BassDrill gets OK to amend 7½% senior secured callable bonds due 2018

By Susanna Moon

Chicago, Oct. 24 – BassDrill Alpha Ltd. obtained holder approval to amend its 7½% senior secured callable bond issue 2013/2018 by written procedure on Monday.

There were enough holders to form a quorum, and the measure passed with 79.46% of the votes cast, according to a notice from bond trustee Nordic Trustee ASA.

As announced Oct. 19, BassDrill was asking to amend the notes to reduce the minimum amount required to be held in a reserve account to $1 million from $1.25 million.

After holding talks, the issuer and parent company BassDrill Alpha Parent Ltd. reached a commercial agreement with Atlantica Management (USA) Inc. as manager of the issuer’s flat bottomed tender assist drilling unit.

The agreement includes the issue of 78.33 million new shares of the parent company to Atlantica and the option to subscribe for non-voting preference shares of the issuer at $0.75 each.

Other bond amendments include the redemption of the bond issue at an amount of

• $53,249,111 within 45 business days of receiving subscription proceeds of any share option exercised by Atlantica before April 30, 2018; and

• $56,799,052 within 45 business days of receiving subscription proceeds of any share option exercised by Atlantica between May 1, 2018 and Oct. 18, 2018.

The issuer also will be allowed to sell super senior unsecured bonds of up to $10 million, consisting of one or more tranches with the first tranche in an amount of up to $5 million.

Voting forms needed to be submitted by 7 a.m. ET on Oct. 24.

As announced June 27, the company obtained holder approval to amend the 7½% notes for its restructuring plans.

The company also sought to temporarily waive an interest coupon payment and principal amortization installment due April 5 and to allow BassDrill access to $484,650 of restricted cash from a reserve account to fund payment of operational expenses pending implementation of the restructuring.

The trustee said BassDrill, its shareholders and an informal committee of bondholders entered a restructuring lock-up agreement on May 24.

Under the restructuring, the principal amount and maturity date of the bonds will be unchanged, but amortization payments are waived and the fixed rate will be set at 0% for the period between the implementation date and the date on which the company’s rig is again under a charter contract for offshore services.

In addition, 85% of BassDrill’s equity ownership will be transferred to the bondholders with the other 15% going to the original shareholders.

Within three months of the implementation date, the company will issue warrants to bondholders.

In connection with the waiver request, the payment date will be waived until the earliest of termination of the lock-up agreement, the implementation date and June 30.

BassDrill is a Norwegian company that plans to construct and own tender assist drilling rigs for the provision of services to oil and gas companies.

© 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.