Seacor Marine to form joint venture, submit lead bid for Montco assets

By Caroline Salls

Pittsburgh, June 23 – Seacor Marine Holdings Inc. and Montco Offshore, Inc. filed a motion in Montco’s Chapter 11 case with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas that sets the principal non-binding terms of Seacor’s bid to form a new joint venture with Montco, according to a news release.

Specifically under the term sheet, Seacor and Montco will jointly form and capitalize a new joint venture company by contributing liftboat vessels and other related assets to the joint venture, as well as requiring the joint venture to assume operating liabilities and debt associated with the liftboat vessels and related assets.

According to the release, the joint venture would consolidate 13 liftboat vessels currently operated by a subsidiary of Seacor Marine, six liftboat vessels currently operated by Montco and two liftboat vessels currently operated by an existing joint venture between affiliates of each of the company.

The Seacor/Montco joint venture would assume roughly $130 million of debt from Montco’s credit facilities, which, apart from a guarantee of interest payments for two years after the closing of the transactions, would be non-recourse to Seacor Marine.

In addition, the joint venture would assume about $76 million of debt currently reflected on Seacor Marine’s financial statements. Seacor Marine is expected to be the majority owner of the equity interests in the joint venture.

If the bankruptcy court approves Montco’s entry into the term sheet, then Seacor Marine’s ultimate bid will serve as the stalking horse bid and set the minimum acceptable offer for a potential auction of Montco’s assets.

If Seacor is not ultimately the high bidder for the assets, it would be entitled to receive a break-up fee and expense reimbursement.

Seacor Marine is a subsidiary of Seacor Holdings, Inc. an offshore oil, gas and marine equipment company based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Houston-based Montco operates lift boats for the offshore energy industry. The company filed bankruptcy on March 17 under Chapter 11 case number 17-31646.

© 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.