Adding 9 Capesize Vessels and 2 UDW Drillships; Conference Call to Be Held Today at 9:00 A.M. EDT

ATHENS, GREECE -- (Marketwire) -- 10/06/08 -- DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS), a global provider of marine transportation services for drybulk cargoes, announced today that it has entered into the following agreements:

DryBulk Segment

In line with its strategy of continuing to grow, consolidate and renew its fleet, the Company has entered into agreements to take over the equity interests of single purpose companies (SPCs) owning 9 Capesize drybulk carriers (including 5 newbuildings) totaling 1.6 million deadweight, with an average age of approximately 2 years, from entities controlled by clients of Cardiff Marine Inc., including Mr. George Economou, Chairman and CEO of DryShips Inc.

The fleet details of the 9 Capesize vessels are summarized in the table below:

                                              Gross
                   Built/                      rate  Redelivery  Redelivery
Name              Delivery   DWT  Employment per day   Earliest    Latest
----              --------   ---  ---------- -------   --------    ------
MV Ventura          2006   174,315   TC       50,000*   Apr.-14    Jun-14
MV Pompano          2006   174,219   TC       50,000*   Mar.-14    May-14
MV Fernandina       2006   174,315   TC       50,000*   Apr.-14    Jun-14
MV Morgiana         1988   186,001   TC       67,500**  Oct.-12    Dec-12
Newbuilding H1106  Nov-09  177,926   TC       56,000    Oct.-14    Dec-14
Newbuilding H1119  Sep-10  177,926   N/A        N/A       N/A       N/A
Newbuilding H1154  May-09  177,926   N/A        N/A       N/A       N/A
Newbuilding H1155  Jun-09  177,926   N/A        N/A       N/A       N/A
Newbuilding H1129  Jun-09  177,926   N/A        N/A       N/A       N/A

* Index linked until June 30, 2009, thereafter the vessel will be chartered-out at a gross daily rate of $50,000.

** Staggered at a gross daily rate of $122,500, $95,000, $55,000 $35,000 and $30,000 for years one through five respectively.

DryShips will pay to the Sellers $689.6 million in exchange for the shares of the SPCs. Such consideration will be in the form of 19,431,840 newly issued shares of DryShips Inc. common stock. The Company will also assume $216.3 million of existing debt and $262.0 million in remaining shipyard installments related to these vessels which will be financed by debt facilities that are already in place except for $16 million which will be funded by DryShips. The implied aggregate value of the fleet is estimated at $1,168 million. Following the issuance of the new shares to the sellers, the total number of DryShips shares outstanding will be 62,984,840.

Pending the actual transfer of shares of the SPCs, the sellers will transfer all economic benefits and obligations arising from the ownership of the vessels to the Company.

George Economou, Chairman and CEO of DryShips Inc., commented:

"This transaction will enable DryShips to further grow its fleet and expand its market share at a time when our competitors are not only constrained by the difficult credit environment but do not have the ability to find quality assets on such a scale from the second hand sale and purchase market. These vessels are high specification sister vessels and following this transaction our Company's fleet will be among the most modern in the industry, thus further enhancing the quality and longevity of our future earnings.

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