Siem Offshore gets approval from financing banks for financial platform

Siem Offshore Inc. has received approval from all of its financing banks for a financial platform to position the Company for the expected challenging market in the coming years, the Company said on Friday.

The approvals include a three year extension of the final bullet payments of all mortgage debt due before 31 December 2019, deferral of instalments for the fleet of AHTS vessels for 2.5 years with a cash sweep mechanism, in the meantime as well as easing of certain covenant requirements to the Company’s banks for the next three years. Payment of interest and instalment on all bank debt except for debt related to AHTS vessels will continue as normal. The agreement is conditional on a restructuring of the Company’s two public bonds.
 
It is further agreed to establish a stand-alone AHTS vessel company,  Siem AHTS Pool AS ( SAP), where Siem Offshore Inc. through its subsidiary Siem Offshore Rederi AS  has sold all its 8 AHTS vessels and the pool partner Singa Star PTE LTD has sold 2 AHTS vessels to SAP. All vessels have in the past been operated in a pool agreement between Siem Offshore and Singa Star. Post the transaction, Siem Offshore and Singa Star will hold shares in SAP in proportion to the net value of the vessels transferred to SAP, representing a share for Siem Offshore of 78.16% and Singa Star of 21.84%.