Par Buys Seacor
Purchase of crude transportation, distribution and trading company.
Par Petroleum Corp. bought Seacor Energy Inc., a transportation, distribution and trading company, for about $18 million in cash and working capital.
The price includes about $14 million in cash and net working capital worth about $4 million.
Houston-based Seacor was a wholly-owned subsidiary of Seacor Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CKH) and was renamed Texadian Energy Inc.
Par financed the acquisition with a combination of cash and additional credit from its Tranche B loan. The lenders under the Par’s existing delayed draw term loan are also lenders under the Tranche B Loan. The total commitment of $35 million was drawn at closing, and the Tranche B Loan bears interest at 9.75% and matures on July 1, 2013. The obligations under the Tranche B Loan are secured by a lien on substantially all of the assets of the Company and its subsidiaries, including Texadian, but excluding the Company’s equity interests in Piceance Energy, LLC. In addition to funding a portion of the purchase price, the Tranche B Loan will provide cash collateral for a new $30 million letter of credit facility with Compass Bank that will support Texadian’s crude oil operations.
Par received financial advice from Stout Risius Ross, Inc.
“The addition of Texadian’s transportation and trading business is a significant first step in the growth and expansion of our business plan,” said John T. Young, Jr., Par’s chief executive. “We are excited about the addition of the Texadian team and believe that this transaction will be immediately accretive to earnings and cash flow. We expect that the acquisition will pay for itself within two years.”
Privately-held Par Petroleum Corp. is an upstream energy company based in Houston with assets in the Piceance Basin. Its primary asset is a 33.34% stake in a joint venture called Piceance Energy LLC. The remaining interest is held by Laramie Energy II LLC, which is the operator. Piceance Energy, LLC was formed and capitalized in August of 2012 when the Par and Laramie Energy II, LLC contributed their respective oil and natural gas assets, surface real estate, and other related assets located in the Piceance Basin geologic province of Colorado to the joint venture entity. These assets are more specifically located within Mesa and Garfield Counties of Colorado and within an approximate 10-mile radius of the heart of the Piceance Basin.