Diana Shipping Inc. Announces Agreement To Acquire A Newly-Built Post-Panamax Dry Bulk Carrier

ATHENS, Greece, Oct. 10, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diana Shipping Inc. (NYSE:DSX), a global shipping company specializing in the ownership and operation of dry bulk vessels, today announced that it has signed, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, a Memorandum of Agreement to acquire a newly-built Post-Panamax dry bulk carrier of 98,704 dwt, built by Tsuneishi Group (Zhoushan) Shipbuilding Inc., from a third party seller for a purchase price of US$24.6 million. The vessel, to be named "Polymnia", is expected to be delivered from the yard to the Company by the sellers by the end of November 2012.

Including the aforementioned vessel Diana Shipping Inc.'s fleet currently consists of 30 dry bulk carriers (17 Panamax, 3 Post-Panamax, 8 Capesize and 2 Newcastlemax), as well as 2 new-building Ice Class Panamax vessels expected to be delivered to the Company during the fourth quarter of 2013. As of today, the combined carrying capacity of our current fleet, excluding the three vessels not yet delivered, is 3.3 million dwt with a weighted average age of 6 years. A table describing the current Diana Shipping Inc. fleet can be found on the Company's website, www.dianashippinginc.com . Information contained on the Company's website does not constitute a part of this press release.

About the Company

Diana Shipping Inc. is a leading global provider of shipping transportation services through the ownership and operation of dry bulk vessels. The Company's vessels are employed primarily on medium to long-term time charters and transport a range of dry bulk cargoes, including such commodities as iron ore, coal, grain and other materials along worldwide shipping routes.

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.

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