Ultra Petroleum completes restructuring and emerges from bankruptcy

By Caroline Salls

Pittsburgh, April 12 – Ultra Petroleum Corp. completed its in-court restructuring and emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, according to a news release.

In support of its plan of reorganization, Ultra said it raised $2.98 billion in exit financing in order to pay creditors in full and preserve significant value for existing equityholders.

Additionally, the company said it was approved to list its newly issued common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and will begin trading Thursday under the ticker symbol UPL.

“We achieved the goals we have diligently pursued throughout our Chapter 11 proceedings: maximizing the value of the company for the benefit of all of our stakeholders,” chairman, president and chief executive officer Michael D. Watford said in the release.

In support of its restructuring and in order to satisfy its obligations under the plan of reorganization confirmed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Ultra said it closed on a $580 million equity rights offering for common stock of the company, an $800 million seven-year senior secured term loan agreement with Barclays, $700 million of 6 7/8% senior notes due 2022, $500 million of 7 1/8% senior notes due 2025 and a $400 million 57-month senior secured revolving credit agreement with Bank of Montreal.

In connection with its emergence, the company said it is issuing 195 million shares of new common stock. All of the existing common stock that had been trading under the ticker symbol UPLMQ was cancelled, and the existing stockholders received new common stock.

In addition, all of the allowed claims attributable to the pre-bankruptcy high-yield bonds were converted into new common stock.

The shares related to the $580 million equity rights offering were issued and the fee payable to the commitment parties under a backstop commitment agreement was paid in new common stock.

Along with Watford, the company’s board of directors includes pre-emergence independent, non-executive board members W. Charles Helton, lead independent director Stephen J. McDaniel, Roger A. Brown and Michael J. Keeffe, as well as Neal P. Goldman and Alan J. Mintz, who were added to the board as new independent, non-executive members recommended to Ultra by the backstop commitment parties.

Ultra Petroleum is a Houston-based independent exploration and production company. The company filed for bankruptcy on April 29, 2016 under Chapter 11 case number 16-32202.

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