Item 1.01.
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Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.
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Restructuring Support Agreement
As previously disclosed, Stone Energy Corporation (
Stone
) has been involved in discussions with certain of its
stakeholders in respect of a possible restructuring of the indebtedness and capitalization of Stone and certain of its subsidiaries (collectively, the
Company
). On October 20, 2016, the Company entered into a restructuring
support agreement (the
RSA
) with certain (i) holders of the Companys 1
3
⁄
4
% Senior Convertible Notes due 2017 (the
Convertible Notes
) and (ii) holders of the Companys 7
1
⁄
2
% Senior Notes due 2022 (together with the Convertible Notes, the
Notes
and the holders thereof, the
Noteholders
), to support a restructuring on the terms of a pre-packaged plan of reorganization as described therein (the
Plan
). The RSA
contemplates that the Company will file for voluntary relief under chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the
Bankruptcy Code
) in a United States Bankruptcy Court (the
Bankruptcy Court
)
on or before December 9, 2016 to implement the Plan in accordance with the term sheet annexed to the RSA (the
Term Sheet
). The following description of the RSA and annexed Term Sheet is qualified by reference to the full
text of such agreement, a copy of which is filed herewith as Exhibit 10.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.
The RSA will become
effective upon (i) execution by the Company and Noteholders holding, in the aggregate, at least 66-2/3% of the outstanding aggregate principal amount of the Notes, and (ii) Stone having entered into a PSA for the sale of Properties, defined below,
for a cash purchase price of at least $350 million. Both conditions have been satisfied, with Noteholders holding approximately 85.4% of the aggregate principal amount of the Notes executing the RSA and Stone signing the PSA, as indicated
below. Pursuant to the terms of the RSA and the Term Sheet, Noteholders and other interest holders will receive treatment under the Plan summarized as follows:
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The Noteholders will receive their pro rata share of (a) $150 million of the net cash proceeds from the sale of Stones approximately 86,000 net acres in the Appalachia regions of Pennsylvania and West Virginia
(the
Properties
) plus 85% of the net cash proceeds from the sale of the Properties in excess of $350 million, if any, (b) 95% of the common stock in reorganized Stone and (c) $225 million of new 7.5% second lien notes due
2022.
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Existing common stockholders of Stone will receive their pro rata share of 5% of the common stock in reorganized Stone and warrants for up to 15% of the post-petition equity exercisable upon the Company reaching certain
benchmarks pursuant to the terms of the proposed new warrants.
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All claims of creditors with unsecured claims other than claims by the Noteholders, including vendors, shall be unaltered and will be paid in full in the ordinary course of business to the extent such claims are
undisputed. Stone estimates that such unsecured claims are in the range of approximately $17 million to $27 million in the aggregate.
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Holders of claims arising on account of Stones existing revolving credit facility will receive (a)(i) if such holders vote, as a class, to accept the Plan, commitments on terms set forth on Exhibit 1(a) to the
Term Sheet, on a pro rata basis, under an amended revolving credit facility, or (ii) if such holders, as a class, do not vote to accept the Plan (or are deemed to reject the Plan), a term loan on terms set forth on Exhibit 1(b) to the Term Sheet, or
(b) such other treatment as is acceptable to the Company and the Noteholders and consistent with the Bankruptcy Code, including, but not limited to, section 1129(b) of the Bankruptcy Code.
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Each of the foregoing common equity percentages in reorganized Stone is subject to dilution from
the exercise of the new warrants described above and a management incentive plan.
The Company has been engaged in discussions and has
exchanged proposals with the lenders under its revolving credit facility with respect to the treatment of the revolving credit facility in a chapter 11 proceeding and a related amendment to the revolving credit facility; however, no agreement has
been reached. While the Company expects to continue discussions and related negotiations with its lenders, there can be no assurance that an agreement will be reached.
The RSA contains certain covenants on the part of the Company and the Noteholders who are signatories to the RSA, including that such
Noteholders will vote in favor of the Plan, support the sale of the Properties and otherwise facilitate the restructuring transaction, in each case subject to certain terms and conditions in the RSA. The consummation of the Plan will be subject to
customary conditions and other requirements, as well as the sale by Stone of the Properties for a cash purchase price of at least $350 million and approval of the Bankruptcy Court. The RSA also provides for termination by each party, or by either
party, upon the occurrence of certain events, including without limitation, termination by the Noteholders upon the failure of the Company to achieve certain milestones set forth in Schedule 1 to the RSA.
Assuming implementation of the Plan, Stone expects that it will have eliminated approximately $850 million in principal of outstanding debt
and reduced its annual interest payment burden by approximately $46 million.
Although the Company intends to pursue the restructuring in
accordance with the terms set forth in the RSA, there can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in completing a restructuring or any other similar transaction on the terms set forth in the RSA, on different terms or at all.
The information contained in the RSA, including the Term Sheet, and this Form 8-K are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an
offer to buy, nor a solicitation of an offer to sell, any securities of the Company, nor do they constitute a solicitation of consent from any persons with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby. While we expect the
restructuring will take place in accordance with the Plan, there can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in completing a restructuring. Securityholders are urged to read the disclosure materials, including the disclosure statement,
if and when they become available because they will contain important information regarding the restructuring.
Purchase and Sale Agreement
On October 20, 2016 (the
Execution Date
), Stone entered into a purchase and sale agreement (the
PSA
) with TH Exploration III, LLC, an affiliate of Tug Hill, Inc. (
Tug Hill
). Pursuant to the terms of the PSA, Stone agreed to sell the Properties to Tug Hill (the
Disposition
) for $360 million in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments (the
Purchase Price
). The following description of the PSA is qualified by reference to the text of such
agreement, a copy of which is filed herewith as Exhibit 10.2 and is incorporated herein by reference.
The Disposition has an effective
date of June 1, 2016. In connection with the execution of the PSA, Tug Hill deposited $5.0 million in escrow, which amount may be supplemented by an additional $31 million at a later date on certain conditions being met. Upon a closing, the
deposit will be credited against the Purchase Price. From the Execution Date through December 19, 2016 (the
Diligence Period
), Tug Hill intends to conduct
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customary due diligence to assess the aggregate dollar value of any title and environmental defects associated with the Properties. The parties expect to close the Disposition by February
27, 2017, subject to customary closing conditions and approval by the Bankruptcy Court.
The PSA contains customary representations,
warranties and covenants. From and after the closing of the Disposition, Stone and Tug Hill, respectively, have agreed to indemnify each other and their respective affiliates against certain losses resulting from any breach of their
representations, warranties or covenants contained in the PSA, subject to certain customary limitations and survival periods. Additionally, from and after closing of the Disposition, Stone has agreed to indemnify Tug Hill for certain identified
retained liabilities related to the Properties, subject to certain survival periods, and Tug Hill has agreed to indemnify Stone for certain assumed obligations related to the Properties.
The PSA may be terminated, subject to certain exceptions, (i) upon mutual written consent, (ii) if the closing has not occurred by March 1,
2017, (iii) for certain material breaches of representations and warranties or covenants that remain uncured, (iv) if, on or prior to the end of the Diligence Period, title and environmental defect amounts (after application of customary thresholds
and deductibles), casualty losses and the value of any assets excluded from the Properties due to the exercise of preferential purchase rights or consents equal or exceed $10 million in the aggregate, (v) if Stone fails to file for bankruptcy on or
before December 9, 2016, (vi) if the Bankruptcy Court does not enter an order approving Stones assumption of the PSA and certain other matters within 30 days of Stone filing for bankruptcy, (vii) if the Bankruptcy Court does not enter a sale
order for the Disposition by February 10, 2017, and (viii) upon the occurrence of certain other events specified in the PSA.