Noted producer of fishmeal and fish oil Omega Protein Corporation has entered into a new USD 125 million (EUR 109.9) million revolving credit agreement.
By way of the agreement, the company’s USD 70 million (EUR 61.5 million) credit facility and Bioriginal Canada's CAD 20 million (USD 15.6 million; EUR 13.2 million) facility will be replaced in a move that is expected to bring Omega lower aggregate revolving credit facility costs. Using borrowings from the new credit facility, Omega has also prepaid USD 8.4 million (EUR 7.3 million) in Title XI loans, with coupons ranging from 6.5 percent to 7.0 percent and maturity dates occurring through 2020.
It is anticipated that these actions will create interest expense savings of approximately USD 0.4 million (EUR .35 million) to USD 0.6 million (EUR .52 million) over the proceeding 12 months – this excluding “the impact of writing off approximately USD 0.1 million [EUR .08 million] of deferred financing costs associated with the retired Title XI debt,” Omega noted.
"This new facility lowers total financing costs and increases our financial flexibility through extended maturities and incremental available liquidity over the next several years, further strengthening our balance sheet," concluded Bret Scholtes, Omega Protein's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We remain committed to thoughtfully managing expenses while simultaneously positioning the Company to execute our strategic growth initiatives and create shareholder value."
