UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 6-K
REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER PURSUANT TO RULE 13A-16 OR 15D-16 OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the month of October 2012
Commission File Number: 001-13944
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NORDIC AMERICAN TANKERS LIMITED
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(Translation of registrant's name into English)
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LOM Building, 27 Reid Street, Hamilton, HM 11, Bermuda
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(Address of principal executive office)
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Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover of Form 20-F or Form 40-F.
Form 20-F [x] Form 40-F [ ]
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): [ ].
Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted solely to provide an attached annual report to security holders.
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): [ ].
Note: Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7) only permits the submission in paper of a Form 6-K if submitted to furnish a report or other document that the registrant foreign private issuer must furnish and make public under the laws of the jurisdiction in which the registrant is incorporated, domiciled or legally organized (the registrant's "home country"), or under the rules of the home country exchange on which the registrant's securities are traded, as long as the report or other document is not a press release, is not required to be and has not been distributed to the registrant's security holders, and, if discussing a material event, has already been the subject of a Form 6-K submission or other Commission filing on EDGAR.
INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS FORM 6-K REPORT
Attached as Exhibit 1 is a press release of Nordic American Tankers Limited (the "Company"), dated October 22, 2012, announcing that the Company has agreed with banks to establish a credit facility that will extend until the Autumn of 2017.
This report on Form 6-K, except for the sections entitled "Commented the Chairman and CEO of NAT, Herbjorn Hansson," is hereby incorporated by reference into the Company's registration statement on Form F-3 (File No. 333-183643) that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with an effective date of August 30, 2012.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
NORDIC AMERICAN TANKERS LIMITED
(registrant)
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Dated: October 22, 2012
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By: |
/s/ Herbjørn Hansson
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Herbjørn Hansson
Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President
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Exhibit 1
Nordic American Tankers Limited (NYSE:NAT) – Refinanced Credit Facility up to the Autumn of 2017
Hamilton, Bermuda, October 22, 2012.
Nordic American Tankers ("NAT"), today announced that it has agreed with banks to establish a credit facility that will extend until the Autumn of 2017. As stated in the investor telephone conference, September 25 2012, we have been assessing various alternatives and amounts for the total financial requirements. The new non amortizing facility will total $430 million. The final documentation is expected to be completed shortly. The banking group consists of the leading Scandinavian banks DNB, Nordea and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken. Today we have drawn $250 million of the current credit facility and have about $80 million in cash. Going forward the facility may be supplemented by other loan arrangements if events and opportunities warrant it. Commented the Chairman and CEO of NAT, Herbjørn Hansson: "I am pleased that this agreement has been entered into. This tells us that NAT is a preferred borrower. It gives NAT a continued solid financial footing and flexibility which will enable the company to grow, based upon both possible vessel acquisitions and newbuildings".
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.
The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "plan," "potential," "will," "may," "should," "expect," "pending" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management's examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the tanker market, as a result of changes in OPEC's petroleum production levels and world wide oil consumption and storage, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessels breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the prospectus and related prospectus supplement, our Annual Report on Form 20-F, and our reports on Form 6-K.
Contacts:
Scandic American Shipping Ltd
Manager for:
Nordic American Tankers Limited
P.O Box 56, 3201 Sandefjord, Norway
Tel: + 47 33 42 73 00 E-mail: nat@scandicamerican.com
Rolf Amundsen, Head of Investor Relations, Norway
Nordic American Tankers Limited
Tel: +1 800 601 9079 or + 47 908 26 906
Jacob Ellefsen, Head of Research, Monaco
Nordic American Tankers Limited
Tel: + 377 93 25 89 07 or + 33 678 631 959
Turid M. Sørensen, EVP & CFO, Norway
Nordic American Tankers Limited
Tel: +47 33 42 73 00 or +47 90 57 29 27
Gary J. Wolfe
Seward & Kissel LLP, New York, USA
Tel: +1 212 574 1223