S&P ups W&T Offshore

S&P said it raised W&T Offshore Inc.’s issuer credit rating to B- from CCC+ and the senior secured issue rating on the 2026 notes to B+ from B. The agency also removed all ratings from CreditWatch, where it placed them with positive implications on Jan. 9.

The upgrade follows W&T redeeming its remaining $552.5 million senior secured notes due 2023 using cash on hand and proceeds from its newly launched offering of $275 million second-lien notes due 2026, the agency said.

“The successful refinancing alleviated near-term maturity risk and reduced total debt by about $300 million. Combined with supportive oil and natural gas prices, we now expect financial measures to improve, such that the company will maintain a leverage ratio of about 2x and funds from operations (FFO) to debt above 35% in 2023 and 2024,” S&P said in a press release.

The outlook is stable.

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