UPDATE 1-OceanFreight ends equity purchase pact with Yorkville

* Agrees to terminate pact with Yorkville Advisors

* Co had option to sell shares worth $147.9 mln under pact

* Shares up 4 pct

May 21 (Reuters) - Greek dry bulk carrier OceanFreight Inc (OCNF.O) agreed with its biggest passive stake holder to terminate their standby equity purchase pact, under which the company had the option to issue and sell shares worth up to $147.9 million.

Yorkville Advisors LLC, with about a 41 percent passive stake in the company, had arranged for the pact in January, allowing the company to do a series of mini-secondary placements through Yorkville.

"Raising (about) $112 million of primary equity has significantly improved our balance sheet and will enable us to take advantage of future growth opportunities," Chief Executive Anthony Kandylidis said in a statement.

As of May 21, the company has raised about $111.6 million of gross proceeds, the company said.

Dry bulk carriers have been hit hard by the global economic downturn, and daily rates have plunged in a market hurt by persistent overcapacity.

The company had earlier suspended its future dividend payments, "in order to preserve capital and potentially capitalize on market opportunities as they may arise."

Shares of the company were trading up 4 percent at $1.83 after the bell. The stock, which traded as high as $26.96 in June, closed at $1.76 in regular session Thursday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Sweta Singh in Bangalore; Editing by Himani Sarkar)