Ocean Rig reaches agreement on comprehensive deleveraging and recapitalization transaction
Ocean Rig UDW Inc., an international contractor of offshore deepwater drilling services, has announced that it and its subsidiaries Drill Rigs Holdings Inc., Drillships Financing Hol ding Inc. and Drillships Ocean Ventures Inc. have entered into a Restructuring Support Agreement (the “RSA”) with creditors representing over 7 2 % of Ocean Rig’s outstanding consolidated indebtedness for a financial restructuring.
The RSA provides that the restructuring will be implemented by four separate but interconnected schemes of arrangement under Cayman Islands law. Pursuant to the terms of the RSA, the scheme companies presented winding up petitions to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands on March 24, 2017 and sought the appointment of joint pro visional liquidators for the purpose of the restructuring.
On March 27, 2017, the Grand Court appointed Simon Appell and Eleanor Fisher of AlixPartners as the JPLs. By virtue of the appointment of the JPLs, provisional liquidation proceeding s were commenced in the Cayman Islands and the scheme companies are beneficiaries of a moratorium in the Cayman Islands. The JPLs will work together with the Scheme Companies’ directors to implement the restructuring and are anticipated to promote the schemes alongside the directors on behalf of the scheme companies.
The schemes are required to be approved by the Grand Court. In addition, on March 27, 2017, the JPLs (in their capacity as foreign representatives of the scheme companies) commenced cases under Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code for each of the scheme companies seeking, among other things, recognition of the Provisional Liquidation Proceedings as foreign main proceedings.
