GMS and banks agreed on extension of deadlines
Gulf Marine Services PLC ("GMS" or the "Company"), a leading provider of advanced self-propelled, self-elevating support vessels serving the offshore oil, gas and renewables industries, says it has been in discussions with its banks in good faith, since the changes to the Board on 10 November. These discussions are in regard to certain improvements to the terms of the debt structure, that was concluded in June this year, as part of the restructuring of its debt facilities. The Company is pleased to report that discussions have been positive, yet not conclusive and the Company anticipates that there is a reasonable chance to reach an agreement in the course of the coming weeks.
Against this background, the banks have agreed to extend, until 31 January 2021, certain obligations on the Company, which it was otherwise required to have met by 31 December 2020. The extended deadlines include the requirement to issue warrants to the banks on 4 January 2021. This means that the Company will avoid an event of default on December 31 as a result of the general meeting voting against certain resolutions presented by the previous board. The new deadline becomes January 31 2021.
This extension provides the time for the parties to conclude and formally document proposed changes to the following (among other matters): the timing and targeted quantum of new equity to be raised, the pricing of the debt, and the timing and conditions to be met, to avoid any payment of PIK interest and issuance of any warrants.
Meanwhile the Company continues to make good progress under the new Board and management, including the recently announced improvement in winning new work for the Group, leading to an increase in secured fleet utilisation for 2021 to 75%.
The Company will provide the market with a business update, guidance and further details on the bank deal in due course.
About GMS
Gulf Marine Services PLC, a company listed on the London Stock Exchange, was founded in Abu Dhabi in 1977 and has become a world leading provider of advanced self-propelled self-elevating support vessels (SESVs). The fleet serves the oil, gas and renewable energy industries from its offices in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom. The Group's assets are capable of serving clients' requirements across the globe, including those in the Middle East, South East Asia, West Africa, North America, the Gulf of Mexico and Europe. The GMS fleet of 13 SESVs is amongst the youngest in the industry, with an average age of eight years. The vessels support GMS's clients in a broad range of offshore oil and gas platform refurbishment and maintenance activities, well intervention work and offshore wind turbine maintenance work (which are opex-led activities), as well as offshore oil and gas platform installation and decommissioning and offshore wind turbine installation (which are capex-led activities).