Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator instructions) And your first question comes from Noah Parquette from Cantor Fitzgerald. Please ask your question.
Noah Parquette – Cantor Fitzgerald
Good morning guys.
George Kassiotis
Good morning.
Noah Parquette – Cantor Fitzgerald
I just had a couple of questions first on some of your ships have special options spanning this year, have you heard from the charters yet and if not what is your strategy going to be for those ships?
George Kassiotis
Right. You are referring to the four ships, two (inaudible) the two Handymaxes and the two Panamax product tankers?
Noah Parquette – Cantor Fitzgerald
Exactly.
George Kassiotis
Those ships are currently employed with Norden for small ships and with Torm the bigger ships. The initial charter for both ships for both types of ships expires in mid 2009. And there was an option, at charters option, to renew both charters and this option now has elapsed actually. So as we speak, charters do not carry any option in their favor to extend the charters. What we are doing at this moment is being in discussion with these guys and other guys as well obviously you know keeping in mind that our policy calls for quality counterparties and quality traders with whom we can also create synergies going forward, in order to effectively enter into new charter agreements. And our policy is to seek predictable cash flow through term employment of our ships and we are trying and we are effectively monitoring the market developments of the market and we are about to enter to – going to enter firm discussions with the guys. So our plan is to charter those ships.
Noah Parquette – Cantor Fitzgerald
Thank you.
Operator
And our next question comes from (inaudible). Please ask your question.
Unidentified Analyst
Hi. Good morning George.
George Kassiotis
Good morning.
Unidentified Analyst
Yes, my first question was OpEx, daily operating expenditure were high in 2008, for Panamaxes grew 18.2% and for Handymax this grew 10.6%. So I would like to have your outlook for 2009 on the growth of daily operating expenditure?
George Kassiotis
Yes. I will ask Harry Loukopoulos, our Chief Operating Officer to respond to you question.
Harris Loukopoulos
Well going forward we expect that in 2009 again we are seeing an increase, we expect an increase, I mean we have budgeted an increase in the running cost of old ships. Again the market is driven by the demand of the seafarers and the fact that the number of additional vessels and a large number of (inaudible) being brought into the seas in the next few years has increased the demand for quality seafarers. That has brought in the increase in the running cost. We expect that we will have another increase of about 7% going forward in 2009.
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