S&P rates K-Sea notes B+

Standard & Poor's said it assigned its BB- corporate credit rating to K-Sea Transportation Partners LP.

S&P said it also assigned its B+ rating to the company's proposed $150 million senior unsecured notes due 2012. The notes are being co-issued by K-Sea Transportation Finance Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of K-Sea Transportation Partners LP. Proceeds from the notes offering are expected to be used to finance the acquisition of Sea Coast Towing Inc. and to refinance existing debt.

The ratings reflect K-Sea's aggressive financial profile, limited free cash flow after partnership distributions and the company's aggressive growth strategy, S&P said.

Partly mitigating these concerns are the company's relatively solid market position, a significant fixed-rate business that helps stabilize its cash flows and a significant number of double-hulled vessels, S&P said.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.