in force in the jurisdictions in which vessels operate, as well as in the country or countries of their registration. Governmental regulations, safety or other equipment standards, as well as compliance with standards imposed by maritime self-regulatory organizations and customer requirements or competition, may require us to make capital and other expenditures. Because such conventions, laws and regulations are often revised, we cannot predict the ultimate cost of complying with such conventions, laws and regulations, or the impact thereof on the fair market price or useful life of our vessels. In order to satisfy any such requirements, we may be required to take any of our vessels out of service for extended periods of time, with corresponding losses of revenues. In the future, market conditions may
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not justify these expenditures or enable us to operate our vessels, particularly older vessels, profitably during the remainder of their economic lives. This could lead to significant asset write downs. In addition, violations of environmental and safety regulations can result in substantial penalties and, in certain instances, seizure or detention of our vessels.
Additional conventions, laws and regulations may be adopted that could limit our ability to do business, require capital expenditures or otherwise increase our cost of doing business, which may materially adversely affect our operations, as well as the shipping industry generally. In various jurisdictions legislation has been enacted, or is under consideration, that would impose more stringent requirements on air pollution and water discharges from our vessels. For example, the International Maritime Organization (“IMO”) periodically proposes and adopts amendments to revise the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (“MARPOL”), such as the revision to Annex VI which came into force on July 1, 2010. The revised Annex VI implements a phased reduction of the sulfur content of fuel and allows for stricter sulfur limits in designated emission control areas (“ECAs”). Thus far, ECAs have been formally adopted for the Baltic Sea and the North Sea including the English Channel. The North American ECA came into effect on August 1, 2012, and the United States Caribbean Sea ECA came into force on January 1, 2013, having effect from January 1, 2014. These ECAs will limit SOx, NOx and particulate matter emissions. In California has adopted more stringent low sulfur fuel requirements within California regulated waters. In addition, the IMO, the U.S. and states within the U.S. have proposed or implemented requirements relating to the management of ballast water to prevent the harmful effects of foreign invasive species.
The operation of vessels is also affected by the requirements set forth in the International Safety Management (“ISM”) Code. The ISM Code requires shipowners and bareboat charterers to develop and maintain an extensive “Safety Management System” that includes the adoption of a safety and environmental protection policy setting forth instructions and procedures for safe vessel operation and describing procedures for dealing with emergencies. Further to this, the IMO has introduced the first ever mandatory measures for an international greenhouse gas reduction regime for a global industry sector. These Energy Efficiency measures took effect on January 1, 2013 and apply to all ships of 400 gross tonnage and above. They include the development of a ship energy efficiency management plan (“SEEMP”) which is akin to a safety management plan, with which the industry will have to comply. The failure of a ship owner or bareboat charterer to comply with the ISM Code and IMO measures may subject such party to increased liability, may decrease available insurance coverage for the affected vessels, and may result in a denial of access to, or detention in, certain ports.
For all vessels, including those operated under our fleet at present, international liability for oil pollution is governed by the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage (the “Bunker Convention”). In 2001, the IMO adopted the Bunker Convention, which imposes strict liability on shipowners for pollution damage and response costs incurred in contracting states caused by discharges, or threatened discharges, of bunker oil from all classes of ships. The Bunker Convention also requires registered owners of ships over a certain size to maintain insurance to cover their liability for pollution damage in an amount equal to the limits of liability under the applicable national or international limitation regime, including liability limits calculated in accordance with the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976, as amended (the “1976 Convention”), discussed in more detail in the following paragraph. The Bunker Convention became effective in contracting states on November 21, 2008 and as of September 30, 2013 was in effect in 74 states. In non-contracting states, liability for such bunker oil pollution typically is determined by the national or other domestic laws in the jurisdiction where the spillage occurs.
The right of vessel owners to limit liability incurred under the Bunker Convention depends on the applicable national or international regime. The 1976 Convention is the most widely applicable international regime limiting maritime pollution liability. Rights to limit liability under the 1976 Convention are forfeited where a spill is caused by a shipowner’s intentional or reckless conduct. Certain jurisdictions have ratified the IMO’s Protocol of 1996 to the 1976 Convention, referred to herein as the “Protocol of 1996.” The Protocol of 1996 provides for substantially higher liability limits in those jurisdictions than the limits set forth in the 1976
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Convention. Finally, some jurisdictions, such as the United States, are not a party to either the 1976 Convention or the Protocol of 1996, and, therefore, a shipowner’ s rights to limit liability for maritime pollution in such jurisdictions may be uncertain.
Environmental legislation in the United States merits particular mention as it is in many respects more onerous than international laws, representing a high-water mark of regulation with which ship owners and operators must comply, and of liability likely to be incurred in the event of non-compliance or an incident causing pollution. Such regulation may become even stricter if laws are changed as a result of the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In the United States, the OPA establishes an extensive regulatory and liability regime for the protection and cleanup of the environment from cargo and bunker oil spills from vessels, including tankers. The OPA covers all owners and operators whose vessels trade in the United States, its territories and possessions or whose vessels operate in United States waters, which includes the United States’ territorial sea and its 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone. Under the OPA, vessel owners, operators and bareboat charterers are “responsible parties” and are jointly, severally and strictly liable (unless the spill results solely from the act or omission of a third party, an act of God or an act of war) for all containment and clean-up costs and other damages arising from discharges or substantial threats of discharges, of oil from their vessels. In response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil incident in the Gulf of Mexico, the U.S. House of Representatives passed and the U.S. Senate considered but did not pass a bill to strengthen certain requirements of the OPA; similar legislation may be introduced in the 113th Congress.
In addition to potential liability under the federal OPA, vessel owners may in some instances incur liability on an even more stringent basis under state law in the particular state where the spillage occurred. For example, California regulations prohibit the discharge of oil, require an oil contingency plan be filed with the state, require that the ship owner contract with an oil response organization and require a valid certificate of financial responsibility, all prior to the vessel entering state waters.
In the last decade, the EU has become increasingly active in the field of regulation of maritime safety and protection of the environment. In some areas of regulation the EU has introduced new laws without attempting to procure a corresponding amendment to international law. Notably, the EU adopted in 2005 a directive, as amended in 2009, on ship-source pollution, imposing criminal sanctions for pollution not only where pollution is caused by intent or recklessness (which would be an offence under MARPOL), but also where it is caused by “serious negligence.” The concept of “serious negligence” may be interpreted in practice to be little more than ordinary negligence. The directive could therefore result in criminal liability being incurred in circumstances where it would not be incurred under international law. Criminal liability for a pollution incident could not only result in us incurring substantial penalties or fines, but may also, in some jurisdictions, facilitate civil liability claims for greater compensation than would otherwise have been payable.
We maintain insurance coverage for each owned vessel in our fleet against pollution liability risks in the amount of $1.0 billion in the aggregate for any one event. The insured risks include penalties and fines as well as civil liabilities and expenses resulting from accidental pollution. However, this insurance coverage is subject to exclusions, deductibles and other terms and conditions. If any liabilities or expenses fall within an exclusion from coverage, or if damages from a catastrophic incident exceed the aggregate liability of $1.0 billion for any one event, our cash flow, profitability and financial position would be adversely impacted.
Climate change and government laws and regulations related to climate change could negatively impact our financial condition.
Regarding climate change in particular, we are and will be, directly and indirectly, subject to the effects of climate change and may, directly or indirectly, be affected by government laws and regulations related to climate change. A number of countries have adopted or are considering the adoption of, regulatory frameworks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In the U.S., the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) has
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declared greenhouse gases to be dangerous pollutants and has issued greenhouse gas reporting requirements for emissions sources in certain industries (which do not include the shipping industry). The U.S. EPA is also considering petitions to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from marine vessels.
In addition, while the emissions of greenhouse gases from international shipping are not subject to the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which requires adopting countries to implement national programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the IMO intends to develop limits on greenhouse gases from international shipping. It has responded to the global focus on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions by developing specific technical and operational efficiency measures and a work plan for market-based mechanisms in 2011. These include the mandatory measures of the ship energy efficiency management plan (“SEEMP”), outlined above, and an energy efficiency design index (“EEDI”) for new ships. The IMO is also considering its position on market-based measures through an expert working group, which was expected to report back to its Marine Environment Protection Committee. Among the numerous proposals being considered by the working group are the following: a port state levy based on the amount of fuel consumed by the vessel on its voyage to the port in question; a global emissions trading scheme which would allocate emissions allowances and set an emissions cap; and an international fund establishing a global reduction target for international shipping, to be set either by the UNFCCC or the IMO. At its 64th session on 1 to 5 October 2012, the MEPC indicated that 2015 was the target year for Member States to identify market-based measures for international shipping.
In December 2011, UN climate change talks took place in Durban and concluded with an agreement referred to as the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action. The Durban Conference did not result in any proposals specifically addressing the shipping industry’s role in climate change but the progress that has been made by the IMO in this area was widely acknowledged throughout the negotiating bodies of the UNFCCC process.
The European Union announced in April 2007 that it planned to expand the European Union emissions trading scheme by adding vessels, and a proposal from the European Commission was expected if no global regime for reduction of seaborne emissions had been agreed to by the end of 2011. That deadline has now expired and it remains to be seen what position the EU takes in this regard in the period ahead. As of January 31, 2013 the Commission has stopped short of proposing that emissions from ships be included in the EU’s emissions-trading scheme (ETS). However on October 1, 2012 it announced that it would propose measures to monitor, verify and report on greenhouse-gas emissions from the shipping sector. On June 28, 2013, the European Commission adopted a communication setting out a strategy for progressively including greenhouse gas emissions from maritime transport in the EU’s policy for reducing its overall GHG emissions. The first step proposed by the Commission is an EU Regulation which would establish an EU-wide system for the monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions from large ships starting in 2018. This may be seen as indicative of an intention to maintain pressure on the international negotiating process.
We cannot predict with any degree of certainty what effect, if any possible climate change and government laws and regulations related to climate change will have on our operations, whether directly or indirectly. While we believe that it is difficult to assess the timing and effect of climate change and pending legislation and regulation related to climate change on our business, we believe that climate change, including the possible increase in severe weather events resulting from climate change, and government laws and regulations related to climate change may affect, directly or indirectly, (i) the cost of the vessels we may acquire in the future, (ii) our ability to continue to operate as we have in the past, (iii) the cost of operating our vessels, and (iv) insurance premiums, deductibles and the availability of coverage. As a result, our financial condition could be negatively impacted by significant climate change and related governmental regulation, and that impact could be material.
The loss of key members of our senior management team could disrupt the management of our business.
We believe that our success depends on the continued contributions of the members of our senior management team, including Ms. Angeliki Frangou, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The loss of the services of Ms. Frangou or one of our other executive officers or those of Navios Holdings who provide us with
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significant managerial services could impair our ability to identify and secure new charter contracts, to maintain good customer relations and to otherwise manage our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial performance and our ability to compete.
We are subject to vessel security regulations and will incur costs to comply with recently adopted regulations and we may be subject to costs to comply with similar regulations that may be adopted in the future in response to terrorism.
Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, there have been a variety of initiatives intended to enhance vessel security. On November 25, 2002, the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002, or MTSA, came into effect. To implement certain portions of the MTSA, in July 2003, the U.S. Coast Guard issued regulations requiring the implementation of certain security requirements aboard vessels operating in waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. Similarly, in December 2002, amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, or SOLAS, created a new chapter of the convention dealing specifically with maritime security. The new chapter went into effect in July 2004, and imposes various detailed security obligations on vessels and port authorities, most of which are contained in the newly created ISPS Code. Among the various requirements are:
• on-board installation of automatic information systems, or AIS, to enhance vessel-to-vessel and vessel-to-shore communications;
• on-board installation of ship security alert systems;
• the development of vessel security plans; and
• compliance with flag state security certification requirements.
Furthermore, additional security measures could be required in the future which could have a significant financial impact on us. The U.S. Coast Guard regulations, intended to be aligned with international maritime security standards, exempt non-U.S. vessels from MTSA vessel security measures, provided such vessels have on board a valid International Ship Security Certificate, or ISSC, that attests to the vessel’s compliance with SOLAS security requirements and the ISPS Code. We will implement the various security measures addressed by the MTSA, SOLAS and the ISPS Code and take measures for the vessels to attain compliance with all applicable security requirements within the prescribed time periods. Although management does not believe these additional requirements will have a material financial impact on our operations, there can be no assurance that there will not be an interruption in operations to bring vessels into compliance with the applicable requirements and any such interruption could cause a decrease in charter revenues. Furthermore, additional security measures could be required in the future which could have a significant financial impact on us.
Our international activities increase the compliance risks associated with economic and trade sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and other jurisdictions.
Our international operations could expose us to trade and economic sanctions or other restrictions imposed by the United States or other governments or organizations, including the United Nations, the European Union and its member countries. Under economic and trading sanctions laws, governments may seek to impose modifications to business practices, and modifications to compliance programs, which may increase compliance costs, and may subject us to fines, penalties and other sanctions.
During 2011 and continuing into 2012, the scope of sanctions imposed against the government of Iran and persons engaging in certain activities or doing certain business with and relating to Iran has been expanded by a number of jurisdictions, including the United States, the European Union and Canada. In 2010, the U.S. enacted the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions Accountability and Divestment Act (“CISADA”), which expanded the scope of the former Iran Sanctions Act. Among other things, CISADA expands the application of the prohibitions to non-U.S. companies, such as our company, and introduces limits on the ability of companies and persons to do
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business or trade with Iran when such activities relate to the investment, supply or export of refined petroleum or petroleum products (tankers owned by an affiliate of ours have called on ports in Iran but do not engage in the activities specifically identified by these sanctions). Although we believe that we are in compliance with all applicable sanctions and embargo laws and regulations, and intend to maintain such compliance, there can be no assurance that we will be in compliance in the future, particularly as the scope of certain laws may be unclear and may be subject to changing interpretations. Moreover, our charterers may violate applicable sanctions and embargo laws and regulations as a result of actions that do not involve us or our vessels, and those violations could in turn negatively affect our reputation.
We are monitoring developments in the United States, the European Union and other jurisdictions that maintain sanctions programs, including developments in implementation and enforcement of such sanctions programs. Expansion of sanctions programs, embargoes and other restrictions in the future (including additional designations of countries subject to sanctions), or modifications in how existing sanctions are interpreted or enforced, could prevent our tankers from calling on ports in sanctioned countries or could limit their cargoes. If any of the risks described above materialize, it could have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations.
The operation of ocean-going vessels entails the possibility of marine disasters including damage or destruction of the vessel due to accident, the loss of a vessel due to piracy or terrorism, damage or destruction of cargo and similar events that may cause a loss of revenue from affected vessels and damage our business reputation, which may in turn lead to loss of business.
The operation of ocean-going vessels entails certain inherent risks that may materially adversely affect our business and reputation, including:
• damage or destruction of vessel due to marine disaster such as a collision;
• the loss of a vessel due to piracy and terrorism;
• cargo and property losses or damage as a result of the foregoing or less drastic causes such as human error, mechanical failure and bad weather;
• environmental accidents as a result of the foregoing; and
• business interruptions and delivery delays caused by mechanical failure, human error, war, terrorism, political action in various countries, labor strikes or adverse weather conditions.
Any of these circumstances or events could substantially increase our costs. For example, the costs of replacing a vessel or cleaning up a spill could substantially lower our revenues by taking vessels out of operation permanently or for periods of time. The involvement of our vessels in a disaster or delays in delivery or damages or loss of cargo may harm our reputation as a safe and reliable vessel operator and cause us to lose business.
The operation of vessels, such as dry bulk carriers, has certain unique risks. With a dry bulk carrier, the cargo itself and its interaction with the vessel can be an operational risk. By their nature, dry bulk cargoes are often heavy, dense, easily shift, and react badly to water exposure. In addition, dry bulk carriers are often subjected to battering treatment during unloading operations with grabs, jackhammers (to pry encrusted cargoes out of the hold) and small bulldozers. This treatment may cause damage to the vessel. Vessels damaged due to treatment during unloading procedures may be more susceptible to breach to the sea. Hull breaches in dry bulk carriers may lead to the flooding of the vessels’ holds. If a dry bulk carrier suffers flooding in its forward holds, the bulk cargo may become so dense and waterlogged that its pressure may buckle the vessel’s bulkheads leading to the loss of a vessel.
The total loss or damage of any of our vessels or cargoes could harm our reputation as a safe and reliable vessel owner and operator. If we are unable to adequately maintain or safeguard our vessels, we may be unable to prevent any such damage, costs, or loss that could negatively impact our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and ability to pay distributions.
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A failure to pass inspection by classification societies could result in one or more vessels being unemployable unless and until they pass inspection, resulting in a loss of revenues from such vessels for that period and a corresponding decrease in operating cash flows.
The hull and machinery of every commercial vessel must be classed by a classification society authorized by its country of registry. The classification society certifies that a vessel is safe and seaworthy in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations of the country of registry of the vessel and with SOLAS. Our owned fleet is currently enrolled with American Bureau of Shipping, Nippon Kaiji Kiokai, Bureau Veritas and Lloyd’s Register.
A vessel must undergo an annual survey, an intermediate survey and a special survey. In lieu of a special survey, a vessel’s machinery may be on a continuous survey cycle, under which the machinery would be surveyed periodically over a five-year period. Our vessels are on special survey cycles for hull inspection and continuous survey cycles for machinery inspection. Every vessel is also required to be drydocked every two to three years for inspection of the underwater parts of such vessel.
If any vessel fails any annual survey, intermediate survey or special survey, the vessel may be unable to trade between ports and, therefore, would be unemployable, potentially causing a negative impact on our revenues due to the loss of revenues from such vessel until she is able to trade again.
We are subject to inherent operational risks that may not be adequately covered by our insurance.
The operation of ocean-going vessels in international trade is inherently risky. Although we carry insurance for our fleet against risks commonly insured against by vessel owners and operators, including hull and machinery insurance, war risks insurance and protection and indemnity insurance (which include environmental damage and pollution insurance), all risks may not be adequately insured against, and any particular claim may not be paid. We do not currently maintain off-hire insurance, which would cover the loss of revenue during extended vessel off-hire periods, such as those that occur during an unscheduled drydocking due to damage to the vessel from accidents. Accordingly, any extended vessel off-hire, due to an accident or otherwise, could have a material adverse effect on our business and our ability to pay distributions to our unitholders. Any claims covered by insurance would be subject to deductibles, and since it is possible that a large number of claims may be brought, the aggregate amount of these deductibles could be material.
We may be unable to procure adequate insurance coverage at commercially reasonable rates in the future. For example, more stringent environmental regulations have led in the past to increased costs for, and in the future may result in the lack of availability of, insurance against risks of environmental damage or pollution. A catastrophic oil spill or marine disaster could exceed our insurance coverage, which could harm our business, financial condition and operating results. Changes in the insurance markets attributable to terrorist attacks may also make certain types of insurance more difficult for us to obtain. In addition, the insurance that may be available to us may be significantly more expensive than our existing coverage.
Even if our insurance coverage is adequate to cover our losses, we may not be able to timely obtain a replacement vessel in the event of a loss. Furthermore, in the future, we may not be able to obtain adequate insurance coverage at reasonable rates for our fleet. Our insurance policies also contain deductibles, limitations and exclusions which can result in significant increased overall costs to us.
Because we obtain some of our insurance through protection and indemnity associations, we may also be subject to calls, or premiums, in amounts based not only on our own claim records, but also the claim records of all other members of the protection and indemnity associations.
We may be subject to calls, or premiums, in amounts based not only on our claim records but also the claim records of all other members of the protection and indemnity associations through which we receive insurance coverage for tort liability, including pollution-related liability. Our payment of these calls could result in significant expenses to us, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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Because we generate all of our revenues in U.S. dollars but incur a portion of our expenses in other currencies, exchange rate fluctuations could cause us to suffer exchange rate losses thereby increasing expenses and reducing income.
We engage in worldwide commerce with a variety of entities. Although our operations may expose us to certain levels of foreign currency risk, our transactions are at present predominantly U.S. dollar-denominated. Transactions in currencies other than the functional currency are translated at the exchange rate in effect at the date of each transaction. Expenses incurred in foreign currencies against which the U.S. dollar falls in value can increase thereby decreasing our income or vice versa if the U.S. dollar increases in value. For example, as of December 31, 2012, the value of the U.S. dollar as compared to the Euro decreased by approximately 2.0% compared with the respective value as of December 31, 2011. A greater percentage of our transactions and expenses in the future may be denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.
Our operations expose us to global political risks, such as wars and political instability that may interfere with the operation of our vessels causing a decrease in revenues from such vessels.
We are an international company and primarily conduct our operations outside the United States. Changing economic, political and governmental conditions in the countries where we are engaged in business or where our vessels are registered will affect us. In the past, political conflicts, particularly in the Persian Gulf, resulted in attacks on vessels, mining of waterways and other efforts to disrupt shipping in the area. For example, in October 2002, the vessel Limburg, which was not affiliated with us, was attacked by terrorists in Yemen. Acts of terrorism and piracy have also affected vessels trading in regions such as the South China Sea. Following the terrorist attack in New York City on September 11, 2001, and the military response of the United States, the likelihood of future acts of terrorism may increase, and our vessels may face higher risks of being attacked in the Middle East region and interruption of operations causing a decrease in revenues. In addition, future hostilities or other political instability in regions where our vessels trade could affect our trade patterns and adversely affect our operations by causing delays in shipping on certain routes or making shipping impossible on such routes, thereby causing a decrease in revenues.
In addition, a government could requisition title or seize our vessels during a war or national emergency. Requisition of title occurs when a government takes a vessel and becomes the owner. A government could also requisition our vessels for hire, which would result in the government’s taking control of a vessel and effectively becoming the charterer at a dictated charter rate. Requisition of one or more of our vessels would have a substantial negative effect on us as we would potentially lose all revenues and earnings from the requisitioned vessels and permanently lose the vessels. Such losses might be partially offset if the requisitioning government compensated us for the requisition.
Acts of piracy on ocean-going vessels have increased in frequency and magnitude, which could adversely affect our business.
The shipping industry has historically been affected by acts of piracy in regions such as the South China Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Although the frequency of sea piracy worldwide decreased during 2012 to its lowest level since its increase in 2009, sea piracy incidents continue to occur, particularly in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia and increasingly in the Gulf of Guinea. A recent and significant example of the heightened level of piracy came in February 2011 when the M/V Irene SL, a crude oil tanker which was not affiliated with us, was captured by pirates in the Arabian Sea while carrying crude oil estimated to be worth approximately $200 million. In December 2009, the Navios Apollon, one of our vessels, was seized by pirates 800 miles off the coast of Somalia while transporting fertilizer from Tampa, Florida to Rozi, India and was released on February 27, 2010. These piracy attacks resulted in regions (in which our vessels are deployed) being characterized by insurers as “war risk” zones or Joint War Committee (JWC) “war and strikes” listed areas. Premiums payable for such insurance coverage could increase significantly and such insurance coverage may be more difficult to obtain. Crew costs, including those due to employing onboard security guards, could increase in
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such circumstances. In addition, while we believe the charterer remains liable for charter payments when a vessel is seized by pirates, the charterer may dispute this and withhold charter hire until the vessel is released. A charterer may also claim that a vessel seized by pirates was not “on-hire” for a certain number of days and it is therefore entitled to cancel the charter party, a claim that we would dispute. We may not be adequately insured to cover losses from these incidents, which could have a material adverse effect on us. In addition, detention hijacking as a result of an act of piracy against our vessels, or an increase in cost, or unavailability of insurance for our vessels, could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Acts of piracy on ocean-going vessels have increased in frequency, which could adversely affect our business and operations.
Disruptions in world financial markets and the resulting governmental action in the United States and in other parts of the world could have a material adverse impact on our ability to obtain financing, our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows and could cause the market price of our common units to decline.
Concerns relating to the European sovereign debt crisis have recently intensified. While Greece, Portugal and Ireland have been the most affected countries thus far, with each agreeing to a rescue package with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, there are fears that other European countries may be further affected by increasing public debt burdens and weakening economic growth prospects. On January, 13, 2012, Standard and Poor’s Rating Services downgraded the long-term ratings for nine Eurozone nations, including France, Italy and Spain. Since then, Standard and Poor’ s, Moody’s Investors Service and other credit ratings agencies have further downgraded certain Eurozone nations, most recently with Fitch Ratings’ downgrade of Italy’s sovereign rating on March 8, 2013. Such downgrades could negatively affect those countries’ ability to access the public debt markets at reasonable rates or at all, materially affecting the financial conditions of banks in those countries, including those with which we maintain cash deposits and equivalents, or on which we rely on to finance our vessel and new business acquisitions.
Cash deposits and cash equivalents in excess of amounts covered by government-provided insurance are exposed to loss in the event of non-performance by financial institutions. We maintain cash deposits and equivalents in excess of government-provided insurance limits at banks in Greek and other European banks, which may expose us to a loss of cash deposits or cash equivalents.
The United States and other parts of the world are exhibiting volatile economic trends and were recently in a recession. Despite signs of recovery, the outlook for the world economy remains uncertain. For example, the credit markets worldwide have experienced significant contraction, de-leveraging and reduced liquidity, and the U.S. federal government, state governments and foreign governments have implemented and are considering a broad variety of governmental action and/or new regulation of the financial markets. Additionally, uncertainty regarding tax policy and government spending in the United States have created an uncertain environment which could reduce demand for our services. Securities and futures markets and the credit markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and other requirements. The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), other regulators, self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies, and may effect changes in law or interpretations of existing laws. Recently, a number of financial institutions have experienced serious financial difficulties and, in some cases, have entered bankruptcy proceedings or are in regulatory enforcement actions. These issues, along with the reprising of credit risk and the difficulties currently experienced by financial institutions have made, and will likely continue to make, it difficult to obtain financing. As a result of the disruptions in the credit markets, many lenders have increased margins on lending rates, enacted tighter lending standards, required more restrictive terms (including higher collateral ratios for advances, shorter maturities and smaller loan amounts), or have refused to refinance existing debt at all. Additionally, certain banks that have historically been significant lenders to the shipping industry have reduced or ceased lending activities in the shipping industry. New banking regulations, including larger capital requirements and the resulting policies adopted by lenders, could reduce lending activities. We may experience difficulties obtaining financing commitments, including commitments to
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refinance our existing debt as balloon payments come due under our credit facilities, in the future if lenders are unwilling to extend financing to us or unable to meet their funding obligations due to their own liquidity, capital or solvency issues. Due to the fact that we would possibly cover all or a portion of the cost of any new vessel acquisition with debt financing, such uncertainty, combined with restrictions imposed by our current debt, could hamper our ability to finance vessels or new business acquisitions.
In addition, the economic uncertainty worldwide has markedly reduced demand for shipping services and has decreased shipping rates, which may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Currently, the economies of China, Japan, other Pacific Asian countries and India are the main driving force behind the development in seaborne transportation. Reduced demand from such economies has driven decreased rates and vessel values.
We could face risks attendant to changes in economic environments, changes in interest rates, tax policies, and instability in certain securities markets, among other factors. Major market disruptions and the uncertainty in market conditions and the regulatory climate in the U.S., Europe and worldwide could adversely affect our business or impair our ability to borrow amounts under any future financial arrangements. The current market conditions may last longer than we anticipate. These recent and developing economic and governmental factors could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.
Maritime claimants could arrest our vessels, which could interrupt our cash flow.
Crew members, suppliers of goods and services to a vessel, shippers of cargo, and other parties may be entitled to a maritime lien against a vessel for unsatisfied debts, claims or damages against such vessel. In many jurisdictions, a maritime lien holder may enforce its lien by arresting a vessel through foreclosure proceedings. The arrest or attachment of one or more of our vessels could interrupt our cash flow and require us to pay large sums of funds to have the arrest lifted. We are not currently aware of the existence of any such maritime lien on our vessels.
In addition, in some jurisdictions, such as South Africa, under the “sister ship” theory of liability, a claimant may arrest both the vessel which is subject to the claimant’s maritime lien and any “associated” vessel, which is any vessel owned or controlled by the same owner. Claimants could try to assert “sister ship” liability against one vessel in our fleet for claims relating to another ship in the fleet.
Navios Holdings and its affiliates may compete with us.
Pursuant to the omnibus agreement that we entered into with Navios Holdings in connection with the closing of the IPO (the “Omnibus Agreement”), Navios Holdings and its controlled affiliates (other than us, our general partner and our subsidiaries) generally agreed not to acquire or own Panamax or Capesize drybulk carriers under time charters of three or more years without the consent of our general partner. The Omnibus Agreement, however, contains significant exceptions that allow Navios Holdings or any of its controlled affiliates to compete with us under specified circumstances which could harm our business. In addition, concurrently with the successful consummation of the initial business combination by Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation (“Navios Acquisition”), on May 28, 2010, because of the overlap between Navios Acquisition, Navios Holdings and us, with respect to possible acquisitions under the terms of the Omnibus Agreement, we entered into a business opportunity right of first refusal agreement which provides the types of business opportunities in the marine transportation and logistics industries, we, Navios Holdings and Navios Acquisition must share with the each other.
Common unitholders have limited voting rights and our partnership agreement restricts the voting rights of common unitholders owning more than 4.9% of our common units.
Holders of our common units have only limited voting rights on matters affecting our business. We hold a meeting of the limited partners every year to elect one or more members of our board of directors and to vote on any other matters that are properly brought before the meeting. Common unitholders may only elect four of the
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seven members of our board of directors. The elected directors are elected on a staggered basis and serve for three year terms. Our general partner in its sole discretion has the right to appoint the remaining three directors and to set the terms for which those directors will serve. The partnership agreement also contains provisions limiting the ability of unitholders to call meetings or to acquire information about our operations, as well as other provisions limiting the unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management. Unitholders will have no right to elect our general partner and our general partner may not be removed except by a vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding units, including any units owned by our general partner and its affiliates, voting together as a single class.
Our partnership agreement further restricts common unitholders’ voting rights by providing that if any person or group owns beneficially more than 4.9% of the common units then outstanding, any such common units owned by that person or group in excess of 4.9% may not be voted on any matter and will not be considered to be outstanding when sending notices of a meeting of unitholders, calculating required votes, except for purposes of nominating a person for election to our board, determining the presence of a quorum or for other similar purposes, unless required by law. The voting rights of any such common unitholders in excess of 4.9% will effectively be redistributed pro rata among the other common unitholders holding less than 4.9% of the voting power of all classes of units entitled to vote. Our general partner, its affiliates and persons who acquired common units with the prior approval of our board of directors will not be subject to this 4.9% limitation except with respect to voting their common units in the election of the elected independent directors.
Our general partner and its affiliates, including Navios Holdings, own a significant interest in us and have conflicts of interest and limited fiduciary and contractual duties, which may permit them to favor their own interests to the detriment of unitholders.
Navios Holdings indirectly owns the 2.0% general partner interest and a 21.6% limited partner interest in us, and owns and controls our general partner. All of our officers and three of our directors are directors and/or officers of Navios Holdings and its affiliates, and our Chief Executive Officer is also the Chief Executive Officer of Navios Acquisition and Navios Holdings. As such these individuals have fiduciary duties to Navios Holdings and Navios Acquisition that may cause them to pursue business strategies that disproportionately benefit Navios Holdings or Navios Acquisition or which otherwise are not in our best interests or those of our unitholders. Conflicts of interest may arise between Navios Acquisition, Navios Holdings and their respective affiliates including our general partner, on the one hand, and us and our unitholders on the other hand. As a result of these conflicts, our general partner and its affiliates may favor their own interests over the interests of our unitholders. These conflicts include, among others, the following situations:
• neither our partnership agreement nor any other agreement requires our general partner or Navios Holdings or its affiliates to pursue a business strategy that favors us or utilizes our assets, and Navios Holdings’ officers and directors have a fiduciary duty to make decisions in the best interests of the stockholders of Navios Holdings, which may be contrary to our interests;
• our general partner and our board of directors are allowed to take into account the interests of parties other than us, such as Navios Holdings, in resolving conflicts of interest, which has the effect of limiting their fiduciary duties to our unitholders;
• our general partner and our directors have limited their liabilities and reduced their fiduciary duties under the laws of the Marshall Islands, while also restricting the remedies available to our unitholders, and, as a result of purchasing common units, unitholders are treated as having agreed to the modified standard of fiduciary duties and to certain actions that may be taken by our general partner and our directors, all as set forth in the partnership agreement;
• our general partner and our board of directors will be involved in determining the amount and timing of our asset purchases and sales, capital expenditures, borrowings, issuances of additional partnership securities and reserves, each of which can affect the amount of cash that is available for distribution to our unitholders;
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• our general partner may have substantial influence over our board of directors’ decision to cause us to borrow funds in order to permit the payment of cash distributions, even if the purpose or effect of the borrowing is to make incentive distributions.
• our general partner is entitled to reimbursement of all reasonable costs incurred by it and its affiliates for our benefit;
• our partnership agreement does not restrict us from paying our general partner or its affiliates for any services rendered to us on terms that are fair and reasonable or entering into additional contractual arrangements with any of these entities on our behalf; and
• our general partner may exercise its right to call and purchase our common units if it and its affiliates own more than 80% of our common units.
Although a majority of our directors will be elected by common unitholders, our general partner will likely have substantial influence on decisions made by our board of directors.
Our officers face conflicts in the allocation of their time to our business.
Navios Holdings and Navios Acquisition conduct businesses and activities of their own in which we have no economic interest. If these separate activities are significantly greater than our activities, there will be material competition for the time and effort of our officers, who also provide services to Navios Acquisition, Navios Holdings and its affiliates. Our officers are not required to work full-time on our affairs and are required to devote time to the affairs of Navios Acquisition, Navios Holdings and their respective affiliates. Each of our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer is also an executive officer of Navios Holdings, and our Chief Executive Officer is the Chief Executive Officer of Navios Acquisition and Navios Holdings.
Our partnership agreement limits our general partner’s and our directors’ fiduciary duties to our unitholders and restricts the remedies available to unitholders for actions taken by our general partner or our directors.
Our partnership agreement contains provisions that reduce the standards to which our general partner and directors would otherwise be held by Marshall Islands law. For example, our partnership agreement:
• permits our general partner to make a number of decisions in its individual capacity, as opposed to in its capacity as our general partner. Where our partnership agreement permits, our general partner may consider only the interests and factors that it desires, and in such cases it has no fiduciary duty or obligation to give any consideration to any interest of, or factors affecting us, our affiliates or our unitholders. Decisions made by our general partner in its individual capacity will be made by its sole owner, Navios Holdings. Specifically, pursuant to our partnership agreement, our general partner will be considered to be acting in its individual capacity if it exercises its call right, pre-emptive rights or registration rights, consents or withholds consent to any merger or consolidation of the partnership;
• appoints any directors or votes for the election of any director, votes or refrains from voting on amendments to our partnership agreement that require a vote of the outstanding units, voluntarily withdraws from the partnership, transfers (to the extent permitted under our partnership agreement) or refrains from transferring its units, general partner interest or incentive distribution rights or votes upon the dissolution of the partnership;
• provides that our general partner and our directors are entitled to make other decisions in “good faith” if they reasonably believe that the decision is in our best interests;
• generally provides that affiliated transactions and resolutions of conflicts of interest not approved by the conflicts committee of our board of directors and not involving a vote of unitholders must be on terms no less favorable to us than those generally being provided to or available from unrelated third parties or be “fair and reasonable” to us and that, in determining whether a transaction or resolution is “fair and reasonable,” our board of directors may consider the totality of the relationships between the parties involved, including other transactions that may be particularly advantageous or beneficial to us; and
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• provides that neither our general partner nor our officers or our directors will be liable for monetary damages to us, our limited partners or assignees for any acts or omissions unless there has been a final and non-appealable judgment entered by a court of competent jurisdiction determining that our general partner or directors or our officers or directors or those other persons engaged in actual fraud or willful misconduct.
In order to become a limited partner of our partnership, a common unitholder is required to agree to be bound by the provisions in the partnership agreement, including the provisions discussed above.
Fees and cost reimbursements, which the Manager determines for services provided to us, are significant, are payable regardless of profitability and reduce our cash available for distribution.
Under the terms of our management agreement with the Manager, we pay a daily fee of $4,000 per Ultra-Handymax vessel, $4,100 per Panamax vessel, $5,100 per Capesize vessel beginning on January 1, 2014 and $6,500 per Post-Panamax container vessel for technical and commercial management services provided to us by the Manager until December 31, 2015. Intermediate and special survey expenses (including drydocking expenses) under this agreement will be reimbursed at cost. The term of the management agreement is until December 31, 2017.
The daily fee paid to the Manager includes all costs incurred in providing certain commercial and technical management services to us. While this fee is fixed until December 31, 2015, we expect that we will reimburse the Manager for all of the actual operating costs and expenses it incurs in connection with the management of our fleet from January 1, 2016 until December 31, 2017, which may result in significantly higher fees that period. All of the fees we are required to pay to the Manager under the management agreement are payable without regard to our financial condition or results of operations. In addition, the Manager provides us with administrative services, including the services of our officers and directors, pursuant to an administrative services agreement which has a term until December 31, 2017, and we reimburse the Manager for all costs and expenses reasonably incurred by it in connection with the provision of those services. The fees and reimbursement of expenses to the Manager are payable regardless of our profitability and could materially adversely affect our ability to pay cash distributions to unitholders.
Our partnership agreement contains provisions that may have the effect of discouraging a person or group from attempting to remove our current management or our general partner.
Our partnership agreement contains provisions that may have the effect of discouraging a person or group from attempting to remove our current management or our general partner.
• The vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3 % of all the then outstanding common units, voting together as a single class is required to remove the general partner. Navios Holdings currently owns 21.6% of the total number of outstanding common units.
• Common unitholders elect only four of the seven members of our board of directors. Our general partner in its sole discretion has the right to appoint the remaining three directors.
• Election of the four directors elected by unitholders is staggered, meaning that the members of only one of three classes of our elected directors are selected each year. In addition, the directors appointed by our general partner will serve for terms determined by our general partner.
• Our partnership agreement contains provisions limiting the ability of unitholders to call meetings of unitholders, to nominate directors and to acquire information about our operations as well as other provisions limiting the unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management.
•
Unitholders’ voting rights are further restricted by the partnership agreement provision providing that if any person or group owns beneficially more than 4.9% of the common units then outstanding, any such common units owned by that person or group in excess of 4.9% may not be voted on any matter and
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will not be considered to be outstanding when sending notices of a meeting of unitholders, calculating required votes, except for purposes of nominating a person for election to our board, determining the presence of a quorum or for other similar purposes, unless required by law. The voting rights of any such common unitholders in excess of 4.9% will be redistributed pro rata among the other common unitholders holding less than 4.9% of the voting power of all classes of units entitled to vote. Our general partner, its affiliates and persons who acquired common units with the prior approval of our board of directors will not be subject to this 4.9% limitation except with respect to voting their common units in the election of the elected directors.
• We have substantial latitude in issuing equity securities without unitholder approval.
The control of our general partner may be transferred to a third party without unitholder consent.
Our general partner may transfer its general partner interest to a third party in a merger or in a sale of all or substantially all of its assets without the consent of the unitholders. In addition, our partnership agreement does not restrict the ability of the members of our general partner from transferring their respective membership interests in our general partner to a third party.
In establishing cash reserves, our board of directors may reduce the amount of cash available for distribution to unitholders.
Our partnership agreement requires our general partner to deduct from operating surplus cash reserves that it determines are necessary to fund our future operating expenditures. These reserves also will affect the amount of cash available for distribution to our unitholders. Our partnership agreement requires our board of directors each quarter to deduct from operating surplus estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures, as opposed to actual expenditures, which could reduce the amount of available cash for distribution. The amount of estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures deducted from operating surplus is subject to review and change by our board of directors at least once a year, provided that any change must be approved by the conflicts committee of our board of directors.
Our general partner has a limited call right that may require unitholders to sell their common units at an undesirable time or price.
If at any time our general partner and its affiliates, including Navios Holdings, own more than 80% of the common units, our general partner will have the right, which it may assign to any of its affiliates or to us, but not the obligation, to acquire all, but not less than all, of the common units held by unaffiliated persons at a price not less than their then-current market price. As a result, unitholders may be required to sell their common units at an undesirable time or price and may not receive any return on their investment. Unitholders may also incur a tax liability upon a sale of their units.
As of November 6, 2013, Navios Holdings owned 14,223,763 common units and 1,449,681 general partner units, representing a 21.6% interest in us based on all outstanding common units and general partnership units.
Unitholders may not have limited liability if a court finds that unitholder action constitutes control of our business.
As a limited partner in a partnership organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands, unitholders could be held liable for our obligations to the same extent as a general partner if they participate in the “control” of our business. Our general partner generally has unlimited liability for the obligations of the partnership, such as its debts and environmental liabilities, except for those contractual obligations of the partnership that are expressly made without recourse to our general partner.
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We can borrow money to pay distributions, which would reduce the amount of credit available to operate our business.
Our partnership agreement will allow us to make working capital borrowings to pay distributions. Accordingly, we can make distributions on all our units even though cash generated by our operations may not be sufficient to pay such distributions. Any working capital borrowings by us to make distributions will reduce the amount of working capital borrowings we can make for operating our business.
Increases in interest rates may cause the market price of our common units to decline.
An increase in interest rates may cause a corresponding decline in demand for equity investments in general, and in particular for yield-based equity investments such as our common units. Any such increase in interest rates or reduction in demand for our common units resulting from other relatively more attractive investment opportunities may cause the trading price of our common units to decline. In addition, our interest expense will increase, since initially our debt will bear interest at a floating rate, subject to any interest rate swaps we may enter into the future.
Unitholders may have liability to repay distributions.
Under some circumstances, unitholders may have to repay amounts wrongfully returned or distributed to them. Under the Marshall Islands Act, we may not make a distribution to unitholders if the distribution would cause our liabilities to exceed the fair value of our assets. Marshall Islands law provides that for a period of three years from the date of the impermissible distribution, limited partners who received the distribution and who knew at the time of the distribution that it violated Marshall Islands law will be liable to the limited partnership for the distribution amount. Assignees who become substituted limited partners are liable for the obligations of the assignor to make contributions to the partnership that are known to the assignee at the time it became a limited partner and for unknown obligations if the liabilities could be determined from the partnership agreement. Liabilities to partners on account of their partnership interest and liabilities that are non-recourse to the partnership are not counted for purposes of determining whether a distribution is permitted.
Because the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is not currently permitted to inspect registered public accounting firms in Greece, including our independent registered public accounting firm, you may not benefit from such inspections.
Auditors of U.S. public companies, including our independent registered public accounting firm, are required by the laws of the United States to undergo periodic Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”) inspections to assess their compliance with U.S. law and professional standards in connection with performance of audits of financial statements filed with the SEC. The laws of certain European Union countries, including Greece, do not currently permit the PCAOB to conduct inspections of accounting firms established and operating in such European Union countries. Accordingly, the PCAOB is currently prevented from fully evaluating the effectiveness of our independent registered public accounting firm’s audit procedures or quality control procedures. Unlike shareholders or potential shareholders of most U.S. public companies, our unitholders would be deprived of the possible benefits of such PCAOB inspections.
Tax Risks
In addition to the following risk factors, you should read “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations” on page 52 for a more complete discussion of the expected material U.S. federal and non-U.S. income tax considerations relating to us and the ownership and disposition of common units.
U.S. tax authorities could treat us as a “passive foreign investment company,” which could have adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. unitholders.
A non-U.S. entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes will be treated as a “passive foreign investment company,” or a PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes if at least 75.0% of its gross
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income for any taxable year consists of certain types of “passive income,” or at least 50.0% of the average value of the entity’s assets produce or are held for the production of those types of “passive income.” For purposes of these tests, “passive income” generally includes dividends, interest, gains from the sale or exchange of investment property, and rents and royalties other than rents and royalties that are received from unrelated parties in connection with the active conduct of a trade or business. For purposes of these tests, income derived from the performance of services does not constitute “passive income.” U.S. unitholders of a PFIC are subject to a disadvantageous U.S. federal income tax regime with respect to the income derived by the PFIC, the distributions they receive from the PFIC, and the gain, if any, they derive from the sale or other disposition of their shares in the PFIC.
Based on our current and projected method of operation, and on opinion of counsel, we believe that we were not a PFIC for our 2012 taxable year, and we expect that we will not become a PFIC with respect to any other taxable year. Our U.S. counsel, Thompson Hine LLP, is of the opinion that (1) the income we receive from time chartering activities and the assets we own that are engaged in generating such income should not be treated as passive income or assets, respectively, and (2) so long as our income from time charters exceeds 25.0% of our gross income from all sources for each taxable year after our initial taxable year and the fair market value of our vessels contracted under time charters exceeds 50.0% of the average fair market value of all of our assets for each taxable year after our initial taxable year, we should not be a PFIC for any taxable year. This opinion is based on representations and projections provided by us to our counsel regarding our assets, income and charters, and its validity is conditioned on the accuracy of such representations and projections. We expect that all of the vessels in our fleet will be engaged in time chartering activities and intend to treat our income from those activities as non-passive income, and the vessels engaged in those activities as non-passive assets, for PFIC purposes. However, no assurance can be given that the Internal Revenue Service, or the IRS, will accept this position.
We may have to pay tax on U.S.-source income, which would reduce our earnings.
Under the Internal Revenue Code, or the Code, 50.0% of the gross shipping income of a vessel owning or chartering corporation that is attributable to transportation that either begins or ends, but that does not both begin and end, in the United States is characterized as U.S.-source shipping income. U.S.-source shipping income generally is subject to a 4.0% U.S. federal income tax without allowance for deduction or, if such U.S.-source shipping income is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States, U.S. federal corporate income tax (the highest statutory rate presently is 35.0%) as well as a branch profits tax (presently imposed at a 30.0% rate on effectively connected earnings) applies, unless that corporation qualifies for exemption from tax under Section 883 of the Code.
Based on an opinion of counsel, and certain assumptions and representations, we believe that we will qualify for this statutory tax exemption, and we will take this position for U.S. federal income tax return reporting purposes. However, there are factual circumstances, including some that may be beyond our control that could cause us to lose the benefit of this tax exemption. Furthermore, our board of directors could determine that it is in our best interests to take an action that would result in this tax exemption not applying to us in the future. In addition, our conclusion that we qualify for this exemption, as well as the conclusions in this regard of our counsel, Thompson Hine LLP, is based upon legal authorities that do not expressly contemplate an organizational structure such as ours; specifically, although we have elected to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we are organized as a limited partnership under Marshall Islands law. Therefore, we can give no assurances that the IRS will not take a different position regarding our qualification for this tax exemption.
If we were not entitled to the Section 883 exemption for any taxable year, we generally would be subject to a 4.0% U.S. federal gross income tax with respect to our U.S.-source shipping income or, if such U.S. source shipping income were effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the United States, U.S. federal corporate income tax as well as a branch profits tax for those years. Our failure to qualify for the Section 883 exemption could have a negative effect on our business and would result in decreased earnings available for distribution to our unitholders.
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You may be subject to income tax in one or more non-U.S. countries, including Greece, as a result of owning our common units if, under the laws of any such country, we are considered to be carrying on business there. Such laws may require you to file a tax return with and pay taxes to those countries.
We intend that our affairs and the business of each of our controlled affiliates will be conducted and operated in a manner that minimizes income taxes imposed upon us and these controlled affiliates or which may be imposed upon you as a result of owning our common units. However, because we are organized as a partnership, there is a risk in some jurisdictions that our activities and the activities of our subsidiaries may be attributed to our unitholders for tax purposes and, thus, that you will be subject to tax in one or more non-U.S. countries, including Greece, as a result of owning our common units if, under the laws of any such country, we are considered to be carrying on business there. If you are subject to tax in any such country, you may be required to file a tax return with and to pay tax in that country based on your allocable share of our income. We may be required to reduce distributions to you on account of any withholding obligations imposed upon us by that country in respect of such allocation to you. The United States may not allow a tax credit for any foreign income taxes that you directly or indirectly incur.
We believe we can conduct our activities in such a manner that our unitholders should not be considered to be carrying on business in Greece solely as a consequence of the acquisition, holding, disposition or redemption of our common units. However, the question of whether either we or any of our controlled affiliates will be treated as carrying on business in any particular country, including Greece, will be largely a question of fact to be determined based upon an analysis of contractual arrangements, including the management agreement and the administrative services agreement we will enter into with the Manager, and the way we conduct business or operations, all of which may change over time. Furthermore, the laws of Greece or any other country may change in a manner that causes that country’s taxing authorities to determine that we are carrying on business in such country and are subject to its taxation laws. Any foreign taxes imposed on us or any subsidiaries will reduce our cash available for distribution.
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RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES
The following table sets forth the historical ratio of our consolidated earnings to our consolidated fixed charges for the periods indicated.
Nine Months
Ended September 30,
Year Ended December 31,
2013 2012 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008
Ratio of earnings to fixed charges(1)
4.73 6.53 8.14 6.21 7.25 3.86 3.36
(1) For purposes of computing our ratio of earnings to fixed charges on a consolidated basis, earnings is the result of adding (a) pre-tax income from continuing operations before adjustment for minority interests in consolidated subsidiaries or income or loss from equity investees, (b) fixed charges, (c) amortization of capitalized interest, and (d) distributed income of equity investees, and subtracting (a) interest capitalized and (b) preference security dividend requirements of consolidated subsidiaries. Fixed charges represent (i) interest expensed and capitalized, (ii) amortized premiums, discounts and capitalized expenses related to indebtedness, (iii) interest within time-charter hire and rental expense, and (iv) preference security dividend requirements of consolidated subsidiaries.
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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements included in this prospectus which are not historical facts (including our financial forecast and any other statements concerning plans and objectives of management for future operations or economic performance, or assumptions related thereto) are forward-looking statements. In addition, we and our representatives may from time to time make other oral or written statements which are also forward-looking statements. Such statements include, in particular, statements about our plans, strategies, business prospects, changes and trends in our business, and the markets in which we operate as described in this prospectus. In some cases, you can identify the forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “may,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “forecast,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “propose,” “potential,” “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places and include statements with respect to, among other things:
• our ability to make cash distributions on our common units;
• our future financial condition or results of operations and our future revenues and expenses;
• our anticipated growth strategies;
• future charter hire rates and vessel values;
• the repayment of debt;
• our ability to access debt and equity markets;
• planned capital expenditures and availability of capital resources to fund capital expenditures;
• future supply of, and demand for, drybulk commodities;
• increases in interest rates;
• our ability to maintain long-term relationships with major commodity traders;
• our ability to leverage to our advantage Navios Holdings’ relationships and reputation in the shipping industry;
• our continued ability to enter into long-term, fixed-rate time charters;
• our ability to maximize the use of our vessels, including the re-deployment or disposition of vessels no longer under long-term time charter;
• timely purchases and deliveries of newbuilding vessels;
• future purchase prices of newbuildings and secondhand vessels;
• our ability to compete successfully for future chartering and newbuilding opportunities;
• the expected cost of, and our ability to comply with, governmental regulations, maritime self-regulatory organization standards, as well as standard regulations imposed by our charterers applicable to our business;
• our anticipated incremental general and administrative expenses as a publicly traded limited partnership and our expenses under the management agreement and the administrative services agreement with Navios ShipManagement and for reimbursements for fees and costs of our general partner;
• the anticipated taxation of our partnership and our unitholders;
• estimated future maintenance and replacement capital expenditures;
• expected demand in the drybulk shipping sector in general and the demand for our Panamax, Capesize and Ultra-Handymax vessels in particular;
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• our ability to retain key executive officers;
• customers’ increasing emphasis on environmental and safety concerns;
• future sales of our common units in the public market; and
• our business strategy and other plans and objectives for future operations.
These and other forward-looking statements are made based upon management’s current plans, expectations, estimates, assumptions and beliefs concerning future events impacting us and therefore involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including those risks discussed in “Risk Factors,” including those set forth below:
• a lack of sufficient cash to pay the minimum quarterly distribution on our common units;
• the cyclical nature of the international drybulk shipping industry;
• fluctuations in charter rates for drybulk carriers;
• the historically high numbers of newbuildings currently under construction in the drybulk industry;
• changes in the market values of our vessels and the vessels for which we have purchase options;
• an inability to expand relationships with existing customers and obtain new customers;
• the loss of any customer or charter or vessel;
• the aging of our fleet and resultant increases in operations costs;
• damage to our vessels;
• general domestic and international political conditions, including wars and terrorism; and
• other factors detailed from time to time in our periodic reports filed with the SEC.
The risks, uncertainties and assumptions involve known and unknown risks and are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond our control. We caution that forward-looking statements are not guarantees and that actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements.
We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement or statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of these factors. Further, we cannot assess the impact of each such factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to be materially different from those contained in any forward-looking statement.
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USE OF PROCEEDS
Unless we indicate otherwise in the applicable prospectus supplement, we currently intend to use the net proceeds from this offering for general partnership purposes, including future acquisitions.
We may set forth additional information on the use of net proceeds from the sale of securities we offer under this prospectus in a prospectus supplement relating to the specific offering.
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CAPITALIZATION
The table below sets forth the our capitalization and indebtedness as of September 30, 2013 (unaudited):
(Expressed in Thousands of U.S. Dollars except unit data)
As of September 30, 2013
Long-term Debt (including current portion) 1 :
$ 344,664
Partners’ Capital:
Common Unitholders (71,034,163 units issued and outstanding September 30, 2013)
724,492
General Partner (1,449,681 units issued and outstanding September 30, 2013)
4,478
Total Partners’ Capital
728,970
Total Capitalization
$ 1,073,634
1 Excludes the $189.5 million add-on to the Term Loan B Facility, $12.0 million of which closed on October 31, 2013 and $177.5 million of which closed on November 1, 2013.
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PRICE RANGE OF COMMON UNITS AND DISTRIBUTIONS
As of November 6, 2013, there were 71,034,163 common units outstanding. Our common units began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on November 16, 2007 at an initial offering price of $20.00 per unit. Our common units are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NMM.”
Historical Prices
The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the high and low sales prices for our common units, as reported on the New York Stock Exchange. The last reported sale price of common units on the New York Stock Exchange on November 6, 2013 was $16.70 per common unit.
Price Range
High Low
Year Ended:
December 31, 2012
$ 16.94 $ 11.59
December 31, 2011
$ 21.38 $ 11.31
December 31, 2010
$ 20.03 $ 14.50
December 31, 2009
$ 15.80 $ 6.39
December 31, 2008
$ 18.85 $ 3.36
Quarter Ended:
September 30, 2013
$ 15.22 $ 13.81
June 30, 2013
$ 15.21 $ 13.59
March 31, 2013
$ 14.84 $ 12.84
December 31, 2012
$ 15.78 $ 12.11
September 30, 2012
$ 15.23 $ 13.16
June 30, 2012
$ 16.73 $ 11.59
March 31, 2012
$ 16.94 $ 15.00
December 31, 2011
$ 17.01 $ 12.49
September 30, 2011
$ 19.13 $ 11.31
June 30, 2011
$ 21.38 $ 16.80
March 31, 2011
$ 20.82 $ 18.13
Month Ended:
October 31, 2013
$ 15.63 $ 14.24
September 30, 2013
$ 14.93 $ 14.14
August 31, 2013
$ 15.16 $ 13.81
July 31, 2013
$ 15.22 $ 14.35
June 30, 2013
$ 14.50 $ 13.59
May 31, 2013
$ 15.21 $ 13.84
Quarterly Distributions
Our unitholders are entitled under our partnership agreement to receive a quarterly distribution to the extent we have sufficient cash on hand to pay the distribution after we establish cash reserves and pay fees and expenses. Although we intend to continue to make strategic acquisitions and to take advantage of our unique relationship with Navios Holdings in a prudent manner that is accretive to our unitholders and to long-term distribution growth there is no guarantee that we will pay a quarterly distribution on the common units in any quarter. Even if our cash distribution policy is not modified or revoked, the amount of distributions paid under our policy and the decision to make any distribution is determined by our board of directors, taking into consideration the terms of our partnership agreement and other factors. We will be prohibited from making any distributions to unitholders if it would cause an event of default, or an event of default is existing, under the terms of our existing credit facility.
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The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the approximate amounts of cash distributions that we have declared and paid:
Distributions for Quarter Ended
Amount of Cash Distributions Cash Distributions per Unit
September 30, 2013
$ 32.6 million * $ 0.4425 per unit
June 30, 2013
$ 29.9 million $ 0.4425 per unit
March 31, 2013
$ 29.9 million $ 0.4425 per unit
December 31, 2012
$ 29.9 million $ 0.4425 per unit
September 30, 2012
$ 27.6 million $ 0.4425 per unit
June 30, 2012
$ 27.6 million $ 0.4425 per unit
March 31, 2012
$ 26.9 million $ 0.44 per unit
December 31, 2011
$ 24.8 million $ 0.44 per unit
September 30, 2011
$ 24.8 million $ 0.44 per unit
June 30, 2011
$ 24.8 million $ 0.44 per unit
March 31, 2011
$ 23.9 million $ 0.43 per unit
December 31, 2010
$ 21.9 million $ 0.43 per unit
September 30, 2010
$ 21.0 million $ 0.42 per unit
June 30, 2010
$ 18.3 million $ 0.42 per unit
March 31, 2010
$ 18.0 million $ 0.415 per unit
December 31, 2009
$ 15.1 million $ 0.41 per unit
September 30, 2009
$ 11.6 million $ 0.405 per unit
June 30, 2009
$ 10.1 million $ 0.40 per unit
March 31, 2009
$ 8.7 million $ 0.40 per unit
December 31, 2008
$ 8.7 million $ 0.40 per unit
September 30, 2008
$ 8.3 million $ 0.385 per unit
June 30, 2008
$ 6.5 million $ 0.35 per unit
March 31, 2008
$ 6.5 million $ 0.35 per unit
December 31, 2007**
$ 3.2 million $ 0.175 per unit
* The cash distribution will be payable on November 13, 2013 to unit holders of record as of November 8, 2013.
** Prorated for the period from November 16, 2007 to December 31, 2007.
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THE SECURITIES WE MAY OFFER
The descriptions of the securities contained in this prospectus, together with the applicable prospectus supplements, summarize all the material terms and provisions of the various types of securities that we may offer. We will describe in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to any securities the particular terms of the securities offered by that prospectus supplement. If we indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement, the terms of the securities may differ from the terms we have summarized below. We will also include information in the prospectus supplement, where applicable, about material United States federal income tax considerations, if any, relating to the securities, and the securities exchange, if any, on which the securities will be listed.
We may sell from time to time, in one or more offerings:
• common units; and/or
• debt securities.
This prospectus may not be used to consummate a sale of securities unless it is accompanied by a prospectus supplement.
COMMON UNITS
The Units
The common units represent limited partner interests in us. The holders of common units are entitled to participate in partnership distributions and exercise the rights and privileges available to limited partners under our partnership agreement.
For a description of the relative rights and privileges of holders of common units in and to partnership distributions, please read the section “Our Cash Distribution Policy and Restrictions on Distributions” herein. For a description of the rights and privileges of limited partners under our partnership agreement, including voting rights, please read “The Partnership Agreement” in the prospectus dated November 12, 2007 included in our registration statement on Form F-1, as amended, initially filed with the SEC on October 26, 2007.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
Duties
Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company serves as registrar and transfer agent for the common units. We pay all fees charged by the transfer agent for transfers of common units, except the following, which must be paid by unitholders:
• surety bond premiums to replace lost or stolen certificates, taxes and other governmental charges;
• special charges for services requested by a holder of a common unit; and
• other similar fees or charges.
There is no charge to unitholders for disbursements of our cash distributions. We will indemnify the transfer agent, its agents and each of their stockholders, directors, executive officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any liability due to any gross negligence or intentional misconduct of the indemnified person or entity.
Resignation or Removal
The transfer agent may resign, by notice to us, or be removed by us. The resignation or removal of the transfer agent will become effective upon our appointment of a successor transfer agent and registrar and its
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acceptance of the appointment. If a successor has not been appointed or has not accepted its appointment within 30 days after notice of the resignation or removal, our general partner may, at the direction of our board of directors, act as the transfer agent and registrar until a successor is appointed.
Transfer of Common Units
By transfer of common units in accordance with our partnership agreement, each transferee of common units shall be admitted as a limited partner with respect to the common units transferred when such transfer and admission is reflected in our books and records. Each transferee:
• represents that the transferee has the capacity, power and authority to become bound by our partnership agreement;
• automatically agrees to be bound by the terms and conditions of, and is deemed to have executed, our partnership agreement; and
• gives the consents and approvals contained in our partnership agreement.
A transferee will become a substituted limited partner of our partnership for the transferred common units automatically upon the recording of the transfer on our books and records. Our general partner will cause any transfers to be recorded on our books and records no less frequently than quarterly. We may, at our discretion, treat the nominee holder of a common unit as the absolute owner. In that case, the beneficial holder’s rights are limited solely to those that it has against the nominee holder as a result of any agreement between the beneficial owner and the nominee holder.
Common units are securities and are transferable according to the laws governing transfer of securities. In addition to other rights acquired upon transfer, the transferor gives the transferee the right to become a limited partner in our partnership for the transferred common units. Until a common unit has been transferred on our books, we and the transfer agent may treat the recordholder of the unit as the absolute owner for all purposes, except as otherwise required by law or stock exchange regulations.
DEBT SECURITIES
The following description, together with the additional information we include in any applicable prospectus supplement, summarizes the material terms and provisions of the debt securities that we may offer under this prospectus. While the terms we have summarized below will apply generally to any future debt securities we may offer, we will describe the particular terms of any debt securities that we may offer in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement. If we so indicate in a prospectus supplement, the terms of any debt securities we offer under that prospectus supplement may differ from the terms we describe below.
The debt securities we may offer and sell pursuant to this prospectus will be either senior debt securities or subordinated debt securities. We will issue the senior notes under the senior indenture, which we will enter into with a trustee to be named in the senior indenture. We will issue the subordinated notes under the subordinated indenture, which we will enter into with a trustee to be named in the subordinated indenture. We use the term “indentures” to refer to both the senior indenture and the subordinated indenture. The indentures will be qualified under the Trust Indenture Act. We use the term “debenture trustee” to refer to either the senior trustee or the subordinated trustee, as applicable.
The following summaries of material provisions of any series of debt securities and the indentures are subject to, and qualified in their entirety by reference to, all the provisions of the indenture applicable to a particular series of debt securities.
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General
We will describe in each prospectus supplement the following terms relating to a series of notes:
• the title;
• any limit on the amount that may be issued;
• whether or not we will issue the series of notes in global form, the terms and who the depository will be;
• the maturity date;
• the annual interest rate, which may be fixed or variable, or the method for determining the rate and the date interest will begin to accrue, the dates interest will be payable and the regular record dates for interest payment dates or the method for determining such dates;
• whether or not the notes will be secured or unsecured, and the terms of any secured debt;
• the terms of the subordination of any series of subordinated debt;
• the place where payments will be made;
• our right, if any, to defer payment of interest and the maximum length of any such deferral period;
• the date, if any, after which, and the price at which, we may, at our option, redeem the series of notes pursuant to any optional redemption provisions;
• the date, if any, on which, and the price at which we are obligated, pursuant to any mandatory sinking fund provisions or otherwise, to redeem, or at the holder’s option to purchase, the series of notes;
• whether the indenture will restrict our ability to pay dividends, or will require us to maintain any asset ratios or reserves;
• whether we will be restricted from incurring any additional indebtedness;
• a discussion of any material or special United States federal income tax considerations applicable to the notes;
• the denominations in which we will issue the series of notes, if other than denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof; and
• any other specific terms, preferences, rights or limitations of, or restrictions on, the debt securities.
Conversion or Exchange Rights
We will set forth in the prospectus supplement the terms on which a series of notes may be convertible into or exchangeable for common units or other securities of ours. We will include provisions as to whether conversion or exchange is mandatory, at the option of the holder or at our option. We may include provisions pursuant to which the number of shares of common units or other securities of ours that the holders of the series of notes receive would be subject to adjustment.
Consolidation, Merger or Sale
The indentures do not contain any covenant which restricts our ability to merge or consolidate, or sell, convey, transfer or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets. However, any successor to or acquirer of such assets must assume all of our obligations under the indentures or the notes, as appropriate.
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Events of Default under the Indenture
The following are events of default under the indentures with respect to any series of notes that we may issue:
• if we fail to pay interest when due and our failure continues for 90 days and the time for payment has not been extended or deferred;
• if we fail to pay the principal, or premium, if any, when due and the time for payment has not been extended or delayed;
• if we fail to observe or perform any other covenant contained in the notes or the indentures, other than a covenant specifically relating to another series of notes, and our failure continues for 90 days after we receive notice from the debenture trustee or holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes of the applicable series; and
• if specified events of bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization occur as to us.
If an event of default with respect to notes of any series occurs and is continuing, the debenture trustee or the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes of that series, by notice to us in writing, and to the debenture trustee if notice is given by such holders, may declare the unpaid principal of, premium, if any, and accrued interest, if any, due and payable immediately.
The holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding notes of an affected series may waive any default or event of default with respect to the series and its consequences, except defaults or events of default regarding payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest, unless we have cured the default or event of default in accordance with the indenture. Any such waiver shall cure the default or event of default.
Subject to the terms of the indentures, if an event of default under an indenture shall occur and be continuing, the debenture trustee will be under no obligation to exercise any of its rights or powers under such indenture at the request or direction of any of the holders of the applicable series of notes, unless such holders have offered the debenture trustee reasonable indemnity. The holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding notes of any series will have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the debenture trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred on the debenture trustee, with respect to the notes of that series, provided that:
• the direction so given by the holder is not in conflict with any law or the applicable indenture; and
• subject to its duties under the Trust Indenture Act, the debenture trustee need not take any action that might involve it in personal liability or might be unduly prejudicial to the holders not involved in the proceeding.
A holder of the notes of any series will only have the right to institute a proceeding under the indentures or to appoint a receiver or trustee, or to seek other remedies if:
• the holder has given written notice to the debenture trustee of a continuing event of default with respect to that series;
• the holders of at least 25% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes of that series have made written request, and such holders have offered reasonable indemnity, to the debenture trustee to institute the proceeding as trustee; and
• the debenture trustee does not institute the proceeding, and does not receive from the holders of a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes of that series other conflicting directions within 60 days after the notice, request and offer.
These limitations do not apply to a suit instituted by a holder of notes if we default in the payment of the principal, premium, if any, or interest on, the notes.
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We will periodically file statements with the debenture trustee regarding our compliance with specified covenants in the indentures.
Modification of Indenture; Waiver
We and the debenture trustee may change an indenture without the consent of any holders with respect to specific matters, including:
• to fix any ambiguity, defect or inconsistency in the indenture; and
• to change anything that does not materially adversely affect the interests of any holder of notes of any series.
In addition, under the indentures, the rights of holders of a series of notes may be changed by us and the debenture trustee with the written consent of the holders of at least a majority in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes of each series that is affected. However, we and the debenture trustee may only make the following changes with the consent of each holder of any outstanding notes affected:
• extending the fixed maturity of the series of notes;
• reducing the principal amount, reducing the rate of or extending the time of payment of interest, or any premium payable upon the redemption of any notes; or
• reducing the percentage of notes, the holders of which are required to consent to any amendment.
Discharge
Each indenture provides that we can elect to be discharged from our obligations with respect to one or more series of debt securities, except for obligations to:
• register the transfer or exchange of debt securities of the series;
• replace stolen, lost or mutilated debt securities of the series;
• maintain paying agencies;
• hold monies for payment in trust;
• compensate and indemnify the trustee; and
• appoint any successor trustee.
In order to exercise our rights to be discharged, we must deposit with the trustee money or government obligations sufficient to pay all the principal of, any premium, if any, and interest on, the debt securities of the series on the dates payments are due.
Form, Exchange and Transfer
We will issue the notes of each series only in fully registered form without coupons and, unless we otherwise specify in the applicable prospectus supplement, in denominations of $1,000 and any integral multiple thereof. The indentures provide that we may issue notes of a series in temporary or permanent global form and as book-entry securities that will be deposited with, or on behalf of, The Depository Trust Company or another depository named by us and identified in a prospectus supplement with respect to that series.
At the option of the holder, subject to the terms of the indentures and the limitations applicable to global securities described in the applicable prospectus supplement, the holder of the notes of any series can exchange the notes for other notes of the same series, in any authorized denomination and of like tenor and aggregate principal amount.
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Subject to the terms of the indentures and the limitations applicable to global securities set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, holders of the notes may present the notes for exchange or for registration of transfer, duly endorsed or with the form of transfer endorsed thereon duly executed if so required by us or the security registrar, at the office of the security registrar or at the office of any transfer agent designated by us for this purpose. Unless otherwise provided in the notes that the holder presents for transfer or exchange, we will make no service charge for any registration of transfer or exchange, but we may require payment of any taxes or other governmental charges.
We will name in the applicable prospectus supplement the security registrar, and any transfer agent in addition to the security registrar, that we initially designate for any notes. We may at any time designate additional transfer agents or rescind the designation of any transfer agent or approve a change in the office through which any transfer agent acts, except that we will be required to maintain a transfer agent in each place of payment for the notes of each series.
If we elect to redeem the notes of any series, we will not be required to:
• issue, register the transfer of, or exchange any notes of that series during a period beginning at the opening of business 15 days before the day of mailing of a notice of redemption of any notes that may be selected for redemption and ending at the close of business on the day of the mailing; or
• register the transfer of or exchange any notes so selected for redemption, in whole or in part, except the unredeemed portion of any notes we are redeeming in part.
Information Concerning the Debenture Trustee
The debenture trustee, other than during the occurrence and continuance of an event of default under an indenture, undertakes to perform only those duties as are specifically set forth in the applicable indenture. Upon an event of default under an indenture, the debenture trustee must use the same degree of care as a prudent person would exercise or use in the conduct of his or her own affairs. Subject to this provision, the debenture trustee is under no obligation to exercise any of the powers given it by the indentures at the request of any holder of notes unless it is offered reasonable security and indemnity against the costs, expenses and liabilities that it might incur.
Payment and Paying Agents
Unless we otherwise indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will make payment of the interest on any notes on any interest payment date to the person in whose name the notes, or one or more predecessor securities, are registered at the close of business on the regular record date for the interest.
We will pay principal of and any premium and interest on the notes of a particular series at the office of the paying agents designated by us, except that unless we otherwise indicate in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will make interest payments by check which we will mail to the holder. Unless we otherwise indicate in a prospectus supplement, we will designate the corporate trust office of the debenture trustee in the City of New York as our sole paying agent for payments with respect to notes of each series. We will name in the applicable prospectus supplement any other paying agents that we initially designate for the notes of a particular series. We will maintain a paying agent in each place of payment for the notes of a particular series.
All money we pay to a paying agent or the debenture trustee for the payment of the principal of or any premium or interest on any notes which remains unclaimed at the end of two years after such principal, premium or interest has become due and payable will be repaid to us, and the holder of the security thereafter may look only to us for payment thereof.
Governing Law
The indentures and the notes will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Marshall Islands, except to the extent that the Trust Indenture Act is applicable.
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Subordination of Subordinated Notes
The subordinated notes will be unsecured and will be subordinate and junior in priority of payment to certain of our other indebtedness to the extent described in a prospectus supplement. The subordinated indenture does not limit the amount of subordinated notes which we may issue. It also does not limit us from issuing any other secured or unsecured debt.
LEGAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES
We can issue securities in registered form or in the form of one or more global securities. We describe global securities in greater detail below. We refer to those persons who have securities registered in their own names on the books that we or any applicable trustee maintain for this purpose as the “holders” of those securities. These persons are the legal holders of the securities. We refer to those persons who, indirectly through others, own beneficial interests in securities that are not registered in their own names, as “indirect holders” of those securities. As we discuss below, indirect holders are not legal holders, and investors in securities issued in book-entry form or in street name will be indirect holders.
Book-Entry Holders
We may issue securities in book-entry form only, as we will specify in the applicable prospectus supplement. This means securities may be represented by one or more global securities registered in the name of a financial institution that holds them as depositary on behalf of other financial institutions that participate in the depositary’s book-entry system. These participating institutions, which are referred to as participants, in turn, hold beneficial interests in the securities on behalf of themselves or their customers.
Only the person in whose name a security is registered is recognized as the holder of that security. Securities issued in global form will be registered in the name of the depositary or its participants. Consequently, for securities issued in global form, we will recognize only the depositary as the holder of the securities, and we will make all payments on the securities to the depositary. The depositary passes along the payments it receives to its participants, which in turn pass the payments along to their customers who are the beneficial owners. The depositary and its participants do so under agreements they have made with one another or with their customers; they are not obligated to do so under the terms of the securities.
As a result, investors in a book-entry security will not own securities directly. Instead, they will own beneficial interests in a global security, through a bank, broker or other financial institution that participates in the depositary’s book-entry system or holds an interest through a participant. As long as the securities are issued in global form, investors will be indirect holders, and not holders, of the securities.
Street Name Holders
We may terminate a global security or issue securities in non-global form. In these cases, investors may choose to hold their securities in their own names or in “street name.” Securities held by an investor in street name would be registered in the name of a bank, broker or other financial institution that the investor chooses, and the investor would hold only a beneficial interest in those securities through an account he or she maintains at that institution.
For securities held in street name, we will recognize only the intermediary banks, brokers and other financial institutions in whose names the securities are registered as the holders of those securities, and we will make all payments on those securities to them. These institutions pass along the payments they receive to their customers who are the beneficial owners, but only because they agree to do so in their customer agreements or because they are legally required to do so. Investors who hold securities in street name will be indirect holders, not holders, of those securities.
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Legal Holders
Our obligations, as well as the obligations of any applicable trustee and of any third parties employed by us or a trustee, run only to the legal holders of the securities. We do not have obligations to investors who hold beneficial interests in global securities, in street name or by any other indirect means. This will be the case whether an investor chooses to be an indirect holder of a security or has no choice because we are issuing the securities only in global form.
For example, once we make a payment or give a notice to the holder, we have no further responsibility for the payment or notice even if that holder is required, under agreements with depositary participants or customers or by law, to pass the payment or notice along to the indirect holders but does not do so. Similarly, we may want to obtain the approval of the holders to amend an indenture, to relieve us of the consequences of a default or of our obligation to comply with a particular provision of the indenture or for other purposes. In such an event, we would seek approval only from the holders, and not the indirect holders, of the securities. Whether and how the holders contact the indirect holders is the responsibility of the holders.
Special Considerations for Indirect Holders
If you hold securities through a bank, broker or other financial institution, either in book-entry form or in street name, you should check with your own institution to find out:
• how it handles securities payments and notices;
• whether it imposes fees or charges;
• how it would handle a request for the holders’ consent, if ever required;
• whether and how you can instruct it to send you securities registered in your own name so you can be a holder, if that is permitted in the future;
• how it would exercise rights under the securities if there were a default or other event triggering the need for holders to act to protect their interests; and
• if the securities are in book-entry form, how the depositary’s rules and procedures will affect these matters.
Global Securities
A global security is a security held by a depositary which represents one or any other number of individual securities. Generally, all securities represented by the same global securities will have the same terms.
Each security issued in book-entry form will be represented by a global security that we deposit with and register in the name of a financial institution or its nominee that we select. The financial institution that we select for this purpose is called the depositary. Unless we specify otherwise in the applicable prospectus supplement, The Depository Trust Company, New York, New York, known as DTC, will be the depositary for all securities issued in book-entry form.
A global security may not be transferred to or registered in the name of anyone other than the depositary, its nominee or a successor depositary, unless special termination situations arise. We describe those situations below under “Special Situations When a Global Security Will Be Terminated.” As a result of these arrangements, the depositary, or its nominee, will be the sole registered owner and holder of all securities represented by a global security, and investors will be permitted to own only beneficial interests in a global security. Beneficial interests must be held by means of an account with a broker, bank or other financial institution that in turn has an account with the depositary or with another institution that does. Thus, an investor whose security is represented by a global security will not be a holder of the security, but only an indirect holder of a beneficial interest in the global security.
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If the prospectus supplement for a particular security indicates that the security will be issued in global form only, then the security will be represented by a global security at all times unless and until the global security is terminated. If termination occurs, we may issue the securities through another book-entry clearing system or decide that the securities may no longer be held through any book-entry clearing system.
Special Considerations for Global Securities
As an indirect holder, an investor’s rights relating to a global security will be governed by the account rules of the investor’s financial institution and of the depositary, as well as general laws relating to securities transfers. We do not recognize an indirect holder as a holder of securities and instead deal only with the depositary that holds the global security.
If securities are issued only in the form of a global security, an investor should be aware of the following:
• An investor cannot cause the securities to be registered in his or her name, and cannot obtain non-global certificates for his or her interest in the securities, except in the special situations we describe below;
• An investor will be an indirect holder and must look to his or her own bank or broker for payments on the securities and protection of his or her legal rights relating to the securities, as we describe under “Legal Ownership of Securities” above;
• An investor may not be able to sell interests in the securities to some insurance companies and to other institutions that are required by law to own their securities in non-book-entry form;
• An investor may not be able to pledge his or her interest in a global security in circumstances where certificates representing the securities must be delivered to the lender or other beneficiary of the pledge in order for the pledge to be effective;
• The depositary’s policies, which may change from time to time, will govern payments, transfers, exchanges and other matters relating to an investor’s interest in a global security. We and any applicable trustee have no responsibility for any aspect of the depositary’s actions or for its records of ownership interests in a global security. We and the trustee also do not supervise the depositary in any way;
• The depositary may, and we understand that DTC will, require that those who purchase and sell interests in a global security within its book-entry system use immediately available funds, and your broker or bank may require you to do so as well; and
• Financial institutions that participate in the depositary’s book-entry system, and through which an investor holds its interest in a global security, may also have their own policies affecting payments, notices and other matters relating to the securities. There may be more than one financial intermediary in the chain of ownership for an investor. We do not monitor and are not responsible for the actions of any of those intermediaries.
Special Situations When a Global Security Will be Terminated
In a few special situations described below, the global security will terminate and interests in it will be exchanged for physical certificates representing those interests. After that exchange, the choice of whether to hold securities directly or in street name will be up to the investor. Investors must consult their own banks or brokers to find out how to have their interests in securities transferred to their own name, so that they will be direct holders. We have described the rights of holders and street name investors above.
The global security will terminate when the following special situations occur:
• if the depositary notifies us that it is unwilling, unable or no longer qualified to continue as depositary for that global security and we do not appoint another institution to act as depositary within 90 days;
• if we notify any applicable trustee that we wish to terminate that global security; or
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• if an event of default has occurred with regard to securities represented by that global security and has not been cured or waived.
The prospectus supplement may also list additional situations for terminating a global security that would apply only to the particular series of securities covered by the prospectus supplement. When a global security terminates, the depositary, and not we or any applicable trustee, is responsible for deciding the names of the institutions that will be the initial direct holders.
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PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
We may sell the securities being offered hereby in one or more of the following ways from time to time:
• through dealers or agents to the public or to investors;
• to underwriters for resale to the public or to investors;
• directly to investors; or
• through a combination of such methods.
We will set forth in a prospectus supplement the terms of the offering of securities, including:
• the name or names of any agents, dealers or underwriters;
• the purchase price of the securities being offered and the proceeds we will receive from the sale;
• any over-allotment options under which underwriters may purchase additional securities from us;
• any agency fees or underwriting discounts and other items constituting agents’ or underwriters’ compensation;
• any initial public offering price;
• any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers; and
• any securities exchanges on which the securities may be listed.
Underwriters, dealers and agents that participate in the distribution of the securities may be deemed to be underwriters as defined in the Securities Act and any discounts or commissions they receive from us and any profit on their resale of the securities may be treated as underwriting discounts and commissions under the Securities Act.
We will identify in the applicable prospectus supplement any underwriters, dealers or agents and will describe their compensation. We may have agreements with the underwriters, dealers and agents to indemnify them against specified civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Underwriters, dealers and agents may engage in transactions with or perform services for us or our subsidiaries in the ordinary course of their businesses.
Certain persons that participate in the distribution of the securities may engage in transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of the securities, including over-allotment, stabilizing and short-covering transactions in such securities, and the imposition of penalty bids, in connection with an offering. Certain persons may also engage in passive market making transactions as permitted by Rule 103 of Regulation M. Passive market makers must comply with applicable volume and price limitations and must be identified as passive market makers. In general, a passive market maker must display its bid at a price not in excess of the highest independent bid for such security; if all independent bids are lowered below the passive market maker’s bid, however, the passive market maker’s bid must then be lowered when certain purchase limits are exceeded.
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OUR CASH DISTRIBUTION POLICY AND RESTRICTIONS ON DISTRIBUTIONS
You should read the following discussion of our cash distribution policy and restrictions on distributions in conjunction with specific assumptions included in this section. In addition, you should read “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” for information regarding statements that do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and certain risks inherent in our business.
General
Cash Distribution Policy
Our cash distribution policy reflects a basic judgment that our unitholders will be better served by our distributing our cash available (after deducting expenses, including estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures and reserves) rather than retaining it. Because we believe we will generally finance any expansion capital expenditures from external financing sources, we believe that our investors are best served by our distributing all of our available cash. Our cash distribution policy is consistent with the terms of our partnership agreement, which requires that we distribute all of our available cash quarterly (after deducting expenses, including estimated maintenance and replacement capital expenditures and reserves).
Limitations on Cash Distributions and Our Ability to Change Our Cash Distribution Policy
There is no guarantee that unitholders will receive quarterly distributions from us. Our distribution policy is subject to certain restrictions and may be changed at any time, including:
• Our unitholders have no contractual or other legal right to receive distributions other than the obligation under our partnership agreement to distribute available cash on a quarterly basis, which is subject to the broad discretion of our board of directors to establish reserves and other limitations.
• While our partnership agreement requires us to distribute all of our available cash, our partnership agreement, including provisions requiring us to make cash distributions contained therein, may be amended. Our partnership agreement can be amended with the approval of a majority of the outstanding common units.
• Even if our cash distribution policy is not modified or revoked, the amount of distributions we pay under our cash distribution policy and the decision to make any distribution is determined by our board of directors, taking into consideration the terms of our partnership agreement.
• Under Section 51 of the Marshall Islands Limited Partnership Act, we may not make a distribution to you if the distribution would cause our liabilities to exceed the fair value of our assets.
• We may lack sufficient cash to pay distributions to our unitholders due to decreases in net revenues or increases in operating expenses, principal and interest payments on outstanding debt, tax expenses, working capital requirements, maintenance and replacement capital expenditures or anticipated cash needs.
• Our distribution policy will be affected by restrictions on distributions under our existing credit facilities which contain material financial tests and covenants that must be satisfied and we will not pay any distributions that will cause us to violate our existing credit facilities or other debt instruments. Should we be unable to satisfy these restrictions included in the existing credit facilities or if we are otherwise in default under our existing credit facilities, our ability to make cash distributions to you, notwithstanding our cash distribution policy, would be materially adversely affected.
• If we make distributions out of capital surplus, as opposed to operating surplus, such distributions will constitute a return of capital and will result in a reduction in the minimum quarterly distribution and the target distribution levels. We do not anticipate that we will make any distributions from capital surplus.
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Our ability to make distributions to our unitholders depends on the performance of our subsidiaries and their ability to distribute funds to us. The ability of our subsidiaries to make distributions to us may be restricted by, among other things, the provisions of existing and future indebtedness, applicable partnership and limited liability company laws and other laws and regulations.
Percentage Allocations of Available Cash from Operating Surplus
The following table illustrates the percentage allocations of the additional available cash from operating surplus among the unitholders and our general partner up to the various target distribution levels. The amounts set forth under “Marginal Percentage Interest in Distributions” are the percentage interests of the unitholders and our General Partner in any available cash from operating surplus we distribute up to and including the corresponding amount in the column “Total Quarterly Distribution Target Amount,” until available cash from operating surplus we distribute reaches the next target distribution level, if any. The percentage interests shown for the unitholders and our general partner for the minimum quarterly distribution are also applicable to quarterly distribution amounts that are less than the minimum quarterly distribution. The percentage interests shown for our General Partner assume that our General Partner maintains its 2.0% general partner interest and assume our General Partner has not transferred the incentive distribution rights.
Total Quarterly
Distribution
Target Amount Marginal Percentage Interest
in Distributions
Unitholders General
Partner
Minimum Quarterly Distribution
$0.35 98.0 % 2.0 %
First Target Distribution
up to $0.4025 98.0 % 2.0 %
Second Target Distribution
above $ 0.4025 up to $0.4375 85.0 % 15.0 %
Third Target Distribution
above $ 0.4375 up to $0.525 75.0 % 25.0 %
Thereafter
above $0.525 50.0 % 50.0 %
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MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
The following is a discussion of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations that may be relevant to prospective beneficial owners of our common units and, unless otherwise noted in the following discussion, is the opinion of Thompson Hine LLP, our U.S. counsel, insofar as it relates to matters of U.S. federal income tax law and legal conclusions with respect to those matters. The opinion of our counsel is dependent on the accuracy of representations made by us to them, including descriptions of our operations contained herein.
This discussion is based upon provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), U.S. Treasury Regulations, and administrative rulings and court decisions, all as in effect or in existence on the date of this prospectus and all of which are subject to change or differing interpretations by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or a court, possibly with retroactive effect. Changes in these authorities may cause the tax consequences of ownership of our common units to vary substantially from the consequences described below. Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this section to “we,” “our” or “us” are references to Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
The following discussion applies only to beneficial owners of common units that own the common units as “capital assets” (generally, property held for investment purposes). The following discussion does not address all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation which may be important to particular beneficial owners of common units in light of their individual circumstances, such as (i) beneficial owners of common units subject to special tax rules ( e.g ., banks or other financial institutions, real estate investment trusts, regulated investment companies, insurance companies, broker-dealers, tax-exempt organizations and retirement plans, individual retirement accounts and tax-deferred accounts, or former citizens or long-term residents of the United States) or that will hold the common units as part of a straddle, hedge, conversion, constructive sale, or other integrated transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, (ii) partnerships or other entities classified as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes or their partners, (iii) U.S. Holders (as defined below) that have a functional currency other than the U.S. dollar or (iv) beneficial owners of common units that own 10% or more (by vote or value) of our common units, all of whom may be subject to tax rules that differ significantly from those summarized below. If a partnership or other entity classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds our common units, the tax treatment of its partners generally will depend upon the status of the partner, the activities of the partnership and certain determinations made at the partner level. If you are a partner in a partnership holding our common units, you should consult your own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences to you of the partnership’s ownership of our common units.
No ruling has been obtained or will be requested from the IRS, regarding any matter affecting us or prospective holders of our common units. The opinions and statements made herein may be challenged by the IRS and, if so challenged, may not be sustained upon review in a court.
This discussion does not contain information regarding any state or local, estate, gift or alternative minimum tax considerations concerning the ownership or disposition of common units. Each prospective beneficial owner of our common units should consult its own tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal, state, local, and other tax consequences of the ownership or disposition of common units.
Election to Be Treated as a Corporation
We have elected to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Consequently, among other things, U.S. Holders (as defined below) will not directly be subject to U.S. federal income tax on their shares of our income, but rather will be subject to U.S. federal income tax on distributions received from us and dispositions of common units as described below. For a further discussion of our treatment for U.S. federal income tax purposes, please see pages 15, 43 and 53 to 57 of our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012, which is incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
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U.S. Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders
As used herein, the term “U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of our common units that:
• is an individual U.S. citizen or resident (as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes),
• a corporation (or other entity that is classified as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized under the laws of the United States or any of its political subdivisions,
• an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source, or
• a trust if (i) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary jurisdiction over the administration of the trust and one or more “United States persons” (as defined in the Code) have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (ii) the trust has a valid election in effect under current U.S. Treasury Regulations to be treated as a “United States person.”
Distributions
Subject to the discussion below of the rules applicable to a passive foreign investment company (a “PFIC”), any distributions to a U.S. Holder made by us with respect to our common units generally will constitute dividends, which will be taxable as ordinary income or “qualified dividend income” as described in more detail below, to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions in excess of our current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated first as a non-taxable return of capital to the extent of the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in its common units on a dollar-for-dollar basis, and thereafter as capital gain, which will be either long-term or short-term capital gain depending upon whether the U.S. Holder held the common units for more than one year. U.S. Holders that are corporations generally will not be entitled to claim a dividend received deduction with respect to distributions they receive from us. Dividends received with respect to the common units will be treated as foreign source income and generally will be treated as “passive category income” for U.S. foreign tax credit purposes.
Dividends received with respect to our common units by a U.S. Holder who is an individual, trust or estate (a “non-corporate U.S. Holder”) generally will be treated as “qualified dividend income” that is taxable to such non-corporate U.S. Holder at preferential capital gain tax rates, provided that: (i) our common units are traded on an “established securities market” in the United States (such as the New York Stock Exchange where our common units are traded) and are “readily tradeable” on such an exchange; (ii) we are not a PFIC for the taxable year during which the dividend is paid or the immediately preceding taxable year (which we do not believe we are, have been or will be, as discussed below); (iii) the non-corporate U.S. Holder has owned the common units for more than 60 days during the 121-day period beginning 60 days before the date on which the common units become ex-dividend (and has not entered into certain risk limiting transactions with respect to such common units); and (iv) the non-corporate U.S. Holder is not under an obligation to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property. Any dividends paid on our common units that are not eligible for these preferential rates will be taxed as ordinary income to a non-corporate U.S. Holder. In addition, a 3.8% tax may apply to certain investment income. See “ Medicare Tax ” below.
Special rules may apply to any amounts received in respect of our common units that are treated as “extraordinary dividends.” In general, an extraordinary dividend is a dividend with respect to a common unit that is equal to or in excess of 10.0% of a U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis (or fair market value upon the U.S. Holder’s election) in such common unit. In addition, extraordinary dividends include dividends received within a one-year period that, in the aggregate, equal or exceed 20.0% of a U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis (or fair market value) in a common unit. If we pay an “extraordinary dividend” on our common units that is treated as “qualified dividend income,” then any loss recognized by a U.S. Individual Holder from the sale or exchange of such common units will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of the amount of such dividend.
Sale, Exchange or Other Disposition of Common Units
Subject to the discussion of PFICs below, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss upon a sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units in an amount equal to the difference between the amount
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realized by the U.S. Holder from such sale, exchange or other disposition and the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in such units. The U.S. Holder’s initial tax basis in the common units generally will be the U.S. Holder’s purchase price for the common units and that tax basis will be reduced (but not below zero) by the amount of any distributions on the common units that are treated as non-taxable returns of capital (as discussed under “—Distributions” above). Such gain or loss will be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. Holder’s holding period is greater than one year at the time of the sale, exchange or other disposition.
A corporate U.S. Holder’s capital gains, long-term and short-term, are taxed at ordinary income tax rates. If a corporate U.S. Holder recognizes a loss upon the disposition of our common units, such U.S. Holder is limited to using the loss to offset other capital gain. If a corporate U.S. Holder has no other capital gain in the tax year of the loss, it may carry the capital loss back three years and forward five years.
Long-term capital gains of non-corporate U.S. Holders are subject to the favorable tax rate of a maximum of 20%. In addition, a 3.8% tax may apply to certain investment income. See “ Medicare Tax ” below. A non-corporate U.S. Holder may deduct a capital loss resulting from a disposition of our common units to the extent of capital gains plus up to $3,000 ($1,500 for married individuals filing separate tax returns) and may carry forward a long-term capital loss indefinitely.
PFIC Status and Significant Tax Consequences
In general, we will be treated as a PFIC with respect to a U.S. Holder if, for any taxable year in which the holder held our common units, either:
• at least 75.0% of our gross income (including the gross income of our vessel-owning subsidiaries) for such taxable year consists of passive income (e.g., dividends, interest, capital gains and rents derived other than in the active conduct of a rental business), or
• at least 50.0% of the average value of the assets held by us (including the assets of our vessel-owning subsidiaries) during such taxable year produce, or are held for the production of, passive income.
Income earned, or deemed earned, by us in connection with the performance of services would not constitute passive income. By contrast, rental income generally would constitute “passive income” unless we were treated as deriving our rental income in the active conduct of a trade or business under the applicable rules.
Based on our current and projected methods of operations, and an opinion of counsel, we believe that we will not be a PFIC with respect to any taxable year. Our U.S. counsel, Thompson Hine LLP, is of the opinion that (1) the income we receive from the time chartering activities and assets engaged in generating such income should not be treated as passive income or assets, respectively, and (2) so long as our income from time charters exceeds 25.0% of our gross income for each taxable year after our initial taxable year and the value of our vessels contracted under time charters exceeds 50.0% of the average value of our assets for each taxable year after our initial taxable year, we should not be a PFIC. This opinion is based on representations and projections provided to our counsel by us regarding our assets, income and charters, and its validity is conditioned on the accuracy of such representations and projections.
Our counsel’s opinion is based principally on their conclusion that, for purposes of determining whether we are a PFIC, the gross income we derive or are deemed to derive from the time chartering activities of our wholly-owned subsidiaries should constitute services income, rather than rental income. Correspondingly, such income should not constitute passive income, and the assets that we or our subsidiaries own and operate in connection with the production of such income, in particular, the vessels we or our subsidiaries own that are subject to time charters, should not constitute passive assets for purposes of determining whether we are or have been a PFIC. We expect that all of the vessels in our fleet will be engaged in time chartering activities and intend to treat our income from those activities as non-passive income, and the vessels engaged in those activities as non-passive assets, for PFIC purposes.
Our counsel has advised us that there is a significant amount of legal authority consisting of the Code, legislative history, IRS pronouncements and rulings supporting our position that the income from our time
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chartering activities constitutes services income (rather than rental income). There is, however, no direct legal authority under the PFIC rules addressing whether income from time chartering activities is services income or rental income. Moreover, in a case not interpreting the PFIC rules, Tidewater Inc. v. United States, 565 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2009), the Fifth Circuit held that the vessel time charters at issue generated predominantly rental income rather than services income. However, the IRS stated in an Action on Decision (AOD 2010-001) that it disagrees with, and will not acquiesce to, the way that the rental versus services framework was applied to the facts in the Tidewater decision, and in its discussion stated that the time charters at issue in Tidewater would be treated as producing services income for PFIC purposes. The IRS’s AOD, however, is an administrative action that cannot be relied upon or otherwise cited as precedent by taxpayers.
The opinion of our counsel is not binding on the IRS or any court. Thus, while we have received an opinion of our counsel in support of our position, there is a possibility that the IRS or a court could disagree with this position and the opinion of our counsel. In addition, although we intend to conduct our affairs in a manner to avoid being classified as a PFIC with respect to any taxable year, we cannot assure you that the nature of our operations will not change in the future.
As discussed more fully below, if we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units, the U.S. Holder would be subject to different taxation rules depending on whether the U.S. Holder makes an election to treat us as a “Qualified Electing Fund,” which we refer to as a “QEF election.” As an alternative to making a QEF election, the U.S. Holder should be able to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, as discussed below. In addition, if we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units, the U.S. Holder would be required to file IRS Form 8621 for each year in which the U.S. Holder (i) recognizes gain on the actual or deemed disposition of our common unit, (ii) receives certain actual or deemed distributions from us or (iii) makes any of certain reportable elections (including a QEF election or a mark-to-market election). The U.S. Holder also would be required to file an annual report, with respect to each taxable year beginning on or after March 18, 2010, containing such information as the IRS may require in the revised IRS Form 8621. Until the IRS releases the revised IRS Form 8621, this additional reporting requirement is suspended (although a U.S. Holder that is currently otherwise required to file IRS Form 8621 (e.g., upon an actual or deemed disposition of PFIC stock) must continue to file the current IRS Form 8621). However, following the release of the revised IRS Form 8621, U.S. Holders for which the filing of IRS Form 8621 has been suspended for a taxable year will be required to attach IRS Form 8621 for each suspended taxable year to their next income tax or information return required to be filed with the IRS. In the event a U.S. Holder does not file IRS Form 8621, the statute of limitations on the assessment and collection of U.S. federal income taxes of such U.S. Holder for the related tax year may not close before the date which is three years after the date on which such report is filed.
It should also be noted that, if we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year in which a U.S. Holder owned our common units and any of our non-U.S. subsidiaries were also a PFIC, the U.S. Holder would be treated as owning a proportionate amount (by value) of the shares of the lower-tier PFIC for purposes of the application of these rules.
Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a Timely QEF Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and a U.S. Holder makes a timely QEF election (any such U.S. Holder, an “Electing Holder”), the Electing Holder must report for U.S. federal income tax purposes its pro rata share of our ordinary earnings and net capital gain, if any, for our taxable year that ends with or within the Electing Holder’s taxable year, regardless of whether or not the Electing Holder received any distributions from us in that year. Such income inclusions would not be eligible for the preferential tax rates applicable to “qualified dividend income.” The Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our common units will be increased to reflect taxed but undistributed earnings and profits. Distributions to the Electing Holder of our earnings and profits that were previously taxed will result in a corresponding reduction in the Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our common units and will not be taxed again once distributed. The Electing Holder would not, however, be entitled to a deduction for its pro rata share of any losses that we incur with respect to any year. An Electing Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units.
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Even if a U.S. Holder makes a QEF election for one of our taxable years, if we were a PFIC for a prior taxable during which the U.S. Holder owned our common units and for which the U.S. Holder did not make a timely QEF election, the U.S. Holder would also be subject to the more adverse rules described below under “Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election.” However, under certain circumstances, a U.S. Holder may be permitted to make a retroactive QEF election with respect to us for any open taxable years in the U.S. Holder’s holding period for our common units in which we are treated as a PFIC. Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, a U.S. Holder’s QEF election with respect to us would not be effective with respect to the U.S. Holder’s deemed ownership of the stock of such subsidiary and a separate QEF election with respect to such subsidiary would be required.
A U.S. Holder makes a QEF election with respect to any year that we are a PFIC by filing IRS Form 8621 with the U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax return. If, contrary to our expectations, we were to determine that we are treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, we would notify all U.S. Holders and would provide all necessary information to any U.S. Holder that requests such information in order to make the QEF election described above with respect to us and the relevant subsidiaries. A QEF election would not apply to any taxable year for which we are not a PFIC, but would remain in effect with respect to any subsequent taxable year for which we are a PFIC, unless the IRS consents to the revocation of the election.
Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a “Mark-to-Market” Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and, as we anticipate, our common units were treated as “marketable stock,” then, as an alternative to making a QEF election, a U.S. Holder would be allowed to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, provided the U.S. Holder completes and files IRS Form 8621 in accordance with the relevant instructions and related Treasury Regulations. If that election is made, the U.S. Holder generally would include as ordinary income in each taxable year the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the U.S. Holder’s common units at the end of the taxable year over the holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units. The U.S. Holder also would be permitted an ordinary loss in respect of the excess, if any, of the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units over the fair market value thereof at the end of the taxable year, but only to the extent of the net amount previously included in income as a result of the mark-to-market election. A U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the U.S. Holder’s common units would be adjusted to reflect any such income or loss recognized. Gain recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units would be treated as ordinary income, and any loss recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of the common units would be treated as ordinary loss to the extent that such loss does not exceed the net mark-to-market gains previously included in income by the U.S. Holder. A mark-to-market election would not apply to our common units owned by a U.S. Holder in any taxable year during which we are not a PFIC, but would remain in effect with respect to any subsequent taxable year for which we are a PFIC, unless our common units are no longer treated as “marketable stock” or the IRS consents to the revocation of the election.
Even if a U.S. Holder makes a “mark-to-market” election for one of our taxable years, if we were a PFIC for a prior taxable during which the U.S. Holder owned our common stock and for which the U.S. Holder did not make a timely mark-to-market election, the U.S. Holder would also be subject to the more adverse rules described below under “Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election.” Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units would not apply to the U.S. Holder’s deemed ownership of the stock of such subsidiary.
Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election
If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder who does not make either a timely QEF election or a timely “mark-to-market” election for that year (i.e., the taxable year in which the U.S. Holder’s holding period commences), whom we refer to as a “Non-Electing Holder,” would be subject to special rules resulting in increased tax liability with respect to (1) any excess distribution ( i.e. , the portion of any distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder on our common units in a taxable year in excess of 125.0% of the average annual distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder in the three preceding taxable years, or, if
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shorter, the Non-Electing Holder’s holding period for the common units), and (2) any gain realized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units. Under these special rules:
• the excess distribution and any gain would be allocated ratably over the Non-Electing Holder’s aggregate holding period for the common units;
• the amount allocated to the current taxable year and any year prior to the year we were first treated as a PFIC with respect to the Non-Electing Holder would be taxed as ordinary income; and
• the amount allocated to each of the other taxable years would be subject to tax at the highest rate of tax in effect for the applicable class of taxpayer for that year, and an interest charge for the deemed deferral benefit would be imposed with respect to the resulting tax attributable to each such other taxable year.
If we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and a Non-Electing Holder who is an individual dies while owning our common units, such holder’s successor generally would not receive a step-up in tax basis with respect to such common units. Additionally, to the extent that any of our subsidiaries is a PFIC, the foregoing consequences would apply to the U.S. Holder’s deemed receipt of any excess distribution on, or gain deemed realized on the disposition of, the stock of such subsidiary deemed owned by the U.S. Holder.
Medicare Tax
A U.S. Holder that is an individual or estate, or a trust that does not fall into a special class of trusts that is exempt from such tax, will generally be subject to a 3.8% tax on the lesser of (i) the U.S. Holder’s “net investment income” for a taxable year and (ii) the excess of the U.S. Holder’s modified adjusted gross income for such taxable year over $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of joint filers). For these purposes, “net investment income” will generally include dividends paid with respect to our common units and net gain attributable to the disposition of our common units not held in a trade or business, but will be reduced by any deductions properly allocable to such income or net gain.
U.S. Federal Income Taxation of Non-U.S. Holders
A beneficial owner of our common units (other than a partnership or an entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) that is not a U.S. Holder is a “Non-U.S. Holder”.
Distributions
Distributions we pay to a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax or withholding tax if the Non-U.S. Holder is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business. If the Non-U.S. Holder is engaged in a U.S. trade or business, our distributions will be subject to U.S. federal income tax to the extent they constitute income effectively connected with the Non-U.S. Holder’s U.S. trade or business (and a corporate Non-U.S. Holder may also be subject to U.S. federal branch profits tax). However, distributions paid to a Non-U.S. Holder who is engaged in a trade or business may be exempt from taxation under an income tax treaty if the income arising from the distribution is not attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment maintained by the Non-U.S. Holder.
Disposition of Units
In general, a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax or withholding tax on any gain resulting from the disposition of our common units provided the Non-U.S. Holder is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business. A Non-U.S. Holder that is engaged in a U.S. trade or business will be subject to U.S. federal income tax in the event the gain from the disposition of units is effectively connected with the conduct of such U.S. trade or business (provided, in the case of a Non-U.S. Holder entitled to the benefits of an income tax treaty with the United States, such gain also is attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment). However, even if not engaged in a U.S. trade or business, individual Non-U.S. Holders may be subject to tax on gain resulting from the disposition of our common units if they are present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year in which those units are disposed and meet certain other requirements.
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Backup Withholding and Information Reporting
In general, payments to a non-corporate U.S. Holder of distributions or the proceeds of a disposition of common units will be subject to information reporting. These payments to a non-corporate U.S. Holder also may be subject to backup withholding (currently at a rate of 28%), if the non-corporate U.S. Holder:
• fails to provide an accurate taxpayer identification number;
• is notified by the IRS that he has failed to report all interest or corporate distributions required to be reported on his U.S. federal income tax returns; or
• in certain circumstances, fails to comply with applicable certification requirements.
A U.S. Holder generally is required to certify its compliance with the backup withholding rules on IRS Form W-9.
Non-U.S. Holders may be required to establish their exemption from information reporting and backup withholding by certifying their status on IRS Form W-8BEN, W-8ECI or W-8IMY, as applicable.
Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Rather, a unitholder generally may obtain a credit for any amount withheld against his liability for U.S. federal income tax (and obtain a refund of any amounts withheld in excess of such liability) by filing a U.S. federal income tax return with the IRS.
Individual U.S. Holders (and to the extent specified in applicable U.S. Treasury regulations, certain individual Non-U.S. Holders and certain U.S. Holders that are entities) that hold “specified foreign financial assets,” including our common units, whose aggregate value exceeds $75,000 at any time during the taxable year or $50,000 on the last day of the taxable year (or such higher amounts as prescribed by applicable Treasury Regulations) are required to file a report on IRS Form 8938 with information relating to the assets for each such taxable year. Specified foreign financial assets would include, among other things, our common units, unless such common units are held in an account maintained by a U.S. “financial institution” (as defined). Substantial penalties apply to any failure to timely file IRS Form 8938, unless the failure is shown to be due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect. Additionally, in the event an individual U.S. Holder (and to the extent specified in applicable Treasury regulations, an individual Non-U.S. Holder or a U.S. entity) that is required to file IRS Form 8938 does not file such form, the statute of limitations on the assessment and collection of U.S. federal income taxes of such holder for the related tax year may not close until three years after the date that the required information is filed. U.S. Holders (including U.S. entities) and Non-U.S. Holders should consult their own tax advisors regarding their reporting obligations under this legislation.
MARSHALL ISLANDS TAX CONSEQUENCES
The following discussion is based upon the opinion of Reeder & Simpson P.C., our counsel as to matters of the laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the current laws of the Republic of the Marshall Islands applicable to persons who do not reside in, maintain offices in or engage in business in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
Because we and our subsidiaries do not and do not expect to conduct business or operations in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and because all documentation related to this offering will be executed outside of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, under current Marshall Islands law you will not be subject to Marshall Islands taxation or withholding on distributions, including upon distribution treated as a return of capital, we make to you as a unitholder. In addition, you will not be subject to Marshall Islands stamp, capital gains or other taxes on the purchase, ownership or disposition of common units, and you will not be required by the Republic of the Marshall Islands to file a tax return relating to your ownership of common units.
EACH PROSPECTIVE UNITHOLDER MUST CONSULT HIS OWN TAX, LEGAL AND OTHER ADVISORS REGARDING THE CONSEQUENCES OF OWNERSHIP OF COMMON UNITS UNDER THE UNITHOLDER’S PARTICULAR CIRCUMSTANCES.
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LEGAL MATTERS
Reeder & Simpson P.C., Marshall Islands counsel, will provide us with an opinion as to the legal matters in connection with the securities we are offering. Unless otherwise specified in a prospectus supplement, the validity of the debt securities will be passed upon for us by Thompson Hine LLP. In connection with particular offerings of debt securities in the future, the validity of those debt securities also may be passed upon for any underwriters or agents by counsel named in the applicable prospectus supplement.
EXPERTS
The financial statements and management’s assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting (which is included in Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting) incorporated in this Prospectus by reference to the Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2012 have been so incorporated in reliance on the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers S.A., an independent registered public accounting firm, given on the authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
EXPENSES
The following table sets forth the main costs and expenses, other than the underwriting discounts and commissions and the financial advisory fee, in connection with this offering, which we will be required to pay.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission registration fee
$ 25,464
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. filing fee
*
New York Stock Exchange listing fee
*
Legal fees and expenses
*
Accounting fees and expenses
*
Printing and engraving costs
*
Transfer agent fees
*
Miscellaneous
*
Total
$ 25,464
* Amounts to be provided in a prospectus supplement or in a Current Report on Form 6-K subsequently incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
INCORPORATION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION BY REFERENCE
The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” into this prospectus information that we file with the SEC. This means that we can disclose important information to you without actually including the specific information in this prospectus by referring you to other documents filed separately with the SEC. The information incorporated by reference is an important part of this prospectus. Information that we later provide to the SEC, and which is deemed to be “filed” with the SEC, automatically will update information previously filed with the SEC, and may replace information in this prospectus.
We incorporate by reference into this prospectus the documents listed below:
• our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2012 filed on March 15, 2013 (the “Form 20-F”), as amended by Amendment No. 1 to the Form 20-F on Form 20-F/A filed on March 21, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on January 31, 2013 (except the second and third paragraph of Exhibit 99.2, which contain certain quotes by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Partners);
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• our Report on Form 6-K filed on February 4, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on February 7, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on April 29, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on May 2, 2013 (except the second and third paragraph of Exhibit 99.1, which contain certain quotes by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Partners);
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on July 11, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on July 29, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on August 20, 2013 (except the second and third paragraph of Exhibit 99.1, which contain certain quotes by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Partners);
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on September 10, 2013 (except the fifth paragraph of Exhibit 99.1, which contains certain quotes by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Partners);
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on September 23, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on September 27, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on October 25, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on November 1, 2013;
• our Report on Form 6-K filed on November 7, 2013 (except the second and third paragraph of Exhibit 99.1, which contain certain quotes by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Partners);
• all subsequent reports on Form 20-F shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this prospectus and deemed to be part hereof after the date of this prospectus but before the termination of the offering by this prospectus;
• our reports on Form 6-K furnished to the SEC subsequent to the date of the initial registration statement and prior to effectiveness of the registration statement, and after the date of this prospectus, only to the extent that the forms expressly state that we incorporate them by reference in this prospectus; and
• the description of our common units contained in our Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed on November 7, 2007, including any subsequent amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description.
These reports contain important information about us, our financial condition and our results of operations.
You may obtain any of the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus from the SEC through its public reference facilities or its website at the addresses provided above. We will also provide each person to whom a prospectus is delivered, a copy of any or all information that has been incorporated by reference into this prospectus, but not delivered with this prospectus. You may request a copy of any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus (excluding exhibits to those documents, unless the exhibit is specifically incorporated by reference in this document), at no cost by visiting our Internet website at www.navios-mlp.com, or by writing or calling us at the following address:
Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
7, Avenue de Grande Bretagne, Office 11B2
Monte Carlo MC 98000 Monaco
(011) + (377) 9798-2140
You should rely only on the information incorporated by reference or provided in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement. We have not authorized anyone else to provide you with any information. You should not assume that the information incorporated by reference or provided in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of each document.
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WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Government Filings
As required by the Securities Act, we filed a registration statement on Form F-3 relating to the securities offered by this prospectus with the SEC. This prospectus is a part of that registration statement, which includes additional information. You should refer to the registration statement and its exhibits for additional information. Whenever we make reference in this prospectus to any of our contracts, agreements or other documents, the references are not necessarily complete and you should refer to the exhibits attached to the registration statement for copies of the actual contract, agreements or other document.
We are subject to the informational requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), applicable to foreign private issuers. We, as a “foreign private issuer,” are exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing certain disclosure and procedural requirements for proxy solicitations, and our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and “short-swing” profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act, with respect to their purchases and sales of common units. In addition, we are not required to file annual, quarterly and current reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as United States companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act. However, we anticipate filing with the SEC, within 180 days after the end of each fiscal year, an annual report on Form 20-F containing financial statements audited by an independent accounting firm. We also anticipate furnishing quarterly reports on Form 6-K containing unaudited interim financial information for the first three quarters of each fiscal year, within 75 days after the end of such quarter.
You may read and copy any document we file or furnish with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20549. You may also obtain copies of the documents at prescribed rates by writing to the Public Reference Section of the SEC at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the operation of the public reference facilities. You can review our SEC filings and the registration statement by accessing the SEC’s internet site at http://www.sec.gov.
Documents may also be inspected at the offices of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority at 1735 K Street, Washington, D.C. 20006.
Information provided by the Company
We will furnish holders of our common units with annual reports containing audited financial statements and corresponding reports by our independent registered public accounting firm, and intend to furnish quarterly reports containing selected unaudited financial data for the three first quarters of each fiscal year. The audited financial statements will be prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles and those reports will include a “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” section for the relevant periods. As a “foreign private issuer,” we were exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements to shareholders. While we intend to furnish proxy statements to any shareholder in accordance with the rule of the NYSE, those proxy statements are not expected to conform to Schedule 14A of the proxy rules promulgated under the Exchange Act. In addition as a “foreign issuer,” we are exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act relating to short swing profit reporting and liability.
This prospectus is only part of a registration statement on Form F-3 that we have filed with the SEC under the Securities Act, and therefore omits certain information contained in the registration statement. We have also filed exhibits and schedules with the registration statement that are excluded from this prospectus, and you should refer to the applicable exhibit or schedule for a complete description of any statement referring to any contract or other document. You may inspect a copy of the registration statement, including the exhibits and schedules:
• without charge at the public reference room,
• obtain a copy from the SEC upon payment of the fees prescribed by the SEC, or
• obtain a copy from the SEC’s web site or our web site.
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ENFORCEABILITY OF CIVIL LIABILITIES AND
INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES
We are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands as a limited partnership. Our general partner is organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands as a limited liability company. The Marshall Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States and provides protections for investors to a significantly lesser extent.
Most of our directors and the directors and officers of our general partner and those of our subsidiaries are residents of countries other than the United States. Substantially all of our and our subsidiaries’ assets and a substantial portion of the assets of our directors and the directors and officers of our general partner are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for United States investors to effect service of process within the United States upon us, our directors, our general partner, our subsidiaries or the directors and officers of our general partner or to realize against us or them judgments obtained in United States courts, including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States. However, we have expressly submitted to the jurisdiction of the U.S. federal and New York state courts sitting in the City of New York for the purpose of any suit, action or proceeding arising under the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States, and we have appointed the Trust Company of the Marshall Islands, Inc., Trust Company Complex, Ajeltake Island, P.O. Box 1405, Majuro, Marshall Islands MH96960, to accept service of process on our behalf in any such action.
Reeder & Simpson P.C., our counsel as to Marshall Islands law, has advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Republic of the Marshall Islands would (1) recognize or enforce against us, our general partner or our general partner’s directors or officers judgments of courts of the United States based on civil liability provisions of applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws or (2) impose liabilities against us, our directors, our general partner or our general partner’s directors and officers in original actions brought in the Marshall Islands, based on these laws.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the registrant has been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
We have obtained directors’ and officers’ liability insurance against any liability asserted against such person incurred in the capacity of director or officer or arising out of such status, whether or not we would have the power to indemnify such person.
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Common Units
Navios Maritime Partners L.P.
Representing Limited Partnership Interests
Having an Aggregate Offering Price of up to $25,000,000
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November 18, 2016
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