HAMILTON, BERMUDA - Singapore-listed Golden Ocean Group Ltd and Nasdaq-listed Knightsbridge Shipping Limited have agreed to merge to become one of the world's leading dry bulk companies.

In a press release on Wednesday, Golden Ocean said the combined company will be named Golden Ocean Group Ltd upon completion of the merger. It will have a modern fleet of 72 vessels, of which 36 are newbuildings under construction.

The merger is subject to approval by the shareholders of Golden Ocean and Knightsbridge in separate special general meetings expected to be held in December 2014 or January 2015 and the merger is expected to close shortly thereafter.

It is also subject to the execution of certain definitive documents, customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Knightsbridge's ordinary shares are currently listed for trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, and Golden Ocean's ordinary shares are currently listed for trading on the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSE) and the Singapore Stock Exchange.

The combined company will apply for a secondary listing of its ordinary shares on the OSE and expects that after the merger its ordinary shares will be listed for trading on both Nasdaq and the OSE.