Seaspan will pay $15 for each share, potentially spending about $150 million from cash on hand.
As of June 30, the company had cash and short-term investments of $152.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters data.
The outlook for the shipping industry, which is grappling with a glut of vessels, is increasingly uncertain due to the euro zone debt turmoil. This may lead to more bankruptcies and restructuring as daily rates for vessels fall, bankers said.
Seaspan is, however, not as exposed to market volatilities as other shipping companies, said Jefferies analyst Douglas Mavrinac.
"They have over 90 percent of their ships employed with fixed-rate contracts for the next 10 plus years, whether market rates fall or rise, they are not going to get hurt," Mavrinac said.
Seaspan counts liner companies such as Japan's third-largest shipping firm Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, China Shipping Container Lines Co Ltd and a unit of China COSCO Holdings Co among its customers.
Separately, the company said it will buy Seaspan Management Services Ltd for $54 million in stock, to reduce conflict between the company and its directors, who have interest in the unit.
Seaspan Management provides technical, administrative and strategic services to the company.
"The tender offer should more than offset the dilution associated with the purchase," Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Natasha Boyden said in a note.
The deal, which is expected to close in January 2012, will help Seaspan avoid technical services fees payable to the unit. (Reuters)
