Orius Corp. secured a new $145 million credit to facilitate its exit from bankruptcy, a process that allowed the provider of telecom infrastructure services to reduce its debt load by about 80%. The company had $350 million in principal value in term loans and $150 million of subordinated notes. It now has $100 million in term loans, said Robert Agres, senior v.p. and cfo of Orius. As Orius' pre-petition lender, Deutsche Bank led the exit facility.
The new credit comprises a $32 million revolver and a $13 million revolver. The two facilities are priced at LIBOR plus 4% and expire in January 2005. Currently, the revolvers remain undrawn except for letters of credit exposure, noted Agres. The new deal also provides the company with a $42.5 million term loan "A" priced at LIBOR plus 41/2% that expires in 2009 and two "B" pieces totaling $57.5 million with LIBOR plus 5% pricing and 2010 maturities. Agres said the two term loans had essentially the same provisions, but he declined to elaborate on the reason for the two separate vehicles.
The West Palm Beach, Fla.-based Orius filed for bankruptcy in November 2002 and under a prepackaged bankruptcy plan it was able to emerge in less than three months. The equity in the reorganized company was distributed such that senior lenders received a 90% stake, subordinated note holders were given a 5% stake, and 5% was retained for management. Orius is now a private company.