Imperial Petroleum Q4 and 2025 Earnings Call - Debt-free rapid fleet growth to ~26 ships, riding a tanker rate windfall as Middle East risk looms

Conference Call Operator: Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to Imperial Petroleum Q4 and 12 months of 2025 financial and operational results conference call and webcast. All participants will be in a listen-only mode with no question and answer session on today’s conference. Please note that today’s call is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Harry Vafias, CEO of Imperial Petroleum. Please go ahead.

Harry Vafias, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Imperial Petroleum: Good morning, everybody, thank you all for joining us at our Q4 and 12 months 2025 call of Imperial Petroleum. I’m Harry Vafias, the CEO of the company, joining me today is Mrs. Sikelari, who’ll be discussing our financial performance. Before we continue the discussion, the same language in slide number 2. In essence, it’s made clear that this presentation may contain some forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. We raise the attention of our investors to the fact that such forward-looking statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Imperial Petroleum, are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause future results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. In addition, we like to clarify that during this conference call, we will quote monetary amounts. These, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are all denominated in US dollars.

In slide three, we’re summarizing our key operational and financial highlights for Q4 2025. The last quarter of 2024 revealed our fleet dynamics. Market was favorable for both tanker and dry bulk ships, allowing us to enjoy surely profitability and the benefits of our fleet expansion. Indeed, compared to Q3 of 2025, when we operated same number of ships, net revenue from tankers increased by almost 18%, while the rise of net revenues from our dry bulk segment was most impressive in the order of 26%. It was a dynamic quarter, and this was also reflected in our fleet operational utilization, which for Q4 2025 was in the order of 91.8%, marking the best quarterly performance of 2025.

Looking at our fleet sub-segments, operational utilization for Q4 was 93.4% for our tankers and 90.4% for our dry bulk fleet. Our commercial strategy this quarter was most efficient as we managed to reduce commercial off-hire days by 24.3% compared to Q3. During Q4, we continued our fleet expansion. In mid-December, we agreed to purchase three carriers and one tanker vessel. Following the delivery of the dry bulk carrier Post Marvel on January 12th, we have a fleet on the water of 20 ships. Based on our capital commitments within 2026, we will take delivery of another six ships. In a short period of time, we utilized our funds and kept our promise to grow Imperial Petroleum fleet to reach close to 30 ships.

Touching briefly on our financial performance, the full integration of our dry bulk vessels in conjunction with strong rates, both in the tanker and dry bulk markets, elevated Q4 both our profitability and operating income generation. In Q4, our revenues came in at $51.1 billion, marking an impressive 95% increase against the same period of last year. Our operating income for the quarter was in the order of $13.7 million, marking a 174% increase to Q4 2024 and a 33% increase compared to Q3. We ended the quarter with net income of $15 million, improved compared to the same period of last year by about $11.1 million. For the full year 2025, our net income came in at $50 million, our EBITDA close to $71 million, while our operating cash flow was as high as $81 million.

Our organic operations fuel our operating liquidity. In terms of cash, including our time deposits, we ended the year of 2025 with $179 million, while our cash today is close to $198 million. It’s worth to know that Imperial Petroleum sustains its long-standing momentum of profit generation. Within the period of 2023-2025, our company has generated a total of $171 million of net profits and $240 million of total operating cash flow. On February 9th, we commenced a $10 million stock repurchase program. Under this scheme, the company has repurchased to date a total of 251,000 shares for an aggregate amount of $900,000. We strive to preserve our strong performance.

We acknowledge that the recent U.S.-Iran conflict has spread a global shock and has already positively affected seaborne trade, particularly for the tanker segment. It remains to be seen how the duration of this conflict and any further escalation will hinder trade patterns and cause turmoil in oil supply and pricing. On slide 4, we provide a summary of our current in deployment. About 65% of our fleet is currently under time charter. We employ 5 product tankers and 2 Suezmaxes in the spot market. The remaining 2 product tankers are under period employment. As customarily, all our dry bulk ships are on short-term charters. The commercial strategy we currently follow for our dry bulk ships provides healthy cash flow while minimizing idle time and voyage costs. On slide 5, we will discuss the evolution of market rates for both tankers and bulkers.

Within Q4 25, market rates strengthened further in both the tanker and dry segments. Rates for Suezmax surged mainly at the back of OPEC exports, rising U.S. crude output and high global refining margins. In addition, the increased enforcement of sanctions against tankers trading in Russia, Iran, Venezuela, has tightened the dark fleet, boosting rates for mainstream ships. Product tankers rates improved when compared to Q3. MR rates were particularly affected mid-quarter onwards by activity levels in Asia picking up momentum. For the dry bulk segment, the positive trend witnessed in Q3 continued throughout Q4 as well. Key drivers for this were the decline in Chinese mine production, which led to an increase in iron ore imports and the rise in long-haul bauxite exports from West Africa.

The rise in tension in the Middle East, which escalated since the end of February 2026, has caused a spike in tanker market rates. Risk premia have been priced into tanker freights as tension prevails, trade from the Strait of Hormuz has been to a great extent disrupted. It’s worth to note that on March first, vessel arrivals in the Strait of Hormuz were down 80% from normal levels. Compared to the end of Q4, the latest rates for Suezmax vessels are up 95% to about $180,000 a day, while rates for MR tankers are up 75% to about $50,000 daily. On slide 6, we’re reviewing the tanker market. In Q4, the tanker market was very strong for crude tankers and quite healthy for product tankers.

The surge in crude tanker market can be explained by OPEC unwinding some output cuts, having added 1.6 million barrels per day in the market since Q4, along with a steady growth in global oil consumption, which in Q4 totaled 104.5 million barrels per day. In addition, the vacuum cleaning of VLCC tonnage by Sinokor, which started end of last year, has given a major boost to the VLCC market, which is now experiencing record levels, and this has also trickled down to the Suezmaxes and Aframaxes. The product tanker market was affected in Q4 by the fall in long-haul Russian CPP exports, which marked a decline to 1.1 million barrels per day from 1.6 in first half 2025.

The market picked up mid-quarter onwards due to the greater activity in the Atlantic basin. From January, following the U.S.-Venezuela conflict, through which U.S. took control of Venezuela’s energy industry, market strength of crude tankers commenced flowing into product tankers as well. In 2026, geopolitical tensions will mainly shape the market. A potential end on the Russian-Ukraine conflict could reopen European markets to Russian crudes, thus lessening long-haul voyages. Other factors that will affect the tanker market going forward are trade sanctions and OPEC’s strategy on any additional unwinding of production cuts. Adding to this, the massive dark fleet of tankers has the potential to shape the tanker market going forward to a significant extent. The most important event currently shaping the market and affecting the global geopolitical environment is the Iran-U.S. conflict.

About 20% of the world’s oil supply moves through the Strait of Hormuz, a number which includes most Asia’s crude imports. Any prolonged disruption will be a major global shock. Global tanker trade has already been disrupted as ships become stranded in the Gulf. Insurance war risk premia have sharply increased and oil prices have spiked. Transit delays and operational disruptions are expected to drive further volatility in an already firm market. If there is sustained disruption to oil prices, the hike in oil prices could lead to a potential demand destruction and to a weakening of global economy. Looking at the tanker fundamentals, total order book for Suezmaxes stands at 21%, with 14.8% of the fleet above 20 years of age.

For MR tankers, total order book is 14.8%, while 16% of the fleet is above 20 years of age. In slide 7, we’re discussing the dry bulk market. Q4 continued the positive momentum witnessed in Q3. Overall, the market has picked up in the second half of 2025, creating a bullish sentiment for this year. Iron ore volumes to China were exceptionally strong, supported by a drop in domestic iron output. In addition to this, Guinean bauxite exports to China rebounded sharply in Q4. Seaborne coal shipments to China picked up as well due to seasonal restocking. Kamsarmax segment was supported by strong Atlantic grain volumes as China continued to buy from Brazil and Argentina, while U.S. corn exports increased in second half 2025 by 38% year-on-year.

Dry cargo trade is expected to increase by 1.5%, with the biggest percentage rise expected from bauxite trade. Looking forward, global ton-mile demand growth currently supported by China might gradually tilt towards India, which is fast-growing. The total order book for Handysize ships is 7.3%, with 7.4% of the fleet being above 20 years of age. Total order book for Supramax vessels stands at 9.5%, with 9.8% of the fleet being above 20 years of age. I’ll now pass the floor to Ms. Sekelari in order to summarize our financial performance.

Ms. Sikelari, Chief Financial Officer / Financial Officer, Imperial Petroleum: Thank you, Harry. Good morning to all. The fourth quarter of 2025 was quite dynamic as both tanker and dry bulk markets were favorable, allowing us to leverage upon the size of our mixed fleet. As said, tanker rates were firm, while rates for dry ships marked a noticeable improvement compared to the third quarter of 2025. Looking at our income statement for Q4 2025 on slide 8, revenues came in at $51.1 million in Q4, marking a 95% increase compared to revenues generated in the same period of 2024.

This increase is mainly due to our recent dry bulk vessel additions, along with an improvement on market rates, particularly for the Suezmax tankers as rates for these vessels increased within Q4 2025 to $92,000 per day from $55,000 per day in Q3 and are now even higher, close to $180,000 per day. Voyage costs amounted to $16.6 million, $8 million higher than in Q4 2024. In spite of the decreased spot activity, the increase of our fleet size led to a higher number of voyages, thus intensified balancing activity, especially for our Supramax vessels. Our net revenues for the quarter came in at about $34.5 million, compared to $17.8 million in Q4 2024. This is equivalent to a 94% increase.

Running costs amounted to $11.3 million, increased by $4.6 million due to the increase of our fleet by an average of eight vessels between the two periods. EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2025 came in at $21.3 million, while net income at $15 million corresponded to basic earnings per share of $0.37. For 12 months 2025, our EBITDA came in at $71 million. Our operating cash flow was $81 million, while our net income was $50 million corresponding to an EPS of $1.35. Moving on to slide nine, let us take a look at our balance sheet for the 12 months of 2025. As of December thirty-one, 2025, our free cash, including time deposits, was $179 million.

We do have capital commitments for 7 vessels, one recently delivered, with the remaining 6 to be delivered up to Q3 2026, which total about $130 million, of which about $52 million will get paid up until the end of Q3 2026, and the remaining $78 million up until the end of 2026. There is plenty of time to further enhance our cash base with cash flow generation from our core operation. As already mentioned, within the period of 2023-2025, we generated $240 million of operating cash flow. Proceeding to slide 10, we provide a summary of our liquidity, profitability, and market considerations going forward. For the 12 months of 2025, our operating cash flow was $81 million. Our profitability margin remains wide as market rates are favorable and significantly higher than our break-even levels.

In Q4 2025, our average time charter equivalent per fleet voyage day was close to $27,000 for our tankers and about $15,000 for our dry bulk fleet. Both numbers improved compared to the third quarter of 2025. In terms of market consideration, the focal point is the U.S. Iran tension escalation and how this will evolve in the short to medium run and to what extent will this unfortunate geopolitical event hit the tanker market and affect oil prices. In slide 11, we summarize some key remarks around our strategy going forward. We base our strong operating performance on the successful commercial management of our highly quality built ships. Most importantly, we delivered our commitment to growing our fleet and soon we will enjoy a fleet on the water of 26 vessels.

Within a short period of time, Imperial Petroleum managed to become a medium-sized company fleet-wise, but most importantly maintained profitable and debt-free throughout this rigorous expansion phase. At this stage, our CEO, Mr. Harry Vafias, will summarize our concluding remarks for the period examined.

Harry Vafias, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Imperial Petroleum: With a net income generation of $50 million for 2025, this year was yet another profitable year. Markets for both tankers and bulkers were firm, particularly in the second half of 2025, thus assisting our performance, which was also leveraged by a dynamic fleet expansion. Within this year, we’ll take delivery of another six ships, hence we will enjoy a fleet on the water of 26 high quality ships without resorting to any bank debt. We delivered our commitment for a fast fleet expansion while having today cash of close to $200 million. Our key concern is the geopolitical tension in the Middle East, which we deem critical and has caused global concerns. It remains to be seen for how long the shipping market, especially the tanker segment, will be affected and to what extent.

Of course, we hope that the duration of this unfortunate geopolitical turn will be as brief as possible. Now, I would like to thank you for joining us for our call today and for your interest and trust in our company. We look forward of having you with us again at our next call for our Q 126 results. Thank you very much.

Ms. Sikelari, Chief Financial Officer / Financial Officer, Imperial Petroleum: This concludes today’s conference call. Thank you all for participating. You may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.