Murray Energy Corp., the nation’s largest private coal producer, said yesterday that it is negotiating to resolve lenders’ allegations that it breached its $450 million chapter 11 financing package, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Murray has been cut off from its bankruptcy financing after lenders alleged a series of breaches to their credit agreement, company advisers testified during a telephone hearing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Columbus, Ohio. Lenders could agree to a 30-day forbearance period, but no such agreement is guaranteed, Murray’s advisers said. Murray, founded by prominent Trump supporter Robert Murray, filed for chapter 11 protection in October. It is now looking to secure around $100 million in exit financing to fund its emergence from bankruptcy. Bankers are exploring whether Murray’s lenders would agree to roll over their existing bankruptcy loans to an exit facility. Robert Campagna, a managing director at Murray consultant Alvarez & Marsal, said that while the company is facing an “extreme cash crunch,” he is optimistic lenders will accept a forbearance agreement. Though he didn’t describe the alleged breaches in detail, Campagna said lenders claim Murray has violated a covenant related to its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The lenders include Bain Capital Credit LP, Fidelity Investments Inc. and Invesco Advisors Inc., according to court papers filed in February. St. Clairsville, Ohio-based Murray described its precarious financial position in an effort to suspend monthly payments it is making to cover retirees’ medical costs. Judge John E. Hoffman Jr., the bankruptcy judge hearing the case, granted Murray’s request, transferring these costs to government-backstopped funds that cover benefits for retired coal miners and their dependents.
