Limetree Bay Refinery proposed new deadlines for the bidding and sale of its bankrupt oil refining operations on Friday that will be heard, and likely approved, in the Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District of Texas on Wednesday, Sept. 15, StThomasSource.com reported. Under the current schedule, Limetree was to have identified a stalking horse, or low-end bidder, by Friday, and close a sale by Nov. 8. The extension of more than a month allows prospective purchasers additional time to tour the physical plant on St. Croix, Limetree lead bankruptcy counsel Elizabeth Green said. The company reported in August that it had sent almost 20 non-disclosure agreements to possible buyers. While Green couldn’t discuss specifics of who they are, her motion suggests that Limetree, if given more time, could cultivate one who could set a bottom price point for the assets to prevent others from under-bidding the purchase price. As a debtor in possession, Limetree is operating on a short financial leash with a cash loan keeping it afloat until it can realize a sale that would allow its creditors to be paid. It filed for chapter 11 protection in July after a short-lived attempt to revive the circa 1960s St. Croix refinery, previously owned by Hovensa. The company owes over $1.2 billion to secured creditors, according to recent court documents. The proposed new schedule would not require other changes to the DIP order, Green wrote.
