Horizon Lines' new $275 million credit facility will launch this Wednesday with the term loan being shopped at LIBOR plus 3% and the revolver at LIBOR plus 2 1/2%. The credit consists of a $250 million term loan and $25 million revolver. UBS and Goldman Sachs lead the deal, with ABN AMRO as documentation agent. The deal backs Castle Harlan's $650 million acquisition of Horizon from The Carlyle Group.
Carlyle bought Horizon from CSX Corp. in February 2003 for $300 million. ABN and UBS led the $200 million credit backing the acquisition (LMW, 1/26/03). The shipping company owns 16 vessels that operate under the protection of the Jones Act, which requires vessels used for cargo shipments between U.S. ports to be owned by U.S. citizens, built in U.S. shipyards and manned by U.S. citizen crews. UBS and Goldman bankers either declined comment or did not return calls. Mark Urbania, Horizon's cfo, and Marcel Fournier, a managing director at Castle Harlan, did not return calls.