Hamilton, Bermuda (April 26, 2017)
Reference is made to the stock exchange announcement on February 28, 2017 (the “Release”) describing the comprehensive refinancing of Archer Limited (“Archer”), which has been further described in the Prospectus dated March 31, 2017.
Archer has now entered into agreements with Seadrill Limited (“Seadrill”) to convert approximately USD 146 million of principal and accrued interest under subordinated loan agreements and accrued guarantee fees, into a new USD 45 million subordinated convertible loan maturing in December 2021. The subordinated convertible loan will bear interest of 5.5% and have a conversion right into equity of Archer in 2021 based on a strike price of USD 2.083 per share, which is approximately 75% above the subscription price in the Private Placement. The conversion reduces Archer’s interest bearing debt by USD 80 million and other liabilities by USD 21 million.
In addition, a total of USD 253 millions of guarantees provided by Seadrill for Archer’s banks has been released. Seadrill has agreed to pay a fee amounting to 10% of the face value of the released guarantees. Archer has agreed with its banks to apply that payment to reduce its bank debt by approximately USD 25.3 million.