As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May
16, 2005
Registration
No. 333-
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form S-1
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
New York Oil ETF, LP
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
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Delaware
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6799
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20-2830691
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(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
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(Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code Number)
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(I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)
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1320 Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145
Alameda, California 94502
1.800.394.5064
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including
area code, of Registrants principal executive offices)
Nicholas D. Gerber
1320 Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145
Alameda, California 94502
1.800.394.5064
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number,
including area code, of agent for service)
Copies to:
W. Thomas Conner, Esq.
James M. Cain, Esq.
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
1275 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20004-2405
202.383.0590
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the
public:
As soon as practicable after this registration
statement becomes effective.
If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be
offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to
Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the
following
box.
þ
If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an
offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act
of 1933, check the following box and list the Securities Act
registration statement number of the earlier effective
registration statement for the same
offering.
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If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to
Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, check the
following box and list the Securities Act registration statement
number of the earlier effective registration statement for the
same offering.
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If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to
Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act of 1933, check the
following box and list the Securities Act registration statement
number of the earlier effective registration statement for the
same offering.
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If delivery of the prospectus is expected to be made pursuant to
Rule 434, please check the following box.
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
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Proposed Maximum
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Proposed Maximum
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Amount of
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Title of Each Class of
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Amount to be
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Offering
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Aggregate
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Registration
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Securities to be Registered
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Registered
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Price per Unit(1)
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Offering Price(1)
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Fee
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Units of New York Oil ETF, LP
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1,000,000 Units
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$50.45
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$50,450,000
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$5,937.97
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(1)
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Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration
fee pursuant to Rule 457(d) under the Securities Act of
1933. The price of each Unit is estimated based on the closing
price of near month Oil Futures Contracts on the New York
Mercantile Exchange of $50.45 on May 11, 2005.
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The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on
such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective
date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which
specifically states that this Registration Statement shall
thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a)
of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration
Statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities
and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said
Section 8(a), may determine.
1,000,000 Units
New York Oil ETF, LP
The New York Oil ETF, a Delaware limited partnership (the
Fund or Us) is an exchange-traded fund
that is registered as a commodity pool. The Fund issues Units
(Units) that may be purchased and sold on the [Stock
Exchange]. The investment objective of the Fund is for the
Units net asset value (NAV) to reflect the
performance of the price of light, sweet crude oil, less the
Funds expenses.
The Fund invests in futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil
that are traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Oil
Futures Contracts) and Other Oil Interests such as options
on Oil Futures Contracts, forward contracts for oil, and
over-the-counter transactions that are based on the price of
oil. The General Partner, Standard Asset Management, LLC (the
General Partner), is authorized by the Limited
Partnership (LP) Agreement to manage the Fund.
Although it is not contemplating doing so at this time, the
General Partner is authorized by the Fund, in its sole judgment,
to employ, establish the terms of employment for, and terminate
commodities trading advisors or future commissions merchants.
The General Partner believes that the Funds NAV will
closely track the price of the Oil Futures Contracts the Fund
purchases. Specifically, the General Partner will endeavor to
place the Funds trades in Oil Futures Contracts and
otherwise manage the Funds investments so that A will be
within
±
10 percent of
B, where:
A is the average daily change in the Funds NAV for any
period of 30 successive Valuation Days (any day as of which the
Fund calculates its NAV), and
B is the average daily change in the price of Oil Futures
Contract over the same period. For purposes of this calculation
only, Oil Futures Contract means the near-month Oil
Futures Contract, except that on each Valuation Day within the
two week period preceding a monthly expiration date, Oil
Futures Contract means the one month out Oil Futures
Contract.
The General Partner also believes that market arbitrage
opportunities will cause the Funds Unit price on the Stock
Exchange to closely track the Funds NAV and that the price
of Oil Futures Contracts has historically closely tracked the
spot price of light, sweet crude oil. The General Partner
believes that the net effect of these expected
interrelationships will be that the price of the Funds
Units on the Stock Exchange will closely track the spot price of
a barrel of light, sweet crude oil, less the Funds
expenses.
This is a best efforts offering. The Fund is offering Creation
Baskets consisting of 100,000 Units through
[name of
Distributor]
(Distributor), as distributor, to
Authorized Purchasers. [Name of initial authorized purchaser] is
expected to be the Initial Authorized Purchaser. The Initial
Authorized Purchaser has agreed, subject to conditions, to
purchase the initial Creation Basket of 100,000 Units at an
initial offering price per unit equal to the opening price of
near-month Oil Futures Contracts as traded and reported on the
New York Mercantile Exchange on the first day of the offering.
Authorized Purchasers will pay a $1,000 fee for the creation of
each Creation Basket. The per unit price of Units offered in
creation baskets on any subsequent day will be the total NAV of
the Fund calculated on that day divided by the number of issued
and outstanding Units. Distributor is not required to sell any
specific number or dollar amount of Units, but will use its best
efforts to sell the Units offered.
Investing in the Fund involves significant risks. See
What are the Risk Factors Involved With An Investment In
the Fund? starting on page 5.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC) nor any state securities commission has
approved or disapproved of the securities offered in this
prospectus, or determined if this prospectus is truthful or
complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal
offense.
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Per Unit
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Per Basket
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Initial Public Offering Price for the Initial Baskets
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$
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$
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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be
changed. These securities may not be sold until the registration
statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is
effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these
securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these
securities in any jurisdiction where the offer is not permitted.
This prospectus contains information you should consider when
making an investment decision about the Units. You may rely on
the information contained in this prospectus. Neither the Fund
nor its General Partner have authorized any person to provide
you with different information and, if anyone provides you with
different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on
it. This prospectus is not an offer to sell the Units in any
jurisdiction where the offer or sale of the Units is not
permitted.
The information contained in this prospectus was obtained from
us and other sources believed by us to be reliable. This
prospectus also incorporates important business and financial
information about us that is not included in or delivered with
this prospectus.
You should rely only on the information contained in this
prospectus or any applicable prospectus supplement and any
information incorporated by reference in this prospectus or any
applicable prospectus supplement. We have not authorized anyone
to provide you with any information that is different. If you
receive any unauthorized information, you must not rely on it.
You should disregard anything we said in an earlier document
that is inconsistent with what is included in or incorporated by
reference in this prospectus or any applicable prospectus
supplement. Where the context requires, when we refer to this
prospectus, we are referring to this prospectus and
(if applicable) the relevant prospectus supplement.
You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or
any applicable prospectus supplement is current as of any date
other than the date on the front page of this prospectus or the
date on the front page of any applicable prospectus supplement.
We include cross references in this prospectus to captions in
these materials where you can find further related discussions.
The table of contents tells you where to find these captions.
The date of this prospectus
is ,
2005.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
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ii
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Glossary of Defined Terms
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iv
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Prospectus Summary
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1
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Overview of the Fund
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1
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The Funds Investments
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2
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Principal Investment Risks of an Investment in the Fund
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2
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Principal Offices of the Fund
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4
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Financial Condition of the Fund
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4
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Breakeven Analysis
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What are the Risk Factors Involved with an Investment in the
Fund?
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5
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Risk of Investing in Oil, Oil Futures Contracts or Other Oil
Interests
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5
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Risk of Leverage and Volatility
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5
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Risk That the Funds Investment Strategy Will Not Be
Effective
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6
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Risks of Investing in Commodity Futures Contracts
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8
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Risks of Investing in Instruments Based on the Price of Crude Oil
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8
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Risks of Hedging Activities
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9
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Risk of Trading in International Markets
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9
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Counterparty Risk
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10
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Operating Risks
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10
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Tax Risk
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15
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THE OFFERING
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What is the Fund?
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16
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Who is the General Partner?
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17
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How Does the Fund Operate?
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Trading Policies of the Fund
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19
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What are Oil Futures Contracts?
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21
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What is the Crude Oil Market?
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22
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How Will the Fund Purchase and Sell Oil Futures Contracts?
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22
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What is the Funds Plan of Distribution?
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22
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Use of Proceeds
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24
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STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
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24
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The Commodity Interest Markets
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24
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Potential Advantages of Investment
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33
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Historical Information on Crude Oil
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33
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Overview of Petroleum Industry
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35
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Overview of Crude Oil
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35
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Crude Oil Regulation
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44
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Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations
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46
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Limited Partnership Agreement
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46
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Expenses
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48
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The General Partner Has Conflicts of Interest
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48
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The General Partners Fiduciary Responsibility and Remedies
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49
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Liability and Indemnification
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49
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Provisions of Law
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49
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Unit Splits
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50
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Books and Records
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50
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Analysis of Critical Accounting Policies
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50
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Statements, Filings, and Reports
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51
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Fiscal Year
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51
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Legal Matters
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51
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Privacy Policy
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52
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Federal Income Tax Considerations
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52
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Report of the Independent Auditors
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64
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Where You Can Find More Information
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65
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PART II
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II-1
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Item 13. Other Expenses of Issuance and
Distribution
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II-1
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Item 14. Indemnification of Directors and
Officers
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II-1
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Item 15. Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
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II-1
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Item 16. Exhibits and Financial Statement
Schedules
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II-2
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Item 17. Undertakings
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II-2
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SIGNATURES
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II-4
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EXHIBIT INDEX
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Until ,
2005 (25 days after the date of this prospectus), all
dealers effecting transactions in the offered Units, whether or
not participating in this distribution, may be required to
deliver a prospectus. This requirement is in addition to the
obligations of dealers to deliver a prospectus when acting as
underwriters and with respect to unsold allotments or
subscriptions.
Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This prospectus includes forward-looking statements
which generally relate to future events or future performance.
In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by
terminology such as may, will,
should, expect, plan,
anticipate, believe,
estimate, predict, potential
or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.
All statements (other than statements of historical fact)
included in this prospectus that address activities, events or
developments that will or may occur in the future, including
such matters as changes in inflation in the United States (the
U.S.), movements in the stock market, movements in
the U.S. and foreign currencies, and movements in the
commodities markets and indexes that track such movements, the
Funds operations, the General Partners plans and
references to the Funds future success and other similar
matters, are forward-looking statements. These statements are
only predictions. Actual events or results may differ
materially. These statements are based upon certain assumptions
and analyses the General Partner has made based on its
perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected
future developments, as well as other factors appropriate in the
circumstances. Whether or not actual results and developments
will conform to the General Partners expectations and
predictions, however, is subject to a number of risks and
uncertainties, including the special considerations discussed in
this prospectus, general economic, market and business
conditions, changes in laws or regulations, including those
concerning taxes, made by governmental authorities or regulatory
bodies, and other world economic and political developments. See
What are the Risk Factors Involved With An Investment In
the Fund? Consequently, all the forward-looking statements
made in this prospectus are qualified by these cautionary
statements, and there can be no assurance that the actual
results or developments the General Partner anticipates will be
realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will
result in the expected consequences to, or have the expected
effects on, the Funds operations or the value of the
Units. Moreover, neither the General Partner nor any other
person assumes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness
of the forward-looking statements. Neither the Fund nor the
General Partner is under a duty to update any of the
forward-looking statements to conform such statements to actual
results or to reflect a change in the General Partners
expectations or predictions.
Patent Application Pending
A patent application directed to the creation and operation of
the Fund is pending at the United States Patent and Trademark
Office.
ii
COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION
RISK DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
YOU SHOULD CAREFULLY CONSIDER WHETHER YOUR FINANCIAL
CONDITION PERMITS YOU TO PARTICIPATE IN A COMMODITY POOL. IN SO
DOING, YOU SHOULD BE AWARE THAT FUTURES AND OPTIONS TRADING CAN
QUICKLY LEAD TO LARGE LOSSES AS WELL AS GAINS. LARGE TRADING
LOSSES CAN SHARPLY REDUCE THE NET ASSET VALUE OF THE POOL AND
CONSEQUENTLY THE VALUE OF YOUR INTEREST IN THE POOL. IN
ADDITION, RESTRICTIONS ON REDEMPTIONS MAY AFFECT YOUR ABILITY TO
WITHDRAW YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE POOL.
FURTHER, COMMODITY POOLS MAY BE SUBJECT TO SUBSTANTIAL
CHARGES FOR MANAGEMENT, ADVISORY AND BROKERAGE FEES. IT MAY BE
NECESSARY FOR THOSE POOLS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO THESE CHARGES TO
MAKE SUBSTANTIAL TRADING PROFITS TO AVOID DEPLETION OR
EXHAUSTION OF THEIR ASSETS. THIS PROSPECTUS CONTAINS A COMPLETE
DESCRIPTION OF EACH EXPENSE TO BE CHARGED THIS POOL BEGINNING ON
PAGES [72 AND 73] AND A STATEMENT OF THE PERCENTAGE RETURN
NECESSARY TO BREAK EVEN, THAT IS, TO RECOVER THE AMOUNT OF YOUR
INITIAL INVESTMENT, ON PAGE [15].
THIS BRIEF STATEMENT CANNOT DISCLOSE ALL THE RISKS AND OTHER
FACTORS NECESSARY TO EVALUATE YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THIS
COMMODITY POOL. THEREFORE, BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO PARTICIPATE IN
THIS COMMODITY POOL, YOU SHOULD CAREFULLY STUDY THIS PROSPECTUS,
INCLUDING THE DESCRIPTION OF THE PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS OF THIS
INVESTMENT, BEGINNING ON PAGE .
YOU SHOULD ALSO BE AWARE THAT THIS COMMODITY POOL MAY TRADE
FOREIGN FUTURES OR OPTIONS CONTRACTS. TRANSACTIONS ON MARKETS
LOCATED OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES, INCLUDING MARKETS FORMALLY
LINKED TO A UNITED STATES MARKET, MAY BE SUBJECT TO REGULATIONS
WHICH OFFER DIFFERENT OR DIMINISHED PROTECTION TO THE POOL AND
ITS PARTICIPANTS. FURTHER, UNITED STATES REGULATORY AUTHORITIES
MAY BE UNABLE TO COMPEL THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE RULES OF
REGULATORY AUTHORITIES OR MARKETS IN NON-UNITED STATES
JURISDICTIONS WHERE TRANSACTIONS FOR THE POOL MAY BE
EFFECTED.
iii
Glossary of Defined Terms
In this prospectus, each of the following terms have the
meanings set forth after such term:
Authorized Purchaser:
A market maker that purchases or
redeems creation baskets or redemption baskets, respectively,
from or to the Fund.
Book Entry System:
The Federal Reserve Treasury Book
Entry System for United States and federal agency securities.
CFTC:
Commodities Futures Trading Commission, an
independent agency with the mandate to regulate commodities
futures and options in the United States.
Commodity Pool:
An enterprise in which several
individuals contribute funds in order to trade futures or future
options collectively.
Commodity Pool Operator:
Any person engaged in a business
which is of the nature of an investment trust, syndicate, or
similar for of enterprise, and who, in connection therewith,
solicits, accepts, or receives from others, funds, securities,
or property, either directly or through capital contributions,
the sale of stock or other forms of securities, or otherwise,
for the purpose of trading in any commodity for future delivery
or commodity option on or subject to the rules of any contract
market.
Creation Basket:
A block of 100,000 units used by
the Fund to issue Units.
DTC:
The Depository Trust Company. It is anticipated that
DTC will act as the securities depository for the Units.
Fund:
The New York Oil ETF, LP.
General Partner:
Standard Asset Management, LLC, a
Delaware limited liability company, which is expected to be
registered as a Commodity Pool Operator, who controls the
investments and other decisions of the Fund.
Investor:
Beneficial owner of the Units.
IOPV:
Indicative Optimized Portfolio Value. The IOPV is
designed to give investors a sense of the value of Oil Futures
Contracts.
Limited Liability Company (LLC):
A type of business
ownership combining several features of corporation and
partnership structures.
LP Agreement:
Form of the First Amended and Restated
Limited Partnership Agreement.
Margin:
The amount of equity required for an investment
in Oil Futures Contracts.
NASAA:
North American Securities Administration
Association, Inc.
NAV:
Net Asset Value of the Fund.
NSCC:
National Securities Clearing Corporation.
NYMEX:
New York Mercantile Exchange.
Oil Forward Contract:
A supply contract between
principals, not traded on an exchange, to buy or sell a
specified quantity of light, sweet crude oil at or before a
specified date at a specified price.
Oil Futures Contract:
A standardized contract traded on
the NYMEX that calls for the future delivery of a specified
quantity at a specified time and place.
Oil Interests:
Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil
Interests.
Other Oil Interests:
Oil-related investments other than
Oil Futures Contracts and includes options and over-the-counter
contracts such as forward contracts, swap contracts, and spot
contracts.
iv
Option:
The right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell
a futures contract or forward contract at a specified price on
or before a specified date.
Over-the-Counter Derivative:
A financial contract, whose
value is designed to track the return on stocks, bonds,
currencies, commodities, or some other benchmark, that is traded
over-the-counter or off organized exchanges.
Redemption Basket:
A large block used by the Fund to
redeem Units.
SEC:
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Secondary Market:
The stock exchanges and the
over-the-counter market. Securities are first issued as a
primary offering to the public. When the securities are traded
from that first holder to another, the issues trade in these
secondary markets.
Units:
Unit of fractional undivided beneficial interest
in and ownership of the Fund.
Spot contract:
A cash market transaction in which the
buyer and seller agree to the immediate purchase and sale of a
commodity, usually with a two-day settlement.
Swap contract:
An over-the-counter derivative that
generally involves an exchange of a stream of payments between
the contracting parties based on a notional amount and a
specified index.
Treasuries:
Short-term securities issued by the
U.S. Treasury.
Valuation Day:
Any day as of which the Fund calculates
its NAV.
You:
The owner of Units.
v
Prospectus Summary
This is only a summary of the prospectus and, while it
contains material information about the Fund and its Units, it
does not contain or summarize all of the information about the
Fund and the Units contained in this prospectus that is material
and/or which may be important to you. You should read this
entire prospectus, including What are the Risk Factors
Involved with an Investment in the Fund? beginning on
page , before making an
investment decision about the Units.
Overview of the Fund
The New York Oil ETF, a Delaware limited partnership (the
Fund or Us), is an exchange-traded fund.
The Fund issues units (Units) that may be purchased
and sold on the [Stock Exchange]. The investment objective of
the Fund is for the Units net asset value (NAV) to
reflect the performance of the price of light, sweet crude oil,
less the Funds expenses.
The Fund invests in futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil
that are traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Oil
Futures Contracts) and Other Oil Interests such as options
on Oil Futures Contracts, forward contracts for oil, and
over-the-counter transactions that are based on the price of
oil. The General Partner which is in the process of registering
as a commodity pool operator, is authorized by the LP Agreement
to manage the Fund. Although it is not contemplating doing so at
this time, the General Partner is authorized by the Fund in its
sole judgment, to employ, establish the terms of employment for,
and terminate commodities trading advisors or future commissions
merchants.
The General Partner believes that the Funds NAV will
closely track the price of the Oil Futures Contracts the Fund
invests in. Specifically, the General Partner will endeavor to
place the Funds trades in Oil Futures Contracts and
otherwise manage the Funds investments so that A will be
within
±
10 percent of
B, where:
A is the average daily change in the Funds NAV for any
period of 30 successive Valuation Days (any day as of which the
Fund calculates its NAV), and
B is the average daily change in the price of Oil Futures
Contract over the same period. For purposes of this calculation
only, Oil Futures Contract means the near-month Oil
Futures Contract, except that on each Valuation Day within the
two week period preceding a monthly expiration date, Oil
Futures Contract means the one month out Oil Futures
Contract.
The General Partner also believes that market arbitrage
opportunities will cause the Funds Unit price on the Stock
Exchange to closely track the Funds NAV and that the price
of Oil Futures Contracts has historically closely tracked the
spot price of light, sweet crude oil. The General Partner
believes that the net effect of these expected
interrelationships will be that the price of the Funds
Units on the Stock Exchange will closely track the spot price of
a barrel of light, sweet crude oil, less the Funds
expenses.
The General Partner employs a neutral investment
strategy intended to track the price of light, sweet crude oil
regardless of whether the price of oil goes up or goes down. The
Funds neutral investment objective is designed
to permit investors generally to purchase and sell the
Funds Units for the purpose of investing indirectly in oil
in a cost-effective manner, and/or to permit participants in the
oil or other industries to hedge the risk of losses in their
oil-related transactions. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund
involves the risk that the price of the Funds Units will
not accurately track the price of light, sweet oil and,
depending on the investment objective of an individual investor,
the risks generally associated with investing in oil and/or the
risks involved in hedging.
The Fund issues and redeems Units only in blocks called Creation
Baskets and Redemption Baskets, respectively. Units may
also be purchased and sold in smaller increments on the [Stock
Exchange]. However, these transactions are not made at the NAV
of the Funds Units, but at market prices that may vary
throughout the day and may differ from the Funds NAV. Like
any listed security, exchange-traded Units of the Fund can be
purchased and sold at any time a secondary market is open.
1
Note to Secondary Market Investors:
The Units can be
purchased or redeemed directly from the Fund only in Creation
Baskets or Redemption Baskets, respectively. Each Creation
Basket and Redemption Basket consists of 100,000 Units and
is expected to be worth several million dollars. Most individual
investors, therefore, will not be able to purchase or redeem
Units directly from the Fund. Some of the information contained
in this prospectus, including information about buying and
selling Units directly from and to the Fund is not relevant to
most investors. Units are also listed and traded on the [Stock
Exchange] and may be purchased and sold as individual Units.
Individuals interested in purchasing Units in the secondary
market should contact their broker. Units purchased or sold
through a broker may be subject to commissions.
Except when aggregated in redemption Baskets, Units are
not redeemable securities. There is no guarantee that Units will
trade at or near NAV.
The Fund was organized as a limited partnership (LP) under
Delaware law on May 12, 2005. The Fund is operated pursuant
to an LP Agreement, which is included as
Exhibit . It is managed and
controlled by the General Partner, Standard Asset Management,
LLC. The General Partner is expected to be registered as a
commodities pool operator (CPO) with the National Futures
Association (NFA).
The Funds Investments
The Fund invests primarily in Oil Futures Contracts, which are
futures contracts for light, sweet crude oil traded on the
NYMEX. The Fund may also invest in U.S. and international
futures and forward contracts and other interests light, sweet
crude oil, including options on futures contracts, forward
contracts for oil, spot contracts, and swap contracts. A brief
description of the types of instruments in which the Fund may
invest is set forth below.
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The Oil Futures Contract is a standardized contract traded on
the NYMEX that calls for the future delivery of a specified
quantity of light, sweet crude oil at a specified time and place.
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A forward contract for oil is supply contract between
principals, not traded on an exchange, to buy or sell a
specified quantity of oil at or before a specified date at a
specified price.
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An option on an oil futures contract, forward contract or oil on
the spot market gives the buyer of the option the right, but not
the obligation, to buy or sell a futures contract, forward
contract or oil, as applicable, at a specified price on or
before a specified date. Options on futures contracts are
standardized contracts traded on an exchange, while options on
forward contracts and commodities, referred to collectively in
this prospectus as over-the-counter options, generally are
individually negotiated, principal-to-principal contracts not
traded on an exchange.
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A spot contract is a cash market transaction in which the buyer
and seller agree to the immediate purchase and sale of oil,
usually with a two-day settlement. Spot contracts are not
uniform and are not exchange- traded.
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A swap contract is an over-the-counter negotiated contract that
generally involves an exchange of a stream of payments between
the contracting parties. Swap contracts generally are not
uniform and not exchange-traded.
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For convenience and unless otherwise specified, futures
contracts, forward contracts, options contracts and Other Oil
Interests collectively are referred to as Oil
Interests in this prospectus.
A more detailed description of futures contracts, forward
contracts, options contracts, other oil interest contracts and
other aspects of the oil and oil interest markets can be found
on page .
Principal Investment Risks of an Investment in the Fund
An investment in the Fund involves a degree of risk. Some of the
risks you may face are summarized below. A more extensive
discussion of these risks appears beginning on
page .
2
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There is the risk that the price of the Funds Units will
not closely track the spot price of oil. This could happen if
the price of Units traded on the Exchange does not correlate
closely with the Funds NAV; the Funds NAV does not
closely correlate with the price of Oil Futures Contracts; or
the price of the Oil Futures Contracts purchased and sold by the
Fund, which is expected to be primarily be near-month contracts,
does not closely correlate with the cash or spot price of light,
sweet crude oil. Although the General Partner expects these
correlations to exist, there is no guarantee they will.
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Although the General Partner believes that the Funds
investment strategy of investing in Oil Futures Contracts will
cause the Funds NAV to accurately and consistently track
the performance of the price of light, sweet crude oil, there is
no guarantee that this investment strategy will be effective.
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The Fund seeks to have its NAV track the price of light, sweet
crude oil rather than profit from speculative trading of Oil
Futures Contracts or Other Oil Interests based on the price of
oil. The General Partner will therefore endeavor to manage the
Funds positions in Oil Futures Contracts so that the
Funds assets are, unlike other commodities pools, not
leveraged (
i.e.,
the aggregate value of the contracts
does not exceed the Funds assets). There is no assurance
that the General Partner will successfully implement this
investment strategy. If the General Partner permits the Fund to
become leveraged, you could lose all or substantially all of
your investment if the Funds trading positions suddenly
turn unprofitable. These movements in price may be the result of
factors outside of the General Partners control and may
not be anticipated by the General Partner.
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The Fund trades in Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil
Interests, which, unlike typical stock or bond investing, is a
zero-sum economic activity in which, for every gain, there is an
equal and offsetting loss. As a result, the Fund bears the risk
on every trade it makes that it will be the party that incurs a
loss. If the Fund experiences more losses than gains during the
period you hold Units of the Fund, you will experience a loss
even if the Funds long-term performance is positive.
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Investors may choose to use the Fund as a means of investing
directly or indirectly in oil or Oil Interests and there are
risks involved in such investments. Among other things, the
crude oil industry experiences numerous operating risks. These
operating risks include the risk of fire, explosions, blow-outs,
pipe failure, abnormally pressured formations and environmental
hazards. Environmental hazards include oil spills, natural gas
leaks, ruptures or discharges of toxic gases. Crude oil
operations also are subject to various U.S. federal, state
and local regulations that materially affect operations.
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Investors, including those who participate in the oil industry,
may choose to use the Fund as a vehicle to hedge against the
risk of loss and there are risks involved in hedging activities.
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The General Partner expects to invest primarily in Oil Futures
Contracts, which are traded in the U.S. on the NYMEX.
However, it is conceivable that a portion of the Funds
trades may take place in markets and on exchanges outside the
United States. Some non-U.S. markets present risks because
they are not subject to the same degree of regulation as their
U.S. counterparts. In some of these non-U.S. markets,
the performance on a contract is the responsibility of the
counterparty and is not backed by an exchange or clearing
corporation and therefore exposes the Fund to credit risk.
Trading in non-U.S. markets also leaves the Fund
susceptible to fluctuations in the value of the local currency
against the U.S. dollar.
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The Fund pays fees and expenses that are incurred regardless of
whether it is profitable.
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You will have no rights to participate in the management of the
Fund and will have to rely on the fiduciary duty and judgment of
the General Partner to manage the Fund.
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The structure and operation of the Fund may involve conflicts of
interest.
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3
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The Fund is new and has no operating history. Therefore, there
is no performance history of this Fund to serve as a basis for
you to evaluate an investment in the Fund. Neither the General
Partner nor its staff has recently operated a commodity pool.
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For additional risks, see What are the Risk Factors
Involved with an Investment in the Fund?
Principal Offices of the Fund
The Funds principal office is located at 1320 Harbor Bay
Parkway, Suite 145 Alameda, California 94502. The principal
telephone number is 1.800.394.5064.
Financial Condition of the Fund
As of the opening of business
on ,
2005, the NAV of the Fund was
$ and
the NAV per Unit was
$ .
Breakeven Analysis
The breakeven analysis below indicates the approximate dollar
returns and percentage required for the redemption value of a
hypothetical $10,000 initial investment in Units to equal the
amount invested twelve months after the investment was made. The
breakeven analysis is an approximation only.
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Units
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Assumed initial selling price per Unit
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$
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50
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Management Fee (0.40%)*
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$
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0.20
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Amount of trading income required for the redemption value at
the end of one year to equal the initial selling price of the
Unit
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$
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0.20
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Percentage of initial selling price per Unit
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0.40
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%
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*
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The management fee is 0.40% of NAV for the first $1,000,000,000
of assets and 0.20% of NAV thereafter. For purposes of this
analysis, we assumed that assets were equal to $1,000,000,000.
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4
What are the Risk Factors Involved with an Investment in the
Fund?
You should consider carefully the risks described below
before making an investment decision. You should also refer to
the other information included in this prospectus, including the
Funds financial statements and the related notes.
Risk of Investing in Oil, Oil Futures Contracts or Other Oil
Interests
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Oil, Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests are
non-correlative investments and the values of oil
which underlies Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests
are subject to additional variables that may be less significant
to the values of traditional securities such as stocks and
bonds.
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Variables such as drought, floods, weather, embargoes and
tariffs may have a larger impact on oil prices and oil-linked
instruments, including Futures Contracts and Other Oil
Interests, than on traditional securities. These additional
variables may create additional investment risks that subject
the Funds investments to greater volatility than
investments in traditional securities.
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There are costs of physical storage associated with
purchasing oil.
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Storage costs include the time value of money invested in oil as
a physical commodity plus the actual costs of storing the oil
less any benefits from ownership of oil that are not obtained by
the holder of a futures contract. To the extent that these
storage costs change for oil while the Fund is long Oil Futures
Contracts, the value of the Oil Futures Contracts, and therefore
the Funds NAV, may change as well.
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Regulation of the commodity interests markets is extensive
and constantly changing; future regulatory developments are
impossible to predict but may significantly and adversely affect
the Fund.
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Futures contracts and options on futures contracts markets are
subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin
requirements. Recent legislation has created a new multi-tiered
structure of exchanges in the United States subject to varying
degrees of regulation, and rules and interpretations regarding
various aspects of this new regulatory structure have only
recently been proposed or finalized. Traditional futures
exchanges, which are now called designated contract markets, are
now subject to more streamlined and flexible core principles
rather than the prior statutory and regulatory mandates.
However, with respect to these traditional futures exchanges,
the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the
exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the
event of a market emergency, including, for example, the
retroactive implementation of speculative position limits or
higher margin requirements, the establishment of daily limits
and the suspension of trading. The regulation of commodity
interest transactions in the United States is a rapidly changing
area of law and is subject to ongoing modification by government
and judicial action. In addition, various national governments
have expressed concern regarding the disruptive effects of
speculative trading in the currency markets and the need to
regulate the derivatives markets in general. The effect of any
future regulatory change on the Fund is impossible to predict,
but could be substantial and adverse.
Risk of Leverage and Volatility
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Although commodity pools, in general, are subject to
leverage and volatility risks, the General Partner seeks to
avoid these risks by endeavoring to limit the Funds
positions so that the aggregate value of investments in Oil
Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests does not exceed the
Funds assets. There is no assurance the General Partner
will successfully limit the Funds investments.
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Commodity pools trading positions in futures contracts or
other commodity interests are typically required to be secured
by the deposit of margin funds that represent only a small
percentage of a futures contracts entire face value. This
feature of futures contract trading permits commodity pools to
leverage their assets by purchasing or selling
futures contracts (or other commodity interests) with an
aggregate value in excess of the commodity pools assets.
While this leverage can increase the pools profits,
5
relatively small adverse movements in the price of the
pools futures contracts can cause significant losses to
the pool.
The Fund, on the other hand, seeks only to have the price of its
Units track the price of oil regardless of whether the price
increases or decreases rather than attempting to profit from
speculative trading of Oil Futures Contracts. The General
Partner will therefore endeavor to limit the Funds
positions in Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests so
that the aggregate value of the contracts does not exceed the
Funds assets. There is no assurance that the General
Partner will successfully implement this investment strategy. If
the General Partner permits the Fund to become leveraged, you
could lose all or substantially all of your investment if the
Funds trading positions suddenly turn unprofitable. These
movements in price may be the result of factors outside of the
General Partners control and may not be anticipated by the
General Partner. For example, price movements for barrels of oil
are influenced by, among other things:
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changes in interest rates;
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governmental, agricultural, trade, fiscal, monetary and exchange
control programs and policies;
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weather and climate conditions;
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changing supply and demand relationships;
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changes in balances of payments and trade;
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U.S. and international rates of inflation;
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currency devaluations and revaluations;
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U.S. and international political and economic events; and
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changes in philosophies and emotions of market participants.
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Risk That the Funds Investment Strategy Will Not Be
Effective
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There is a risk that the Funds Units may trade at
prices other than the Funds NAV per Unit.
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The trading prices of Units will fluctuate in accordance with
changes in the Funds NAV as well as market supply and
demand. The General Partner believes, however, that the inherent
pressures of arbitrageurs having the opportunity to create and
redeem the Funds Units at NAV in Creation Baskets or
Redemption Baskets, respectively (unlike the shares of many
closed-end funds, which frequently trade at appreciable
discounts from, and sometimes premiums to, their NAVs), will
result in large discounts or premiums to NAV existing only for
short periods of time, if at all, with the price of the Units on
the [Stock Exchange] generally being within one to two percent
of the NAV of the Units of the Fund. However, there is a risk
that there may be a wider fluctuation. There is no guarantee
that large discounts or premiums will not occur for extended
periods of time.
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There is a risk that the Funds NAV will not
correlate to the price of Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil
Interests.
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The General Partner will endeavor to invest the Funds
assets as fully as possible in short-term Oil Futures Contracts.
The General Partner believes that, if the Funds assets are
so invested, the Funds NAV will closely correlate with the
price of short-term Oil Futures Contracts. However, there is no
guarantee that this correlation will occur.
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There is a risk that the Oil Futures Contracts and Other
Oil Interests held by the Fund will not correlate to the price
of light, sweet, crude oil.
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When using Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests as a
strategy to track the performance of light, sweet crude oil on
the spot market, at best the correlation between changes in
prices of the Oil Futures Contracts and the price of oil can be
only approximate. The degree of imperfection of correlation
depends upon circumstances such as variations in the speculative
oil market, supply of and demand for Oil
6
Futures Contracts, and technical influences in oil futures
trading. In addition, because the Fund incurs fees and charges
and some liquidity for redemptions may be necessary on an
ongoing basis, the General Partner will not typically be able to
fully invest the Funds assets in Oil Futures Contracts or
Other Oil Interests and there cannot be perfect correlation
between the Funds net asset value and the Oil Futures
Contracts. The General Partner will endeavor to place the
Funds trades in Oil Futures Contracts and otherwise manage
the Funds investments so that the average daily change in
the Funds NAV will correlate closely with the average
daily change in the price of certain short-term Oil Futures
Contracts (See
,
page .) There is no guarantee
that this investment strategy will be successful, or that even
if the strategy is successful, the price of the Funds
Units will accurately and consistently track the underlying
price of light, sweet crude oil.
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There may be a gain or loss on purchases and sales of
short-term securities
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When the Fund purchases an Oil Futures Contract, the Fund is
required to deposit with the selling Futures Commodity Merchant
(FCM) only a portion of the value of the contract. This
deposit is known as variation margin. The Fund
invests assets equal to the difference between the deposit
margin and the value of the futures contract in short-term
securities (Treasuries). The value of Treasuries
generally moves inversely with movements in interest rates. If
the Fund is required to sell Treasuries before they mature when
the value of the Treasuries has declined, the Fund will
experience a loss. This loss may adversely impact the price of
the Units and may decrease the correlation between the price of
the Units, the price of the Funds Oil Futures Contracts,
and the price of oil.
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Certain of the Funds investments could be
illiquid.
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The Fund may not always be able to liquidate its positions at
the desired price. It is difficult to execute a trade at a
specific price when there is a relatively small volume of buy
and sell orders in a market. A market disruption, such as a
foreign government taking political actions that disrupt the
market in its currency or in a major export, can also make it
difficult to liquidate a position. Alternatively, limits imposed
by futures exchanges or other regulatory organizations, such as
speculative position limits and daily price fluctuation limits,
may contribute to a lack of liquidity with respect to some
commodity interests.
Unexpected market illiquidity may cause major losses to
investors at any time or from time to time. The large face value
of the positions that the General Partner will acquire for the
Fund increases the risk of illiquidity by both making its
positions more difficult to liquidate at favorable prices and
increasing the losses incurred while trying to do so.
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An investment in the Fund may not diversify an overall
portfolio.
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Historically, Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil Interests have
generally been non-correlated to the performance of other asset
classes such as stocks and bonds. Non-correlation means that
there is a low statistically valid relationship between the
performance of futures and other commodity interest
transactions, on the one hand, and stocks or bonds, on the other
hand. Non-correlation should not be confused with negative
correlation, where the performance of two asset classes would be
opposite of each other. Because of this non-correlation, the
Fund cannot be expected to be automatically profitable during
unfavorable periods for the stock market, or vice versa. If,
however, during a particular period of time, the Funds
performance moves in the same general direction as the financial
markets or the Fund does not perform successfully, you will
obtain little or no diversification benefits during that period
from an investment in the Units. In such a case, the Fund may
have no gains to offset your losses from other investments, and
you may suffer losses on your investment in the Fund at the same
time losses on your other investments are increasing.
7
Risks of Investing in Commodity Futures Contracts
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Trading in commodity interests is a zero sum economic
activity, unlike stocks and bonds.
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The Fund invests in commodity interests, which, unlike typical
stock or bond investing, is a zero-sum economic activity in
which, for every gain, there is an equal and offsetting loss. As
a result, the Fund bears the risk on every trade it makes that
it will be the party that incurs a loss. If the Fund experiences
more losses than gains during the period you hold Units of the
Fund, you will experience a loss even if the Funds
longer-term performance is positive.
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The changing nature of the hedgers and speculators in the
commodity markets will influence whether futures prices are
above or below the expected future spot price.
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In order to induce speculators to take the corresponding long
side of the same futures contract, commodity producers must be
willing to sell futures contracts at prices that are below
expected future spot prices. Conversely, if the predominate
hedgers in the futures market are the purchasers of the
underlying commodity who purchase futures contracts to hedge
against a rise in prices, then speculators will only take the
short side of the futures contract if the futures price is
greater than the expected future spot price of the commodity.
This can have significant implications for the Fund when it is
time to reinvest the proceeds from a maturing futures contract
into a new futures contract. If the nature of hedgers and
speculators in futures markets has shifted such that commodity
purchasers are the predominate hedgers in the market, the Fund
might reinvest at higher futures prices or choose Other Oil
Interests.
Risks of Investing in Instruments Based on the Price of Crude
Oil
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Some investors will choose to purchase and sell the
Funds Units for the purpose of investing indirectly in oil
in a cost-effective manner; however, there are risks related to
investing in oil.
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Crude oil drilling and production activities are subject to
numerous risks. These risks include the following:
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that no commercially productive crude oil or natural gas
reservoirs will be found;
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that crude oil and natural gas drilling and production
activities may be shortened, delayed or canceled; and
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that the ability to develop, produce and market the Funds
reserves may be limited by:
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title problems,
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weather conditions,
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compliance with governmental requirements, and
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mechanical difficulties or shortages or delays in the delivery
of drilling rigs and other equipment.
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The crude oil industry experiences numerous operating risks.
These operating risks include the risk of fire, explosions,
blow-outs, pipe failure, abnormally pressured formations and
environmental hazards. Environmental hazards include oil spills,
natural gas leaks, ruptures or discharges of toxic gases.
Crude oil operations also are subject to various
U.S. federal, state and local regulations that materially
affect operations. Matters regulated include discharge permits
for drilling operations, drilling and abandonment bonds, reports
concerning operations, the spacing of wells and Unitization and
pooling of properties and taxation. At various times, regulatory
agencies have imposed price controls and limitations on
production. In order to conserve supplies of crude oil and
natural gas, these agencies have restricted the rates of flow of
crude oil and natural gas wells below actual production
capacity. Federal, state, and local laws regulate production,
handling, storage, transportation and disposal of crude oil and
natural gas, by-products from crude oil and natural gas and
other substances and materials produced or used in connection
with crude oil and natural gas operations.
8
Risks of Hedging Activities
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While the Fund will not engage in hedging activities, some
investors who participate in the oil or other industries may
choose to use the Fund as a vehicle to hedge against the risk of
loss.
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While the Fund will not engage in hedging strategies,
participants in the oil or other industries may use the Fund as
a vehicle to hedge the risk of losses in their oil-related
transactions. There are several risks in connection with the
using the Fund as a hedging device. While hedging can provide
protection against an adverse movement in market prices, it can
also preclude a hedgers opportunity to benefit from a
favorable market movement. The successful use of a hedging
device depends on the ability of the investor to forecast
correctly the direction and extent of market movements within a
given time frame. To the extent market prices remain stable or
such prices move in a direction opposite to that anticipated,
the investor may realize a loss on the hedging transaction that
is not offset by an increase in the value of its securities.
In addition, when using futures contracts as a hedging
technique, at best, the correlation between changes in prices of
futures contracts and of the instruments or securities being
hedged can be only approximate. The degree of imperfection of
correlation depends upon circumstances such as: variations in
speculative markets, demand for futures and for securities,
technical influences in futures trading, and differences between
the financial instruments being hedged and the instruments
underlying the standard futures contracts available for trading.
Even a well-conceived hedge may be unsuccessful to some degree
because of unexpected market behavior or stock market or
interest rate trends as well as the expenses associated with
creating the hedge.
Risk of Trading in International Markets
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Trading in international markets would expose the Fund to
credit and regulatory risk.
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The General Partner expects to invest primarily in Oil Futures
Contracts, which are traded in the U.S. on the NYMEX.
However, a portion of the Funds trades may take place on
markets and exchanges outside the United States. Some
non-U.S. markets present risks because they are not subject
to the same degree of regulation as their
U.S. counterparts. None of the CFTC, National Futures
Association (NFA), or any domestic exchange
regulates activities of any foreign boards of trade or
exchanges, including the execution, delivery and clearing of
transactions, nor has the power to compel enforcement of the
rules of a foreign board of trade or exchange or of any
applicable non-U.S. laws. Similarly, the rights of market
participants, such as the Fund, in the event of the insolvency
or bankruptcy of a non-U.S. market or broker are also
likely to be more limited than in the case of U.S. markets
or brokers. As a result, in these markets, the Fund has less
legal and regulatory protection than it does when it trades
domestically.
In some of these non-U.S. markets, the performance on a
contract is the responsibility of the counterparty and is not
backed by an exchange or clearing corporation and therefore
exposes the Fund to credit risk. Trading in
non-U.S. markets also leaves the Fund susceptible to swings
in the value of the local currency against the U.S. dollar.
Additionally, trading on non-U.S. exchanges is subject to
the risks presented by exchange controls, expropriation,
increased tax burdens and exposure to local economic declines
and political instability. An adverse development with respect
to any of these variables could reduce the profit or increase
the loss earned on trades in the affected international markets.
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International trading activities subject the Fund to
foreign exchange risk.
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The price of any non-U.S. futures, options on futures or
other commodity interest contract and, therefore, the potential
profit and loss on such contract, may be affected by any
variance in the foreign exchange rate between the time the order
is placed and the time it is liquidated, offset or exercised. As
a result, changes in the value of the local currency relative to
the U.S. dollar may cause losses to the Fund even if the
contract traded is profitable.
9
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The Funds international trading would expose it to
losses resulting from non-U.S. exchanges that are less
developed or less reliable than U.S. exchanges.
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Some non-U.S. exchanges also may be in a more developmental
stage so that prior price histories may not be indicative of
current price dynamics. In addition, the Fund may not have the
same access to certain positions on foreign trading exchanges as
do local traders, and the historical market data on which
General Partner bases his strategies may not be as reliable or
accessible as it is in the United States.
Counterparty Risk
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Over-the-counter transactions are subject to little, if
any, regulation and may be subject to the risk of counterparty
default.
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A portion of the Funds assets may be used to trade
over-the-counter oil interest contracts, such as forward
contracts or swap or spot contracts. Over-the-counter contracts
are typically traded on a principal-to-principal basis through
dealer markets that are dominated by major money center and
investment banks and other institutions and are essentially
unregulated by the CFTC. You therefore do not receive the
protection of CFTC regulation or the statutory scheme of the
Commodity Exchange Act in connection with this trading activity
by the Fund. The markets for over-the-counter contracts rely
upon the integrity of market participants in lieu of the
additional regulation imposed by the CFTC on participants in the
futures markets. The lack of regulation in these markets could
expose the Fund in certain circumstances to significant losses
in the event of trading abuses or financial failure by
participants.
The Fund also faces the risk of non-performance by the
counterparties to the over-the-counter contracts. Unlike in
futures contracts, the counterparty to these contracts is
generally a single bank or other financial institution, rather
than a clearing organization backed by a group of financial
institutions. As a result, there will be greater counterparty
credit risk in these transactions. The clearing member, clearing
organization or other counterparty may not be able to meet its
obligations to the Fund, in which case the Fund could suffer
significant losses on these contracts.
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The Fund will be subject to credit risk with respect to
counterparties to financial instruments contracts entered into
by the Fund or held by special purpose or structured
vehicles.
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If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform
its obligations due to financial difficulties, the Fund may
experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery in a
bankruptcy or other reorganization proceeding. The Fund may
obtain only limited recovery or may obtain no recovery in such
circumstances. The Fund typically enters into transactions with
counterparties whose credit rating is investment grade, as
determined by a nationally recognized statistical rating
organization, or, if unrated, judged by the General Partner to
be of comparable quality.
Operating Risks
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The Fund is not a regulated investment company.
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The Fund is not an investment company subject to the Investment
Company Act of 1940. Accordingly, you do not have the
protections afforded by that statute which, for example,
requires investment companies to have a majority of
disinterested directors and regulates the relationship between
the investment company and its investment manager.
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The Fund has no operating history.
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The Fund is new and has no operating history. Therefore, there
is no performance history of this Fund to serve as a basis for
you to evaluate an investment in the Fund. Neither the General
Partner nor Mr. Nicholas Gerber (these persons are
discussed below) have recently operated a commodity pool.
Mr. John Love (also discussed below) has never operated a
commodity pool.
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There are position limits and the potential of tracking
error.
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The New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) will only allow
any one investor to own a net 20,000 contracts for all months.
In addition, the NYMEX will only allow only 1,300 contracts to
be held in the near month 3 days before expiration by any
one investor. This could potentially cause a tracking error if
the Fund gets large.
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You will not participate in the management of the
Fund.
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You will have limited voting rights with respect to the
Funds affairs, and you will not be permitted to
participate in the management or control of the Fund or the
conduct of its business. You must therefore rely upon the
fiduciary responsibility and judgment of the General Partner to
manage the Funds affairs.
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The Fund does not employ trading advisors.
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The Fund does not employ trading advisors; however, it reserves
the right to employ them in the future. The only advisor to the
Fund is the General Partner. A lack of trading advisors may be
disadvantageous to the Fund.
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Increases in assets under management may affect trading
decisions.
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In general, the General Partner does not intend to limit the
amount of assets of the Fund that it may manage. The more assets
the General Partner manages, the more difficult it may be for it
to trade profitably because of the difficulty of trading larger
positions without adversely affecting prices and performance and
of managing risk associated with larger positions.
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The Fund is leanly staffed and relies heavily on its key
personnel to manage the Funds trading activities.
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In managing and directing the day-to-day activities and affairs
of the Fund, the General Partner relies heavily on
Mr. Nicholas Gerber and Mr. John Love. The General
Partner is leanly staffed, so if Mr. Gerber or
Mr. Love were to leave or be unable to carry out his
present responsibilities, it may have an adverse effect on the
management of the Fund.
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Unitholders have limited voting rights and do not control
the General Partner.
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Unlike the holder of capital stock in a corporation, Unitholders
have limited voting rights on matters affecting our business.
Our General Partner, whose directors our Unitholders do not
elect, manages our activities. Our Unitholders will have no
right to elect our General Partner on an annual or any other
continuing basis. If our General Partner voluntarily withdraws,
however, the holders of a majority of our outstanding limited
partner interests (excluding for purposes of such determination
interests owned by the withdrawing General Partner and its
affiliates) may elect its successor.
Our General Partner may not be removed as our General Partner
except upon approval by the affirmative vote of the holders of
at least
66
2
/
3
percent
of our outstanding limited partner interests (excluding limited
partner interests owned by our General Partner and its
affiliates), subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions.
Any removal of our General Partner is not effective until the
holders of a majority of our outstanding limited partner
interests approve a successor General Partner. Before the
holders of outstanding limited partner interests may remove our
General Partner, they must receive an opinion of counsel that:
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such action will not result in the loss of limited liability of
any limited partner or of any member of any of our subsidiaries
or cause us or any of our subsidiaries to be taxable as a
corporation or to be treated as an association taxable as a
corporation for federal income tax purposes; and
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all required consents by any regulatory authorities have been
obtained.
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Unitholders may not have limited liability in certain
circumstances, including potentially having liability for the
return of wrongful distributions.
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In some states, the limitations on the liability of limited
partners for the obligations of a limited partnership have not
been clearly established. To the extent we conduct business in
one of those states, a Unitholder might be held liable for our
obligations as if it was a General Partner if:
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a court or government agency determined that we had not complied
with that states partnership statute; or
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our Unitholders rights to act together to remove or
replace our General Partner or take other actions under our LP
Agreement were to constitute control of our business
under that states partnership statute.
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A Unitholder will not be liable for assessments in addition to
its initial capital investment in any of our capital securities
representing limited partnership interests. However, a
Unitholder may be required to repay to us any amounts wrongfully
returned or distributed to it under some circumstances. Under
Delaware law, we may not make a distribution to Unitholders if
the distribution causes our liabilities (other than liabilities
to partners on account of their partnership interests and
nonrecourse liabilities) to exceed the fair value of our assets.
Delaware law provides that a limited partner who receives such a
distribution and knew at the time of the distribution that the
distribution violated the law will be liable to the limited
partnership for the amount of the distribution for three years
from the date of the distribution.
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Our existing Units are, and potentially any limited
partner interests we issue in the future will be, subject to
restrictions on transfer.
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All purchasers of our existing Units, and potentially any
purchasers of limited partner interests we issue in the future,
who wish to become holders of record and receive cash
distributions must deliver an executed transfer application in
which the purchaser or transferee must certify that, among other
things, he, she or it agrees to be bound by our LP Agreement and
is eligible to purchase our securities. A person purchasing our
existing Units, or possibly limited partner interests we issue
in the future, who does not execute a transfer application and
certify that the purchaser is eligible to purchase those
securities acquires no rights in those securities other than the
right to resell those securities. Further, our General Partner
may request each recordholder to furnish certain information,
including that holders nationality, citizenship or other
related status. An investor who is not a U.S. resident may
not be eligible to become a record holder or one of our limited
partners if that investors ownership would subject us to
the risk of cancellation or forfeiture of any of our assets
under any federal, state or local law or regulation. If the
record holder fails to furnish the information or if our General
Partner determines, on the basis of the information furnished by
the holder in response to the request, that such holder is not
qualified to become one of our limited partners, our General
Partner may be substituted as a holder for the record holder,
who will then be treated as a non-citizen assignee, and we will
have the right to redeem those securities held by the record
holder.
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The Fund could terminate before you achieve your
investment objective.
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The General Partner may, in its sole discretion, terminate the
Fund at any time, regardless of whether the Fund has incurred
losses, without giving you prior notice. In particular,
unforeseen circumstances, including substantial losses,
withdrawal of the Funds General Partner or suspension or
revocation of the General Partners registrations with the
CFTC or memberships in the NFA could cause the Fund to
terminate. However, no level of losses will require the General
Partner to terminate the Fund. The Funds termination would
cause the liquidation and potential loss of your investment and
could upset the overall maturity and timing of your investment
portfolio.
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The Fund pays fees and expenses regardless of
profitability.
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The Fund pays brokerage charges, over-the-counter dealer
spreads, organization and offering expenses, management fees,
and extraordinary expenses, in all cases regardless of whether
the Funds activities are profitable. Accordingly, the Fund
must earn trading gains sufficient to compensate for these fees
and expenses before it can earn any profit.
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The Fund may incur higher fees and expenses upon renewing
existing or entering into new contractual relationships.
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The clearing arrangements between the clearing brokers and the
Fund generally are terminable by the clearing brokers once the
clearing broker has given the Fund notice. Upon termination, the
General Partner may be required to renegotiate or make other
arrangements for obtaining similar services if the Fund intends
to continue trading in Oil Futures Contracts or other oil
interest contracts at its present level of capacity. The
services of any clearing broker may not be available, or even if
available, these services may not be available on the terms as
favorable as those of the expired or terminated clearing
arrangements.
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An unanticipated number of redemption requests during a
short period of time could have an adverse effect on the NAV of
the Fund.
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If a substantial number of requests for redemption are received
by the Fund during a relatively short period of time, the Fund
may not be able to satisfy the requests from Fund assets not
committed to trading. As a consequence, it could be necessary to
liquidate positions in the Funds trading positions before
the time that the trading strategies would otherwise dictate
liquidation.
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The failure or bankruptcy of one of its clearing brokers
could result in a substantial loss of the Funds
assets.
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Under CFTC regulations, a clearing broker maintains
customers assets in a bulk segregated account. If a
clearing broker fails to do so, or is unable to satisfy a
substantial deficit in a customer account, its other customers
may be subject to risk of loss of their funds in the event of
that clearing brokers bankruptcy. In that event, the
clearing brokers customers, such as the Fund, are entitled
to recover, even in respect of property specifically traceable
to them, only a proportional share of all property available for
distribution to all of that clearing brokers customers.
The Fund also may be subject to the risk of the failure of, or
delay in performance by, any exchanges and markets and their
clearing organizations, if any, on which commodity interest
contracts are traded.
From time to time, the clearing brokers may be subject to legal
or regulatory proceedings in the ordinary course of their
business. A clearing brokers involvement in costly or
time-consuming legal proceedings may divert financial resources
or personnel away from the clearing brokers trading
operations, which could impair the clearing brokers
ability to successfully execute and clear the Funds trades.
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You will not be able to review the Funds holdings on
a daily basis.
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You cannot review the Funds holdings on a daily basis, but
the Funds trading results will be reported on a periodic
basis.
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Third parties may infringe or otherwise violate
intellectual property rights or assert that the General Partner
has infringed or otherwise violated their intellectual property
rights, which may result in significant costs and diverted
attention.
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Third parties may obtain the Funds intellectual property
or technology, including its trading program software, without
permission. Any unauthorized use of the Funds proprietary
software and other technology could adversely affect its
competitive advantage. Proprietary software and other technology
are becoming increasingly easy to duplicate, particularly as
employees with proprietary knowledge leave the
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owner or licensed user of that software or other technology. The
Fund may have difficulty monitoring unauthorized uses of its
proprietary software and other technology. The precautions it
has taken may not prevent misappropriation or infringement of
its proprietary software and other technology. Also, third
parties may independently develop proprietary software and other
technology similar to that of the General Partner or claim that
the General Partner has violated their intellectual property
rights, including their copyrights, trademark rights, trade
names, trade secrets and patent rights. As a result, the General
Partner may have to litigate in the future to protect its trade
secrets, determine the validity and scope of other parties
proprietary rights defend itself against claims that it has
infringed or otherwise violated other parties rights, or
defend itself against claims that its rights are invalid. Any
litigation of this type, even if the General Partner is
successful and regardless of the merits, may result in
significant costs, divert its resources from the Fund, or
require it to change its proprietary software and other
technology or enter into royalty or licensing agreements.
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The success of the Fund depends on the ability of the
General Partner to accurately implement trading systems, and any
failure to do so could subject the Fund to losses on such
transactions.
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Certain computerized trading systems rely on the General Partner
to accurately process the systems outputs and execute the
transactions called for by the systems. In addition, the Fund
relies on the General Partner to properly operate and maintain
its computer and communications systems upon which the trading
systems rely. Execution and operation of the systems is
therefore subject to human errors. Any failure, inaccuracy or
delay in implementing any of the systems and executing the
Funds transactions could impair its ability to achieve the
Funds investment objective. It could also result in
decisions to undertake transactions based on inaccurate or
incomplete information. This could cause substantial losses on
transactions.
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The Fund may experience substantial losses on transactions
if the computers or communications systems fail.
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The Funds trading activities, including its risk
management, depends on the integrity and performance of the
computer and communications systems supporting it. Extraordinary
transaction volume, hardware or software failure, power or
telecommunications failure, a natural disaster or other
catastrophe could cause the computer systems to operate at an
unacceptably slow speed or even fail. Any significant
degradation or failure of the systems that the General Partner
uses to gather and analyze information, enter orders, process
data, monitor risk levels and otherwise engage in trading
activities may result in substantial losses on transactions,
liability to other parties, lost profit opportUnities, damages
to the General Partners and the Funds reputations,
increased operational expenses and diversion of technical
resources.
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If the computer and communications system are not
upgraded, the Funds financial condition could be
harmed.
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The development of complex communications and new technologies
may render the existing computer and communication systems
supporting the Funds trading activities obsolete. In
addition, these computer and communications systems must be
compatible with those of third parties, such as the systems of
exchanges, clearing brokers and the executing brokers. As a
result, if these third parties upgrade their systems, the
General Partner will need to make corresponding upgrades to
continue effectively trading activities. The Funds future
success will depend on the Funds ability to respond to
changing technologies on a timely and cost-effective basis.
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The Fund depends on the reliable performance of the
computer and communications systems of third parties, such as
brokers and futures exchanges, and may experience substantial
losses on transactions if they fail.
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The Fund depends on the proper and timely function of complex
computer and communications systems maintained and operated by
the futures exchanges, brokers and other data providers that the
14
General Partner uses to conduct trading activities. Failure or
inadequate performance of any of these systems could adversely
affect the General Partners ability to complete
transactions, including its ability to close out positions, and
result in lost profit opportunities and significant losses on
commodity interest transactions. This could have a material
adverse effect on revenues and materially reduce the Funds
available capital. For example, unavailability of price
quotations from third parties may make it difficult or
impossible for the General Partner to use its proprietary
software that it relies upon to conduct its trading activities.
Unavailability of records from brokerage firms may make it
difficult or impossible for the General Partner to accurately
determine which transactions have been executed or the details,
including price and time, of any transaction executed. This
unavailability of information also may make it difficult or
impossible for the General Partner to reconcile its records of
transactions with those of another party or to accomplish
settlement of executed transactions.
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The occurrence of a terrorist attack, or the outbreak,
continuation or expansion of war or other hostilities could
disrupt the Funds trading activity and materially affect
the Funds profitability.
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The operations of the Fund, the exchanges, brokers and
counterparties with which the Fund does business, and the
markets in which the Fund does business could be severely
disrupted in the event of a major terrorist attack or the
outbreak, continuation or expansion of war or other hostilities.
The terror attacks of September 11, 2001 have heightened
this concern significantly. The aftermath of the war and
continuing reconstruction process in Iraq, global anti-terrorism
initiatives and political unrest in the Middle East and
Southeast Asia continue to fuel this concern.
Tax Risk
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Your tax liability may exceed your cash
distributions.
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Cash is distributed at the sole discretion of the General
Partner, and the General Partner does not currently intend to
distribute cash. You nevertheless will be taxed on your share of
the Funds taxable income and gain each year, regardless of
whether you redeem any Units or receive any cash distributions
from the Fund. Your share of such income or gain may not be the
same as your share of the Funds profit for the year.
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You could owe taxes on your share of the Funds
ordinary income despite overall losses.
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If we were taxable as a corporation for federal income tax
purposes in any taxable year, income, gains, losses and
deductions would be reflected on our tax return rather than
being passed through (proportionately) to Unitholders, and our
net income would be taxed at corporate rates which are the same
for ordinary income and capital gains. Taxation of the Fund as a
corporation rather than a partnership could materially reduce
the NAV of the Fund as compared to taxation as a partnership. In
addition, any distributions made to Unitholders with respect to
their Units could be treated as dividend income taxable to
Unitholders at ordinary rates.
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There is the possibility of a tax audit.
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We cannot assure you that a taxing authority will not audit the
Funds tax returns or that an audit will not result in
unfavorable adjustments to the Funds returns.
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Non-U.S. investors may face currency risk and local
tax consequences.
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Non-U.S. investors should note that the Units are
denominated in U.S. dollars and that changes in the rates
of exchange between currencies may reduce the value of their
investment. Non-U.S. investors should consult their own tax
advisors concerning the applicable foreign as well as the U.S.
tax implications of an investment in the Fund. Non-U.S.
investors may also be subject to special redemption provisions
if they fail to furnish us (or another appropriate person) with
a timely and properly completed Form W-8BEN or other
applicable form.
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We have not received a ruling or assurances from the IRS
with respect to our classification as a partnership.
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We have not requested any ruling from the Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) with respect to our classification as a
partnership for federal income tax purposes. Accordingly, the
IRS may propose positions that differ from the conclusions
expressed by us. It may be necessary to resort to administrative
or court proceedings in an effort to sustain some or all of
those conclusions, and some or all of those conclusions
ultimately may not be sustained. The limited partners and our
General Partner will bear, directly or indirectly, the costs of
any contest with the IRS.
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Our tax treatment depends on our partnership status and if
the IRS treats us as a corporation for tax purposes, it would
adversely affect distributions to our Unitholders and our
ability to make payments on our debt securities.
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Based upon the continued accuracy of the representations of our
General Partner, we believe that under current law and
regulations we will continue to be classified a partnership for
federal income tax purposes. However, as stated above, we have
not requested, and will not request, any ruling from the IRS as
to this status. In addition, you cannot be sure that those
representations will continue to be accurate. If the IRS were to
challenge our federal income tax status, such a challenge could
result in (i) an audit of each Unitholders entire tax
return and (ii) adjustments to items on that return that
are unrelated to the ownership of Units or other limited partner
interests. In addition, each Unitholder would bear the cost of
any expenses incurred in connection with an examination of its
personal tax return.
If we were taxable as a corporation for federal income tax
purposes in any taxable year, our income, gains, losses and
deductions would be reflected on our tax return rather than
being passed through (proportionately) to Unitholders, and
our net income would be taxed at corporate rates. In addition,
some or all of the distributions made to Unitholders would be
treated as dividend income and would be reduced as a result of
the federal, state and local taxes paid by us.
THE OFFERING
What is the Fund?
The Fund is a Delaware Limited Partnership (LP) organized
on May 12, 2005. The Fund maintains its main business
office at 1320 Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145, Alameda,
California 94502. The Fund is a commodity pool. It operates
pursuant to the terms of the LP Agreement attached as Exhibit
,
which grants full management control to the General Partner. The
General Partner is staffed by Mr. Gerber and Mr. Love.
Mr. Gerber maintains his main business office at 1320
Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145, Alameda, California 94502.
Mr. Gerber is the founder and co-manager of the Ameristock
Mutual Fund, Inc. Prior to managing Ameristock Mutual
Fund Inc., Mr. Gerber served as a portfolio manager
with Bank of America Capital Management, where he was
responsible for the daily stewardship of four funds with a
combined value in excess of $240 million. Before joining
Bank of America, he was Managing Director of the Marc Stevens
Futures Index Fund. It was there that he created and managed a
futures index fund that was ultimately purchased by Newport
Commodities. Mr. Gerbers two decades of experience in
institutional investment include a successful stint as a floor
trader on the New York Futures Exchange. He holds an MBA in
finance from the University of San Francisco and a BA from
Skidmore College.
Mr. Love maintains his main business office at 1320 Harbor
Bay Parkway, Suite 145, Alameda, California 94502.
Mr. Love serves as the operations manager of Ameristock
Corporation, where he is responsible for marketing the
Ameristock Mutual Fund. Prior to joining Ameristock Corporation,
Mr. Love was the project manager for TouchVision
Interactive where he provided leadership to project teams while
assisting with business and process development. Before joining
TouchVision Interactive, Mr. Love was the managing director
of Jamison/ Gold (Keane Inc.) where he provided leadership to all
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departments including operations, production, technology, sales,
marketing, administration, recruiting, and finance.
Mr. Loves experience also includes leading a group of
multimedia producers who controlled web and kiosk projects from
pre-contract to deployment. He holds a BFA in cinema-television
from the University of Southern California.
The General Partner, Mr. Gerber, and Mr. Love do not
have significant recent experience in operating a commodity pool.
Who is the General Partner?
Our sole General Partner is Standard Asset Management, LLC, a
Delaware limited liability company formed on May 10, 2005.
The General Partner is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wainwright
Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Mr. Gerber controls
Wainwright by virtue of his ownership of Wainwrights
shares. Wainwright is a holding company that also owns an
insurance company organized under Bermuda law. Standard Asset
Management, LLCs registration as a commodity pool operator
is in process and it maintains its main business office at 1320
Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145 Alameda, California 94502.
The business and affairs of our General Partner are managed by a
board of directors, and will be comprised of four management
directors who are also our executive officers and three
independent directors who make up the audit committee and meet
the independent director requirements established by [the Stock
Exchange] and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Through its board
of directors, our General Partner manages our day-to-day
operations.
How Does the Fund Operate?
The Fund is a limited partnership (LP) organized under
Delaware law on May 12, 2005. The Fund is operated pursuant
to the LP Agreement. It is managed and controlled by Standard
Asset Management, LLC, the General Partner. The General Partner
is in the process of registering as a commodities pool operator
registered with the Commodities Futures Association.
The investment objective of the Fund is for the Units net
asset value (NAV) to reflect the performance of the price
of light, sweet crude oil, less the Funds expenses. The
Fund invests in Oil Futures Contracts, which are futures
contracts for light, sweet crude oil that are traded on the New
York Mercantile Exchange, and Other Oil Interests such as
options on Oil Futures Contracts and forward contracts for oil.
The General Partner believes that the Funds NAV will
closely track the price of the Oil Futures Contracts the Fund
invests in. Specifically, the General Partner will endeavor to
place the Funds trades in Oil Futures Contracts and
otherwise manage the Funds investments so that A will be
within plus/minus 10 percent of B, where:
A is the average daily change in the Funds NAV for any
period of 30 successive Valuation Days (any day as of which the
Fund calculates its NAV), and
B is the average daily change in the price of Oil Futures
Contract over the same period. For purposes of this calculation
only, Oil Futures Contract means the near-month Oil
Futures Contract, except that on each Valuation Day within the
two week period preceding a monthly expiration date, Oil
Futures Contract means the one month out Oil Futures
Contract.
The General Partner also believes that market arbitrage
opportunities will cause the Funds Unit price on the Stock
Exchange to closely track the Funds NAV and that the price
of Oil Futures Contracts has historically closely tracked the
spot price of light, sweet crude oil. The General Partner
believes that the net effect of these expected
interrelationships will be that the price of the Funds
Units on the Stock Exchange will closely track the spot price of
a barrel of light, sweet crude oil, less the Funds
expenses.
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These relationships are illustrated in the following diagram:
The General Partner employs a neutral investment
strategy intended to track the price of light, sweet crude oil
regardless of whether the price of oil goes up or goes down. The
Funds neutral investment objective is designed
to permit investors generally to purchase and sell the
Funds Units for the purpose of investing indirectly in oil
in a cost-effective manner, and/or to permit participants in the
oil or other industries to hedge the risk of losses in their
oil-related transactions.
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The Units may be purchased by investors only in blocks of
100,000 Units called Creation Baskets. The amount of the
purchase payment for a Creation Basket is equal to the aggregate
NAV of the Fund Units in the Creation Basket. Similarly,
investors may redeem Units only in blocks of 100,000 Units
called Redemption Baskets. The amount of the redemption
proceeds for a Redemption Basket is equal to the aggregate
NAV of the Fund Units in the Redemption Basket.
Throughout each day that the Funds Units are traded on the
[Stock Exchange], the amount of the purchase payment for a
Creation Basket and the redemption proceeds for a
Redemption Basket are published.
While the Fund only issues Units in large blocks called Creation
Baskets, Units may also be purchased and sold in much smaller
increments in the secondary market. These transactions, however,
are not made at the Funds NAV, but rather are made at
market prices which as noted may vary throughout the day and may
differ from the Funds NAV. Like any listed security,
exchange-traded fund Units can be purchased and sold at any time
a secondary market is open.
Standard Asset Management, Inc., the General Partner of the
Fund, believes that for many investors the Units represent a
cost-effective way to invest indirectly in light, sweet crude
oil. However, as noted, because the Fund invests in Oil Futures
Contracts and Other Oil Interests rather than directly in oil,
the performance of the price of the Units may not accurately and
consistently reflect the performance of the price of oil.
Trading Policies of the Fund
The Fund invests only in Oil Futures Contracts and Other Oil
Interests that are traded in sufficient volume to permit, in the
opinion of the General Partner, ease of taking and liquidating
positions in these financial interests.
Although the Fund does not expect to make or take delivery of
oil, it is authorized to do so. In addition, the Fund may from
time to time trade in spot, or cash, oil.
While the Funds ratio of variation margin to total assets
generally range from 0% to 5%, the General Partner endeavors to
have the Funds Treasuries at all times approximate the
aggregate value of the Funds Oil Futures Contracts and
Other Oil Interests.
Borrowings will not be used by the Fund, unless the Fund is
required to borrow money in the event of delivery, if the Fund
trades in cash commodities, or for short term needs created by
unexpected redemptions.
The Fund may employ spreads or straddles in its trading. Spreads
and straddles are futures trading transactions involving the
simultaneous buying and selling of a particular futures contract
in the same or a related commodity but involving different
delivery dates. The purpose of these trades is to earn profits
from a widening or narrowing movement of the two prices of the
futures contracts.
The Fund does not employ the technique, commonly known as
pyramiding, in which the speculator uses unrealized profits on
existing positions as variation margin for the purchase or sale
of additional positions in the same or another commodity
interest.
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Transfer Agent and Registrar
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[Insert name]
is expected to act as the registrar and
transfer agent for our Units and will receive a fee from us for
serving in such capacities. All fees charged by the transfer
agent for transfers and withdrawals of Units are borne by us and
not by the limited partners, except that fees similar to those
customarily paid by stockholders for surety bond premiums to
replace lost or stolen certificates, taxes or other governmental
charges, special charges for services requested by a limited
partner and other similar fees or charges are borne by the
affected limited partner. There is no charge to limited partners
for disbursements of our distributions of available cash. We
indemnify the transfer agent and its agents from certain
liabilities.
The transfer agent may at any time resign, by notice to us, or
be removed by us. Such resignation or removal will become
effective upon the appointment by our General Partner of a
successor transfer agent and registrar and its acceptance of
such appointment. If no successor has been appointed and has
accepted such appointment with 30 days after notice of such
resignation or removal, our General Partner is authorized to act
as the transfer agent and registrar until a successor is
appointed.
Our General Partner manages our day-to-day operations and
strategic direction. You will have no right to elect or remove
our General Partner and the Fund has no directors. You will only
have the right to vote if the General Partner elects to
terminate the Partnership.
Until a Unit has been transferred on our books, we and the
transfer agent may treat the record holder thereof as the
absolute owner for all purposes, notwithstanding any notice to
the contrary or any notation or other writing on the certificate
representing such Unit, except as otherwise required by law. Any
transfer of Units will not be recorded by the transfer agent or
recognized by us unless certificate(s) representing those Units
are surrendered. When acquiring Units, the transferee of such
Units:
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is an assignee until admitted as a substituted limited partner;
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automatically requests admission as a substituted limited
partner;
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agrees to be bound by the terms and conditions of, and executes,
our LP Agreement;
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represents that such transferee has the capacity and authority
to enter into our LP Agreement;
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grants powers of attorney to our General Partner and any
liquidator of us; and
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makes the consents and waivers contained in our LP Agreement.
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An assignee will become a limited partner in respect of the
transferred Units upon the consent of our General Partner and
the recordation of the name of the assignee on our books and
records. Such consent may be withheld in the sole discretion of
our General Partner. Our Units are securities and are
transferable according to the laws governing transfers of
securities.
In addition to other rights acquired upon transfer, the
transferor gives the transferee the right to request admission
as a substituted limited partner in respect of the transferred
Units. A purchaser or transferee of Units who does not become a
limited partner obtains only (1) the right to assign the
Units to a purchaser or other transferee and (2) the right
to transfer the right to seek admission as a substituted limited
partner with respect to the transferred Units. Thus, a purchaser
or transferee of Units who does not meet the requirements of
limited partner admission will not be the record holder of such
Units, will not receive cash distributions unless the Units are
held in a nominee or street name account and the nominee or
broker has ensured that such transferee satisfies such
requirements of admission with respect to such Units and may not
receive certain federal income tax information or reports
furnished to holders of record.
20
What are Oil Futures Contracts?
Crude oil is the worlds most actively traded commodity,
and the NYMEXs light, sweet crude oil futures contract
(referred to in this prospectus as Oil Futures
Contracts) is the worlds most liquid forum for crude
oil trading, as well as the worlds largest-volume futures
contract trading on a physical commodity. Because of its
excellent liquidity and price transparency, Oil Futures
Contracts are used as a principal international pricing
benchmark.
Oil Futures Contracts are agreements between two parties. One
party agrees to buy oil from the other party at a later date at
a price and quantity agreed-upon when the contract is made. Oil
Futures Contracts are traded on the New York Mercantile
Exchange, or NYMEX. NYMEX is located in New York
City and is the principal exchange for the trading of oil
futures contracts generally. The NYMEX began commodities trading
in 1872, organized as the Butter and Cheese Exchange of New
York, and has since traded a variety of commodity products. The
establishment of energy futures on the NYMEX occurred in 1978,
with the introduction of heating oil futures contracts. The
NYMEX opened trading in leaded gasoline futures in 1981,
followed by the oil futures contract in March 1983 and unleaded
gasoline futures in 1984.
NYMEX offers a central marketplace in which to transact Oil
Futures Contracts, a clearing corporation to process trades, a
standardization of expiration dates and contract sizes, and the
availability of a secondary market. NYMEX also specifies the
terms and conditions of delivery and the maximum permissible
price movement during a trading session. NYMEX also has position
limit rules that limit the amount of Oil Futures Contracts that
any one party may hold at any point in time. These position
limit rules are designed to prevent any one participant from
controlling a significant portion of the oil market.
In the market for Oil Futures Contracts, NYMEX takes the other
side in all transactions, either buying or selling directly to
market participants. Therefore, NYMEX acts as the counterparty
to all Oil Futures Contracts. Accordingly, the Funds
obligation is to NYMEX, and the Fund will look to NYMEX to
satisfy the Funds rights under the Oil Futures Contracts.
When purchasing stocks or bonds, the buyer acquires ownership in
the security. However, buyers of Oil Futures Contracts are not
entitled to ownership of the underlying oil until and unless
they decide to accept delivery at expiration of the contract. In
practice, delivery of the underlying oil to satisfy a futures
contract rarely occurs because most futures traders use the
liquidity of NYMEX to sell their Oil Futures Contract before
expiration.
Certain significant characteristics of Oil Futures Contracts are
discussed below. Additional risks of investing in Oil Futures
Contracts is included in What are the Risk Factors?
on page .
Price Limits.
NYMEX imposes on each Oil Futures Contract
a maximum permissible price movement for each trading session.
If the maximum permissible price movement is achieved on any
trading day, no more trades may be executed above (or below, if
the price has moved downward) that limit. Therefore, if the Fund
wished to execute a trade outside the daily permissible price
movement, it would be prevented from doing so by NYMEX rules,
and would have to wait for another trading session to execute
its transaction.
Price Volatility.
Despite the daily price limits on
NYMEX, the price volatility of Oil Futures Contracts has been
historically greater than that for traditional securities such
as stocks and bonds. Because the Fund invests a significant
portion of its assets in Oil Futures Contracts, the assets of
the Fund, and therefore the prices of the Fund Units, may
be subject to greater volatility.
Marking-to-Market Futures Positions.
NYMEX marks every
Oil Futures Contract to market at the end of each trading day,
to ensure that the outstanding futures obligations are limited
by the maximum daily permissible price movement. This process of
marking-to-market is designed to prevent losses from
accumulating in any futures account. Therefore, if the
Funds futures positions have declined in value, the Fund
may be required to post additional variation margin to cover
this decline. Alternatively, if the Funds futures
positions have increased in value, this increase will be
credited to the Funds account.
21
What is the Crude Oil Market?
The Oil Futures Contract is based on light, sweet crude oil
delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma, which is also accessible to the
international spot markets via pipelines. The contract provides
for delivery of several grades of domestic and internationally
traded foreign crudes, and serves the diverse needs of the
physical market.
Light, sweet crudes are preferred by refiners because of their
low sulfur content and relatively high yields of high-value
products such as gasoline, diesel fuel, heating oil, and jet
fuel.
Demand for petroleum products by consumers, as well as
agricultural, manufacturing and transportation industries,
determines demand for crude oil by refiners. Since the
precursors of product demand are linked to economic activity,
crude oil demand will tend to reflect economic conditions.
However, other factors such as weather also influence product
and crude oil demand.
Crude oil supply is determined by both economic and political
factors. Oil prices (along with drilling costs, availability of
attractive prospects for drilling, taxes and technology)
determine exploration and development spending, which influence
output capacity with a lag. In the short run, production
decisions by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) also affects supply and prices. Oil export embargoes
and the current conflicts in Iraq represent other routes through
which political developments move the market.
It is not possible to predict the aggregate effect of all or any
combination of these factors.
How Will the Fund Purchase and Sell Oil Futures
Contracts?
The Funds investment objective is for its Units to reflect
the performance of the price of light, sweet crude oil. The
Funds investment strategy is to invest primarily in Oil
Futures Contracts. The Fund seeks to have its aggregate net
asset value approximate at all times the outstanding value of
Oil Futures Contracts (or Other Oil Interests) the Fund holds.
At any given time, a significant majority of the Funds
investments is in short-term Treasuries that serve as segregated
assets supporting the Funds positions in Oil Futures
Contracts. For example, the purchase of an Oil Futures Contract
with a stated value of $10 million would not require the
Fund to pay $10 million upon entering into the contract;
rather, only a margin deposit, generally of 5% or less of the
stated value of the Oil Futures Contract, would be required. To
secure its Oil Futures Contract obligations, the Fund would then
segregate in a margin account Treasuries in an amount equal to
the balance of the current market value of the contract, which
at the contracts inception would be $10 million minus
the amount of the deposit, or $9.5 million.
What is the Funds Plan of Distribution?
Most investors will buy and sell Units of the Fund in secondary
market transactions through brokers. Units trade on the [Stock
Exchange] under the ticker symbol listed in this prospectus.
Units can be bought and sold throughout the trading day like
other publicly traded securities. When buying or selling Units
through a broker, most investors will incur customary brokerage
commissions and charges.
The offering of the Funds Units is a best efforts
offering. The Fund is offering Creation Baskets consisting of
100,000 Units through the Distributor, to Authorized Purchasers.
[Name of initial Authorized Purchaser]
is expected to be
the initial Authorized Purchaser. The initial Authorized
Purchaser has agreed, subject to conditions, to purchase the
initial Creation Basket of 100,000 Units at an initial offering
price per unit equal to the opening price of near-month Oil
Futures Contracts as traded and reported on the New York
Mercantile Exchange on the first day of the offering. Authorized
Purchasers will pay a $1,000 fee for the creation of Creation
Baskets. The per unit price of Units offered in Creation
22
Baskets on any subsequent day will be the total NAV of the Fund
calculated on that day divided by the number of issued and
outstanding Units. The Distributor is not required to sell any
specific number or dollar amount of Units, but will use its best
efforts to sell the Units offered.
In connection with the offering and sale of the underwritten
Units, the Distributor will be paid a set aggregate fee.
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Types of Fees
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Amount
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Fees to be Received by the Distributor
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$
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The Fund calculates its NAV by:
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Taking the current market value of its total assets
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Subtracting any liabilities
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Dividing that amount by the total number of Units issued and
outstanding
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The [Administrator] calculates the NAV of the Funds Units
after the close of the NYMEX each day. The [Stock Exchange]
calculates an approximate net asset value every 15 seconds
throughout each day the Funds Units are traded on the
[Stock Exchange] for as long as the NYMEXs main floor
pricing mechanism is open. These approximate net asset values
may vary from the NAV calculated by the Fund. The normal trading
hours of the NYMEX are 10:00am EST to 2:30pm EST. The normal
trading hours of the [Stock Exchange] are 9:30am EST to 4:00pm
EST. This means that there will be a gap in time at the
beginning and the end of each day during which the Funds
Units will be traded on the [Stock Exchange], but real-time
NYMEX trading prices for the Oil Futures Contracts the Fund
invests in, will not be available. Therefore, NYMEX prices
reported during such times should be used only for informational
purposes.
The trading prices of the Funds Units listed on the [Stock
Exchange] may differ from the Funds daily NAV per Unit and
can be affected not only by movements in the Funds NAV,
but by market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions
and other factors as well. The Exchange intends to disseminate
the approximate net asset value per Unit every 15 seconds
throughout each day the Funds Units are traded on the
[Stock Exchange.] This approximate value should not be viewed as
a real-time update of the NAV per unit of the Fund,
because the approximate value may not be calculated in the same
manner as the NAV, which is computed once a day. The Fund is not
involved in, or responsible for, the calculation or
dissemination of such values and makes no warranty as to their
accuracy.
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Creations and Redemptions
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The Units may be purchased by investors only in blocks of
100,000 Units called Creation Baskets. The amount of the
purchase payment for a Creation Basket is equal to the aggregate
NAV of the Units in the Creation Basket. Similarly, investors
may redeem Units only in blocks of 100,000 Units called
Redemption Baskets. The amount of the redemption proceeds
for a Redemption Basket is equal to the aggregate NAV of
the Units in the Redemption Basket. Throughout each day the
Funds Units are traded on the [Stock Exchange], the amount
of the purchase payment for a Creation Basket and the redemption
proceeds for a Redemption Basket are published. The Fund
reserves the right to pay for a Redemption Basket with
Treasuries or other Fund securities.
Creations and redemptions must be made through an authorized
firm that is either a member of the Continuous Net Settlement
System of the NSCC or a DTC participant, and in each case, must
have executed a Participant Agreement with the Distributor with
respect to creations and redemptions. Because new Units may be
created and issued on an ongoing basis, at any point during the
life of the Fund a
23
distribution, as such term is used in the Securities
Act of 1933 (the Securities Act), may be occurring.
Broker-dealers and other persons are cautioned that some
activities on their part may, depending on the circumstances,
result in their being deemed participants in a distribution in a
manner that could render them statutory underwriters and subject
to the prospectus delivery and liability provisions of the
Securities Act. Nonetheless, any determination of whether a
broker-dealer or other person is an underwriter must take into
account all the relevant facts and circumstances of each
particular case. Broker-dealers should also note that dealers
who are not underwriters, but are participating in a
distribution (as contrasted to ordinary secondary transactions),
and thus dealing with Units that are part of an unsold
allotment within the meaning of section 4(3)(C) of
the Securities Act, would be unable to take advantage of the
prospectus delivery exemption provided by section 4(3) of
the Securities Act.
Use of Proceeds
The General Partner will initially apply all of the Fund assets
toward trading in Oil Futures Contracts and cash reserves. The
General Partner has sole authority to determine the percentage
of assets that will be:
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held on deposit with the futures commission merchant or other
custodian
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used for other investments, and
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held in bank accounts to pay current obligations and as reserves.
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The General Partner expects to deposit substantially all of the
Funds net assets with the futures commission merchant or
other custodian for trading.
The Fund uses only Treasuries to satisfy margin requirements.
The General Partner expects that all entities that will hold or
trade the Funds assets will be based in the United States
and will be subject to United States regulations.
The General Partner believes that 5% to 10% of the Funds
assets will normally be committed as margin for commodity
futures contracts. However, from time to time, the percentage of
assets committed as margin may be substantially more, or less,
than such range. All interest income is used for the Funds
benefit.
The futures commission merchant, government agency or commodity
exchange could increase margins applicable to the Fund to hold
trading positions at any time. Moreover, margin is merely a
security deposit and has no bearing on the profit or loss
potential for any positions taken.
Once the Funds assets exceed $500,000,000, the Fund will
reimburse the General Partner in the amount of $500,000 for
offering and organizational expenses incurred up to the end of
the twelfth month of operation after the commencement of
business. The Fund will reimburse the General Partner in the
amount of another $500,000 when the Funds assets exceed
$1,000,000,000.
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The Commodity Interest Markets
The Commodity Exchange Act or CEA governs the regulation of
commodity interest transactions, markets and intermediaries. In
December 2000, the CEA was amended by the Commodity Futures
Modernization Act of 2000, or CFMA, which substantially revised
the regulatory framework governing certain commodity interest
transactions and the markets on which they trade. The CEA, as
amended by the CFMA, now provides for varying degrees of
regulation of commodity interest transactions depending upon the
variables of the transaction. In general, these variables
include (1) the type of instrument being traded (e.g.,
contracts for future delivery, options, swaps or spot
contracts), (2) the type of commodity underlying the
instrument (distinctions are made between instruments based on
agricultural commodities,
24
energy and metals commodities and financial commodities),
(3) the nature of the parties to the transaction (retail,
eligible contract participant, or eligible commercial entity),
(4) whether the transaction is entered into on a
principal-to-principal or intermediated basis, (5) the type
of market on which the transaction occurs, and (6) whether
the transaction is subject to clearing through a clearing
organization. Information regarding commodity interest
transactions, markets and intermediaries, and their associated
regulatory environment, is provided below.
A futures contract such as an Oil Futures Contract is a
standardized contract traded on, or subject to the rules of, an
exchange that calls for the future delivery of a specified
quantity and type of a commodity at a specified time and place.
Futures contracts are traded on a wide variety of commodities,
including agricultural products, bond, stock index, interest
rate, currency, energy and metal markets. The size and terms of
futures contracts on a particular commodity are identical and
are not subject to any negotiation, other than with respect to
price and quantity between the buyer and seller.
The contractual obligations of a buyer or seller may be
satisfied by taking or making physical delivery of an approved
grade of commodity or by making an offsetting sale or purchase
of an identical futures contract on the same or linked exchange
before the designated date of delivery. The difference between
the price at which the futures contract is purchased or sold and
the price paid for the offsetting sale or purchase, after
allowance for brokerage commissions, constitutes the profit or
loss to the trader. Some futures contracts, such as stock index
contracts, settle in cash (reflecting the difference between the
contract purchase/sale price and the contract settlement price)
rather than by delivery of the underlying commodity.
In market terminology, a trader who purchases a futures contract
is long in the market and a trader who sells a futures contract
is short in the market. Before a trader closes out his long or
short position by an offsetting sale or purchase, his
outstanding contracts are known as open trades or open
positions. The aggregate amount of open positions held by
traders in a particular contract is referred to as the open
interest in such contract.
A forward contract is a contractual obligation to purchase or
sell a specified quantity of a commodity at or before a
specified date in the future at a specified price and,
therefore, is economically similar to a futures contract. Unlike
futures contracts, however, forward contracts are typically
traded in the over-the-counter markets and are not standardized
contracts. Forward contracts for a given commodity are generally
available in any size and maturity and are subject to individual
negotiation between the parties involved. Moreover, generally
there is no direct means of offsetting or closing out a forward
contract by taking an offsetting position as one would a futures
contract on a U.S. exchange. If a trader desires to close
out a forward contract position, he generally will establish an
opposite position in the contract but will settle and recognize
the profit or loss on both positions simultaneously on the
prompt date, or the delivery date. Thus, unlike in the futures
contract market where a trader who has offset positions will
recognize profit or loss immediately, in the forward market a
trader with a position that has been offset at a profit will
generally not receive such profit until the prompt date, and
likewise a trader with a position that has been offset at a loss
will generally not have to pay money until the prompt date. In
recent years, however, the terms of forward contracts have
become more standardized, and in some instances such contracts
now provide a right of offset or cash settlement as an
alternative to making or taking delivery of the underlying
commodity.
The forward markets provide what has typically been a highly
liquid market for foreign exchange trading, and in certain cases
the prices quoted for foreign exchange forward contracts may be
more favorable than the prices for foreign exchange futures
contracts traded on U.S. exchanges. The forward markets are
largely unregulated. Forward contracts are, in general, not
cleared or guaranteed by a third party. Commercial banks
participating in trading foreign exchange forward contracts
often do not require
25
margin deposits, but rely upon internal credit limitations and
their judgments regarding the creditworthiness of their
counterparties. In recent years, however, many over-the-counter
market participants in foreign exchange trading have begun to
require that their counterparties post margin.
Further, as the result of the CFMA, over-the-counter derivative
instruments such as forward contracts and swap agreements (and
options on forwards and physical commodities) may begin to be
traded on lightly-regulated exchanges or electronic trading
platforms that may, but are not required to, provide for
clearing facilities. Exchanges and electronic trading platforms
on which over-the-counter instruments may be traded and the
regulation and criteria for that trading are more fully
described below under Futures Exchanges and Clearing
Organizations. Nonetheless, absent a clearing facility,
the Funds trading in foreign exchange and other forward
contracts is exposed to the creditworthiness of the
counterparties on the other side of the trade.
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Options on Futures Contracts
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Options on futures contracts are standardized contracts traded
on an exchange. An option on futures contract gives the buyer of
the option the right, but not the obligation, to take a position
at a specified price (the striking, strike, or exercise price)
in the underlying futures contract or underlying interest. The
buyer of a call option acquires the right, but not the
obligation, to purchase or take a long position in the
underlying interest, and the buyer of a put option acquires the
right, but not the obligation, to sell or take a short position
in the underlying interest.
The seller, or writer, of an option is obligated to take a
position in the underlying interest at a specified price
opposite to the option buyer if the option is exercised. Thus,
the seller of a call option must stand ready to take a short
position in the underlying interest at the strike price if the
buyer should exercise the option. The seller of a put option, on
the other hand, must stand ready to take a long position in the
underlying interest at the strike price.
A call option is said to be in-the-money if the strike price is
below current market levels and out-of-the-money if the strike
price is above current market levels. Conversely, a put option
is said to be in-the-money if the strike price is above the
current market levels and out-of-the-money if the strike price
is below current market levels.
Options have limited life spans, usually tied to the delivery or
settlement date of the underlying interest. Some options,
however, expire significantly in advance of such date. The
purchase price of an option is referred to as its premium, which
consists of its intrinsic value plus its time value. As an
option nears its expiration date, the time value shrinks and the
market and intrinsic values move into parity. An option that is
out-of-the-money and not offset by the time it expires becomes
worthless. On certain exchanges, in-the-money options are
automatically exercised on their expiration date, but on others
unexercised options simply become worthless after their
expiration date.
Regardless of how much the market swings, the most an option
buyer can lose is the option premium. The option buyer deposits
his premium with his broker, and the money goes to the option
seller. Option sellers, on the other hand, face risks similar to
participants in the futures markets. For example, since the
seller of a call option is assigned a short futures position if
the option is exercised, his risk is the same as someone who
initially sold a futures contract. Because no one can predict
exactly how the market will move, the option seller posts margin
to demonstrate his ability to meet any potential contractual
obligations.
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Options on Forward Contracts or Commodities
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Options on forward contracts or commodities operate in a manner
similar to options on futures contracts. An option on a forward
contract or commodity gives the buyer of the option the right,
but not the obligation, to take a position at a specified price
in the underlying forward contract or commodity. However,
similar to forward contracts, options on forward contracts or on
commodities are individually negotiated contracts between
counterparties and are typically traded in the over-the-counter
market.
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Therefore, options on forward contracts and physical commodities
possess many of the same characteristics of forward contracts
with respect to offsetting positions and credit risk that are
described above.
Swap transactions generally involve contracts with a
counterparty to exchange a stream of payments computed by
reference to a notional amount and the price of the asset that
is the subject of the swap. Swap contracts are principally
traded off-exchange, although recently, as a result of
regulatory changes enacted as part of the CFMA, certain swap
contracts are now being traded in electronic trading facilities
and cleared through clearing organizations.
Swaps are usually entered into on a net basis, that is, the two
payment streams are netted out in a cash settlement on the
payment date or dates specified in the agreement, with the
parties receiving or paying, as the case may be, only the net
amount of the two payments. Swaps do not generally involve the
delivery of underlying assets or principal. Accordingly, the
risk of loss with respect to swaps is generally limited to the
net amount of payments that the party is contractually obligated
to make. In some swap transactions the counterparty may require
collateral deposits to support the obligation under the swap
agreement. If the counterparty to such a swap defaults, the risk
of loss consists of the net amount of payments that the party is
contractually entitled to receive in addition to any collateral
deposits made with the counterparty.
The two broad classes of persons who trade commodities are
hedgers and speculators. Hedgers include financial institutions
that manage or deal in interest rate-sensitive instruments,
foreign currencies or stock portfolios, and commercial market
participants, such as farmers and manufacturers, that market or
process commodities. Hedging is a protective procedure designed
to lock in profits that could otherwise be lost due to an
adverse movement in the underlying commodity, for example, the
adverse price movement between the time a merchandiser or
processor enters into a contract to buy or sell a raw or
processed commodity at a certain price and the time he must
perform the contract. In such a case, at the time the hedger
contracts to buy the commodity at a future date he will
simultaneously buy a futures or forward contract for the
necessary equivalent quantity of the commodity. At the time for
performance of the contract, the hedger may accept delivery
under his futures contract or he may buy the actual commodity
and close out his position by making an offsetting sale of a
futures contract.
The commodity interest markets enable the hedger to shift the
risk of price fluctuations. The usual objective of the hedger is
to protect the profit that he expects to earn from farming,
merchandising, or processing operations rather than to profit
from his trading. However, at times the impetus for a hedge
transaction may result in part from speculative objectives.
Unlike the hedger, the speculator generally expects neither to
make nor take delivery of the underlying commodity. Instead, the
speculator risks his capital with the hope of making profits
from price fluctuations in the commodities. The speculator is,
in effect, the risk bearer who assumes the risks that the hedger
seeks to avoid. Speculators rarely make or take delivery of the
underlying commodity; rather they attempt to close out their
positions prior to the delivery date. Because the speculator may
take either a long or short position in commodities, it is
possible for him to make profits or incur losses regardless of
whether prices go up or down.
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Futures Exchanges and Clearing Organizations
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Futures exchanges provide centralized market facilities in which
multiple persons have the ability to execute or trade contracts
by accepting bids and offers from multiple participants. Futures
exchanges may provide for execution of trades at a physical
location utilizing trading pits and/or may provide for trading
to be done electronically through computerized matching of bids
and offers pursuant to various algorithms. Members of a
particular exchange and the trades executed on such exchanges
are subject to the rules of that exchange. Futures exchanges and
clearing organizations are given reasonable latitude in
promulgating
27
rules and regulations to control and regulate their members.
Examples of regulations by exchanges and clearing organizations
include the establishment of initial margin levels, rules
regarding trading practices, contract specifications,
speculative position limits, daily price fluctuation limits, and
execution and clearing fees.
Clearing organizations provide services designed to mutualize or
transfer the credit risk arising from the trading of contracts
on an exchange or other electronic trading facility. Once trades
made between members of an exchange or electronic trading
facility have been confirmed, the clearing organization becomes
substituted for the clearing member acting on behalf of each
buyer and each seller of contracts traded on the exchange or
trading platform and in effect becomes the other party to the
trade. Thereafter, each clearing member party to the trade looks
only to the clearing organization for performance. The clearing
organization generally establishes some sort of security or
guarantee fund to which all clearing members of the exchange
must contribute; this fund acts as an emergency buffer that
enables the clearing organization, at least to a large degree,
to meet its obligations with regard to the other side of an
insolvent clearing members contracts. The clearing
organizations do not deal with customers, but only with their
member firms and the guarantee of performance for open positions
provided by the clearing organization does not run to customers.
Furthermore, the clearing organization requires margin deposits
and continuously marks positions to market to provide some
assurance that their members will be able to fulfill their
contractual obligations. Thus, a central function of the
clearing organization is to ensure the integrity of trades, and
members effecting transactions on an exchange need not concern
themselves with the solvency of the party on the opposite side
of the trade; their only remaining concerns are the respective
solvencies of their clearing broker and the clearing
organization.
Futures exchanges in the U.S. are subject to varying
degrees of regulation by the CFTC based on their designation as
one of the following: a designated contract market, a
derivatives transaction execution facility, an exempt board of
trade or an electronic trading facility.
A designated contract market is the most highly regulated level
of futures exchange. Designated contract markets may offer
products to retail customers on an unrestricted basis. To be
designated as a contract market, the exchange must demonstrate
that it satisfies specified general criteria for designation,
such as having the ability to prevent market manipulation, rules
and procedures to ensure fair and equitable trading, position
limits, dispute resolution procedures, minimization of conflicts
of interest and protection of market participants. Among the
principal designated contract markets in the United States are
the Chicago Board of Trade, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange
(CME) and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Each of
the designated contract markets in the United States must
provide for the clearance and settlement of transactions with a
CFTC-registered derivatives clearing organization.
A derivatives transaction execution facility, or DTEF, is a new
type of exchange that is subject to fewer regulatory
requirements than a designated contract market but is subject to
both commodity interest and participant limitations. DTEFs limit
access to eligible traders that qualify as either eligible
contract participants or eligible commercial entities for
futures and option contracts on commodities that have a nearly
inexhaustible deliverable supply, are highly unlikely to be
susceptible to the threat of manipulation, or have no cash
market, security futures products, and futures and option
contracts on commodities that the CFTC may determine, on a
case-by-case basis, are highly unlikely to be susceptible to the
threat of manipulation. In addition, certain commodity interests
excluded or exempt from the CEA, such as swaps, etc. may be
traded on a DTEF. There is no requirement that a DTEF use a
clearing organization, except with respect to trading in
security futures contracts, in which case the clearing
organization must be a securities clearing agency. However, if
futures contracts and options on futures contracts on a DTEF are
cleared, then it must be through a CFTC-registered derivatives
clearing organization, except that some excluded or exempt
commodities traded on a DTEF may be cleared through a clearing
organization other than one registered with the CFTC.
28
An exempt board of trade is also a newly designated form of
exchange. An exempt board of trade is substantially unregulated,
subject only to CFTC anti-fraud and anti-manipulation authority.
An exempt board of trade is permitted to trade futures contracts
and options on futures contracts provided that the underlying
commodity is not a security or securities index and has an
inexhaustible deliverable supply or no cash market. All traders
on an exempt board of trade must qualify as eligible contract
participants. Contracts deemed eligible to be traded on an
exempt board of trade include contracts on interest rates,
exchange rates, currencies, credit risks or measures, debt
instruments, measures of inflation, or other macroeconomic
indices or measures. There is no requirement that an exempt
board of trade use a clearing organization. However, if
contracts on an exempt board of trade are cleared, then it must
be through a CFTC-registered derivatives clearing organization.
A board of trade electing to operate as an exempt board of trade
must file a written notification with the CFTC.
An electronic trading facility, or ETF, is a new form of
exchange that operates by means of an electronic or
telecommunications network and maintains an automated audit
trail of bids, offers, and the matching of orders or the
execution of transactions on the ETF. The CEA does not apply to,
and the CFTC has no jurisdiction over, transactions on an ETF in
certain excluded commodities that are entered into between
principals that qualify as eligible contract participants,
subject only to CFTC anti-fraud and anti-manipulation authority.
In general, excluded commodities include interest rates,
currencies, securities, securities indices or other financial,
economic or commercial indices or measures.
The General Partner intends to monitor the development of and
opportUnities and risks presented by the new less-regulated
Exchanges and exempt boards and may, in the future, allocate a
percentage of the Funds assets to trading in products on
these exchanges. Provided the Fund maintains assets exceeding
$5 million, the Fund would qualify as an eligible contract
participant and thus would be able to trade on such exchanges.
|
|
|
Non-U.S. Futures Exchanges
|
Non-U.S. futures exchanges differ in certain respects from
their U.S. counterparts. Importantly, non-U.S. futures
exchanges are not subject to regulation by the CFTC, but rather
are regulated by their home country regulator. In contrast to
U.S. designated contract markets, some
non-U.S. exchanges are principals markets, where
trades remain the liability of the traders involved, and the
exchange or an affiliated clearing organization, if any, does
not become substituted for any party. Due to the absence of a
clearing system, such exchanges are significantly more
susceptible to disruptions. Further, participants in such
markets must often satisfy themselves as to the individual
creditworthiness of each entity with which they enter into a
trade. Trading on non-U.S. exchanges is often in the
currency of the exchanges home jurisdiction. Consequently,
the Fund is subject to the additional risk of fluctuations in
the exchange rate between such currencies and U.S. dollars
and the possibility that exchange controls could be imposed in
the future. Trading on non-U.S. exchanges may differ from
trading on U.S. exchanges in a variety of ways and,
accordingly, may subject the Fund to additional risks.
|
|
|
Speculative Position Limits
|
The CFTC and U.S. designated contract markets have
established limits or position accountability rules, referred to
as speculative position limits or position limits, on the
maximum net long or net short speculative position that any
person or group of persons under common trading control (other
than a hedger, which the Fund is not) may hold, own or control
in commodity interests. Among the purposes of speculative
position limits is to prevent a corner or squeeze on a market or
undue influence on prices by any single trader or group of
traders. The position limits established by the CFTC apply to
certain agricultural commodity interests, such as grains (oats,
barley, and flaxseed), soybeans, corn, wheat, cotton, eggs, rye,
and potatoes. In addition, U.S. exchanges may set position
limits for all commodity interests traded on that exchange.
Certain exchanges or clearing organizations also set limits on
the total net positions that may be held by a clearing broker.
In general, no position limits are in effect in forward or other
over-the-counter contract trading or in trading on
non-U.S. futures exchanges, although the principals with
which the Fund and the clearing brokers may trade in such
markets may impose such
29
limits as a matter of credit policy. For purposes of determining
position limits the Funds commodity interest positions
will not be attributable to investors in their own commodity
interest trading.
Most U.S. futures exchanges (but generally not
non-U.S. exchanges or, in the case of forward or
over-the-counter contracts, banks or dealers) may limit the
amount of fluctuation in some futures contract or options on
futures contract prices during a single trading day by
regulations. These regulations specify what are referred to as
daily price fluctuation limits or more commonly, daily limits.
The daily limits establish the maximum amount that the price of
a futures or options on futures contract may vary either up or
down from the previous days settlement price. Once the
daily limit has been reached in a particular futures or options
on futures contract, no trades may be made at a price beyond the
limit. Positions in the futures or options contract may then be
taken or liquidated, if at all, only at inordinate expense or if
traders are willing to effect trades at or within the limit
during the period for trading on such day. Because the daily
limit rule governs price movement only for a particular trading
day, it does not limit losses and may in fact substantially
increase losses because it may prevent the liquidation of
unfavorable positions. Futures contract prices have occasionally
moved the daily limit for several consecutive trading days, thus
preventing prompt liquidation of positions and subjecting the
trader to substantial losses for those days.
Commodity prices are volatile and, although ultimately
determined by the interaction of supply and demand, are subject
to many other influences, including the psychology of the
marketplace and speculative assessments of future world and
economic events. Political climate, interest rates, treaties,
balance of payments, exchange controls and other governmental
interventions as well as numerous other variables affect the
commodity markets, and even with comparatively complete
information it is impossible for any trader to predict reliably
commodity prices.
Futures exchanges in the United States are subject to varying
degrees of regulation under the CEA depending on whether such
exchange is a designated contract market, DTEF, exempt board of
trade or ETF. Derivatives clearing organizations are also
subject to the CEA and CFTC regulation. The CFTC is the
governmental agency charged with responsibility for regulation
of futures exchanges and commodity interest trading conducted on
those exchanges. The CFTCs function is to implement the
CEAs objectives of preventing price manipulation and
excessive speculation and promoting orderly and efficient
commodity interest markets. In addition, the various exchanges
and clearing organizations themselves exercise regulatory and
supervisory authority over their member firms.
The CFTC possesses exclusive jurisdiction to regulate the
activities of commodity pool operators and commodity trading
advisors and has adopted regulations with respect to the
activities of those persons and/or entities. Under the CEA, a
registered commodity pool operator, such as the General Partner,
is required to make annual filings with the CFTC describing its
organization, capital structure, management and controlling
persons. In addition, the CEA authorizes the CFTC to require and
review books and records of, and documents prepared by,
registered commodity pool operators. Pursuant to this authority,
the CFTC requires commodity pool operators to keep accurate,
current and orderly records for each pool that they operate. The
CFTC may suspend the registration of a commodity pool operator
(1) if the CFTC finds that the operators trading
practices tend to disrupt orderly market conditions, (2) if
any controlling person of the operator is subject to an order of
the CFTC denying such person trading privileges on any exchange,
and (3) in certain other circumstances. Suspension,
restriction or termination of the General Partners
registration as a commodity pool operator would prevent it,
until that registration were to be reinstated, from managing the
Fund, and might result in the termination of, the Fund. The Fund
itself is not required to be registered with the CFTC in any
capacity.
30
The CEA gives the CFTC similar authority with respect to the
activities of commodity trading advisors. If a trading
advisors commodity trading advisor registration were to be
terminated, restricted or suspended, the trading advisor would
be unable, until the registration were to be reinstated, to
render trading advice to the Fund.
The CEA requires all futures commission merchants, such as the
Funds clearing brokers, to meet and maintain specified
fitness and financial requirements, to segregate customer funds
from proprietary funds and account separately for all
customers funds and positions, and to maintain specified
books and records open to inspection by the staff of the CFTC.
The CFTC has similar authority over introducing brokers, or
persons who solicit or accept orders for commodity interest
trades but who do not accept margin deposits for the execution
of trades. The CEA authorizes the CFTC to regulate trading by
futures commission merchants and by their officers and
directors, permits the CFTC to require action by exchanges in
the event of market emergencies, and establishes an
administrative procedure under which customers may institute
complaints for damages arising from alleged violations of the
CEA. The CEA also gives the states powers to enforce its
provisions and the regulations of the CFTC.
The Funds investors are afforded prescribed rights for
reparations under the CEA. Investors may also be able to
maintain a private right of action for violations of the CEA.
The CFTC has adopted rules implementing the reparation
provisions of the CEA, which provide that any person may file a
complaint for a reparations award with the CFTC for violation of
the CEA against a floor broker or a futures commission merchant,
introducing broker, commodity trading advisor, commodity pool
operator, and their respective associated persons.
Pursuant to authority in the CEA, the NFA has been formed and
registered with the CFTC as a registered futures association. At
the present time, the NFA is the only self-regulatory
organization for commodity interest professionals, other than
futures exchanges. The CFTC has delegated to the NFA
responsibility for the registration of commodity trading
advisors, commodity pool operators, futures commission
merchants, introducing brokers, and their respective associated
persons and floor brokers. The General Partner, each trading
advisor, the selling agents and the clearing brokers are members
of the NFA. As such, they are subject to NFA standards relating
to fair trade practices, financial condition and consumer
protection. the Fund itself is not required to become a member
of the NFA. As the self-regulatory body of the commodity
interest industry, the NFA promulgates rules governing the
conduct of professionals and disciplines those professionals
that do not comply with these rules. The NFA also arbitrates
disputes between members and their customers and conducts
registration and fitness screening of applicants for membership
and audits of its existing members.
The regulations of the CFTC and the NFA prohibit any
representation by a person registered with the CFTC or by any
member of the NFA, that registration with the CFTC, or
membership in the NFA, in any respect indicates that the CFTC or
the NFA, as the case may be, has approved or endorsed that
person or that persons trading program or objectives. The
registrations and memberships of the parties described in this
summary must not be considered as constituting any such approval
or endorsement. Likewise, no futures exchange has given or will
give any similar approval or endorsement.
The regulation of commodity interest trading in the United
States and other countries is an evolving area of the law. The
various statements made in this summary are subject to
modification by legislative action and changes in the rules and
regulations of the CFTC, the NFA, the futures exchanges,
clearing organizations and other regulatory bodies.
The function of the CFTC is to implement the objectives of the
CEA of preventing price manipulation and other disruptions to
market integrity, avoiding systemic risk, preventing fraud and
promoting innovation, competition and financial integrity of
transactions. As mentioned above, this regulation, among other
things, provides that the trading of commodity interest
contracts generally must be upon exchanges designated as
contract markets or DTEFs and that all trading on those
exchanges must be done by or through exchange members. Under the
CFMA, commodity interest trading in some commodities between
sophisticated persons may be traded on a trading facility not
regulated by the CFTC. As a general matter, trading in spot
contracts, forward contracts, options on forward contracts or
31
commodities, or swap contracts between eligible contract
participants is not within the jurisdiction of the CFTC and may
therefore be effectively unregulated. The trading advisors may
engage in those transactions on behalf of the Fund in reliance
on this exclusion from regulation.
In general, the CFTC does not regulate the interbank and forward
foreign currency markets with respect to transactions in
contracts between certain sophisticated counterparties such as
the Fund or between certain regulated institutions and retail
investors. Although U.S. banks are regulated in various
ways by the Federal Reserve Board, the Comptroller of the
Currency and other U.S. federal and state banking
officials, banking authorities do not regulate the forward
markets.
While the U.S. government does not currently impose any
restrictions on the movements of currencies, it could choose to
do so. The imposition or relaxation of exchange controls in
various jurisdictions could significantly affect the market for
that and other jurisdictions currencies. Trading in the
interbank market also exposes the Fund to a risk of default
since failure of a bank with which the Fund had entered into a
forward contract would likely result in a default and thus
possibly substantial losses to the Fund.
The CFTC is prohibited by statute from regulating trading on
non-U.S. futures exchanges and markets. The CFTC, however,
has adopted regulations relating to the marketing of
non-U.S. futures contracts in the U.S. These
regulations permit certain contracts traded on
non-U.S. exchanges to be offered and sold in the U.S.
Original or initial margin is the minimum amount of funds that
must be deposited by a commodity interest trader with the
traders broker to initiate and maintain an open position
in futures contracts. Maintenance margin is the amount
(generally less than the original margin) to which a
traders account may decline before he must deliver
additional margin. A margin deposit is like a cash performance
bond. It helps assure the traders performance of the
futures contracts that he or she purchases or sells. Futures
contracts are customarily bought and sold on margin that
represents a very small percentage (ranging upward from less
than 2%) of the aggregate purchase or sales price of the
contract. Because of such low margin requirements, price
fluctuations occurring in the futures markets may create profits
and losses that, in relation to the amount invested, are greater
than are customary in other forms of investment or speculation.
The amount of margin required in connection with a particular
futures contract is set from time to time by the exchange on
which the contract is traded and may be modified from time to
time by the exchange during the term of the contract.
Brokerage firms, such as the Funds clearing brokers,
carrying accounts for traders in commodity interest contracts
may not accept lower, and generally require higher, amounts of
margin as a matter of policy to further protect themselves. The
clearing brokers require the Fund to make margin deposits equal
to exchange minimum levels for all commodity interest contracts.
This requirement may be altered from time to time in the
clearing brokers discretion.
Trading in the over-the-counter markets where no clearing
facility is provided generally does not require margin but
generally does require the extension of credit between
counterparties.
When a trader purchases an option, there is no margin
requirement; however, the option premium must be paid in full.
When a trader sells an option, on the other hand, he or she is
required to deposit margin in an amount determined by the margin
requirements established for the underlying interest and, in
addition, an amount substantially equal to the current premium
for the option. The margin requirements imposed on the selling
of options, although adjusted to reflect the probability that
out-of-the-money options will not be exercised, can in fact be
higher than those imposed in dealing in the futures markets
directly. Complicated margin requirements apply to spreads and
conversions, which are complex trading strategies in which a
trader acquires a mixture of options positions and positions in
the underlying interest.
Margin requirements are computed each day by a traders
clearing broker. When the market value of a particular open
commodity interest position changes to a point where the margin
on deposit does not
32
satisfy maintenance margin requirements, a margin call is made
by the broker. If the margin call is not met within a reasonable
time, the broker may close out the traders position. With
respect to the Funds trading, the Fund (and not its
investors personally) is subject to margin calls.
Finally, many major U.S. exchanges have passed certain
cross margining arrangements involving procedures pursuant to
which the futures and options positions held in an account
would, in the case of some accounts, be aggregated and margin
requirements would be assessed on a portfolio basis, measuring
the total risk of the combined positions.
Potential Advantages of Investment
|
|
|
The Advantages of Non-Correlation
|
Given that historically, the price of oil and of Oil Futures
Contracts and Other Oil Interests has had very little
correlation to the stock and bond markets, the General Partner
believes that the performance of the Fund should also exhibit a
substantial degree of non-correlation with the performance of
traditional equity and debt portfolio components, in part
because of the ease of selling commodity interests short. This
feature of many commodity interest contracts being
able to be long or short a commodity interest position with
similar ease means that profit and loss from
commodity interest trading is not dependent upon economic
prosperity or stability.
However, non-correlation will not provide any diversification
advantages unless the non-correlated assets are outperforming
other portfolio assets, and it is entirely possible that the
Fund may not outperform other sectors of an investors
portfolio, or may produce losses. Additionally, although adding
the Funds Units to an investors portfolio may
provide diversification, the Fund is not a hedging mechanism
vis-à-vis traditional debt and equity portfolio components
and you should not assume that the Funds Units will
appreciate during periods of inflation or stock and bond market
declines.
Non-correlated performance should not be confused with
negatively correlated performance. Negative correlation occurs
when the performance of two asset classes are in opposite
direction to each other. Non-correlation means only that the
Funds performance will likely have little relation to the
performance of equity and debt instruments, reflecting the
General Partners belief that certain factors that affect
equity and debt prices may affect the Fund differently and that
certain factors that affect equity and debt prices may not
affect the Fund at all. The Funds net asset value per Unit
may decline or increase more or less than equity and debt
instruments during both rising and falling cash markets. The
General Partner does not expect that the Funds performance
will be negatively correlated to general debt and equity markets.
Unlike some alternative investment funds, the Fund does not
borrow money in order to obtain leverage, so the Fund does not
incur any interest expense. Rather, the Funds margin
deposits are maintained in U.S. Treasuries and interest is
earned on 100% of the Funds available assets, which
include unrealized profits credited to the Funds accounts.
Historical Information on Crude Oil
The following table sets forth the dates indicated in 2000,
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 of the closing prices or cash
settlement prices for a barrel of crude oil. These historical
prices should not be taken as an indication of future
performance, and no assurance can be given that the market
prices will increase sufficiently to cause the holders of Units
to experience a positive return.
|
|
|
|
|
Date
|
|
Crude Oil
|
|
|
|
|
|
31-Jan-00
|
|
|
27.64
|
|
29-Feb-00
|
|
|
30.43
|
|
31-Mar-00
|
|
|
26.90
|
|
28-Apr-00
|
|
|
25.74
|
|
33
|
|
|
|
|
Date
|
|
Crude Oil
|
|
|
|
|
|
31-May-00
|
|
|
29.02
|
|
30-Jun-00
|
|
|
32.50
|
|
31-Jul-00
|
|
|
27.43
|
|
31-Aug-00
|
|
|
33.12
|
|
29-Sept-00
|
|
|
30.84
|
|
31-Oct-00
|
|
|
32.70
|
|
30-Nov-00
|
|
|
33.82
|
|
31-Dec-00
|
|
|
26.80
|
|
31-Jan-01
|
|
|
28.66
|
|
28-Feb-01
|
|
|
27.39
|
|
31-Mar-01
|
|
|
26.29
|
|
30-Apr-01
|
|
|
28.46
|
|
31-May-01
|
|
|
28.37
|
|
29-Jun-01
|
|
|
26.25
|
|
31-Jul-01
|
|
|
26.35
|
|
31-Aug-01
|
|
|
27.20
|
|
29-Sept-01
|
|
|
23.43
|
|
31-Oct-01
|
|
|
21.18
|
|
30-Nov-01
|
|
|
19.44
|
|
31-Dec-01
|
|
|
19.84
|
|
31-Jan-02
|
|
|
19.48
|
|
28-Feb-02
|
|
|
21.74
|
|
31-Mar-02
|
|
|
26.31
|
|
30-Apr-02
|
|
|
27.29
|
|
31-May-02
|
|
|
25.31
|
|
28-Jun-02
|
|
|
26.86
|
|
31-Jul-02
|
|
|
27.02
|
|
31-Aug-02
|
|
|
28.98
|
|
30-Sept-02
|
|
|
30.45
|
|
31-Oct-02
|
|
|
27.22
|
|
29-Nov-02
|
|
|
26.89
|
|
31-Dec-02
|
|
|
31.20
|
|
31-Jan-03
|
|
|
33.51
|
|
28-Feb-03
|
|
|
36.60
|
|
31-Mar-03
|
|
|
31.04
|
|
30-Apr-03
|
|
|
25.80
|
|
31-May-03
|
|
|
29.56
|
|
30-Jun-03
|
|
|
30.19
|
|
31-Jul-03
|
|
|
30.54
|
|
31-Aug-03
|
|
|
31.57
|
|
30-Sept-03
|
|
|
29.20
|
|
31-0ct-03
|
|
|
29.11
|
|
28-Nov-03
|
|
|
30.41
|
|
31-Dec-03
|
|
|
32.52
|
|
34
|
|
|
|
|
Date
|
|
Crude Oil
|
|
|
|
|
|
30-Jan-04
|
|
|
33.05
|
|
27-Feb-04
|
|
|
36.16
|
|
31-Mar-04
|
|
|
35.76
|
|
30-Apr-04
|
|
|
37.38
|
|
28-May-04
|
|
|
39.88
|
|
30-Jun-04
|
|
|
37.05
|
|
30-Jul-04
|
|
|
43.80
|
|
31-Aug-04
|
|
|
42.12
|
|
30-Sept-04
|
|
|
49.64
|
|
29-Oct-04
|
|
|
51.76
|
|
30-Nov-04
|
|
|
49.13
|
|
31-Dec-04
|
|
|
43.45
|
|
26-Jan-05
|
|
|
48.78
|
|
All or part of the following information was taken from
the United States Governments Energy Information
Administrations (EIA) website.
Overview of Petroleum Industry
Petroleum industry operations and profitability are influenced
by many factors. Governmental policies, particularly in the
areas of taxation, energy and the environment, have a
significant impact on petroleum activities, regulating where and
how companies conduct their operations and formulate their
products and, in some cases, limiting their profits directly.
Prices for crude oil and natural gas, petroleum products and
petrochemicals are determined by supply and demand for these
commodities. The members of the Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) are typically the worlds
swing producers of crude oil, and their production levels are a
major factor in determining worldwide supply. Demand for crude
oil and its products and for natural gas is largely driven by
the conditions of local, national and worldwide economies,
although weather patterns and taxation relative to other energy
sources also play a significant part.
Overview of Crude Oil
Characteristics.
The physical characteristics of crude
oils differ. Crude oil with a similar mix of physical and
chemical characteristics, usually produced from a given
reservoir, field or sometimes even a region, constitutes a crude
oil stream. Most simply, crude oils are classified
by their density and sulfur content. Less dense (or
lighter) crudes generally have a higher share of
light hydrocarbons higher value products
that can be recovered with simple distillation. The denser
(heavier) crude oils produce a greater share of
lower-valued products with simple distillation and require
additional processing to produce the desired range of products.
Some crude oils also have a higher sulfur content, an
undesirable characteristic with respect to both processing and
product quality. For pricing purposes, crude oils of similar
quality are often compared to a single representative crude oil,
a benchmark, of the quality class.
The quality of the crude oil dictates the level of processing
and re-processing necessary to achieve the optimal mix of
product output. Hence, price and price differentials between
crude oils also reflect the relative ease of refining. A premium
crude oil like West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark,
has a relatively high natural yield of desirable naphtha and
straight-run gasoline. Another premium crude oil, Nigerias
Bonny Light, has a high natural yield of middle distillates. By
contrast, almost half of the simple distillation yield from
Saudi Arabias Arabian Light, the historical benchmark
crude, is a heavy residue (residuum) that must be
reprocessed or sold at a discount to crude oil. Even West Texas
Intermediate and Bonny Light have a yield of about one-third
residuum after the simple distillation process.
35
In addition to gravity and sulfur content, the type of
hydrocarbon molecules and other natural characteristics may
affect the cost of processing or restrict a crude oils
suitability for specific uses. The presence of heavy metals,
contaminants for the processing and for the finished product, is
one example. The molecular structure of a crude oil also
dictates whether a crude stream can be used for the manufacture
of specialty products, such as lubricating oils or of
petrochemical feedstocks.
Refiners therefore strive to run the optimal mix (or
slate) of crudes through their refineries, depending
on the refinerys equipment, the desired output mix, and
the relative price of available crudes. In recent years,
refiners have confronted two opposite forces
consumers and government mandates that increasingly
required light products of higher quality (the most difficult to
produce) and crude oil supply that was increasingly heavier,
with higher sulfur content (the most difficult to refine).
Drilling for Oil.
To identify a prospective site for oil
production, companies use a variety of techniques, including
core sampling physically removing and testing a
cross section of the rock and seismic testing, where
the return vibrations from a man-made shockwave are measured and
calibrated. Advances in technology have made huge improvements
in seismic testing.
After these exploratory tests, companies must then drill to
confirm the presence of oil or gas. A dry hole is an
unsuccessful well, one where the drilling did not find oil or
gas, or not enough to be economically worth producing. A
successful well may contain either oil or gas, and often both,
because the gas is dissolved in the oil. When gas is present in
oil, it is extracted from the liquid at the surface in a process
separate from oil production.
Historically, drilling a wildcat well
searching for oil in a field where it had not yet been
discovered had a low chance of success. Only one out
of five wildcat wells found oil or gas. The rest were dry holes.
Better information, especially from seismic technology, has
improved the success rate to one out of three and, according to
some, one in two. Reducing the money wasted on dry holes is one
of the aspects of upstream activity that has allowed the
industry to find and produce oil at the prices prevailing over
much of the 1990s.
After a successful well identifies the presence of oil and/or
gas, additional wells are drilled to test the production
conditions and determine the boundaries of the reservoir.
Finally, production, or development, wells are put
in place, along with tanks, pipelines and gas processing plants,
so the oil can be produced, moved to markets and sold. Once
extracted, the crude oil must be refined into usable products,
as discussed in the chapter on oil refining.
How Oil Is Produced.
The naturally occurring pressure in
the underground reservoir is an important determinant of whether
the reservoir is economically viable or not. The pressure varies
with the characteristics of the trap, the reservoir rock and the
production history. Most oil, initially, is produced by
natural lift production methods: the pressure
underground is high enough to force the oil to the surface.
Reservoirs in the Middle East tend to be long-lived on
natural lift, that is, the reservoir pressure
continues over time to be great enough to force the oil out. The
underground pressure in older reservoirs, however, eventually
dissipates, and oil no longer flows to the surface naturally. It
must be pumped out by means of an artificial
lift a pump powered by gas or electricity. The
majority of the oil reservoirs in the United States are produced
using some kind of artificial lift.
Over time, these primary production methods become
ineffective, and continued production requires the use of
additional secondary production methods. One common
method uses water to displace oil, using a method called
waterflood, which forces the oil to the drilled
shaft or wellbore.
Finally, producers may need to turn to tertiary or
enhanced oil recovery methods. These techniques are
often centered on increasing the oils flow characteristics
through the use of steam, carbon dioxide and other gases or
chemicals. In the United States, primary production methods
account for less than 40 percent of the oil produced on a
daily basis, secondary methods account for about half, and
tertiary recovery the remaining 10 percent.
36
Both the varying reservoir characteristics and the physical
characteristics of the crude oil are important components of the
cost of producing oil. These costs can range from as little as
$2 per barrel in the Middle East to more than $15 per
barrel in some fields in the United States, including capital
recovery.
The Impact of Upstream Technology.
Technology has
enhanced the likelihood of finding oil. A primary benefit is the
ability to eliminate poor prospects, thus considerably reducing
wasted expenditures on dry holes. In addition, drilling and
production technologies have made it possible to exploit
reservoirs that would formerly have been too costly to put into
production and to increase the recovery from existing reservoirs.
Technology also has contributed to making oil exploration and
production safer for the industry and for the environment.
Offshore production can be operated from onshore, with automatic
shutoff systems to minimize the pollution risk. Infrared
photography can pinpoint a trajectory of spilled oil, allowing
equipment and personnel to be deployed quickly and effectively,
thus minimizing damage.
In addition, technology has been responsible for the
rejuvenation of offshore exploration that has taken place beyond
the Outer Continental Shelf.
Global Oil Supply by Region.
The Mideast remains the
largest oil-producing region. The Mideast holds about two-thirds
of the one trillion barrels of global proved oil reserves, so
the regions critical role in world oil supply will
continue and will grow. (The United States, by contrast, holds
only 4 percent of global proved reserves.) Several core
developments have shaped the pattern of regional oil production:
The higher oil prices of the 1970s and early 1980s afforded a
strong economic incentive to explore for and produce oil, and
production rose in many areas. At the same time, oil demand
declined the expected response to the high prices.
Saudi Arabia became the swing supplier, reducing its
production as necessary to balance supply and demand. Its
rejection of that role in mid-1985 its output had
fallen to about 25 percent of its 1980 peak
brought the full force of the supply/demand imbalance onto
markets and resulted in the price collapse of 1986. Prices did
not return to the pre-1986 level until the Persian Gulf conflict
of 1990-91, and then only briefly. When, in 1998, Asian demand
faltered with the regions economies, and northern
hemisphere demand faltered with the warm winter, the high
production levels resulted in another price collapse. The market
reaction in 1998, however, was not the same as in
1986 demand did not recover as quickly and supply
did not fall as quickly. Hence, the low price period lasted
longer and showed lower prices in 1998 than in 1986. In early
2000, oil prices exceeded the levels of the Persian Gulf
conflict in nominal terms. Sharp as the price increases were in
early 2000, however, crude oil prices remained less than half of
the early 1980s peak in terms of real buying power.
Saudi Arabia, the market-balancer in the early 1980s, has been
the worlds largest producer during the 1990s. Not only did
Saudi Arabia increase its production to fill the gap left by the
loss of Iraqi and Kuwaiti supplies after Iraq invaded Kuwait in
1990, but production declined in the other two large producers,
the United States and the former Soviet Union.
Mideast production would have been higher throughout the 1990s
if Iraqs production had not been constrained by the United
Nations sanctions imposed after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. The
so-called Humanitarian Oil Sales have provided Iraq
only limited and closely controlled reentry into world oil
markets.
Mideast production also would have been higher at various times
if it had not been for the market-balancing role played with
varying degrees of success by the OPEC. OPEC currently includes
Algeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar,
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. Ecuador
and Gabon withdrew their membership at the end of 1992 and 1994,
respectively.
North America is the second largest producing area after the
Middle East. The United States, the second largest producing
country in the world, accounts for almost 60 percent of the
North American regions total. Canada, the United States
and Mexico all have long production histories, and production
37
from mature fields has been declining. However, a new surge in
technology has benefited both new field development and more
complete production from existing fields.
North Sea production, off the United Kingdom and Norway, began
in the late 1970s. In contrast to predictions from the early
1980s of the imminent decline in the regions production,
the North Sea has yet to see its peak. The regions success
with new exploration and production technology, and hence its
continuing volume growth, has been a central factor in world oil
markets for a decade.
Production in the Soviet Union peaked at about 12 million
barrels a day in the early 1980s when it was the top world oil
producer. The regions demand collapse, in combination with
its aggressive production targets set to maintain foreign
exchange, masked its rapid production decline in the late 1980s
as the Soviet Union broke up. The former Soviet Union has
recently been the third-ranked producer, after Saudi Arabia and
the United States. One of the most visible new production
prospects has been the Caspian Sea in Central Asia, in spite of
the enormous logistical and political hurdles involved in
getting the oil produced to world markets.
[Insert Chart]
Price of Crude Oil.
The price of crude oil is established
by the supply and demand conditions in the global market
overall, and more particularly, in the main refining centers:
Singapore, Northwest Europe, and the U.S. Gulf Coast. The
crude oil price forms a baseline for product prices. Products
are manufactured and delivered to the main distribution centers,
such as New York Harbor, or Chicago. Product supplies in these
distribution centers would include output from area refineries,
shipments from other regions (such as the Gulf Coast), and for
some, product imports. Product prices in these distribution
centers establish a regional baseline. Product is then
re-distributed to ever more local markets, by barge, pipeline,
and finally truck. The fact the oil markets are physically
inter-connected, with supply for a region coming from another
region, means that of necessity even local gasoline prices feel
the impact of prices abroad.
Oil prices are a result of thousands of transactions taking
place simultaneously around the world, at all levels of the
distribution chain from crude oil producer to individual
consumer. Oil markets are essentially a global
auction the highest bidder will win the supply. Like
any auction, however, the bidder doesnt want to pay too
much. When markets are strong (when demand is high
and/or supply is low), the bidder must be willing to pay a
higher premium to capture the supply. When markets are
weak (demand low and/or supply high), a bidder may
choose not to outbid competitors, waiting instead for later,
possibly lower priced, supplies. There are several different
types of transactions that are common in oil markets. Contract
arrangements in the oil market in fact cover most oil that
changes hands. Oil is also sold in spot
transactions, that is, cargo-by-cargo,
transaction-by-transaction arrangements. In addition, oil is
traded in futures markets. Futures markets are a mechanism
designed to distribute risk among participants on different
sides (such as buyers versus sellers) or with different
expectations of the market,
38
but not generally to supply physical volumes of oil. Both spot
markets and futures markets provide critical price information
for contract markets.
Prices in spot markets cargo-by-cargo and
transaction-by-transaction send a clear signal about
the supply/demand balance. Rising prices indicate that more
supply is needed, and falling prices indicate that there is too
much supply for the prevailing demand level. Furthermore, while
most oil flows under contract, its price varies with spot
markets. Futures markets also provide information about the
physical supply/demand balance as well as the markets
expectations.
Seasonal swings are also an important underlying influence in
the supply/demand balance, and hence in price fluctuations.
Other things being equal, crude oil markets would tend to be
stronger in the fourth quarter (the high demand quarter on a
global basis, where demand is boosted both by cold weather and
by stock building) and weaker in the late winter as global
demand falls with warmer weather. As a practical matter,
however, crude oil prices reflect more than just these seasonal
factors; they are subject to a host of other influences.
Likewise, product prices tend to be highest relative to crude as
they move into their high demand season late spring
for gasoline, late autumn for heating oil. The seasonal pattern
in actual product prices, again, may be less obvious, because so
many other factors are at work.
The overall supply picture is of course also influenced by the
level of
inventories.
When stocks in a given market are
high as discussed in the chapter on Stocks, they represent
incremental supply immediately available, so prices tend to be
weak. The opposite is true in a low stock situation.
Price
change
patterns can vary between regions, depending
on the prevailing supply/demand conditions in the regional
market, especially in the short-term. Refinery outages or
logistics problems in Chicago will lead to rapid price increases
in the Midwest without matching increases on the East Coast.
Both geography and the unique quality of the gasoline required
by the California Air Resources Board contribute to the
volatility of gasoline prices there. Sources for additional
supply are limited and distant, so any unusual increase in
demand or reduction in supply gets a large price response in the
market.
That price response, and the differences in regional price
movements, are critical to the way the oil market redistributes
products to re-balance after an upheaval. The price increase in
one area calls forward additional supplies. These new supplies
might come from other markets in the United States, or from
incremental imports. They may also be augmented by increased
output from refineries. The volume and source of the relief
supplies are interwoven. The farther away the necessary relief
supplies are, the higher and longer the likely price spike. See
the example of re-adjustment in the Northeast.
Price spikes were an important feature of oil markets during
2000, including the Northeasts heating oil price runup in
January and February, and the Midwests gasoline price
spike in May and June. The Energy Information Administration has
analyzed these market upheavals extensively, testifying before
Congress, publishing reports, and providing routine updates on
its website.
All other things being equal, cost differences are important
factors in regional prices. For instance,
state excise taxes,
product quality, distance and ease of distribution
are all
important when comparing prices between regions, states and even
within states. These factors will lead to higher prices (or
lower) in a given area on a day-in, day-out basis. (These
differences are also important in comparing prices in the United
States with those abroad.)
Ultimately, oil prices can only be as high as the market will
bear. They may be higher in areas with higher disposable income,
where real estate values, wages and other measures of economic
activity indicate that the market is more robust. If they rise
higher than the market will bear, however, consumers will seek
substitutes or downsize their cars and make other adjustments
that reduce their consumption. If the local area offers
unusually high profits, competitors will quickly enter the
market, finally pushing prices down.
39
[Insert Chart]
Oil Trade.
There is more trade internationally in oil
than in anything else. This is true whether one measures trade
by how much of a good is moved (volume), by its value, or by the
carrying capacity needed to move it. All measures are important
and for different reasons. Volume provides insights about
whether markets are over-or under-supplied and whether the
infrastructure is adequate to accommodate the required flow.
Value allows governments and economists to assess patterns of
international trade and balance of trade and balance of
payments. Carrying capacity allows the shipping industry to
assess how many tankers are required and on what routes.
Transportation and storage play a critical additional role here.
They are not just the physical link between the importers and
the exporters and, therefore, between producers and refiners,
refiners and marketers, and marketers and consumers; their
associated costs are a primary factor in determining the pattern
of world trade.
Generally, crude oil and petroleum products flow to the markets
that provide the highest value to the supplier. Everything else
being equal, oil moves to the nearest market first, because that
has the lowest transportation cost and therefore provides the
supplier with the highest net revenue, or in oil market
terminology, the highest
netback.
If this market cannot
absorb all the oil, the balance moves to the next closest one,
and the next and so on, incurring progressively higher
transportation costs, until all the oil is placed.
The recent growth in United States dependence on its Western
Hemisphere neighbors is an illustration of this
nearer-is-better syndrome. For instance, Western
Hemisphere sources now supply over half the United States import
volume, much of it on voyages of less than a week. Another
quarter comes from elsewhere in the area called the Atlantic
Basin, those countries on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. This
oil, coming especially that which comes from the North Sea and
Africa, and takes just 2-3 weeks to reach the United
States, boosts the so-called
short-haul
share of
U.S. imports to over three-quarters. Most North Sea and
North and West African crude oils stay in the Atlantic Basin,
moving to Europe or North America on routes that rarely take
over 20 days. In contrast, voyage times to Asia for just
the nearest of these, the West African crude oils, would be over
30 days to Singapore, rising to nearly 40 for Japan. Not
surprisingly, therefore, most of Asias oil comes instead
from the Middle East, only 20-30 days away.
Mexico and Venezuela have consciously helped the trend toward
short-haul shipments. They pro-actively took the strategic
decision to make as large and as profitable a market as possible
for poor quality crudes, since their reserves are unusually
biased toward those hard-to-place grades. Both countries
therefore targeted their nearest markets, the U.S. Gulf
Coast and the Caribbean, for joint venture refinery investments.
They began with refineries that had traditionally run their
crudes, and then with refineries that might be upgraded to do
so. This policy has turned poor quality crudes into the
preferred crude at these sites, significantly increasing the
crude oil self-sufficiency of the Western Hemisphere.
A change in trade flow patterns can also be of critical
importance to the shipping industry. For example, the Suez
crisis of 1957 forced tanker owners back to using the much
longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, and resulted in the
development of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) to reduce
that voyages higher costs. The shift to short-haul routes
in the 1990s was also critical. Using the growth
40
in world trade volumes as a proxy for demand, tanker owners had
been expecting a return to a strong tanker market. But the
combination of the surge in short hauls imports in the Atlantic
Basin and the shift of Middle East exports from the longer
United States to shorter Asian voyages led to a sharp decline in
average voyage length. This decline was accelerated by the
return of Iraqi crude exports, many of which move on the
extremely short route from the Black Sea end of the Iraq-Turkey
pipeline to the Mediterranean. The tanker owners outlook
was thus fading even before world trade volumes were undermined
by the Asian crisis.
Quality, Industry Structure, and Governments.
In
practice, trade flows do not always follow the simple
nearest first pattern. Refinery configurations,
product demand mix, product quality specifications
all three of which tie into quality and politics can
all change the rankings. Different markets frequently place
different values on particular grades of oil. Thus, a low sulfur
diesel is worth more in the United States, where the maximum
allowable sulfur is 0.05 percent by weight, than in Africa,
where the maximum can be 10 to 20 times higher. Similarly,
African crudes low in sulfur are worth
relatively more in Asia, where they may allow a refiner to meet
tighter sulfur limits in the region without investing in
refinery upgrades. Such differences in valuing quality can be
sufficient to overcome transportation cost disadvantages, as the
relatively recent establishment of a significant trade in
long-distance African crudes to Asia shows. The cost of moving
oil into a particular market can be further distorted from the
principle of nearest first by government policies such as
tariffs.
In addition, both buyers and sellers may impose restrictions.
For instance, the United States prohibits the importation of
Iranian and Libyan oil, and the United Nations allows only
limited sales of Iraqi oil. On the sellers side, Mexico
formerly limited sales to the United States to 50 percent
of its exports, reflecting concerns about dependence on the
United States specifically and about dependence on one
geographic market in general. Saudi Arabias national
security concerns, on the other hand, dictate that it maintain a
very high profile as a supplier to the United States market,
even at the cost of lower netbacks. Indeed, it was the top
United States crude supplier in 1999.
Crude Versus Products.
Crude oil dominates the world oil
trade. The risk-weighted economics clearly favor siting
refineries close to consumers rather than close to the wellhead.
This siting policy takes maximum advantage of the economies of
scale of large ships, especially as local quality specifications
are increasingly fragmenting the product market. It maximizes
the refiners ability to tailor the product output to the
markets short-term surges such as those caused by weather,
equipment outages, etc. In addition, this policy also guards
against the very real risk that governments will impose
selective import restrictions to protect their domestic refining
sector.
There are a limited number of refining centers that are at odds
with this general rule, having been developed to serve
particular export markets. These export refining
centers Singapore, the Caribbean, and the Middle
East give rise to some regular inter-regional
product moves, but they are the exception. The inter-regional
products trade is largely a temporary market-balancing function.
Some inter-regional flows are extremely short lived, as when
extremely cold weather in Europe causes the United States to
export heating oil there. A longer-lived example arose when a
large proportion of European drivers opted for diesel cars,
leaving the region in the late 1990s with surplus capacity
to produce gasoline for export to the United States.
Tankers and Pipelines.
There are two modes of
transportation for inter-regional trade: tankers and pipelines.
Tankers have made global (intercontinental) transport of
oil possible, and they are low cost, efficient, and extremely
flexible. Pipelines, on the other hand, are the mode of choice
for transcontinental oil movements.
Not all tanker trade routes use the same size ship. Each route
usually has one size that is the clear economic winner, based on
voyage length, port and canal constraints and volume. Thus,
crude exports from the Middle East high volumes that
travel long distances are moved mainly by Very Large
Crude Carriers (VLCCs) typically carrying over
2 million barrels of oil on every voyage. The VLCCs
economies of scale outweigh the constraints imposed: they are
too large for all the ports in the United States except the
Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP). Thus, they must have some or
all of their cargo
41
transferred to smaller vessels, either at sea
(lightering) or at an offshore port (transshipment). In
contrast, ships out of the Caribbean and South America are
routinely smaller and enter ports in the United States directly.
Because of such ship size differences, a long voyage can
sometimes be cheaper on a per barrel basis than a short one.
Pipelines are critical for landlocked crudes and also complement
tankers at certain key locations by relieving bottlenecks or
providing shortcuts. The only inter-regional trade that
currently relies solely on pipelines is crude from Russia to
Europe. Export pipelines are also needed for production from the
Caspian Sea region, where the protracted commercial and
political debate illustrates the greatest negative for pipelines
crossing national boundaries: their political vulnerability.
Pipelines come into their own in intra-regional trade. They are
the primary option for transcontinental transportation, because
they are at least an order of magnitude cheaper than any
alternative such as rail, barge, or road, and because political
vulnerability is a small or non-existent issue within a
nations border or between neighbors such as the United
States and Canada. (Pipelines are also an important oil
transport mode in mainland Europe, although the system is much
smaller, matching the shorter distances.)
The development of large diameter pipelines during World
War II allowed the development of the vast pipeline network
in North America that moves crude oil and product within Canada,
from Canada into the United States, and within the United
States. Domestically, the 200,000 miles of pipelines
account for about two-thirds of all the oil shipments, when
adjusted for volume and distance. They move domestic crudes from
producing areas like California, the Rockies, and West Texas,
and imported crudes from the receiving ports, and transport them
to the refining centers. The United States also relies heavily
on pipelines to transport petroleum products from refining
centers, such as the Gulf Coast, to consuming regions, like the
East Coast.
Fungibility is an important factor in transportation economics.
Because the oil is broadly interchangeable (fungible), it can be
mixed without a significant diminution in value. As
environmental mandates have required different regional and
seasonal qualities of gasoline, the required batching for
transport and segregation for storage has increased
substantially. Thus the logistics flexibility inherent in a
products fungibility the ability to substitute
one shipment for another, to exchange between regions, for
instance has disappeared. While this is invisible to
consumers during normal times, it contributes to market
upheavals and price spikes in times of surprises in demand or
supply, as during the early driving season in 2000.
Import Dependency.
The United States continues to sit at
the top of the national rankings of importers, now accounting
for around a quarter of total world imports. Yet its import
dependency, the percentage of demand met by imports, is
significantly lower, than that of its international partners.
Industrialized countries such as Japan and Germany have import
dependency levels of 90-100 percent.
The Middle East has long been regarded as politically unstable
and its oil supply, therefore, subject to disruptions.
U.S. policy makers have viewed its increased dependence on
Western Hemisphere supplies and its decreased dependence on the
Middle East as a welcome development. (Again, an international
contrast: the Asia-Pacific region now relies on the Middle East
for almost 90 percent of its imports and hence
50 percent of its consumption.) As the Middle East holds
the majority of the worlds oil reserves, increasing
U.S. dependence on this region had been viewed as the
inevitable partner of import growth. In light of the shift
toward Western Hemisphere, short-haul import sources, Saudi
Arabia is the only significant Middle East supplier left, and
then only because of its willingness to trade security for
revenue. Yet, although U.S. dependence on the long-haul
Middle East has fallen sharply, this has not made
U.S. prices less vulnerable to a disruption in Middle East
supplies. Since oil is a global market, the relevant measure for
that vulnerability is not U.S. dependence, but world
dependence on Middle East oil and that has not
shrunk.
While interdependence in the Western Hemisphere has been a major
United States policy objective, it is important to realize that
this combination of size and geographic closeness creates its
own short-term vulnerability. Take for instance the case of
Hurricane Roxanne, which severely damaged a large part of
Mexicos production facilities in the Gulf of Mexico in
late 1995. Some 40 million barrels of Mexicos
production was eliminated, the vast majority earmarked for
refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast. These
42
refiners, less than a weeks sailing time away, had little
time to compensate for this sudden hole in their planned
supplies.
Crude Oil and Products Mix.
Crude oil dominates
U.S. imports just as it dominates world trade and for much
the same reasons. Therefore, all of the U.S. leading
suppliers are major crude producers. Imports of crude oil,
having grown to replace declining domestic production and to
meet growing demand, now account for around 80 percent of
the total. Product import volumes have stayed relatively stable.
In spite of the seeming stability in product imports, there have
been significant structural shifts over the last couple of
decades in the mix of products that the United States imports.
Residual fuel oil, for instance, formerly accounted for the
majority of all product imports, but its share has shriveled
into insignificance as utilities and industrial users have
switched to other fuels, particularly nuclear and natural gas.
In its place, the United States now imports a much higher
proportion of petroleum products that are reprocessed or blended
by the oil industry, such as the unfinished gasoline and
gasoline blending components that are central to reformulated
gasoline supply.
Canada is the one country that delivers oil to the United States
by pipeline. (Only its relatively new offshore Eastern Canadian
production, from fields like Hibernia, depends on tankers.) The
vast majority of Canadas crudes are landlocked and rely
almost exclusively on trunk-lines from Western Canada that tie
into the U.S. transcontinental network to reach their main
export markets, which lie all across the Northern Tier of the
United States. As domestic production has declined, these
Canadian crudes have had a greater reach into the United States.
U.S. Exports.
Since the United States is the
worlds largest importer, it may seem surprising that it
also exports around 1 million barrels a day of oil,
predominantly petroleum products. Due to various logistical,
regulatory, and quality considerations, it turns out that
exporting some barrels and replacing them with additional
imports is the most economic way to meet the markets
needs. For example, the Gulf Coast may export lower quality
gasoline to Latin America while the East Coast imports higher
quality gasolines from Europe. Exports in the 1990s have
been at record highs, the efficiency of the oil market has been
increased, and consumers everywhere have benefited.
U.S. Regional Trade.
There are significant
differences between different parts of the United States in
terms of their involvement in and dependence on international
trade. Most of these differences are the direct result of the
uneven distribution of both production and refining across the
United States. The East Coast imports over half of all the
products that come to the United States, because it is the
largest consuming area in the United States but, for historical
reasons, it has only enough capacity to meet around 1/3 of those
needs from its own refining. It fills the product gap with
supplies from other parts of the United States, particularly the
Gulf Coast, and with imports. Its limited volume of refining
capacity also keeps it a distant third as a crude importer.
However, because its local production is so insignificant, its
crude import dependency is the highest of all, at almost
100 percent.
The only other region that imports significant amounts of
products is the Gulf Coast. Its focus is not, like the East
Coasts, on products that can be supplied directly to the
consumer, but on refinery feedstocks and blendstocks, to support
its role as the main U.S. refining and petrochemical
center. That role, plus the need for all the Midwests
non-Canadian crude imports to move through the Gulf Coasts
ports and pipelines too, has also led to the Gulf Coast being by
far the most important crude oil importing region in the United
States, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the total.
The trade among regions of the United States is focused on the
eastern half of the country. The Midwest and East Coast account
for 90 percent of the inter-regional flow, the flow between
Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts. The Gulf Coast
is by far the largest supplier, accounting for more than 80% of
the inter-PADD flow. In contrast, the Rockies and the West Coast
are isolated, in petroleum logistics terms, from the rest of the
country. The easy flow of petroleum from the Gulf Coast to the
Midwest and the East Coast mean that incremental supply is more
readily available to those markets in the event of a demand
surge or supply drop. In contrast, the West Coast, and the
California market in particular, cannot so readily attract
incremental supplies. Thus, the California refinery outages that
43
occurred in the Spring of 1999, resulted in a large price
increase as market players scrambled for additional supply, none
of which was available close at hand, or cheaply. The California
markets isolation is more than just geographic: the State
imposes unique and stringent quality restrictions on both its
gasoline and its off-highway diesel, making what otherwise might
be available to augment California product supplies unsuitable.
Crude Oil Regulation
|
|
|
Regulation of Crude Oil Activities
|
The exploration, production and transportation of all types of
hydrocarbon are subject to significant governmental regulations.
Operations are affected from time to time in varying degrees by
political developments and federal, state, and local laws and
regulations. In particular, crude oil and natural gas production
operations and economics are, or in the past have been, affected
by industry specific price controls, taxes, conservation,
safety, environmental, and other laws relating to the petroleum
industry, by changes in such laws and by constantly changing
administrative regulations.
In the past, maximum selling prices for certain categories of
crude oil in the United States were subject to significant
federal regulation. At the present time, however, all sales of
crude oil in the United States under private contracts may be
sold at market prices. Congress could, however, reenact price
controls in the future.
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State and Other Regulation
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Many jurisdictions have statutory provisions regulating the
exploration for and production of crude oil and natural gas.
These include provisions requiring permits for the drilling of
wells and maintaining bonding requirements in order to drill or
operate wells and provisions relating to the location of wells,
the method of drilling and casing wells, the surface use and
restoration of properties upon which wells are drilled and the
plugging and abandoning of wells. The Funds operations are
also subject to various conservation laws and regulations. These
include the regulation of the size of drilling and spacing Units
or proration Units on an acreage basis and the density of wells
which may be drilled and the Unitization or pooling of crude oil
and natural gas properties. In this regard, some states and
provinces allow the forced pooling or integration of tracts to
facilitate exploration while other states and provinces rely on
voluntary pooling of lands and leases. In addition, state and
provincial conservation laws establish maximum rates of
production from crude oil and natural gas wells, generally
prohibit the venting or flaring of natural gas and impose
certain requirements regarding the ratability of production.
Some states, such as Texas and Oklahoma, have, in recent years,
reviewed and substantially revised methods previously used to
make monthly determinations of allowable rates of production
from fields and individual wells.
State and regulation of gathering facilities generally includes
various safety, environmental, and in some circumstances,
non-discriminatory take or service requirements, but does not
generally entail rate regulation. In the United States, natural
gas gathering has received greater regulatory scrutiny at both
the state and federal levels in the wake of the interstate
pipeline restructuring under FERC. For example, the Texas
Railroad Commission enacted a Natural Gas Transportation
Standards and Code of Conduct to provide regulatory support for
the States more active review of rates, services and
practices associated with the gathering and transportation of
natural gas by an entity that provides such services to others
for a fee, in order to prohibit such entities from unduly
discriminating in favor of their affiliates.
For those operations on U.S. Federal or Indian oil and gas
leases, such operations must comply with numerous regulatory
restrictions, including various non-discrimination statutes, and
certain of such operations must be conducted pursuant to certain
on-site security regulations and other permits issued by various
federal agencies. In addition, in the United States, the
Minerals Management Service (MMS) prescribes or
severely limits the types of costs that are deductible
transportation costs for purposes of royalty valuation of
production sold off the lease. In particular, MMS prohibits
deduction of costs
44
associated with marketer fees, cash out and other pipeline
imbalance penalties, or long-term storage fees. Further, the MMS
has been engaged in a process of promulgating new rules and
procedures for determining the value of crude oil produced from
federal lands for purposes of calculating royalties owed to the
government. The crude oil and natural gas industry as a whole
has resisted the proposed rules under an assumption that royalty
burdens will substantially increase.
Operations are subject to numerous federal, state, provincial
and local laws and regulations controlling the generation, use,
storage, and discharge of materials into the environment or
otherwise relating to the protection of the environment. These
laws and regulations may require the acquisition of a permit or
other authorization before construction or drilling commences;
restrict the types, quantities, and concentrations of various
substances that can be released into the environment in
connection with drilling, production, and natural gas processing
activities; suspend, limit or prohibit construction, drilling
and other activities in certain lands lying within wilderness,
wetlands, and other protected areas; require remedial measures
to mitigate pollution from historical and on-going operations
such as use of pits and plugging of abandoned wells; restrict
injection of liquids into subsurface strata that may contaminate
groundwater; and impose substantial liabilities for pollution
resulting from the Funds operations. Environmental permits
required for the Funds operations may be subject to
revocation, modification, and renewal by issuing authorities.
Governmental authorities have the power to enforce compliance
with their regulations and permits, and violations are subject
to injunction, civil fines, and even criminal penalties.
Nevertheless, changes in existing environmental laws and
regulations or interpretations thereof could have a significant
impact on the crude oil and natural gas industry in general, and
thus we are unable to predict the ultimate cost and effects of
future changes in environmental laws and regulations.
In the United States, the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known
as Superfund, and comparable state statutes impose
strict, joint, and several liability on certain classes of
persons who are considered to have contributed to the release of
a hazardous substance into the environment. These
persons include the owner or operator of a disposal site or
sites where a release occurred and companies that generated,
disposed or arranged for the disposal of the hazardous
substances released at the site. Under CERCLA such persons or
companies may be retroactively liable for the costs of cleaning
up the hazardous substances that have been released into the
environment and for damages to natural resources, and it is
common for neighboring land owners and other third parties to
file claims for personal injury, property damage, and recovery
of response costs allegedly caused by the hazardous substances
released into the environment. The Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) and comparable state statutes
govern the disposal of solid waste and
hazardous waste and authorize imposition of
substantial civil and criminal penalties for failing to prevent
surface and subsurface pollution, as well as to control the
generation, transportation, treatment, storage and disposal of
hazardous waste generated by crude oil and natural gas
operations. Although CERCLA currently contains a petroleum
exclusion from the definition of hazardous
substance, state laws affecting the crude oil industry
impose cleanup liability relating to petroleum and petroleum
related products, including crude oil cleanups. In addition,
although RCRA regulations currently classify certain oilfield
wastes which are uniquely associated with field operations as
non-hazardous, such exploration, development and
production wastes could be reclassified by regulation as
hazardous wastes thereby administratively making such wastes
subject to more stringent handling and disposal requirements.
United States federal regulations also require certain owners
and operators of facilities that store or otherwise handle crude
oil, to prepare and implement spill prevention, control and
countermeasure plans and spill response plans relating to
possible discharge of crude oil into surface waters. The federal
Oil Pollution Act (OPA) contains numerous
requirements relating to prevention of, reporting of, and
response to crude oil spills into waters of the United States.
For facilities that may affect state waters, OPA requires an
operator to demonstrate $10 million in financial
responsibility. State laws mandate crude oil cleanup programs
with respect to contaminated soil.
45
Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations
The Fund is new and does not have any operating history.
Limited Partnership Agreement
The following paragraphs are a summary of certain provisions of
our LP Agreement as in effect
on .
The following discussion is qualified in its entirety by
reference to our LP Agreement.
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Authority of the General Partner
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Our General Partner is generally authorized to perform all acts
deemed necessary to carry out these purposes and to conduct our
business. Our partnership existence will continue into
perpetuity, until terminated in accordance with our LP
Agreement. Our General Partner has a power of attorney to take
certain actions, including the execution and filing of
documents, on our behalf and with respect to our LP Agreement.
However, our partnership agreement limits the authority of our
General Partner as follows:
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Without the prior approval of at least a majority, in interest
of our limited partners, our General Partner may not, among
other things, (1) sell or exchange all or substantially all
of our assets (whether in a single transaction or a series of
related transactions) or (2) approve on our behalf the
sale, exchange or other disposition of all or substantially all
of our assets; however, our General Partner may approve our
mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or grant of a security interest in
all or substantially all of our assets without such approval;
other provision of this Agreement, the General Partner is not
authorized to institute or initiate on behalf of, or otherwise
cause, the Partnership to:
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The General Partner is not authorized to institute or initiate
on behalf of, or otherwise cause, the Partnership to
(a) make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors;
(b) file a voluntary bankruptcy petition; or (c) file
a petition seeking for the Partnership a reorganization,
arrangement, composition, readjustment liquidation, dissolution
or similar relief under any law.
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The General Partner may not, without written approval of the
specific act by all of the limited partners, take any action in
contravention of the LP Agreement, including, without
limitation, (i) any act that would make it impossible to
carry on the ordinary business of the partnership, except as
otherwise provided in the LP Agreement; (ii) possess
partnership property, or assign any rights in specific
partnership property, for other than a partnership purpose;
(iii) admit a person as a partner, except as otherwise
provided in the LP Agreement; (iv) amend the LP Agreement
in any manner, except as otherwise provided in the LP Agreement
or applicable law; or (v) transfer its interest as general
partner of the Partnership, except as otherwise provided in this
the LP Agreement.
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In general, our General Partner may not take any action, or
refuse to take any reasonable action, the effect of which would
be to cause us to be taxable as a corporation or to be treated
as an association taxable as a corporation for federal income
tax purposes, without the consent of the holders of at least
66
2
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3
percent of the outstanding voting Units, including Units owned
by our General Partner and its affiliates.
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Withdrawal or removal of our General Partner
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The General Partner shall be deemed to have withdrawn from the
partnership upon the occurrence of any one of the following
events:
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the General Partner voluntarily withdraws from the Partnership
by giving written notice to the other Partners;
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the General Partner transfers all of its rights as General
Partner;
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the General Partner is removed;
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the General Partner (A) makes a general assignment for the
benefit of creditors; (B) files a voluntary bankruptcy
petition; (C) files a petition or answer seeking for itself
a reorganization, arrangement, composition, readjustment
liquidation, dissolution or similar relief under any law;
(D) files an answer or other pleading admitting or failing
to contest the material allegations of a petition filed against
the General Partner in a proceeding of the type described in
clauses (A) (C) of this sentence; or
(E) seeks, consents to or acquiesces in the appointment of
a trustee, receiver or liquidator of the General Partner or of
all or any substantial part of its properties;
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a final and non-appealable judgment is entered by a court with
appropriate jurisdiction ruling that the General Partner is
bankrupt or insolvent or a final and non-appealable order for
relief is entered by a court with appropriate jurisdiction
against the General Partner, in each case under any federal or
state bankruptcy or insolvency laws as now or hereafter in
effect; or
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a certificate of dissolution or its equivalent is filed for the
General Partner, or 90 days expire after the date of notice
to the General Partner of revocation of its charter without a
reinstatement of its charter, under the laws of its state of
incorporation.
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The General Partner may be removed with or without cause if such
removal is approved by at least
66
2
/
3
%
of the Units (excluding for this purpose Units held by the
General Partner and its Affiliates).
Upon the written request of 20% or more in interest of the
limited partners, the General Partner may, but is not required
to, call a meeting of the limited partners. Notice of such
meeting shall be given within 30 days after, and the meting
shall be held within 60 days after, receipt of such
request. The General Partner may also call a meeting not less
than 20 and not more than 60 days prior to the meeting. Any
such notice shall state briefly the purpose of the meeting,
which shall be held at a reasonable time and place. Any limited
partner may obtain a list of names, addresses, and interests of
the limited partners upon written request to the General Partner.
The LP Agreement provides that we will indemnify and hold
harmless a General Partner and each officer, director, employee
and agent thereof and their respective legal representatives and
successors (hereinafter referred to as a Covered
Person) against all liabilities and expenses, including
but not limited to amounts paid in satisfaction of judgments, in
compromise or as fines and penalties, and counsel fees
reasonably incurred by any Covered Person in connection with the
defense or disposition of any action, suit or other proceedings,
whether civil or criminal, before any court or administrative or
legislative body, in which such Covered Person may be or may
have been involved as a party or otherwise or with which such
person may be or may have been threatened, while in office or
thereafter, by reason of an alleged act or omission as a General
Partner or officer thereof or by reason of its being or having
been such a General Partner or officer.
However we will not indemnity a Covered Person with respect to
any matter as to which such Covered Person shall have been
finally adjudicated in any such action, suit or other proceeding
not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable believe that
such Covered Persons action was in the best interest of
the partnership, and except that no Covered Person shall be
indemnified against any liability to the partnership or limited
partners to which such Covered Person would otherwise be subject
by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such
Covered Persons office.
The General Partner shall be entitled to receive out of
partnership funds available therefor reimbursement of all
amounts expended by the General Partner in payment out of its
own funds of properly incurred Partnership obligations (other
than Organizational Expenses).
47
Assuming that a limited partner does not take part in the
control of our business, and that he otherwise acts in
conformity with the provisions of our LP Agreement, his
liability under Delaware law will be limited, subject to certain
possible exceptions, generally to the amount of capital he is
obligated to contribute to us in respect of his units or other
limited partner interests plus his share of any of our
undistributed profits and assets.
Expenses
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Assets
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Management Fee
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First $1,000,000,000
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0.40% of NAV
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After the first $1,000,000,000
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0.20% of NAV
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The General Partner Has Conflicts of Interest
There are present and potential future conflicts of interest in
the Funds structure and operation you should consider
before you purchase Units. The General Partner will use this
notice of conflicts as a defense against any claim or other
proceeding made.
Because the General Partner and its principal and affiliates may
trade for themselves and others, conflicts of interest may exist
or be created in the future. For example, if they trade for
their own account, you will not have access to their trading
records. They could take their positions prior to the entry of
positions they know will be placed for the Fund, although they
do not expect that they will do so.
The General Partner has sole current authority to manage the
investments and operations of the Fund, and may act to create a
conflict with your best interests. Such lack of voting control
will limit your ability to influence matters such as amendment
of the LP Agreement, change in the Funds basic investment
policy, dissolution of this Fund, or the sale or distribution of
the Funds assets.
The General Partner has numerous responsibilities. It accepts
the credit risk of the Fund to the futures commission merchant.
It maintains the day-to-day contact with the selling agents, and
reviews the daily positions and margin requirements of the Fund.
It pays the futures commission merchants charges, and pays
the continuing service fees to the selling agents for
communicating with investors and maintaining investment in the
Fund.
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No Resolution of Conflicts Procedures
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The General Partner has not and will not establish formal
procedures to resolve potential conflicts of interest. These
future potential conflicts may adversely affect both you and the
General Partner.
The previous risk factors and conflicts of interest are complete
as of the date of this prospectus, however, additional risks and
conflicts may occur which are not presently foreseen by the
General Partner. You may not construe this prospectus as legal
or tax advice. Before making an investment in this Fund, you
should read this entire prospectus, including the LP Agreement
(Exhibit ) and the subscription
agreement. You should also consult with your personal legal,
tax, and other professional advisors.
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Interests of Named Experts and Counsel
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The General Partner has employed Sutherland Asbill &
Brennan LLP to prepare this prospectus. Neither the law firm nor
any other expert hired by the Fund to give advice on the
preparation of this offering document have been hired on a
contingent fee basis. Nor do any of them have any present or
future expectation of interest in the General Partner, the
selling agent, the introducing broker or the futures commission
merchant.
48
[
The General Partners Fiduciary Responsibility and
Remedies
You have legal rights under Delaware law and applicable Federal
and State securities laws. In all dealings affecting this Fund,
the General Partner has a fiduciary responsibility to you and
all other members to exercise good faith and fairness. No
contract shall permit the General Partner to contract away its
fiduciary obligation under common law. The LP Agreement conforms
to the [Limited Partnership] Act for the State of Delaware in
regard to the definition of the fiduciary duties of the General
Partner.
If the General Partner acts in good faith and exercises its best
judgment, it will not be liable merely because we lost money or
otherwise did not meet the Funds business objectives.
Additionally, there are substantial and inherent conflicts of
interest in the Funds structure, which are inconsistent
with the General Partners fiduciary duties.
In the event that you form the belief that the General Partner
has violated its fiduciary duty, you may seek relief
individually or on behalf of the Fund under applicable laws,
including the laws of Delaware and the Federal commodity laws,
to recover damages from or require an accounting by the General
Partner. You also have the right, subject to applicable
contractual, procedural and jurisdictional requirements, to
bring Fund class actions in a Federal court to enforce your
rights and the rights of the other members under the Federal and
State securities laws and the rules and regulations under those
laws. Losses suffered by you as a result of a breach of the
securities laws related to sale of your investment to you may be
recovered from the General Partner should the breach of those
laws been caused by the General Partner. The responsibility of a
General Partner to you and other members is a changing area of
the law. If you have questions concerning the responsibilities
of the General Partner, you should consult your legal counsel.
The performance of the General Partner for the operation of the
Fund and its fiduciary duty are governed by the LP Agreement
attached as Exhibit .]
Liability and Indemnification
The LP Agreement provides that we will indemnify and hold
harmless a General Partner and each officer, director, employee
and agent thereof and their respective legal representatives and
successors (hereinafter referred to as a Covered
Person) against all liabilities and expenses, including
but not limited to amounts paid in satisfaction of judgments, in
compromise or as fines and penalties, and counsel fees
reasonably incurred by any Covered Person in connection with the
defense or disposition of any action, suit or other proceedings,
whether civil or criminal, before any court or administrative or
legislative body, in which such Covered Person may be or may
have been involved as a party or otherwise or with which such
person may be or may have been threatened, while in office or
thereafter, by reason of an alleged act or omission as a General
Partner or officer thereof or by reason of its being or having
been such a General Partner or officer.
However we will not indemnity a Covered Person with respect to
any matter as to which such Covered Person shall have been
finally adjudicated in any such action, suit or other proceeding
not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable believe that
such Covered Persons action was in the best interest of
the partnership, and except that no Covered Person shall be
indemnified against any liability to the partnership or limited
partners to which such Covered Person would otherwise be subject
by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such
Covered Persons office.
Provisions of Law
According to applicable law, indemnification of the General
Partner is payable only if the General Partner determined, in
good faith, that the act, omission or conduct that gave rise to
the claim for indemnification was in the best interest of the
Fund and the act, omission or activity that was the basis for
such loss, liability, damage, cost or expense was not the result
of negligence or misconduct and such liability or loss was not
the result of negligence or misconduct by the General Partner,
and such
49
indemnification or agreement to hold harmless is recoverable
only out of the assets of the Fund and not from the members,
individually.
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Provisions of Federal and State Securities Laws
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This offering is made pursuant to Federal and State securities
laws. If any indemnification of the General Partner arises out
of an alleged violation of such laws, it is subject to the
following legal conditions.
Those conditions require that no indemnification may be made in
respect of any losses, liabilities or expenses arising from or
out of an alleged violation of Federal or State securities laws
unless: there has been a successful adjudication on the merits
of each count involving alleged securities law violations as to
the General Partner or other particular indemnitee, or such
claim has been dismissed with prejudice on the merits by a court
of competent jurisdiction as to the General Partner or other
particular indemnitee, or a court of competent jurisdiction
approves a settlement of the claims against the General Partner
or other agent of the Fund and finds that indemnification of the
settlement and related costs should be made, provided, before
seeking such approval, the General Partner or other indemnitee
must apprise the court of the position held by regulatory
agencies against such indemnification. These agencies are the
SEC and the securities administrator of the State or States in
which the plaintiffs claim they were offered or sold membership
interests.
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Provisions of the Securities Act of 1933 and NASAA
Guidelines
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Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the
Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to the General Partner
[, Mr. Gerber, and Mr. Love], the SEC and the various State
administrators believe that such indemnification is against
public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and the
North American Securities Administrators Association, Inc.
(NASAA) commodity pool guidelines and is therefore
unenforceable.
Unit Splits
If the General Partner believes that the per unit price in the
secondary market for Units has risen or fallen outside a
desirable trading price range, the General Partner may direct
the Fund to declare a split or reverse split in the number of
Units outstanding and to make a corresponding change in the
number of Units constituting a Basket.
Books and Records
The Fund will keep proper books of record and account of the
Fund at its office located at 1320 Harbor Bay Parkway,
Suite 145 Alameda, California 94502 such office,
including of an administrative agent, as it may subsequently
designate upon notice. These books and records are open to
inspection by any person who establishes to the Funds
satisfaction that such person is a Unitholder upon reasonable
advance notice at all reasonable times during the usual business
hours of the Fund.
The Fund will keep a copy of the Fund Articles of
Incorporation on file in its office which will be available for
inspection on reasonable advance notice at all reasonable times
during its usual business hours by any Unitholder.
Analysis of Critical Accounting Policies
The Funds critical accounting policies are set forth in
the financial statements in this prospectus prepared in
accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting
principles, which require the use of certain accounting policies
that affect the amounts reported in these financial statements,
including the following: The contracts the Fund trades are
accounted for on a trade-date basis and marked to market on a
daily basis. The difference between their cost and market value
is recorded as change in unrealized profit/loss for
open (unrealized) contracts, and recorded as realized
profit/loss when open positions are
50
closed out; the sum of these amounts constitutes the Funds
trading revenues. Earned interest income revenue, as well as
management fee, and brokerage fee expenses of the Fund are
recorded on an accrual basis. The General Partner believes that
all relevant accounting assumptions and policies have been
considered.
Statements, Filings, and Reports
At the end of each fiscal year, the Fund will furnish to DTC
Participants for distribution to each person who is a Unitholder
at the end of the fiscal year an annual report containing the
Funds audited financial statements and other information
about the Fund. The General Partner is responsible for the
registration and qualification of the Units under the federal
securities laws and any other securities and blue sky laws of
the U.S. or any other jurisdiction as the General Partner
may select. The General Partner will also prepare, or cause to
be prepared, and file any periodic reports or updates required
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 other than the reports
to be prepared and filed by the Fund. The registration and
qualification costs and the costs of the periodic reports
prepared and filed by the General Partner will be an expense of
the Fund.
The accounts of the Fund will be audited, as required by law and
as may be directed by the General Partner, by independent
certified public accountants designated from time to time by the
General Partner. The cost of such audits will be an expense of
the Fund. The accountants report will be furnished by the Fund
to Unitholders upon request. The Fund will make such elections,
file such tax returns, and prepare, disseminate and file such
tax reports, as it is advised by its counsel or accountants are
from time to time required by any applicable statute, rule or
regulation.
Fiscal Year
The fiscal year of the Fund will initially be the calendar year.
The General Partner may select an alternate fiscal year.
Governing Law; Consent To Delaware Jurisdiction
The rights of the General Partner, the Fund, DTC (as registered
owner of the Funds global certificate for Units) and the
Unitholders, are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware.
The General Partner, the Fund and DTC and, by accepting Units,
each DTC Participant and each Unitholder, consents to the
jurisdiction of the courts of the State of Delaware and any
federal courts located in Delaware. Such consent in not required
for any person to assert a claim of Delaware jurisdiction over
the General Partner or the Fund.
Legal Matters
Within the past 5 years of the date of this prospectus,
there have been no material administrative, civil or criminal
actions against the General Partner, underwriter, or any
principal or affiliate of either of them. This includes any
actions pending, on appeal, concluded, threatened, or otherwise
known to them.
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP (the Firm)
is counsel to advise the Fund and the General Partner with
respect to the preparation of this prospectus. The Firm will not
give you or any persons affiliated with you legal advice. You
should seek investment, legal, and tax advice from your own
legal counsel and other professionals of your choice.
The General Partner has employed financial experts to perform
services for the Fund. These experts currently
are ,
independent accounting firm.
51
Privacy Policy
The Fund and the General Partner collect certain nonpublic
personal information about investors from the information
provided by them in certain documents, as well as in the course
of processing transaction requests. None of this information is
disclosed except as necessary in the course of processing
creations and redemptions and otherwise administering the
Fund and then only subject to customary undertakings
of confidentiality. The Fund and the General Partner do not
disclose nonpublic personal information about investors to
anyone, except as required by law. The Fund and the General
Partner restrict access to the nonpublic personal information
they collect from investors to those employees who need access
to this information to provide products and services to
investors. The Fund and the General Partner each maintain
physical, electronic and procedural controls to safeguard this
information. These standards are reasonably designed to
(1) ensure the security and confidentiality of
investors records and information, (2) protect
against any anticipated threats or hazards to the security or
integrity of investors records and information, and
(3) protect against unauthorized access to or use of
investors records or information that could result in
substantial harm or inconvenience to any investor.
Federal Income Tax Considerations
The following discussion summarizes the material
U.S. federal income tax consequences of the purchase,
ownership and disposition of Units in the Fund, and the
U.S. federal income tax treatment of the Fund, as of the
date hereof. This discussion is applicable to a beneficial owner
of Units who purchases Units in the initial offering at the
offering price. Except where noted otherwise, it deals only with
Units held as capital assets and does not deal with special
situations, such as those of dealers in securities or
currencies, financial institutions, tax-exempt entities,
insurance companies, persons holding Units as a part of a
hedging transaction, traders in securities or commodities that
elect to use a mark-to-market method of accounting, or holders
of Units whose functional currency is not the
U.S. dollar. Furthermore, the discussion below is based
upon the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended (the Code), and regulations (Treasury
Regulations), rulings and judicial decisions thereunder as
of the date hereof, and such authorities may be repealed,
revoked or modified so as to result in U.S. federal income
tax consequences different from those discussed below.
Persons considering the purchase, ownership or disposition of
Units should consult their own tax advisors concerning the
United States federal income tax consequences in light of their
particular situations as well as any consequences arising under
the laws of any other taxing jurisdiction. As used herein, a
U.S. Unitholder of a Unit means a beneficial
owner of the Unit that is, for United States federal income tax
purposes, (i) a citizen or resident of the United States,
(ii) a corporation or partnership created or organized in
or under the laws of the United States or any political
subdivision thereof, (iii) an estate the income of which is
subject to United States federal income taxation regardless of
its source or (iv) a trust (X) that is subject to the
supervision of a court within the United States and the control
of one or more United States persons as described in
section 7701(a)(30) of the Code or (Y) that has a
valid election in effect under applicable Treasury Regulations
to be treated as a United States person. A
Non-U.S. Unitholder is a holder that is not a
U.S. Unitholder. If a partnership holds our Units, the tax
treatment of a partner will generally depend upon the status of
the partner and the activities of the partnership. If you are a
partner of a partnership holding our Units, you should consult
your own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences.
The General Partner of the Fund has received the opinion of
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP, counsel to the Fund,
that the summary below correctly describes the material
U.S. federal income tax consequences to the Fund and to
U.S. Unitholders and Non-U.S. Unitholders. In
rendering its opinion, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
has relied on the facts described in this prospectus as well as
certain representations made by the Fund and the General
Partner. The opinion of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP
is not binding on the Internal Revenue Service (the
IRS or the Service), and as a result,
the IRS may not agree with the tax positions taken by the Fund.
If challenged by the IRS, the Funds tax positions might
not be sustained by the courts. No ruling has been requested
from the IRS with respect to any matter affecting the Fund or
prospective investors.
52
EACH PROSPECTIVE INVESTOR IS ADVISED TO CONSULT ITS OWN TAX
ADVISOR AS TO THE U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES OF
AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUND AND AS TO APPLICABLE STATE, LOCAL OR
FOREIGN TAXES.
The Fund will be organized and operated as a limited partnership
in accordance with the provisions of the LP Agreement and
applicable state law. Under Code section 7704, an entity
classified as a partnership that is deemed to be a
publicly traded partnership will generally be
taxable as a corporation for federal income tax purposes. The
Code provides an exception to this general rule for a publicly
traded partnership whose gross income for each year of its
existence consists of at least 90% qualifying income
(the Qualifying Income Exception). For this purpose,
qualifying income includes dividends, interest,
payments with respect to loaned securities, gains from the sale
or disposition of securities (including gains from related
investments in foreign currencies), and other income (including
gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with
respect to a partnerships business of investing in such
securities or currencies, and, in the case of a partnership a
principal activity of which is the buying and selling of
commodities (other than inventory) or options, futures, or
forwards with respect to commodities, income and gains from
commodities (other than inventory) or futures, forwards, or
options with respect to commodities. The Fund has estimated that
at least 90% of its gross income will constitute
qualifying income.
The Fund and the General Partner have represented the following
to Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP:
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The Fund will not make an election to be classified as a
corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes; and
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At least 90% of the Funds gross income for each year of
its existence will constitute qualifying income
within the meaning of Code section 7704.
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Based in part on these representations, Sutherland
Asbill & Brennan LLP is of the opinion that the Fund
will be classified as a partnership for federal income tax
purposes and that it will not be taxable as a corporation for
such purposes.
If the Fund failed to satisfy the Qualifying Income Exception in
any year, other than a failure that is determined by the IRS to
be inadvertent and that is cured within a reasonable time after
discovery, the Fund would be taxable as a corporation for
federal income tax purposes and would pay federal income tax at
the regular corporate rates. In that event, Unitholders would
not report their share of the Funds income or loss on
their returns. In addition, distributions to Unitholders would
be treated as dividends to the extent of the Funds current
and accumulated earnings and profits. To the extent a
distribution exceeded the Funds earnings and profits, the
distribution would be treated as a return of capital to the
extent of a Unitholders basis in its Units, and thereafter
as gain from the sale of Units. Accordingly, if the Fund were to
be taxable as a corporation, it would likely have a material
affect on the economic results of an investment in the Fund.
The remainder of this summary assumes that the Fund will be
classified as a partnership for federal income tax purposes and
that it will not be taxable as a corporation.
We identify and report tax information to the beneficial owners
of Units. Unitholders who have become additional limited
partners will be treated as partners for federal income tax
purposes. The IRS has ruled that assignees of partnership
interests, who have not been admitted to a partnership as
partners but who have the capacity to exercise substantial
dominion and control over the assigned partnership interests,
will be considered partners for federal income tax purposes. On
the basis of such ruling, except
53
as otherwise provided herein, we intend to treat the following
persons as partners for federal income tax purposes:
(a) assignees of Units who are pending admission as limited
partners, and (b) Unitholders whose Units are held in
street name or by another nominee and who have the right to
direct the nominee in the exercise of all substantive rights
attendant to the ownership of their Units.
A beneficial owner of Units held in street name whose Units have
been transferred to a short seller to complete a short sale
would appear to lose his status as a partner with respect to
such Units for federal income tax purposes. See
Treatment of Short Sales below.
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Tax Consequences Of Ownership Of Units
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Flow-through of Taxable Income
. No U.S. federal
income tax will be paid by the Fund. Instead, the Fund will file
annual information returns, and each Unitholder will be required
to report on its U.S. federal income tax return its
allocable share of the income, gain, loss and deduction of the
Fund without regard to whether the Unitholder receives any
corresponding cash distributions. Consequently, a Unitholder may
be allocated income from the Fund even if it has not received a
cash distribution. The Fund will furnish the Unitholders each
year with tax information on IRS Schedule K-1, which will
be used by the Unitholders in completing their respective tax
returns.
Treatment of Fund Distributions
. If the Fund makes
non-liquidating distributions to a Unitholder, such
distributions generally will not be taxable to the Unitholder
for federal income tax purposes except to the extent that the
distribution consists of cash or marketable securities and the
sum of (i) the amount of such cash and (ii) the fair
market value of the marketable securities, exceeds the
Unitholders adjusted basis in its interest in the Fund
immediately before the distribution. See Basis
below. Ordinarily, any such excess will be treated as gain from
a sale or exchange of the Unitholders interest, taxable in
accordance with the rules described under Tax
Considerations-Disposition of Units. Any reduction in a
Unitholders share of the Funds liabilities will be
treated as a distribution of cash to that Unitholder.
Basis
. A Unitholders basis of its Units is
important in determining (1) the amount of taxable gain it
will realize on the sale or other disposition of its Units,
(2) the amount of non-taxable distributions (including any
decrease in the Unitholders share of the Funds
liabilities) that it may receive from the Fund and (3) its
ability to utilize its distributive share of any losses of the
Fund on its tax return. A Unitholders initial tax basis of
its Units will equal its cost for the Units plus its share of
the Funds liabilities (if any) at the time of purchase. In
general, a Unitholders share of those
liabilities will equal the sum of (i) the entire amount of
any otherwise nonrecourse liability of that Fund as to which the
Unitholder or an affiliate is the creditor (a partner
nonrecourse liability) and (ii) a
pro rata
share of any nonrecourse liabilities of the Fund that are
not partner nonrecourse liabilities as to any Unitholder.
A Unitholders tax basis in its Units generally will be
(1) increased by (a) its allocable share of the
Funds taxable income and gain and (b) any additional
contributions by the Unitholder to the Fund and
(2) decreased (but not below zero) by (a) its
allocable share of the Funds tax deductions and losses and
(b) any distributions by the Fund to the Unitholder. For
this purpose, an increase in a Unitholders share of the
Funds liabilities will be treated as a contribution of
cash by the Unitholder to the Fund and a decrease in that share
will be treated as a distribution of cash by the Fund to the
Unitholder.
Allocations of Profit and Loss
. Under Code
section 704, the determination of a partners
distributive share of any item of income, gain, loss, deduction
or credit of the Fund is governed by the applicable
organizational document unless the allocation provided by such
document lacks substantial economic effect. An
allocation that lacks substantial economic effect nonetheless
will be respected if it is in accordance with the partners
interests in the partnership, determined by taking into account
all facts and circumstances relating to the economic
arrangements among the partners.
In general, under the Operating Agreement, the profits and
losses of the Fund will be determined using a monthly
closing-of-the-books method. Under this method, the Fund will
determine its net profit or loss for each month during a taxable
year, taking into account unrealized gains and losses, as well as
54
realized gains and losses and accrued income and expenses, on
its investments during the month. This monthly net profit or
loss will then be allocated
pro rata
among the
Unitholders based on the number of Units held as of the close of
business on the last day of such month. The General Partner
believes that the allocations provided in the Operating
Agreement will have substantial economic effect or otherwise
will be respected as being in accordance with the
Unitholders interests in the Fund. It is possible,
however, that the IRS may challenge the Funds allocation
of profits and losses and that such challenge could result in a
reallocation of such items among the Unitholders. In the event
of any reallocation of profit or loss (or any item of income,
gain, loss, deduction, or credit), a Unitholder might be charged
with a greater or lesser share of profit or loss (or any item of
income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit) than would be called
for under the LP Agreement.
Allocations of Profit or Loss Between Transferor and
Transferees
. In the case of Units that are transferred
during a taxable year, the Fund intends to allocate profit or
loss as follows: A Unitholder that transfers or acquires Units
during a taxable year will be allocated profit or loss for each
month during which it owned such Units. For this purpose, a
Unitholder will be treated as owning a Unit for a particular
month only if it held such Unit at the close of business on the
last day of such month (unless it disposes of the Unit by
redemption, as discussed below). Thus, for example, if a
Unitholder acquires a Unit on the last day of a month and holds
such Unit at the close of business on that date, it will be
allocated the entire net profit or loss allocable to that Unit
for the month. As a further example, if a Unitholder acquires a
Unit during one month and transfers the Unit on the last day of
the second month, it will be allocated the net profit or loss
allocable to that Unit for the first month only; net profit or
loss for the following month will be allocated to the
transferee, assuming it does not dispose of the Unit before the
close of business. As a further example, a Unitholder that
acquires a Unit during a month and transfers the Unit before the
close of business on the last day of that month will not be
allocated any of the net profit or loss with respect to that
Unit for such month.
If the Fund redeems Units, the Fund will allocate to the
redeeming Unitholder with respect to the redeemed shares a
ratable share of the profit or loss of the Fund for the month of
the redemption determined as if such month ended on the date of
the redemption. The remaining profit and loss for such month
will be allocated in accordance with the method described in the
preceding paragraph (
i.e.
, ratably among the Unitholders
holding Units as of the close of business of the last day of the
month). For example, if a Unitholder redeemed 100,000 Units on
the
15
th
day of a month and a there were 1,000,000 Units outstanding
immediately prior to such redemption, the redeeming Unitholder
would be allocated one-tenth (100,000 Units redeemed/1,000,000
Units outstanding) of the Funds profit or losses for the
period beginning on the first day of such month and ending on
the
15
th
day of such month. The profit or loss of the Fund for the month
of the redemption (as adjusted to reflect the profit or loss
allocated to the redeeming Unitholder) will be allocated ratably
among the Unitholders that hold the remaining 900,000 Units as
of the close of business of the last day of such month.
The use of these methods of allocating profits and losses
between the transferors and the transferees of Units or
Unitholders whose Units are redeemed may not be permitted under
existing Treasury Regulations. Accordingly, Sutherland
Asbill & Brennan LLP is unable to opine on the validity
of these allocation methods. If these methods are not allowed
under the Treasury Regulations, the Funds taxable income
or losses might be reallocated among the Unitholders.
The General Partner is authorized to revise our method of
allocation between transferors and transferees, as well as among
Unitholders whose interests otherwise vary during a taxable
period, to conform to a method permitted under future Treasury
Regulations. In addition, if the Fund engages in an
extraordinary transaction, the General Partner is authorized to
allocate profit or loss to the Unitholders as of the date of the
date of the extraordinary transaction if it believes that such
allocation is necessary to prevent distortion of the amounts of
profit or loss allocated among the Unitholders or to conform to
applicable provisions of the Code or Treasury Regulations.
Taxable Income and Loss
. Taxable income or loss of the
Fund (including items of income, gain, loss and deduction as
necessary) will be allocated among the Unitholders to correspond
as closely as possible
55
to the allocations of economic profit or loss. It is possible,
however, that the amount of taxable income or loss of the Fund
allocated to a Unitholder may be different that the amount of
economic profit or loss allocated to such Unitholder. In
addition, the General Partner is authorized to allocate taxable
income or loss of the Fund (including items of income, gain,
loss and deduction) as it determines is necessary to prevent any
distortion in the allocation of such items or to comply with
applicable provisions of the Code and Treasury Regulations.
Limitations on Deductibility of Fund Losses
. The
deduction by a Unitholder of its share of the Funds
losses, if any, will be limited to the lesser of (i) the
tax basis in its Units or (ii) in the case of a Unitholder
that is an individual or a closely held corporation (a
corporation where more than fifty percent (50%) of the value of
its stock is owned directly or indirectly by five or fewer
individuals or certain tax-exempt organizations), the amount
which the Unitholder is considered to be at risk
with respect to certain activities of the Fund. In general, the
amount at risk includes the Unitholders actual cash
investment, plus any debt for which the Unitholder has personal
liability or has pledged property (other than property used in
the Funds activities) as security and any debt that
constitutes qualified nonrecourse financing. The
amount at risk excludes any amount of money the Unitholder
borrows to acquire or hold its Units if the lender of such
borrowed funds owns Units in the Fund, is related to such a
person or can look only to Units for repayment. Losses in excess
of the amount at risk must be deferred until years in which the
Fund generates additional taxable income against which to offset
such carryover losses or until additional capital is placed at
risk.
In addition to the limitations described above, the
passive activity loss limitations generally provide
that individuals, estates, trusts and certain closely-held
corporations and personal service corporations can deduct losses
from passive activities (generally, activities in which the
taxpayer does not materially participate) only to the extent of
the taxpayers income from passive activities. Any
disallowed passive activity losses may be carried forward to
reduce passive activity income in future years or may be
deducted in full when the taxpayer disposes of its entire
investment in the activity in a fully taxable transaction to an
unrelated party. The passive activity loss rules are applied
after other applicable limitations on deductions such as the at
risk rules and the basis limitation.
Limitation on Deductibility of Capital Losses and Investment
Interest
. Prospective investors should consult their own tax
advisors regarding the deductibility of capital losses, as well
as the limitations on a noncorporate taxpayers
deductibility of interest paid or accrued on indebtedness
allocable to property held for investment (whether by the Fund
with respect to its investments or by the investor with respect
to its Units).
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Tax Treatment Of Operations
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Taxable Year
. The Fund will use the calendar year as its
taxable year. Each Unitholder will be required to include in
income its allocable share of Fund income, gain, loss and
deduction for the fiscal year of the Fund ending within or with
the taxable year of the Unitholder.
Tax Treatment of Management Fees and Other Administrative
Expenses
. The Fund will pay an annual management fee to the
General Partner. The Fund will also pay certain costs and
expenses incurred in connection with its activities. The Fund
intends to deduct such fees and expenses to the extent that they
are reasonable in amount and are not capital in nature or
otherwise nondeductible. The tax treatment of these expenses
will depend on whether or not the Fund is deemed to be engaged
in a trade or business, which is a factual determination.
Although the matter is not free from doubt, the Fund believes
that it will not be treated as engaging in a trade or business
for tax purposes. Accordingly, such management fees and other
administrative expenses will generally constitute miscellaneous
itemized deductions for individual Unitholders, while are
subject to certain limitations on deductibility that could
reduce or eliminate any tax benefits associated with them.
Corporate Unitholders generally will not be subject to these
limitations. Organizational and syndication expenses, in
general, may not be deducted by either the Fund or any
Unitholder. An election may be made by the Fund to amortize
organizational
56
expenses over a 60-month period. Syndication expenses must be
capitalized and cannot be amortized or deducted.
Alternative Minimum Tax
. Each Unitholder will be required
to take into account its distributive share of any items of Fund
income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit for purposes of the
alternative minimum tax applicable to its alternative minimum
taxable income. A Unitholders alternative minimum taxable
income derived from the Fund may be higher than its share of
Fund net income.
Prospective Unitholders should consult with their tax
advisors as to the impact of an investment in Units on their
liability for the alternative minimum tax.
Taxation of Operations
. The tax consequences to investors
of the Funds trading activities in derivatives,
commodities and securities are complex. Prospective investors
should consult with tax advisors who have substantial expertise
with this aspect of the tax laws.
Section 1256 Contracts.
The Fund generally will be
required to adopt a mark-to-market system of tax
accounting under which unrealized gains and losses at year-end
are taxed currently with respect to any instrument treated as a
section 1256 contract under the Code. A
section 1256 contract is defined as: (1) a futures
contract that is traded on or subject to the rules of a national
securities exchange which is registered with the SEC, a domestic
board of trade designated as a contract market by the CFTC, or
any other board of trade or exchange designated by the Secretary
of the Treasury, and with respect to which the amount required
to be deposited and the amount that may be withdrawn depends on
a system of marking to market; (2) a forward
contract on exchange-traded foreign currencies, where the
contracts are traded in the interbank market; (3) a
non-equity option traded on or subject to the rules of a
qualified board or exchange; (4) a dealer equity option; or
(5) a dealer securities futures contract.
Under these rules, section 1256 contracts held by the Fund
at the end of each taxable year will be treated for federal
income tax purposes as if they were sold by the Fund for their
fair market value on the last business day of such taxable year.
The Unitholders must report their distributive share of the gain
or loss, if any, resulting from such marking to
market (as well as from actual sales) of such contracts
for such year. Such taxable gains and losses will be allocated
to the Unitholders (and will otherwise be taxable under the
general principles of partnership taxation), whether or not cash
is distributed. The basis of a section 1256 contract will
be adjusted to reflect the gain or loss taken into account in a
prior year under the mark-to-market rules.
The Code provides special rules concerning the tax character of
gains and losses from section 1256 contracts. Under these
rules, and subject to the mixed straddle rules described below,
each Unitholders distributive share of the Funds net
gain or loss with respect to each section 1256 contract,
other than a foreign currency forward contract (which is subject
to special rules), will be treated (without regard to the period
held) as long-term capital gain or loss to the extent of 60%
thereof, and as short-term capital gain or loss to the extent of
40% thereof.
Recognition of Gain or Loss
. The amount of gain or loss
or other income recognized by a Unitholder upon the disposition
of Units may be different that the amount of gain or loss or
other income such Unitholder would recognize if the Fund were
taxed as a corporation rather than a limited partnership. The
amount of gain or loss that a Unitholder will recognize on a
sale of Units will be the difference between the amount realized
and the Unitholders adjusted tax basis for the Units sold.
A Unitholders amount realized will be measured by the sum
of the cash or the fair market value of other property received
plus its share of Fund debt. Because the amount realized
includes a Unitholders share of Fund debt, the gain
recognized on the sale of Units may result in a tax liability in
excess of any cash received from such sale.
Pursuant to certain IRS rulings, a Unitholder will be required
to maintain a single, unified basis in all Units
that it owns. As a result, when a Unitholder that acquired its
Units at different prices sells less than all of its Units, such
Unitholder will
not
be entitled to specify particular
Units (
e.g.,
those with a higher basis) as having been
sold, as it could if the Fund were a corporation. Rather, the
Unitholder must
57
determine its gain or loss on the sale by using an
equitable apportionment method to allocate a portion
of its unified basis in its Units to the Units sold.
For example, if a Unitholder purchased 100 Units for
$10 per Unit and 200 Units for $20 per Unit (and
assuming no other adjustments to basis), the Unitholder would
have a unified basis of $5,000 in its 300 Units. If
the Unitholder sold 100 of its Units, it would have an adjusted
basis in the Units sold of $1,666.67 ($5,000 unified basis
multiplied by the ratio of 100 Units sold over 300 Units owned
immediately prior to the sale).
Gain or loss recognized by a Unitholder on the sale or exchange
of Units held for more than one year will generally be taxable
as long-term capital gain or loss; otherwise, such gain or loss
will generally be taxable as short-term capital gain or loss. A
special election is available under the Treasury Regulations
that will allow Unitholders to identify and use the actual
holding periods for the Units sold for purposes of determining
whether the gain or loss recognized on a sale of Units will give
rise long-term or short-term capital gain or loss. It is
expected that most Unitholders will be eligible to elect, and
generally will elect, to identify and use the actual holding
period for Units sold. If a Unitholder fails to make the
election or is not able to identify the holding periods of the
Units sold, the Unitholder will have a split holding period in
the Units sold. Under such circumstances, a Unitholder will be
required to determine its holding period in the Units sold by
first determining the portion of its entire interest in the Fund
that would give rise to long-term capital gain or loss if its
entire interest were sold and the portion that would give rise
to short-term capital gain or loss if the entire interest were
sold. The Unitholder would then treat each Unit sold as giving
rise to long-term capital gain or loss and short-term capital
gain or loss in the same proportions as if it had sold its
entire interest in the Fund.
Under Section 751 of the Code, a portion of a
Unitholders gain or loss from the sale of Units
(regardless of the holding period for such Units), will be
separately computed and taxed as ordinary income or loss to the
extent attributable to unrealized receivables or
inventory owned by the Fund. The term
unrealized receivables includes, among other things,
market discount bonds and short-term debt instruments to the
extent such items would give rise to ordinary income if sold by
the Fund.
A Unitholder that sells some or all of its Units should
consult its tax advisor to determine the proper application of
these rules in light of the Unitholders particular
circumstances.
Liquidation or Termination
. On dissolution of the Fund,
its assets may be sold, which may result in the realization of
taxable gain or loss to the Unitholders. Distributions of cash
(and similarly, relief from partnership debt) in complete
liquidation of the Fund generally will cause recognition of gain
or loss to the extent, if any, that the Unitholders
adjusted basis of its Units is less or greater than the amount
of cash received (or deemed to have been received as a result of
the debt relief). Distributions of marketable securities may
also give rise to gain on dissolution. If such gain or loss is
treated as capital gain or loss, it will be considered to be
long-term if the Units were held for more than one year.
If liquidating distributions consist wholly or partly of assets
other than cash (and other than marketable securities), the Fund
ordinarily would not recognize gain or loss on, or by reason of,
the distribution. A Unitholder that receives such a distribution
generally will not recognize any gain or loss on such
distribution and will have a basis in the non-cash assets equal
to the adjusted basis of its Units reduced by the amount of cash
the Unitholder receives in the distribution.
Treatment of Short Sales
. A Unitholder whose Units are
loaned to a short seller to cover a short sale of
Units may be considered as having disposed of those Units. If
so, he would no longer be a Unitholder with respect to those
Units during the period of the loan and may recognize gain or
loss from the disposition. As a result, during this period:
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any of the Funds income, gain, loss or deduction with
respect to those Units would not be reportable by the Unitholder;
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any cash distributions received by the Unitholder as to those
Units would be fully taxable; and
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all of these distributions would appear to be ordinary income.
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58
Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP has not rendered an
opinion regarding the treatment of a Unitholder where its Units
are loaned to a short seller to cover a short sale of Units;
therefore Unitholders desiring to assure their status as
partners and avoid the risk of gain recognition from a loan to a
short seller should modify any applicable brokerage account
agreements to prohibit their brokers from borrowing their Units.
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Withholding for Non-U.S. Unitholders
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Generally, non-U.S. persons who derive U.S. source
income or gain from investing or engaging in a
U.S. business are taxable on two categories of income. The
first category consists of amounts that are fixed, determinable,
annual and periodic income, such as interest, dividends and rent
that are not connected with the operation of a U.S. trade
or business (FDAP). The second category is income
that is effectively connected with the conduct of a
U.S. trade or business (ECI). FDAP income
(other than interest that is considered portfolio
interest) is generally subject to a 30% withholding tax,
which may be reduced for certain categories of income by a
treaty between the U.S. and the recipients country of
residence. In contrast, ECI is generally subject to
U.S. tax on a net basis at graduated rates upon the filing
of a U.S. tax return. Where a non-U.S. person has ECI
as a result of an investment in a partnership, the ECI is
subject to a withholding tax at a rate of 35% for both
individual and corporate Unitholders.
Withholding on Allocations and Distributions
. The Code
provides that a non-U.S. person who is a partner in a
partnership that is engaged in a U.S. trade or business
during a taxable year will also be considered to be engaged in a
U.S. trade or business during that year. Classifying an
activity by a partnership as an investment or an operating
business is a factual determination. Under certain safe harbors
in the Code, an investment fund whose activities consist of
trading in stocks, securities, or commodities for its own
account generally will not be considered to be engaged in a
U.S. trade or business unless it is a dealer is such
stocks, securities, or commodities. This safe harbor applies to
investments in commodities only if the commodities are of a kind
customarily dealt in on an organized commodity exchange and if
the transaction is of a kind customarily consummated at such
place. Although the matter is not free from doubt, the Fund
believes that the activities directly conducted by the Fund will
not result in the Fund being engaged in a trade or business
within in the United States. However, there can be no assurance
that the IRS would not assert that the Funds activities do
constitute a U.S. trade or business. Accordingly, as a
result of its ownership of Units, a non-U.S. Unitholder may
be treated as engaged in a U.S. trade or business and may
be treated as having ECI. In the event that the Funds
activities were considered to constitute a U.S. trade or
business, the Fund would be required to withhold at the highest
rate specified in Code section 1 (currently thirty-five
percent (35%)) on distributions to a non-U.S. Unitholder. A
non-U.S. Unitholder with ECI will generally be required to
file a U.S. federal income tax return, and the return will
provide the non-U.S. Unitholder with the mechanism to seek
a refund of any withholding in excess of such Unitholders
actual U.S. federal income tax liability. Amounts withheld
by the Fund will be treated as being a distribution to the
non-U.S. Unitholder.
If the Fund is not treated as engaged in a U.S. trade or
business, a non-U.S. Unitholder may nevertheless be treated
as having FDAP income, which would be subject to a thirty
percent (30%) withholding tax (subject to reduction by treaty),
with respect to some or all of its distributions from the Fund
or its allocable share of Fund income. Amounts withheld on
behalf of a non-U.S. Unitholder will be treated as being
distributed to such Unitholder.
To the extent any interest income allocated to a
non-U.S. Unitholder that otherwise constitutes FDAP is
considered portfolio interest, neither the
allocation of such interest income to the
non-U.S. Unitholder nor a subsequent distribution of such
interest income to the non-U.S. Unitholder will be subject
to withholding, provided that the non-U.S. Unitholder is
not otherwise engaged in a trade or business in the U.S. and
provides the Fund with a timely and properly completed and
executed IRS Form W-8BEN or other applicable form. In
general, portfolio interest is interest paid on debt
obligations issued in registered form, unless the
recipient owns 10% or more of the voting power of
the issuer.
59
The Fund expects that most of its interest income will qualify
as portfolio interest. In order for the Fund to
avoid withholding on any interest income that would qualify as
portfolio interest, it will be necessary for all
non-U.S. Unitholders to provide the Fund with a timely and
properly completed and executed Form W-8BEN (or other
applicable form). If a non-U.S. Unitholder fails to provide
the Partnership with a properly completed Form W-8BEN, the
General Partner may request at any time and from time to time,
that such non-U.S. Unitholder shall, within 15 days
after request (whether oral or written) therefor by the General
Partner, furnish to the Partnership, a properly completed
Form W-8BEN. If a non-U.S. Unitholder fails to furnish
to the General Partner within the aforementioned 15-day period
such Form W-8BEN, the Units owned by such
non-U.S. Unitholder shall be subject to redemption.
Gain from Sale of Units
. Gain from the sale or exchange
of the Units may be taxable to a non-U.S. Unitholder if the
non-U.S. Unitholder is a nonresident alien individual who
is present in the U.S. for 183 days or more during the
taxable year. In such case, the nonresident alien individual
will be subject to a thirty percent (30%) withholding tax on the
amount of such individuals gain.
Branch Profits Tax on Non-U.S. Corporate
Unitholders
. In addition to the taxes noted above, any
non-U.S. Unitholders that are corporations may also be
subject to an additional tax, the branch profits tax, at a rate
of thirty percent (30%). The branch profits tax is imposed on a
non-U.S. corporations dividend equivalent amount,
which generally consists of the corporations after-tax
earnings and profits that are effectively connected with the
corporations U.S. trade or business but are not
reinvested in a U.S. business. This tax may be reduced or
eliminated by an income tax treaty between the U.S. and the
country in which the non-U.S. Unitholder is a
qualified resident.
Prospective non-U.S. Unitholders should consult their
tax advisor with regard to these and other issues unique to
non-U.S. Unitholders.
Exempt Organizations: Unrelated Business Taxable Income
.
Subject to numerous exceptions, qualified retirement plans and
individual retirement accounts, charitable organizations and
certain other organizations that otherwise are exempt from
Federal income tax (collectively exempt
organizations) nonetheless are subject to the tax on
unrelated business taxable income (UBTI). Generally,
UBTI means the gross income derived by an exempt organization
from a trade or business that it regularly carries on, the
conduct of which is not substantially related to the exercise or
performance of its exempt purpose or function, less allowable
deductions directly connected with that trade or business. If
the Fund were to regularly carry on (directly or indirectly) a
trade or business that is unrelated with respect to an exempt
organization Unitholder, then in computing its UBTI, the
Unitholder must include its share of (l) the Funds
gross income from the unrelated trade or business, whether or
not distributed, and (2) the Funds allowable
deductions directly connected with that gross income.
UBTI generally does not include dividends, interest, or payments
with respect to securities loans and gains from the sale of
property (other than property held for sale to customers in the
ordinary course of a trade or business). Nonetheless, income on,
and gain from the disposition of, debt-financed
property is UBTI. Debt-financed property generally is
income-producing property (including securities), the use of
which is not substantially related to the exempt
organizations tax-exempt purposes, and with respect to
which there is acquisition indebtedness at any time
during the taxable year (or, if the property was disposed of
during the taxable year, the 12-month period ending with the
disposition). Acquisition indebtedness includes debt incurred to
acquire property, debt incurred before the acquisition of
property, if the debt would not have been incurred but for the
acquisition, and debt incurred subsequent to the acquisition of
property if the debt would not have been incurred but for the
acquisition and at the time of acquisition the incurrence of
debt was foreseeable. The portion of the income from
debt-financed property attributable to acquisition indebtedness
is equal to the ratio of the average outstanding principal
amount of acquisition indebtedness over the average adjusted
basis of the property for the year. The Fund currently does not
anticipate that it will borrow money to acquire investments;
however, the Fund cannot be certain that it will not borrow for
such purpose in the future. In addition, an exempt organization
Unitholder that incurs acquisition indebtedness to purchase its
Units in the Fund may have UBTI.
60
The Federal tax rate applicable to an exempt organization
Unitholder on its UBTI generally will be either the corporate or
trust tax rate, depending upon the Unitholders form of
organization. The Fund may report to each such Unitholder
information as to the portion, if any, of the Unitholders
income and gains from the Fund for any year that will be treated
as UBTI; the calculation of that amount is complex, and there
can be no assurance that the Funds calculation of UBTI
will be accepted by the Service. An exempt organization
Unitholder will be required to make payments of estimated
Federal income tax with respect to its UBTI.
The application of the UBTI rules may vary with respect to
certain types of exempt organizations. Before investing in an
Units, a prospective exempt organization investor should consult
its tax advisor with respect to the tax consequences of
realizing UBTI from the Fund.
Constructive Termination
. We will be considered to have
been terminated for tax purposes if there is a sale or exchange
of 50% or more of the total interests in our capital and profits
within a 12-month period. Our termination will result in the
closing of our taxable year for all Unitholders. In the case of
a Unitholder reporting on a taxable year other than a fiscal
year ending December 31, the closing of our taxable year
may result in more than 12 months of our taxable income or loss
being includable in his taxable income for the year of
termination. We would be required to make new tax elections
after a termination. A termination could also result in
penalties if we were unable to determine that the termination
had occurred. Moreover, a termination might either accelerate
the application of, or subject us to, any tax legislation
enacted before the termination.
Partnership Information Returns and Audit
Procedures
. The IRS may audit the federal income tax returns
filed by the Fund. Adjustments resulting from any such audit may
require each Unitholder to adjust a prior years tax
liability and could result in an audit of the Unitholders
own return. Any audit of a Unitholders return could result
in adjustments of non-partnership items as well as Fund items.
Partnerships are generally treated as separate entities for
purposes of federal tax audits, judicial review of
administrative adjustments by the IRS, and tax settlement
proceedings. The tax treatment of partnership items of income,
gain, loss and deduction are determined at the partnership level
in a unified partnership proceeding rather than in separate
proceedings with the Unitholders. The Code provides for one
Unitholder to be designated as the Tax Matters Partner
(TMP) for these purposes. The LP Agreement appoints
the General Partner as the TMP of the Fund.
Persons who hold an interest in us as a nominee for another
person are required to furnish to us (a) the name, address
and taxpayer identification number of the beneficial owner and
the nominee; (b) whether the beneficial owner is (1) a
person that is not a U.S. person, (2) a foreign
government, an international organization or any wholly-owned
agency or instrumentality of either of the foregoing, or
(3) a tax-exempt entity; (c) the amount and
description of Units or other limited partner interests held,
acquired or transferred for the beneficial owner; and
(d) certain information including the dates of acquisitions
and transfers, means of acquisitions and transfers, and
acquisition cost for purchases, as well as the amount of net
proceeds from sales. Brokers and financial institutions are
required to furnish additional information, including whether
they are U.S. persons and certain information on Units or
other limited partner interests they acquire, hold or transfer
for their own account. A penalty of $50 per failure, up to
a maximum of $100,000 per calendar year, is imposed by the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended for failure to report
such information to us. The nominee is required to supply the
beneficial owner of the Units or other limited partner interests
with the information furnished to us.
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|
|
Tax Shelter Reporting Requirements
|
Under Treasury Regulations, the activities of the Fund may
include one or more reportable transactions,
requiring the Fund and, in certain circumstances, a Unitholder
to file information returns or
61
otherwise make a disclosure statement as described below. In
addition, the General Partner and other material advisors to the
Fund may each be required to report the reportable
transaction to the IRS and to maintain for a specified
period of time a list containing certain information regarding
the reportable transactions and the Funds
investors, and the Service could inspect such lists upon request.
The term reportable transaction includes (i) a
confidential transaction, (ii) certain transactions
generating a material book-tax difference, and (iii) a
transaction that results in a loss claimed under
Section 165 of the Code (computed without taking into
account offsetting income or gain items, and without regard to
limitations on its deductibility) generally of at least
$2 million in any one taxable year or an aggregate of at
least $4 million in any combination of the taxable year
that the taxpayer enters into the transaction and next
succeeding five taxable years, unless the transaction has been
exempted from reporting by the Service. Generally, a Unitholder
will be treated as participating in a loss
transaction, and thus will be required to report the
transaction, if the Unitholders tax return reflects a
Section 165 loss and the amount of the loss that flows
through to the Unitholder exceeds certain threshold amounts
(
i.e.
, the $2 million/4 million thresholds).
The Service has published guidance exempting many loss
transactions from the reporting requirements, including certain
sales or exchanges of assets with a qualifying
basis. An asset with a qualifying basis
includes, among others, an asset purchased for cash. However,
even if the basis in an asset is a qualifying basis,
a loss from the sale or exchange of such asset is not taken into
account (and would not be subject to the reporting requirements)
only if the asset: (i) is not, and was not at any time,
part of a straddle (other than a mixed straddle), (ii) did
not involve a stripped instrument (where the asset
is separated from any portion of the income it generates),
(iii) did not represent an interest in a pass-through
entity, and (iv) generated a loss that is not treated as
ordinary under Section 988 of the Code.
The Treasury Regulations require the Fund to complete and file
Form 8886 (Reportable Transaction Disclosure
Statement) with its tax return for each taxable year in
which the Fund participates in a reportable
transaction. Additionally, each Unitholder treated as
participating in a reportable transaction of the
Fund is required to file Form 8886 with its tax return. The
Fund and any such Unitholder, respectively, must also submit a
copy of the completed form to the Services Office of Tax
Shelter Analysis. The Fund intends to notify the Unitholders
whether (based on information available to the Fund) the
Unitholders are required to report a transaction of the Fund,
and intends to provide the Unitholders with any available
information needed to complete and submit Form 8886 with
respect to the transactions of the Fund.
Under the above rules, a Unitholders recognition of a loss
upon its disposition of an interest in the Fund could also
constitute a reportable transaction for such
Unitholder.
Investors should consult with their advisors
concerning the application of these reporting requirements to
their specific situation.
Backup Withholding
The Fund may be required to withhold U.S. federal income
tax (backup withholding) at a rate of 28% from all
taxable distributions payable to: (1) any Unitholder who
fails to furnish the Fund with his, her or its correct taxpayer
identification number or a certificate that the Unitholder is
exempt from backup withholding, and (2) any Unitholder with
respect to whom the IRS notifies the Fund that the Unitholder
has failed to properly report certain interest and dividend
income to the IRS and to respond to notices to that effect. The
backup withholding is not an additional tax and may be returned
or credited against a taxpayers regular federal income tax
liability if appropriate information is provided to the IRS.
Other Tax Considerations
In addition to federal income taxes, Unitholders may be
subject to other taxes, such as state and local income taxes,
unincorporated business taxes, business franchise taxes, and
estate, inheritance or intangible taxes that may be imposed by
the various jurisdictions in which the Fund does business or
owns property or where the Unitholders reside. Although an
analysis of those various taxes is not presented here, each
62
prospective Unitholder should consider their potential impact
on its investment in the Fund. It is each Unitholders
responsibility to file the appropriate U.S. federal, state,
local, and foreign tax returns. Sutherland Asbill &
Brennan LLP has not provided an opinion concerning any aspects
of state, local or foreign tax or U.S. federal tax other
than those U.S. federal income tax issues discussed
herein.
63
Report of the Independent Auditors
[To be furnished by amendment]
64
Where You Can Find More Information
The General Partner has filed on behalf of the Fund a
registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC under the
Securities Act. This prospectus does not contain all of the
information set forth in the registration statement (including
the exhibits to the registration statement), parts of which have
been omitted in accordance with the rules and regulations of the
SEC. For further information about the Fund or the Units, please
refer to the registration statement, which you may inspect,
without charge, at the public reference facilities of the SEC at
the below address or online at www.sec.gov, or obtain at
prescribed rates from the public reference facilities of the SEC
at the below address. Information about the Fund and the Units
can also be obtained from the Funds website, which
is .
The Funds website address is only provided here as a
convenience to you and the information contained on or connected
to the website is not part of this prospectus or the
registration statement of which this prospectus is part. The
Fund is subject to the informational requirements of the
Exchange Act and the General Partner and the Fund will each, on
behalf of the Fund, file certain reports and other information
with the SEC. The General Partner will file an updated
prospectus annually for the Fund pursuant to the Securities Act.
The reports and other information can be inspected at the public
reference facilities of the SEC located at 450 Fifth
Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549 and online at
www.sec.gov. You may also obtain copies of such material from
the public reference facilities of the SEC at 450 Fifth
Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549, at prescribed rates.
You may obtain more information concerning the operation of the
public reference facilities of the SEC by calling the SEC at
1-800-SEC-0330 or visiting online at www.sec.gov.
65
PART II
Information Not Required in the Prospectus
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Item 13.
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Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution
|
Set forth below is an estimate (except as indicated) of the
amount of fees and expenses (other than underwriting commissions
and discounts) payable by the registrant in connection with the
issuance and distribution of the Units pursuant to the
prospectus contained in this registration statement.
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Amount
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|
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SEC registration fee (actual)
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$
|
5,937.97
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NASD filing fees
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*
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Blue Sky expenses
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*
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Accountants fees and expenses
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|
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*
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Legal fees and expenses
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*
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Printing and engraving expenses
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*
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Miscellaneous expenses
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*
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Total
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$
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*
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|
|
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*
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To be provided by amendment
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Item 14.
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Indemnification of Directors and Officers
|
The LP Agreement provides that we will indemnify and hold
harmless a General Partner and each officer, director, employee
and agent thereof and their respective legal representatives and
successors (hereinafter referred to as a Covered
Person) against all liabilities and expenses, including
but not limited to amounts paid in satisfaction of judgments, in
compromise or as fines and penalties, and counsel fees
reasonably incurred by any Covered Person in connection with the
defense or disposition of any action, suit or other proceedings,
whether civil or criminal, before any court or administrative or
legislative body, in which such Covered Person may be or may
have been involved as a party or otherwise or with which such
person may be or may have been threatened, while in office or
thereafter, by reason of an alleged act or omission as a General
Partner or officer thereof or by reason of its being or having
been such a General Partner or officer.
However we will not indemnity a Covered Person with respect to
any matter as to which such Covered Person shall have been
finally adjudicated in any such action, suit or other proceeding
not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable believe that
such Covered Persons action was in the best interest of
the partnership, and except that no Covered Person shall be
indemnified against any liability to the partnership or limited
partners to which such Covered Person would otherwise be subject
by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such
Covered Persons office.
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Item 15.
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Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
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Not Applicable
II-1
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Item 16.
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Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules
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(a)
Exhibits
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1
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.1*
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Agreement between the registrant and Distributor.
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3
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.1
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|
Form of the First Amended and Restated Limited Partnership
Agreement.
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3
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.2
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Certificate of Limited Partnership of the registrant.
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3
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.3*
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Agreement with Initial Authorized Purchaser.
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5
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.1*
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Opinion of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP relating to
the legality of the Units.
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8
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.1*
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|
Opinion of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP with respect
to federal income tax consequences.
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23
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.1*
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Consent of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP (included in
Exhibit 5.1(a)).
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23
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.2*
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Consent of Accountant.
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*
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To be filed by amendment.
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(b)
Financial Statement Schedules
Financial statement schedules are not applicable because the
registrant has no operating history and no assets.
(a) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:
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(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are
being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration
statement:
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(i) To include any prospectus required by
section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933;
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(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events
arising after the effective date of the registration statement
(or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which,
individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change
in the information set forth in the registration statement.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in
volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of
securities offered would not exceed that which was registered)
and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated
maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of
prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes
in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent
change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the
Calculation of Registration Fee table in the
effective registration statement.
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(iii) To include any material information with respect to
the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the
registration statement or any material change to such
information in the registration statement.
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(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability
under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective
amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement
relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of
such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial
bona fide
offering thereof.
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(3) To remove from registration by means of a
post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered
which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
|
(b) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising
under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors,
officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to
the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been
advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange
Commission such indemnification is against public policy as
expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the
event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities
(other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred
or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the
II-2
registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or
proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling
person in connection with the securities being registered, the
registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter
has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of
appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such
indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in
the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such
issue.
(c) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that:
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(1) For purposes of determining any liability under the
Securities Act of 1933, the information omitted from the form of
prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in
reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of
prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to
Rule 424(b)(1) or (4), or 497(h) under the Securities Act
shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of
the time it was declared effective.
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(2) For the purpose of determining any liability under the
Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment that
contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new
registration statement relating to the securities offered
therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall
be deemed to be the initial
bona fide
offering thereof.
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II-3
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the
Registrant has duly caused this registration statement to be
signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly
authorized, in the City of Moraga, state of California, on
May 13, 2005.
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By:
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/s/ Nicholas D. Gerber
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Nicholas D. Gerber
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Management Director
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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933,
this registration statement has been signed by the following
persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
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/s/ Nicholas D. Gerber
Nicholas
D. Gerber
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Management Director
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May 13, 2005
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/s/ Andrew Ngim
Andrew
Ngim
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Management Director
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|
May 13, 2005
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/s/ Robert Nguyen
Robert
Nguyen
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Management Director
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|
May 13, 2005
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/s/ Howard Mah
Howard
Mah
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Management Director
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May 13, 2005
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II-4
EXHIBIT INDEX
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1
|
.1*
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|
Agreement between the registrant and Distributor.
|
|
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3
|
.1
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|
Form of the First Amended and Restated Limited Partnership
Agreement.
|
|
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3
|
.2
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Certificate of Limited Partnership of the registrant.
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|
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3
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.3*
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|
Agreement with Initial Authorized Purchaser.
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|
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5
|
.1*
|
|
Opinion of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP relating to
the legality of the Units.
|
|
|
8
|
.1*
|
|
Opinion of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP with respect
to federal income tax consequences.
|
|
|
23
|
.1*
|
|
Consent of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP (included in
Exhibit 5.1(a)).
|
|
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23
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.2*
|
|
Consent of Accountant.
|
|
|
*
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To be filed by amendment.
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Exhibit 3.1
NEW YORK OIL ETF, LP
FIRST AMENDED AND RESTATED
AGREEMENT OF LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
This First Amended and Restated Agreement of Limited Partnership (this Agreement), executed
on
[DATE]
, is among Standard Asset Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, as
General Partner, Wainwright Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as the Organizational Limited
Partner, and the Initial Limited Partner, as a Limited Partner, together with any Persons who shall
hereafter be admitted as Partners in accordance with this Agreement.
NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements herein made and
intending to be legally bound, the Partners hereby agree as follows:
Article 1
DEFINITIONS
As used in this Agreement, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
1.1 Accounting Period means the period (i) beginning on either (A) the date of this
Agreement or (B) the first day following the last day of the immediately preceding Accounting
Period, as the case may be, and (ii) ending on the earliest of (A) the last Business Day of a
month, (B) the effective date of dissolution of the Company, and (C) such other day or days in
addition thereto or in substitution therefor as may from time to time be determined by the General
Partner in its discretion either in any particular case or generally.
1.2 Act shall mean the Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act of the State of Delaware, as
amended from time to time.
1.3 Additional Limited Partner shall mean a Person admitted to the Partnership as a Limited
Partner pursuant to Section 11.4 and who is shown as such on the books and records of the
Partnership.
1.4 Affiliate shall mean, when used with reference to a specified Person, (i) any Person who
directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries controls or is controlled by or is under
common control with the specified Person or (ii) any Person that is an officer of, partner in, or
trustee of, or serves in a similar capacity with respect to, the specified Person or of which the
specified person is an officer, partner or trustee, or with respect to which the specified Person
serves in a similar capacity.
1.5 Assignee shall means Record Holder that has not been admitted to the Partnership a
Substituted Limited Partner.
1.6 Agreement shall mean this Agreement of Limited Partnership, as originally executed and
as amended, modified, supplemented or restated from time to time, as the context requires.
1.7 Business Day means Monday through Friday of each week, except that a legal holiday
recognized as such by the government of the United States shall not be regarded as a Business Day.
1.8 Capital Account means, an account established on the books and records of the Company
for each Partner as set forth in Section 4.1.
1.9 Capital Contribution shall mean the total amount of money or agreed upon value of
property contributed to the Partnership by all the Partners or any class of Partners or any one
Partner, as the case may be (or the predecessor holders of the Interests of such Partner or
Partners).
1.10 Capital Transaction shall mean a sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the
Partnership not in the ordinary course of business.
1.11 Certificate shall mean a certificate, substantially in the form of Exhibit B to this
Agreement or in such other forms as may be adopted by the General Partner in its sole discretion,
issued by the Partnership evidencing ownership of one or more Units.
1.12 Close of Business means 5:00 PM (New York City time).
1.13 Creation Basket shall mean 100,000 shares of the Partnership.
1.14 Departing Partner shall mean a former General Partner, from and after the effective
date of any withdrawal or removal of such former General Partner
1.15 Distributable Cash shall mean with respect to any period all cash revenues of the
Partnership (not including (i) Capital Contributions, (ii) funds received by the partnership in
respect of indebtedness incurred by the Partnership, (iii) interest or other income earned on
temporary investment of Partnership funds pending utilization, and (iv) proceeds from any Capital
Transaction), less the sum of the following: (x) all amounts expended by the Partnership pursuant
to this Agreement in such period and (y) such working capital or reserves or other amounts as the
General Partner reasonably deems to be necessary or appropriate for the proper operation of the
Partnerships business or its winding up and liquidation. The General Partner in its sole
discretion may from time to time declare other funds of the Partnership to be Distributable Cash.
2
1.16 General Partner shall mean Standard Asset Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability
company, or any Person who, at the time of reference thereto, serves as a general partner of the
Partnership.
1.17 Initial Limited Partner shall mean
[NAME]
, in its capacity as a Limited Partner.
1.18 Limited Partner shall mean the Organizational Limited Partner prior to its withdrawal
from the Partnership and any other Person who is a limited partner (whether the Initial Limited
Partner, a Limited Partner admitted pursuant to Section 11 or an assignee of an Interest who is
admitted as a Limited Partner) at the time of reference thereto, in such Persons capacity as a
limited partner of the Partnership.
1.19 Management Fee shall mean the management fee paid to the General Partner pursuant to
Section 3.1.2.
1.20 Net Asset Value means the net asset value of the Partnership as determined by the
General Partner in accordance with the current Prospectus of the Partnership.
1.21 Opinion of Counsel means a written opinion of counsel (who may be regular counsel to
the Partnership or the General Partner) acceptable to the General Partner.
1.22 Organizational Limited Partner shall mean Wainwright Holdings, Inc., a Delaware
corporation, in its capacity as the organizational limited partner of the Partnership pursuant to
this Agreement.
1.23 Outstanding shall mean, with respect to the Units or other partnership securities, as
the case may be, all Units or other partnership securities of that are issued by the Partnership
and reflected as outstanding on the Partnerships books and records as of the date of
determination.
1.24 Partner shall mean the General Partner or any Limited Partner. Partners shall mean
the General Partner and all Limited Partners (unless otherwise indicated).
1.25 Partnership shall mean the limited partnership hereby formed, as such limited
partnership may from time to time be constituted.
1.26 Person shall mean any natural person, partnership, limited partnership, trust, estate,
corporation, association, custodian, nominee or any other individual or entity in its own or any
representative capacity.
1.27 Profits or Losses shall mean, with respect to any given Accounting Period, the excess
(if any) of:
3
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(i)
|
the Net Asset Value of the Company as of the Valuation Time
on the Valuation Date for such Accounting Period (after giving effect to
adjustments deemed appropriate by the General Partner (including taking into
account any distributions made during such Accounting Period)), over
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|
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(ii)
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the Net Asset Value of the Company as of the Valuation Time
on the Valuation Date immediately preceding the commencement of such
Accounting Period (after giving effect to adjustments deemed appropriate by
the General Partner (including taking into account any redemptions that occur
during such Accounting Period and any Capital Contributions received during
such Accounting Period)).
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If the amount determined pursuant to the preceding sentence is a positive number, such amount shall
be the Profit for the Accounting Period and if such amount is a negative number, such amount
shall be the Loss for the Accounting Period.
1.28 Prospectus shall mean the New York Oil ETF, LP Prospectus, dated ___, 2005, as the
same may have been amended or supplemented, used in connection with the offer and sale of
Interests.
1.29 Profits or Losses shall mean the profits or losses of the Partnership for Federal
income tax purposes including, without limitation, each item of Partnership income, gain, loss,
deduction or credit.
1.30 Record Date shall mean the date established by the General Partner for determining (a)
the identity of Limited Partners (or Assignees if applicable) entitled to notice of, or to vote at
any meeting of Limited Partners or entitled to vote by ballot or give approval of Partnership
action in writing without a meeting or entitled to exercise rights in respect of any action of
Limited Partners or (b) the identity of Record Holders entitled to receive any report or
distribution.
1.31 Record Holder shall mean the Person in whose name such Unit is registered on the books
of the Transfer Agent as of the close of business on a particular Business Day.
1.32 Redeemable Units shall mean any Units for which a redemption notice has been given, and
has not been withdrawn.
1.33 Revolving Credit Facility shall mean means a revolving credit facility for a maximum
amount of $50 million which the Partnership has entered into with a syndicate of commercial banks.
1.34 Substituted Limited Partner shall mean a Person who is admitted as a Limited Partner to
the Partnership pursuant to Section 11.2 in place of and with all the
4
rights of a Limited Partner and who is shown as a Limited Partner on the books and records of
the Partnership.
1.35 Tax Certificate means a Form W-9 (or the substantial equivalent thereof) in the case of
Limited Partner that is a U.S. person or a Form W-8BEN or other applicable form in the case of a
Limited Partner that is not a U.S. person.
1.36 Tax Matters Partner means the General Partner as set forth in Section 5.6.
1.37 Transfer Agent shall mean
[___]
or such bank, trust company or other Person
(including, without limitation, the General Partner or one of its Affiliates) as shall be appointed
from time to time by the Partnership to act as registrar and transfer agent for the Units or any
applicable Partnership Securities.
1.38 Transfer Application shall mean an application and agreement for transfer of Units in
the form set forth on the back of a Unit Certificate or in a form substantially to the same effect
in a separate instrument.
1.39 Underwriter shall mean each Person named as an underwriter in the Underwriting
Agreement who purchased Units pursuant thereto.
1.40 Underwriting Agreement shall mean the underwriting agreement dated
[___]
, among
the Underwriters, the Partnership, the Operating Companies and the General Partner providing for
the purchase Units by such Underwriter.
1.41 Unit shall mean an interest of a Limited Partner or an assignee of the Partnership
representing such fractional part of the interests of all Limited Partners and assignees as shall
be determined by the General Partner pursuant to this Agreement.
1.42 Valuation Date means, (i) the last Business Day of any Accounting Period, (ii) such
other relevant date as required pursuant to this Agreement, and (iii) such other days as the
General Partner in its sole discretion may from time to time determine.
1.43 Valuation Time means (i) Close of Business on a Valuation Date or (ii) such other time
or day as the Managing Member in its discretion may determine from time to time either in any
particular case or generally.
Article 2
FORMATION
2.1 The General Partner and the Organizational Limited Partner have previously formed the
Partnership as a limited partnership pursuant to the Act and hereby amend and restate the original
Agreement of Limited Partnership of the Partnership in its entirety. This amendment and
restatement shall become effective on the date of this Agreement. The rights and liabilities of
the Partners shall be as provided in the Act, except as herein otherwise expressly provided. The
Partnership shall continue without interruption as a limited partnership pursuant to the provisions
of the Act.
5
2.2 The name of the Partnership shall be New York Oil ETF, LP; however the business of the
Partnership may be conducted, upon compliance with all applicable laws, under any other name
designated in writing by the General Partner to the Limited Partners.
2.3 The Partnerships principal place of business shall be located at 1320 Harbor Bay Parkway,
Suite 145, Alameda, CA 94502, or such other place as the General Partner may designate from time to
time. The Registered Agent for the Partnership is Corporation Service Company and the registered
office is located at 2711 Centerville Road, Suite 400, Wilmington, Delaware 19808, County of New
Castle. The Partnership may maintain such other offices at such other places, as the General
Partner deem advisable.
2.4 The investment objective of the Partnership is for the net asset value of the shares
issued by the Partnership to reflect the performance of the price of light, sweet crude oil, less
the Partnerships expenses. The Partnership invests in Oil Futures Contracts, which are futures
contracts for light, sweet crude oil that are traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and other
oil interests such as options on oil futures contracts and forward contracts for oil.
2.5 The term of the Partnership shall be from the date of its formation in perpetuity, unless
earlier terminated in accordance with the terms of Article 13.
2.6 The General Partner shall execute, file and publish all such certificates, notices,
statements or other instruments required by law for the formation or operation of a limited
partnership in all jurisdictions where the Partnership may elect to do business. A copy of this
Agreement may be filed as the Certificate of Limited Partnership of the Partnership. The General
Partner shall not be required to deliver or mail to Limited Partners a copy of the certificate of
limited partnership of the Partnership or any certificate of amendment thereto.
2.7 The Partnership shall be empowered to do any and all acts and things necessary,
appropriate, proper, advisable, incidental to or convenient for the furtherance and accomplishment
of the purposes, business, protection and benefit of the Partnership.
2.8 The business and affairs of the General Partner shall be managed by seven directors, four
of whom may also be executive officers of the General Partner. The General Partner shall establish
and maintain an audit committee in compliance with, and granted the requisite authority and funding
pursuant to, any applicable (1) federal securities laws and regulations, including the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and (2) rules, policies and procedures of any national securities
exchange on which the securities issued by the Partnership are listed and traded.
Article 3
PARTNERS AND CAPITAL CONTRIBUTIONS
3.1 General Partner.
6
3.1.1 The name of the General Partner is Standard Asset Management, LLC, and maintains its
principal business office at 1320 Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145, Alameda, CA 94502.
3.1.2 In consideration of management and administrative services rendered by the General
Partner, the Company shall pay the Management Fee to the General Partner (or such other person or
entity designated by the General Partner). The Management Fee shall be payable monthly in advance
as set forth in the then current
[Management Agreement (Insert appropriate title of agreement)]
with the General Partner, determined as of the beginning of Close of Business as of the last
Business Day of the preceding month and due and payable on the first Business Day of such month.
The initial Management Fee shall be set forth on Exhibit C attached hereto, as may be amended from
time to time. The General Partner may, in its sole discretion, waive all or part of the Management
Fee.
3.1.3 In connection with the formation of the Partnership under the Act, the General Partner
acquired a 2% interest in the profits and losses of the Partnership, was admitted as the General
Partner of the Partnership and later made an initial capital contribution to the Partnership in the
amount of $20.00, and the Organizational Limited Partner acquired a 98% interest in the profits and
losses of the Partnership, was admitted as a Limited Partner of the Partnership and later made an
initial capital contribution to the Partnership in the amount of $980.00. As of the date hereof,
the interest of the Organizational Limited Partner shall be redeemed, the initial capital
contribution of the Organizational Limited Partner shall be refunded, and the Organizational
Limited Partner shall thereupon withdraw and cease to be a Limited Partner. Ninety-eight percent
(98%) of any interest or other profit that may have resulted from the investment or other use of
such initial capital contributions shall be allocated and distributed to the Organizational Limited
Partner, and the balance thereof shall be allocated and distributed to the General Partner. As of
the first date of the offering, the General Partner shall be issued an appropriate number of Units
based on its initial capital contribution and on the initial offering price specified in Section
3.2. The General Partner may but shall not be required to make any Capital Contributions to the
Partnership on or after the date hereof. If the General Partner does make any Capital
Contributions to the Partnership on or after the date hereof, it shall be issued an appropriate
number of Units based on the net asset value per Unit as of the date of issuance.
3.1.4 The General Partner may not, without written approval of the specific act by all of the
Limited Partners or by other written instrument executed and delivered by all of the Limited
Partners subsequent to the date of this Agreement, take any action in contravention of this
Agreement, including, without limitation, (i) any act that would make it impossible to carry on the
ordinary business of the Partnership, except as otherwise provided in this Agreement; (ii) possess
Partnership property, or assign any rights in specific Partnership property, for other than a
Partnership purpose; (iii) admit a Person as a Partner, except as otherwise provided in this
Agreement; (iv) amend this Agreement in any manner, except as otherwise provided in this Agreement
or applicable law; or (v) transfer its interest as general partner of the Partnership, except as
otherwise provided in this Agreement.
7
3.1.5
Other than in connection with the issuance or redemption of Units, or
upon termination of the Partnership as contemplated by this
Agreement, the General Partner may not sell,
exchange or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of the Partnerships assets in a single
transaction or a series of related transactions (including by way of merger, consolidation or other
combination with any other Person) or approve on behalf of the Partnership the sale, exchange or
other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of all of Partnership, taken as a
whole, without the approval of at least a majority of the Limited Partners; provided, however, that
this provision shall not preclude or limit the General Partners ability to mortgage, pledge,
hypothecate or grant a security interest in all or substantially all of the Partnerships assets
and shall not apply to any forced sale of any or all of the Partnerships assets pursuant to the
foreclosure of, or other realization upon, any such encumbrance.
3.1.6 Unless approved by a majority of the Partners, the General Partner shall not take any
action or refuse to take any reasonable action the effect of which, if taken or not taken, as the
case may be, would be to cause the Partnership, to the extent it would materially and adversely
affect the Limited Partners, to be taxable as a corporation for federal income tax purpose.
3.1.7 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the General Partner is not
authorized to institute or initiate on behalf of, or otherwise cause, the Partnership to:
(a) make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors;
(b) file a voluntary bankruptcy petition; or
(c) file a petition seeking for the Partnership a reorganization, arrangement, composition,
readjustment liquidation, dissolution or similar relief under any law.
3.2 Initial Limited Partner. The name, business address and Capital Contribution of the
Initial Limited Partner are
[insert information]
. The Initial Limited Partner shall purchase the
initial Creation Basket of 500,000 Units at an initial offering price per share equal to the
opening of near-month Oil Futures Contracts as traded and reported on the New York Mercantile
Exchange on the first day of the offering.
3.3 No Partner shall have any right to demand or receive the return of his Capital
Contribution to the Partnership. No Partner shall be entitled to interest on any Capital
Contribution to the Partnership or on such Partners capital account.
Article 4
ALLOCATION OF PROFITS OR LOSSES; DISTRIBUTIONS
4.1 Capital Account. There shall be established for each Partner (or a beneficial owner of
Units held by a nominee in any case in which the nominee has furnished the identity of such owner
to the Partnership in accordance with Section 6031(c) of the Internal Revenue Code or any other
method acceptable to the General
8
Partner in its sole discretion (a Beneficial Owner)) on the books and records of the
Partnership a capital account (a Capital Account), the balance of which shall initially be zero.
It is intended that each Partners Capital Account shall be maintained at all times in a manner
consistent with Section 704 of the Code and applicable Treasury regulations thereunder, and that
the provisions hereof relating to the Capital Accounts shall be interpreted in a manner consistent
therewith. For each Accounting Period, the Capital Account of each Member shall be:
(i) credited with the amount of any Capital Contributions made by such Partner during such
Accounting Period;
(ii) credited with any allocations of Profits made to such Partner for such Accounting Period;
(iii) debited by any allocation of Losses made to such Partners for such Accounting Period;
and
(iv) debited by the amount of cash paid to such Partner as an amount withdrawn or distributed
to such Partner during such Accounting Period, or, in the case of any payment of a withdrawal or
distribution in kind, the fair value of the property paid or distributed during such Accounting
Period.
4.2 Allocation of Profits and Losses. Except as provided in this Article 4, as of the
Valuation Time on each Valuation Date (prior to giving effect to any redemptions occurring on such
date), the Partnerships Profits and Losses for such Accounting Period shall be allocated among the
Partners
pro rata
based on their Units.
4.3 Allocations to Redeeming Partners. In the event that the Partnership redeems Units of any
Partner (a Redeeming Partner) on any date other than a Valuation Date, the Partnership shall
allocate Profit or Loss to such Partner for such Accounting Period by treating the date of
redemption as a Valuation Date (an Interim Valuation Date) solely with respect to the Units
redeemed. A
pro rata
portion (based on the number of Units outstanding immediately prior to the
redemption) of the Partnerships Profit or Loss for the Accounting Period through the Interim
Valuation Date shall be allocated to the Redeeming Partner with respect to the Units redeemed. No
Profits or Losses shall be allocated to any Partners other than the Redeeming Partner on an Interim
Valuation Date. For the avoidance of doubt, it is intended that the Profits and Losses for an
Accounting Period will be adjusted as necessary to reflect the allocation of Profits or Losses to
the Redeeming Partner under this Section 4.3.
4.4 Allocation of Taxable Income and Losses.
4.4.1 Except as provided in 4.4.3, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, each item of income,
gain, loss, deduction and credit of the Partnership shall be allocated among the Partners as nearly
as possible in the same manner as the corresponding item of income, expense, gain or loss is
allocated pursuant to the other provisions of this Article 4. The General Partner shall be
authorized in its discretion to make appropriate
9
adjustments to the allocation of items pursuant to this Article 4 to comply with Section 704
of the Code and applicable Treasury regulations thereunder.
4.4.2 Notwithstanding anything else contained in this Article 4, if any Partner has a deficit
Capital Account for any Accounting Period as a result of any adjustment of the type described in
Treasury Regulation Section 1.704-1(b)(2)(ii)(d)(4) through (6), then the Partnerships income and
gain shall be specially allocated to such Partner in an amount and manner sufficient to eliminate
such deficit as quickly as possible. Any special allocation of items of income or gain pursuant to
this Section 4.4.2 shall be taken into account in computing subsequent allocations pursuant to this
Article 4 so that the cumulative net amount of all items allocated to each Partner shall, to the
extent possible, be equal to the amount that would have been allocated to such Partner if there had
never been any allocation pursuant to the first sentence of this Section 4.4.2.
4.4.3 In accordance with Section 704(c) of the Code (and the principles thereof) and the
Treasury Regulations issued with respect thereto, income, gain, loss and deduction with respect to
any property contributed to the capital of the Company and with respect to assets of the Company
that have been revalued under Treasury Regulations Sections 1.704-1(b)(2)(iv), solely for tax
purposes, shall be allocated among the Partners so as to take into account any variation between
the adjusted basis of such property to the Partnership for Federal income tax purposes and its
value as of the time of the contribution or revaluation of Partnership assets, including, but not
limited to, special allocations to a contributing Partner that are required under Code Section
704(c) (and the principles thereof) to be made upon distributions of such property to any
non-contributing Partner. This provision shall be construed to authorize the General Partner to
utilize such reasonable method or methods to take into account any such variation as the General
Partner shall determine to be appropriate and in compliance with Treasury Regulation Section
1.704-3(e)(3).
4.5 The Partnership intends to allocate the Profits or Losses for an Accounting Period to
those person who hold the Units as of the Close of Business as of the last Business Day of the
Accounting Period. The General Partner may revise, alter or otherwise modify this method of
allocation as it determines necessary to the extent permitted or required by Section 706 of the
Code and the regulations or ruling promulgated thereunder.
4.6 Allocations that would otherwise be made to a Limited Partner under the provisions of this
Article 4 shall instead be made to the beneficial owner of Units held by a nominee in any case in
which the nominee has furnished the identity of such owner to the Partnership in accordance with
Section 6031(c) of the Code or any other method acceptable to the General Partner in its sole
discretion.
4.7 For the proper administration of the Partnership or for the preservation of uniformity of
the Units, the General Partner shall have sole discretion to (i) adopt such conventions as it deems
appropriate; (ii) make special allocations for federal income tax purposes of income (including,
without limitation, gross income) or deductions; and (iii) amend the provisions of this Agreement
as appropriate (x) to reflect the proposal or
10
promulgation of Treasury Regulations under Section 704(b) or Section 704(c) of the Code or (y)
otherwise to preserve or achieve uniformity of the Units.
Article 5
RECORDS AND ACCOUNTING; REPORTS
5.1 Records and Accounting. The Partnership will keep proper books of record and account of
the Partnership at its office located in 1320 Harbor Bay Parkway, Suite 145, Alameda, CA 94502 or
such office, including of an administrative agent, as it may subsequently designate upon notice.
These books and records are open to inspection by any person who establishes to the Partnerships
satisfaction that such person is a Limited Partner upon reasonable advance notice at all reasonable
times during the usual business hours of the Partnership.
5.2 Annual Reports. Within 90 days after the end of each fiscal year, the General Partner
shall cause to be delivered to each Person who was a Partner at any time during the fiscal year, an
annual report containing the following:
(i) financial statements of the Partnership, including, without limitation, a balance sheet as
of the end of the Partnerships fiscal year and statements of income, Partners equity and changes
in financial position, for such fiscal year, which shall be prepared in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles consistently applied and shall be reviewed by a firm of independent
certified public accountants,
(ii) a general description of the activities of the Partnership during the period covered by
the report, and
(iii) a report of any material transactions between the Partnership and the General Partner or
any of its Affiliates, including fees or compensation paid by the Partnership and the services
performed by the General Partner or any such Affiliate of or such fees or compensation.
5.3 Quarterly Reports. Within 45 days after the end of each quarter of each fiscal year, the
General Partner shall cause to be delivered to each Person who was a Partner at any time during the
quarter then ended, a quarterly report containing a balance sheet and statement of income for the
period covered by the report, each of which may be unaudited but shall be certified by the General
Partner as fairly presenting the financial position and results of operations of the partnership
during the period covered by the report. The report shall also contain a description of any
material event regarding the business of the Partnership during the period covered by the report.
5.4 Tax Information. The General Partner shall use its best efforts to prepare and to
transmit a U.S. federal income tax form K-1 for each Partner, Assignee, or Beneficial Owner a
report setting forth in sufficient detail such transactions effected by the Partnership during each
Fiscal Year as shall enable each Partner, Assignee, or
11
beneficial owner to prepare its U.S. federal income tax return, if any, within a reasonable
period after the end of such Fiscal Year.
5.5 Tax Returns. The General Partner shall cause income tax returns of the Partnership to be
prepared and timely filed with the appropriate authorities.
5.6 Tax Matters Partner. The General Partner is hereby designated as the Partnerships Tax
Matters Partner, as defined under Section 6231(a)(7) of the Code. The General Partner is
specifically directed and authorized to take whatever steps the General Partner, in its discretion,
deems necessary or desirable to perfect such designation, including filing any forms or documents
with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and taking such other action as may from time to time be
required under U.S. Treasury regulations. Any Partner shall have the right to participate in any
administrative proceedings relating to the determination of Partnership items at the Partnership
level. Expenses of such administrative proceedings undertaken by the Tax Matters Partner shall be
expenses of the Partnership. Each Partner who elects to participate in such proceedings shall be
responsible for any expenses incurred by such Partner in connection with such participation. The
cost of any resulting audits or adjustments of a Partners tax return shall be borne solely by the
affected Partner. In the event of any audit, investigation, settlement or review, for which the
General Partner is carrying out the responsibilities of Tax Matters Partner, the General Partner
shall keep the Partners reasonably apprised of the status and course of such audit, investigation,
settlement or review and shall forward copies of all written communications from or to any
regulatory, investigative or judicial authority with regard thereto.
Article 6
FISCAL AFFAIRS
6.1 Fiscal Year. The fiscal year of the Partnership shall be the calendar year.
6.2 Partnership Funds. Pending application or distribution, the funds of the Partnership
shall be deposited in such bank account or accounts, or invested in such interest-bearing or
non-interest bearing investment, including, without limitation, checking and savings accounts,
certificates of deposit and time or demand deposits in commercial banks, U.S. government securities
and securities guaranteed by U.S. government agencies as shall be designed by the General Partner.
Such funds shall not be commingled with funds of any other Person. Withdrawals therefrom shall be
made upon such signatures as the General Partner may designate.
6.3 Accounting Decisions. All decisions as to accounting principles, except as specifically
provided to the contrary herein, shall be made by the General Partner on a basis that is acceptable
to the Partnerships independent certified public accountants.
6.4 Tax Elections. The General Partner shall, from time to time, make such tax elections as
it deems necessary or desirable in its sole discretion to carry out the business of the Partnership
or the purposes of this Agreement.
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6.5 Title to the Partnership assets shall be deemed to be owned by the Partnership as an
entity, and no Partner or Assignee, individually or collectively, shall have any ownership interest
in such Partnership assets or any portion thereof. Title to any or all of the Partnership assets
may be held in the name of the Partnership, the General Partner or one or more nominees, as the
General Partner may determine. The General Partner hereby declares and warrants that any
Partnership assets for which record title is held in the name of the General Partner shall be held
by the General Partner for the exclusive use and benefit of the Partnership in accordance with the
provisions of this Agreement; provided, however, that the General Partner shall use its reasonable
efforts to cause record title to such assets (other than those assets in respect of which the
General Partner determines that the expense and difficulty of conveyancing makes transfer of record
title to the Partnership impracticable) to be vested in the Partnership as soon as reasonably
practicable; provided, that prior to the withdrawal or removal of the General Partner or as soon
thereafter as practicable, the General Partner will use reasonable efforts to effect the transfer
of record title to the Partnership and, prior to any such transfer, will provide for the use of
such assets in a manner satisfactory to the Partnership. All Partnership Assets shall be recorded
as the property of the Partnership in its books and records, irrespective of the name in which
record title to such Partnership assets are held.
Article 7
RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF THE GENERAL PARTNER
7.1 Management Power. The General Partner shall have exclusive management and control of the
business and affairs of the Partnership, and all decisions regarding the management and affairs of
the partnership shall be made by the General Partner. The General Partner shall have all the
rights and powers of general partners as provided in the Act and as otherwise provided by law.
Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Agreement, the General Partner is hereby granted the
right, power and authority to do on behalf of the Partnership all things which, in its sole
judgment, are necessary, proper or desirable to carry out the aforementioned duties and
responsibilities, including but not limited to the right, power and authority from time to time to
do the following:
(a) incur all expenditures permitted by this Agreement;
(b) employ and dismiss from employment any and all employees, agents, independent contractors,
attorneys and accountants;
(c) enter into any sales, agency or dealer agreements with respect to the sale of Interests to
Additional Limited Partners;
(d) admit an assignee of a Limited Partners Interest as a Limited Partner in the Partnership
without the consent of any Limited Partner;
13
(e) to the extent that
funds of the Partnership are, in the General Partners judgment, not
required for the conduct of the Partnerships business, temporarily invest the excess funds in the
manner set forth in paragraph 6.2;
(f) prosecute and protect and defend or cause to be protected and defended all patents, patent
rights, trade names, trademarks and service marks, and all applications with respect thereto that
may be held by the Partnership;
(g) borrow money on behalf of the Partnership from lenders other than a General Partner or his
or its Affiliates and to give as security for any such loan a security interest in any or all
assets of the Partnership;
(h) consummate the various transactions contemplated by the private placement memorandum used
in connection with the placement of Interests; and
(i) enter into, execute, amend, supplement, acknowledge and deliver any and all contracts,
agreements, licenses or other instruments (including without limitation those agreements with
Affiliates of the General Partner described in the Placement Memorandum necessary, proper or
desirable to carry out the purposes of the Partnership.
7.2 The General Partner will use its best efforts to cause the Partnership to be formed,
reformed, qualified or registered under assumed or fictitious name statutes or similar laws in any
state in which the Partnership owns property or transacts business if such information,
reformation, qualification or registration is necessary in order to protect the limited liability
of the Limited Partners or to permit the Partnership lawfully to own property or transact business.
7.3 Right of Public to Rely on Authority of a General Partner. No person shall be required to
determine the General Partners authority to make any undertaking on behalf of the Partnership.
7.4 Obligation of the General Partner. The General Partner shall:
(a) devote to the Partnership and apply to the accomplishment of Partnership purposes so much
of its time and attention as is necessary or advisable to manage properly the affairs of the
Partnership;
(b) maintain a Partnership capital account for each Partner; and
(c) cause the Partnership to enter into and carry out the obligations of the Partnership
contained in the agreements with Affiliates of the General Partner as described in the Prospectus
and cause the partnership not to take any action in violation of such agreements.
7.5 Good Faith. The General Partner shall manage and control the affairs of the Partnership
to the best of its ability and the General Partner shall use its best efforts to
14
carry out the purposes of the Partnership for the benefit of all of the Partners. In
exercising its powers, the General Partner recognizes its fiduciary responsibility to the
Partnership.
7.6 Reimbursement; Indemnification.
7.6.1 Reimbursement of Expenses.
(a) The General Partner shall be entitled to receive out of Partnership funds available
therefor reimbursement of all amounts expended by the General Partner in payment out of its own
funds of properly incurred Partnership obligations (other than Organizational Expenses).
Reimbursement pursuant to this paragraph 7.5.1 shall not be duplicative of payments to the General
Partner or its Affiliates under any other agreement, nor shall the General Partner be reimbursed
for any expense that is to be borne by the General Partner or its Affiliates under any other
agreement.
(b) Once the Partnerships assets exceed
[$500,000,000]
, the Partnership shall reimburse the
General Partner up to the amount of $500,000 for offering and organizational expenses incurred by
it prior to the end of the twelfth month of operation after the commencement of business
(Organizational Expenses). Once the Partnerships assets exceed
[$1,000,000,000]
, the
Partnership will reimburse the General Partner up to an additional amount of $500,000 for
Organizational Expenses.
7.6.2 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, neither a General Partner nor any
employee or other agent of the Partnership nor any officer, director, stockholder, partner,
employee or agent of a General Partner (a Protected Person) shall be liable to any Partner or the
Partnership for any mistake of judgment or for any action or inaction taken, nor for any losses due
to any mistake of judgment or to any action or inaction or to the negligence, dishonesty or bad
faith of any officer, employee, broker or other agent of the Partnership or any officer, director,
stockholder, partner, employee or agent of such General Partner, provided that such officer,
director, stockholder, employee, broker or agent of the Partner or officer, employee, partner or
agent of such General Partner was selected, engaged or retained by such General Partner with
reasonable care, except with respect to any matter as to which such General Partner shall have been
finally adjudicated in any action, suit or other proceeding not to have acted in good faith in the
reasonable belief that such Protected Persons actions was in the best interests of the Partnership
and except that no Protected person shall be relieved of any liability to which such Protected
Person would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless
disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the Protected Persons office. A General
Partner and its officers, directors, employees or partners may consult with counsel and accountants
in respect of Partnership affairs and be fully protected and justified in any action or inaction
which is taken in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel or accountants, provided
that they shall have been selected with reasonable care. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing to
the contrary, the provisions of this Section 7.5.2 and of Section 7.5.3 hereof shall not be
construed so as to relieve (or attempt to relieve) a General Partner (or any employee or
15
other agent thereof or any partner, employee or agent of such General Partner) of any
liability to the extent (but only to the extent) that such liability may not be waived, modified or
limited under applicable law, but shall be construed so as to effectuate the provisions of this
Section 7.5.2 and of Section 7.5.3 hereof to the fullest extent permitted by law.
7.6.3 The Partnership shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, but only out of
Partnership assets, indemnify and hold harmless a General Partner and each officer, director,
employee and agent thereof (including persons who serve at the Partnerships request as directors,
officers or trustees of another organization in which the Partnership has an interest as a
shareholder, creditor or otherwise) and their respective Legal Representatives and successors
(hereinafter referred to as a Covered Person against all liabilities and expenses, including but
not limited to amounts paid in satisfaction of judgments, in compromise or as fines and penalties,
and counsel fees reasonably incurred by any Covered Person in connection with the defense or
disposition of any action, suit or other proceedings, whether civil or criminal, before any court
or administrative or legislative body, in which such Covered Person may be or may have been
involved as a party or otherwise or with which such person may be or may have been threatened,
while in office or thereafter, by reason of an alleged act or omission as a General Partner or
officer thereof or by reason of its being or having been such a General Partner or officer, except
with respect to any matter as to which such Covered Person shall have been finally adjudicated in
any such action, suit or other proceeding not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable believe
that such Covered Persons action was in the best interest of the Partnership, and except that no
Covered Person shall be indemnified against any liability to the Partnership or Limited Partners to
which such Covered Person would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith,
gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such Covered
Persons office. Expenses, including counsel fees so incurred by any such Covered Person, may be
paid from time to time by the Partnership in advance of the final disposition of any such action,
suit or proceeding on the condition that the amounts so paid shall be repaid to the Partnership if
it is ultimately determined that the indemnification of such expenses is not authorized hereunder.
As to any matter disposed of by a compromise payment by any such Covered Person, pursuant to a
consent decree or otherwise, no such indemnification either for said payment or for any other
expenses shall be provided unless such compromise shall be approved as in the best interests of the
Partnership, after notice that it involved such indemnification by any disinterested person or
persons to whom the questions may be referred by the General Partner, provided that there has been
obtained an opinion in writing of independent legal counsel to the effect that such Covered Person
appears to have acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that his or her action was in the best
interests of the Partnership and that such indemnification would not protect such persons against
any liability to the Partnership or its Limited Partners to which such person would otherwise by
subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the
duties involved in the conduct of office. Approval by any disinterested person or persons shall
not prevent the recovery from persons as indemnification if such Covered Person is subsequently
adjudicated by a court of
16
competent jurisdiction not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that such Covered
Persons action was in the best interests of the Partnership or to have been liable to the
Partnership or its Limited Partners by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence
or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such Covered Persons office.
The right of indemnification hereby provided shall not be exclusive of or affect any other
rights to which any such Covered Person may be entitled. As used in this Section 7.6.3, an
interested Covered Person is one against whom the action, suit or other proceeding on the same or
similar grounds is then or has been pending and a disinterested person is a person against whom
none of such actions, suits or other proceedings or another action, suit or other proceeding on the
same or similar grounds is then or has been pending. Nothing contained in this Section 7.5.3 shall
affect any rights to indemnification to which personnel of a General Partner, other than directors
and officers, and other persons may be entitled by contract or otherwise under law, nor the power
of the Partnership to purchase and maintain liability insurance on behalf of any such person.
Nothing in this Section 7.6.3 shall be construed to subject any Covered Person to any
liability to which he is not already liable under this Agreement or Applicable law.
7.6.4 Each Limited Partner agrees that it will not hold any Affiliate or any stockholder,
director, officer, employee or agent of any Affiliate of the General Partner to any liability for
any actions of such General Partner or any obligations arising under or in connection with this
Agreement or the transactions contemplated herby.
7.7 Other Business Ventures. Any Partner, or any shareholder, director, employee, Affiliate
or other person holding a legal or beneficial interest in any entity which is a Partner, may engage
in or possess an interest in other business ventures of every nature and description, independently
or with others, whether such ventures are competitive with the Partnership or otherwise; and,
neither the Partnership nor the Partners shall have any right by virtue of this Agreement in or to
such independent ventures or to the income or profits derived therefrom.
7.8 Contracts with the General Partner or its Affiliates. The General Partner may, on behalf
of the Partnership, enter into contracts with any Affiliate. The validity of any transaction,
agreement or payment involving the partnership and any General Partner or any Affiliate of a
General Partner otherwise permitted by the terms of this Agreements shall not be affected by reason
of (i) the relationship between the Partnership and the Affiliate of the General Partner, or (ii)
the approval of said transaction agreement or payment by officers or directors of the General
Partner.
7.9 Additional General Partners. Additional general partners may be admitted with the consent
of the General Partner.
Article 8
RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF LIMITED PARTNERS
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8.1 No Participation in Management. No Limited Partner (other than a General Partner if it
has acquired an Interest of a Limited Partner) shall take part in the management of the
Partnerships business, transact any business in the Partnerships name or have the power to sign
documents for or otherwise bind the Partnership.
8.2 Limitation of Liability. Except as provided in the Act, the debts, obligations, and
liabilities of the Partnership, whether arising in contract, tort or otherwise, shall be solely the
debts, obligations and liabilities of the Partnership, and no Limited Partner shall be obligated
personally for any such debt, obligation or liability of the Partnership solely by reason of being
a Limited Partner of the Partnership.
8.3 Indemnification and Terms of Admission. Each Limited Partner shall indemnify and hold
harmless the Partnership, the General Partner and every Limited Partner who was or is a party or is
threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceedings,
whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative, by reason of or arising from any actual
or alleged misrepresentation or misstatement of facts or omission to state facts made (or omitted
to be made) by such Limited Partner in connection with any assignment, transfer, encumbrance or
other disposition of all or any part of an Interest, or the admission of a Limited Partner to the
Partnership, against expenses for which the Partnership or such other Person has not otherwise been
reimbursed (including attorneys fees, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement) actually
and reasonably incurred by him in connection with such action, suit or proceeding.
8.4 Effective Date. The effective date of admission of a Limited Partner shall be the date
designated by the General Partner in writing to such assignee or transferee, which shall not be
later than the first day of the fiscal quarter of the partnership next following the date upon
which the General Partner has given its written consent to such substitution.
8.5 Death or Incapacity of Limited Partner. The death or legal incapacity of a Limited
Partner shall not cause a dissolution of the Partnership.
8.6 Rights of Limited Partner Relating to the Partnership.
(a) In addition to other rights provided by this Agreement or by applicable law, and except
as limited by Section 7.5(b), each Limited Partner shall have the right, for a purpose reasonably
related to such Limited Partners interest as a limited partner in the Partnership, upon reasonable
demand and at such Limited Partners own expense:
(i) to obtain true and full information regarding the status of the business and financial
condition of the Partnership;
(ii) promptly after becoming available, to obtain a copy of the Partnerships federal, state
and local tax returns for each year;
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(iii) to have furnished to him, upon notification to the General Partner, a current list of
the name and last known business, residence or mailing address of each Partner;
(iv) to have furnished to him, upon notification to the General Partner, a copy of this
Agreement and the Certificate of Limited Partnership and all amendments thereto;
(v) to obtain true and full information regarding the amount of cash and description and
statement of the Agreed Value of any other Capital Contribution by each Partner and which each
Partner has agreed to contribute in the future, and the date on which each became a Partner; and
(vi) to obtain such other information regarding the affairs of the Partnership as is just and
reasonable.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the General Partner may keep
confidential from the Limited Partners and Assignees for such period of time as the General Partner
deems reasonable, any information that the General Partner reasonably believes to be in the nature
of trade secrets or other information the disclosure of which the General Partner in good faith
believes is not in the best interests of the Partnership or could damage the Partnership or that
the Partnership is required by law or by agreements with third parties to keep confidential (other
than agreements with Affiliates the primary purpose of which is to circumvent the obligations set
forth in this Section 8.6).
Article 9
UNIT CERTIFICATES
9.1 Unit Certificates. Unit Certificates shall be executed on behalf of the Partnership by any
officer of either the General Partner or the Partnership.
[Will the Partnership actually issue
certificates or will everything be done in book entry form?]
9.2 Registration, Registration of Transfer and Exchange.
9.2.1 The General Partner shall cause to be kept on behalf of the Partnership a register (the
Unit Register) in which, subject to such reasonable regulations as it may prescribe and subject
to the provisions of Section 9.2(b), the General Partner will provide for the registration and the
transfer of Units. The Transfer Agent is hereby appointed registrar and transfer agent for the
purpose of registering and transferring Units as herein provided. The Partnership shall not
recognize transfers of Certificates representing Units unless same are effected in the manner
described in this Section 9.2. Upon surrender for registration of transfer of any Units evidenced
by a Certificate and subject to the provisions of Section 9.2(b), the General Partner on behalf
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of the Partnership will execute, and the Transfer Agent will countersign and deliver, in the
name of the holder or the designated transferee or transferees, as required pursuant to the
holders instructions, one or more new Certificates evidencing the same aggregate number of Units
as was evidenced by the Certificate so surrendered.
9.2.2 Except as otherwise provided in Section 11.5, the Partnership shall not recognize any
transfer of Units until the Certificates (if applicable) evidencing such Units are surrendered for
registration of transfer and such Certificates are accompanied by a Transfer Application duly
executed by the transferee (or the transferees attorney-in-fact duly authorized in writing). No
charge shall be imposed by the Partnership for such transfer, provided, that, as a condition to the
issuance of any new Certificate under this Section 9.2, the General Partner may require the payment
of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed with respect
thereto.
9.3 Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Certificates.
9.3.1 If any mutilated Certificate is surrendered to the Transfer Agent, the General Partner
on behalf of the Partnership shall execute, and upon its request, the Transfer Agent shall
countersign and deliver in exchange therefor, a new Certificate evidencing the same number of Units
as the Certificate so surrendered.
9.3.2 The General Partner on behalf of the Partnership shall execute, and upon its request,
the Transfer Agent shall countersign and deliver a new Certificate in place of any Certificate
previously issued if the Record Holder of the Certificate:
(a) makes proof by affidavit, in form and substance satisfactory to the General Partner, that
a previously issued Certificate has been lost, destroyed or stolen;
(b) requests the issuance of a new Certificate before the Partnership has received notice that
the Certificate has been acquired by a purchaser for value in good faith and without notice of an
adverse claim;
(c) if requested by the General Partner, delivers to the Partnership a bond or such other form
of security or indemnity as may be required by the General Partner, in form and substance
satisfactory to the General Partner, with surety or sureties and with fixed or open penalty as the
General Partner may direct, in its sole discretion, to indemnify the Partnership, the General
Partner and the Transfer Agent against any claim that may be made on account of the alleged loss,
destruction or theft of the Certificate; and
(d) satisfies any other reasonable requirements imposed by the General Partner. If a Limited
Partner or Assignee fails to notify the Partnership within a reasonable time after he has notice of
the loss, destruction or theft of a Certificate, and a transfer of the Units represented by the
Certificate is registered before the Partnership, the General Partner or the Transfer Agent
receives such notification, the Limited Partner or Assignee shall be precluded from making any
claim against the Partnership, the General Partner or the Transfer Agent for such transfer or for a
new Certificate.
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9.3.3 As a condition to the issuance of any Certificate under this Section 9.3, the General
Partner may require the payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge
that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses (including, without limitation, the
fees and expenses of the Transfer Agent) connected therewith.
9.4 Record Holder. In accordance with Section 9.2(b), the Partnership shall be entitled to
recognize the Record Holder as the Limited Partner or Assignee with respect to any Units and,
accordingly, shall not be bound to recognize any equitable or other claim to or interest in such
Units on the part of any other Person, whether or not the Partnership shall have actual or other
notice thereof, except as otherwise provided by law or any applicable rule, regulation, guideline
or requirement of any National Securities Exchange on which the Units are listed for trading.
Without limiting the foregoing, when a Person (such as a broker, dealer, bank trust company or
clearing corporation or an agent of any of the foregoing) is acting as nominee, agent or in some
other representative capacity for another Person in acquiring and/or holding Units, as between the
Partnership on the one hand and such other Persons on the other hand such representative Person (a)
shall be the Limited Partner or Assignee (as the case may be) of record and beneficially, (b) must
execute and deliver a Transfer Application and (c) shall be bound by this Agreement and shall have
the rights and obligations of a Limited Partner or Assignee (as the case may be) hereunder and as
provided for herein.
9.5 The General Partner is hereby authorized to cause the Partnership to issue such additional
Units, or options, rights, warrants or appreciation rights relating thereto, or any other type of
equity security that the Partnership may lawfully issue, any unsecured or secured debt obligations
of the Partnership or debt obligations of the Partnership convertible into any class or series of
equity securities of the Partnership (collectively, Partnership Securities), for any Partnership
purpose, at any time or from time to time, to the Partners or to other Persons for such
consideration and on such terms and conditions as shall be established by the General Partner in
its sole discretion, all without the approval of any Limited Partners. The General Partner shall
have sole discretion, subject to the requirements of the Act, in determining the consideration and
terms and conditions with respect to any future issuance of Partnership Securities.
9.6 The General Partner shall do all things necessary to comply with the Act and is authorized
and directed to do all things it deems to be necessary or advisable in connection with any future
issuance of Partnership Securities, including, without limitation, compliance with any statute,
rule, regulation or guideline of any federal, state or other governmental agency or any National
Securities Exchange on which the Units or other Partnership Securities are listed for ruling.
Article 10
TRANSFER OF INTERESTS
10.1 Transfer.
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10.1.1 The term transfer, when used in this Article 10 with respect to an Interest, shall be
deemed to refer to an appropriate transaction by which the General Partner assigns its Interest as
General Partner to another Person or by which the holder of a Unit assigns such Unit to another
Person who is or becomes an Assignee and includes a sale, assignment, gift, pledge, encumbrance,
hypothecation, mortgage, exchange or any other disposition by law or otherwise.
10.1.2 No Interest shall be transferred in whole or in part, except in accordance with the
terms and conditions set forth in this Article 10. Any transfer or purported transfer of an
Interest not made in accordance with this Article 10 shall be null and void.
10.2 Transfer of General Partners Interest.
10.2.1 Except as set forth in this Section 10.2(a), the General Partner may transfer all, but
not less than all, of its Interest as the general partner to a single transferee if, but only if,
(i) at least a majority of the voting Units (excluding for this purpose Units held by the General
Partner and its Affiliates) approve of such transfer and of the admission of such transferee as
general partner, (ii) the transferee agrees to assume the rights and duties of the General Partner
and be bound by the provisions of this Agreement and the Operating Company Agreements, and (iii)
the Partnership receives an Opinion of Counsel that such transfer would not result in the loss of
limited liability of any Limited Partner or of the Partnership as a member of the Operating
Companies or cause the Partnership or the Operating Companies to be taxable as a corporation or
otherwise taxed as an entity for federal income tax purposes. The foregoing notwithstanding, the
General Partner is expressly permitted to pledge its interest as General Partner to secure the
obligations of the Partnership under the Revolving Credit Facility, as the same may be amended,
supplemented, replaced, refinanced or restated from time to time, or any successor or subsequent
loan agreement.
10.2.2 Neither Section 10.2.1 nor any other provision of this Agreement shall be construed to
prevent (and all Partners do hereby consent to) (i) the transfer by the General Partner of all of
its interest as a general partner to an Affiliate or (ii) the transfer by the General Partner of
all its interest as a general partner upon its merger or consolidation with or other combination
into any other Person or the transfer by it of all or substantially all of its assets to another
Person if, in the case of a transfer described in either clause (i) or (ii) of this sentence, the
rights and duties of the General Partner with respect to the interest so transferred are assumed by
the transferee and the transferee agrees to be bound by the provisions of this Agreement; provided,
that in either such case, such transferee furnishes to the Partnership an Opinion of Counsel that
such merger, consolidation, combination, transfer or assumption will not result in a loss of
limited liability of any Limited Partner or of the Partnership or cause the Partnership to be
taxable as a corporation or otherwise taxed as an entity for federal income tax purpose. In the
case of a transfer pursuant to this Section 10.2.2, the transferee or successor (as the case may
be) shall be admitted to the Partnership as the General Partner immediately prior to the transfer
of the Interest, and the business of the Partnership shall continue without dissolution.
22
10.3 Transfer of Units.
10.3.1 Units may be transferred only in the manner described in Section 9.2. The transfer of
any Units and the admission of any new Partner shall not constitute an amendment to this Agreement.
10.3.2 Until admitted as a Substituted Limited Partner pursuant to Article 11, the Record
Holder of a Unit shall be an Assignee in respect of such Unit. Limited Partners may include
custodians, nominees or any other individual or entity in its own or any representative capacity.
10.3.3 Each distribution in respect of Units shall be paid by the Partnership, directly or
through the Transfer Agent or through any other Person or agent, only to the Record Holders thereof
as of the Record Date set for the distribution. Such payment shall constitute full payment and
satisfaction of the Partnerships liability in respect of such payment, regardless of any claim of
any Person who may have an interest in such payment by reason of an assignment or otherwise.
10.3.4 A transferee who has completed and delivered a Transfer Application shall be deemed to
have (i) requested admission as a Substituted Limited Partner, (ii) agreed to comply with and be
bound by and to have executed this Agreement, (iii) represented and warranted that such transferee
has the capacity and authority to enter into this Agreement, (iv) made the powers of attorney set
forth in this Agreement and (v) given the consents and made the waivers contained in this
Agreement.
10.4 Restrictions on Transfers. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Article 10, no
transfer of any Unit or interest therein of any Limited Partner or Assignee shall be made if such
transfer would (a) violate the then applicable federal or state securities laws or rules and
regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission, any state securities commission or any other
governmental authorities with jurisdiction over such transfer, (b) cause the Partnership to be
taxable as a corporation or (c) affect the Partnerships existence or qualification as a limited
partnership under the Act.
10.5 Tax Certificates.
10.5.1 All Limited Partners or Assignees (or, if the Limited Partner or Assignee is a nominee
holding for the account of a Beneficial Owner, the Beneficial Owner) are required to provide the
Partnership with a properly completed Tax Certificate.
10.5.2 If a Limited Partner or Assignee (or, if the Limited Partner or Assignee is a nominee
holding for the account of a Beneficial Owner, the Beneficial Owner) fails to provide the
Partnership with a properly completed Tax Certificate, the General Partner may request at any time
and from time to time, that such Limited Partner or Assignee (or Beneficial Owner) shall, within 15
days after request (whether oral or written) therefor by the General Partner, furnish to the
Partnership, a properly completed Tax Certificate. If a Limited Partner or Assignee fails to
furnish to the General Partner within the aforementioned 15-day period such Tax Certificate, the
Units owned by such
23
Limited Partner or Assignee (or in the case of a Limited Partner or Assignee that holds Units
on behalf of a Beneficial Owner, the Units held on behalf of the Beneficial Owner) shall be subject
to redemption in accordance with the provisions of Section 10.6.
10.6 Redemption of Units for Failure to Provide Tax Certification.
10.6.1 If at any time a Limited Partner or Assignee fails to furnish a properly completed Tax
Certificate within the 15-day period specified in Section 10.5.1, The Partnership may redeem the
Units of such Limited Partner or Assignee as follows:
(a) The General Partner shall not later than the 10th day before the date fixed for
redemption, give notice of redemption to the Limited Partner or Assignee, at his last address
designated on the records of the Partnership or the Transfer Agent, by registered or certified
mail, postage prepaid. The notice shall be deemed to have been given when so mailed (the Notice
Date). The notice shall specify the Redeemable Units, the date fixed for redemption, the place of
payment, that payment of the redemption price will be made upon surrender of the Certification
evidencing the Redeemable Units.
(b) The aggregate redemption price for Redeemable Units shall be an amount equal to the market
price as of the Close of Business on the Business Day immediately prior to the date fixed for
redemption of Units to be so redeemed multiplied by the number of Units included among the
Redeemable Units. The redemption price shall be paid in the sole discretion of the General Partner,
in cash or by delivery of a promissory note of the Partnership in the principal amount of the
redemption price, bearing interest at the Prime Rate and payable in three equal annual installments
of principal together with accrued interest commencing one year after the redemption date.
(c) Upon surrender by or on behalf of the Limited Partner or Assignee, at the place specified
in the notice of redemption, of the Certificate evidencing the Redeemable Units, duly endorsed in
blank or accompanied by an assignment duly executed in blank, the Limited Partner or Assignee or
his duly authorized representative shall be entitled to receive the payment therefor.
(d) In the event the Partnership is required to pay withholding tax or otherwise withhold any
amount on behalf of, or with respect to, a Limited Partner or Assignee (or Beneficial Owner) who
has failed to provide a properly completed Tax Certificate, such amounts paid or withheld by the
Partnership shall be deemed to have been paid to such Limited Partner or Assignee (or Beneficial)
as part of the redemption price for the Redeemable Units and the Partnership shall reduce the
amount of the payment made to such Limited Partner or Assignee (or Beneficial Owner) in redemption
of such Redeemable Units by any amounts so withheld.
10.6.2 After the Notice Date, Redeemable Units shall no longer constitute issued and
Outstanding Units and allocations or distributions shall be made with respect to such Redeemable
Units. In addition, after the Notice Date, the Redeemable Units shall not be Transferable.
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10.6.3 The provisions of this Section 10.6 shall also be applicable to Units held by a Limited
Partner or Assignee as nominee of a Beneficial Owner.
Article 11
ADMISSION OF PARTNERS
11.1 Admission of Initial Limited Partners. Upon the issuance by the Partnership of Units to
the Underwriters and the execution by each such party of a Transfer Application, the General
Partner shall admit the Underwriters to the Partnership as Initial Limited Partners in respect of
the Units.
11.2 Admission of Substituted Limited Partners. By transfer of a Unit in accordance with
Article 10, the transferor shall be deemed to have given the transferee the right to seek admission
as a Substituted Limited Partner subject to the conditions of, and in the manner permitted under,
this Agreement. A transferor of a Certificate shall, however, only have the authority to convey to
a purchaser or other transferee who does not execute and deliver a Transfer Application (i) the
right to negotiate such Certificate to a purchaser or other transferee and (ii) the right to
transfer the right to request admission as a Substituted Limited Partner to such purchaser or other
transferee in respect of the transferred Units. Each transferee of a Unit (including, without
limitation, any nominee holder or an agent acquiring such Unit for the account of another Person)
who executes and delivers a Transfer Application shall, by virtue of such execution and delivery,
be an Assignee and be deemed to have applied to become a Substituted Limited Partner with respect
to the Units so transferred to such Person. Such Assignee shall become a Substituted Limited
Partner (i) at such time as the General Partner consents thereto, which consent may be given or
withheld in the General Partners sole discretion, and (ii) when any such admission is shown on the
books and records of the Partnership. If such consent is withheld such transferee shall be an
Assignee. An Assignee shall have an interest in the Partnership equivalent to that of a Limited
Partner with respect to allocations and distributions, including, without limitation, liquidating
distributions, of the Partnership. With respect to voting rights attributable to Units that are
held by Assignees, the General Partner shall be deemed to be the Limited Partner with respect
thereto and shall, in exercising the voting rights in respect of such Units on any matter, vote
such Units at the written direction of the Assignee who is the Record Holder of such Units. If no
such written direction is received, such Units will not be voted. An Assignee shall have no other
rights of a Limited Partner.
11.3 Admission of Successor General Partner. A successor General Partner approved pursuant to
this Section 11.3 or the transferee of or successor to all of the General Partners Interest
pursuant to Section 10.2 who is proposed to be admitted as a successor General Partner shall be
admitted to the Partnership as the General Partner, effective immediately prior to the withdrawal
or removal of the General Partner pursuant to Section 12 or the transfer of the General Partners
Interest pursuant to Section 10.2; provided, however, that no such successor shall be admitted to
the Partnership until compliance with the terms of Section 10.2 has occurred. Any such successor
shall carry on the business of the Partnership without dissolution. In each case, the admission
shall be subject to the successor General Partner executing and delivering to the Partnership an
25
acceptance of all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement and such other documents or
instruments as may be requited to effect the admission.
11.4 Admission of Additional Limited Partners.
11.4.1 A Person (other than the General Partner, an Initial Limited Partner or a Substituted
Limited Partner) who makes a Capital Contribution to the Partnership in accordance with this
Agreement shall be admitted to the Partnership as an Additional Limited Partner only upon
furnishing to the General Partner (i) evidence of acceptance in form satisfactory to the General
Partner of all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including, without limitation, the
power of attorney granted in Section 15, (ii) such other documents or instruments as may be
required in the discretion of the General Partner to effect such Persons admission as an
Additional Limited Partner.
11.4.2 Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section 11.4, no Person shall be
admitted as an Additional Limited Partner without the consent of the General Partner, which consent
may be given or withheld in the General Partners sole discretion. The admission of any Person as
an Additional Limited Partner shall become effective on the date upon which the name of such Person
is recorded on the books and records of the Partnership, following the consent of the General
Partner to such admission.
11.5 Amendment of Agreement and Certificate of Limited Partnership. To effect the admission to
the Partnership of any Partner, the General Partner shall take all steps necessary and appropriate
under the Act to amend the records of the Partnership and if necessary, to prepare as soon as
practical an amendment of this Agreement and if required by law, to prepare and file an amendment
to the Certificate of Limited Partnership and may for this purpose, among others, exercise the
power of attorney granted pursuant to Section 15.
Article 12
WITHDRAWAL OR REMOVAL OF PARTNERS
12.1 Withdrawal of the General Partner.
12.1.1 The General Partner shall be deemed to have withdrawn from the Partnership upon the
occurrence of any one of the following events (each such event herein referred to as an Event of
Withdrawal):
(a) the General Partner voluntarily withdraws from the Partnership by giving written notice to
the other Partners;
(b) the General Partner transfers all of its rights as general partner pursuant to Section
11.2;
(c) the General Partner is removed;
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(d) the General Partner (A) makes a general assignment for the benefit of creditors; (B) files
a voluntary bankruptcy petition; (C) files a petition or answer seeking for itself a
reorganization, arrangement, composition, readjustment liquidation, dissolution or similar relief
under any law; (D) files an answer or other pleading admitting or failing to contest the material
allegations of a petition filed against the General Partner in a proceeding of the type described
in clauses (A) (C) of this sentence; or (E) seeks, consents to or acquiesces in the appointment
of a trustee, receiver or liquidator of the General Partner or of all or any substantial part of
its properties;
(e) a final and non-appealable judgment is entered by a court with appropriate jurisdiction
ruling that the General Partner is bankrupt or insolvent or a final and non-appealable order for
relief is entered by a court with appropriate jurisdiction against the General Partner, in each
case under any federal or state bankruptcy or insolvency laws as now or hereafter in effect; or
(f) a certificate of dissolution or its equivalent is filed for the General Partner, or 90
days expire after the date of notice to the General Partner of revocation of its charter without a
reinstatement of its charter, under the laws of its state of incorporation.
If an Event of Withdrawal specified in this Section 12.1.1(d), (e) or (f) occurs, the withdrawing
General Partner shall give written notice to the Limited Partners within 30 days after such
occurrence. The Partners hereby agree that only the Events of Withdrawal described in this Section
12.1 shall result in the withdrawal of the General Partner from the Partnership.
12.1.2 Withdrawal of the General Partner from the Partnership upon the occurrence of an Event
of Withdrawal will not constitute a breach of this Agreement under the following circumstances, (i)
the General Partner voluntarily withdraws by giving at least 90 days advance notice to the
Limited Partners, such withdrawal to take effect on the date specified in such notice; (ii) at any
time that the General Partner ceases to be a General Partner pursuant to Section 12.1.1(b) or is
removed pursuant to Section 12.2; or (iv), at any time that the General Partner voluntarily
withdraws by giving at least 90 days advance notice of its intention to withdraw to the Limited
Partners, such withdrawal to take effect on the date specified in the notice, if at the time such
notice is given one Person and its Affiliates (other than the General Partner and its Affiliates)
own beneficially or of record or control at least 50% of the Outstanding Voting Units. If the
General Partner gives a notice of withdrawal pursuant to Section 12.1.1(a), holders of at least a
majority of such Outstanding Units (excluding for purposes of such determination Units owned by the
General Partner and its Affiliates) may, prior to the effective date of such withdrawal, elect a
successor General Partner. If, prior to the effective date of the General Partners withdrawal, a
successor is not selected by the Limited Partners as provided herein, the Partnership shall be
dissolved in accordance with Section 13. If a successor General Partner is elected, such successor
shall be admitted (subject to Section 12.3) immediately prior to the effective time of the
withdrawal or removal of the Departing Partner and shall continue the business of the Partnership
and the Operating Companies without dissolution.
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12.2 Removal of the General Partner. The General Partner may be removed with or without cause
if such removal is approved by at least 66 2/3% of the Outstanding Voting Units (excluding for this
purpose Units held by the General Partner and its Affiliates). Any such action by such Limited
Partners for removal of the General Partner also must provide for the election of a new General
Partner by the holders of a majority of the Outstanding Units (excluding for this purpose Units
held by the General Partner and its Affiliates). Such removal shall be effective immediately
following the admission of the successor General Partner pursuant to Article 11. The right of such
Limited Partners to remove the General Partner shall not exist or be exercised unless the
Partnership has received an Opinion of Counsel opining as to the matters covered by a Withdrawal
Opinion of Counsel.
Article 13
TERMINATION AND DISTRIBUTION
13.1 Termination. The Partnership shall continue in effect from the date of its formation in
perpetuity, unless sooner terminated upon the occurrence of any one or more of the following
events:
13.1.1 The death, adjudication of incompetence, bankruptcy, dissolution, withdrawal, or
removal of a General Partner who is the sole remaining General Partner, unless a majority in
interest of Limited Partners within ninety (90) days after such event elects to continue the
Partnership and appoints a Successor General Partner; or
13.1.2 The General Partner may elect to terminate the Limited Partnership at any time
with [the affirmative vote of a majority in interest of the Limited Partners;] provided
however, that any such termination shall be subject to the conditions set forth in paragraph 13.2.
13.2 Assumption of Agreements. No vote by the Limited Partners to terminate the Partnership
pursuant to paragraph 13.1.2 shall be effective unless, prior to or concurrently with such vote,
there shall have been established procedures for the assumption of the Partnerships obligations
arising under any agreement to which the Partnership is a party and which is still in force
immediately prior to such vote regarding termination, and there shall have been an irrevocable
appointment of an agent who shall be empowered to give and receive notices, reports and payments
under such agreements, and hold and exercise such other powers as are necessary to permit all other
parties to such agreements to deal with such agent as if the agent were the sole owner of the
Partnerships interest, which procedures are agreed to in writing by each to he other parties to
such agreements.
13.3 Distribution
13.3.1 Upon termination of the Partnership, the affairs of the Partnership shall be wound up
and all of its debts and liabilities discharged or otherwise provided for in the order of priority
as provided by law. The fair market value of the remaining assets
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of the Partnership shall then be determined by the General Partner. Thereupon, the assets of
the Partnership shall be distributed to the Partners in accordance pro rata in accordance with
their Units. Each Partner shall receive his share of the assets in cash or in kind, and the
proportion of such share that is received in cash may vary from Partner to Partner, all as the
General Partner in its sole discretion may decide. If such distributions are insufficient to
return to any Partner the full amount of his Capital Contributions, he shall have no recourse
against any other Partner.
13.3.2 The winding up of the affairs of the Partnership and the distribution of its assets
shall be conducted exclusively by the General Partner or its successor, which is hereby authorized
to do all acts authorized by law for these purposes. Without limited the generality of the
foregoing, the General Partner, in carrying out such winding up and distribution, shall have full
power and authority to sell all or any of the Partnerships assets or to distribute the same in
kind to the Partners.
Article 14
MEETINGS
14.1 Meeting of Limited Partners. Upon the written request of 20% or more in interest of the
Limited Partners, the General Partner may, but is not required to, call a meeting of the Limited
Partners. Notice of such meeting shall be given within 30 days after, and the meting shall be held
within 60 days after, receipt of such request. The General Partner may also call a meeting not
less than 20 and not more than 60 days prior to the meeting. Any such notice shall state briefly
the purpose of the meeting, which shall be held at a reasonable time and place. Any Limited
Partner may obtain a list of names, addresses, and Interests of the Limited Partners upon written
request to the General Partner.
Article 15
POWER OF ATTORNEY
15.1 Each Limited Partner and each Assignee hereby constitutes and appoints each of the
General Partner and, if a liquidator shall have been selected, the liquidator severally (and any
successor to either thereof by merger, transfer, assignment, election or otherwise) and each of
their respective authorized officers and attorneys-in-fact with full power of substitution, as his
true and lawful agent and attorney-in-fact with full power and authority in his name, place and
stead to:
(a) execute, swear to, acknowledge, deliver, file and record in the appropriate public offices
(A) all certificates, documents and other instruments (including, without limitation, this
Agreement and the Certificate of Limited Partnership and all amendments or restatements thereof)
that the General Partner or the liquidator deems necessary or appropriate to form, qualify or
continue the existence or qualification of the Partnership as a limited partnership (or a
partnership in which the limited partners have limited liability) in the State of Delaware and in
all other jurisdictions in which the Partnership may conduct business or own property, (B) all
certificates, documents and other instruments that the General Partner or the Liquidator deems
necessary or
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appropriate to reflect, in accordance with its terms, any amendment, change, modification or
restatement of this Agreement, (C) all certificates, documents and other instruments
(including, without limitation, conveyances and a certificate of cancellation) that the General
Partner or the liquidator deems necessary or appropriate to reflect the dissolution and liquidation
of the Partnership pursuant to the terms of this Agreement, (D) all certificates, documents and
other instruments relating to the admission, withdrawal, removal or substitution of any Partner or
the Capital Contribution of any Partner, (E) all certificates, documents and other instruments
relating to the determination of the rights, preferences and privileges of any class or series of
Units or other securities issued pursuant to Section 4.4 and (F) all certificates documents and
other instruments (including, without limitation, agreements and a certificate of merger) relating
to a merger or consolidation of the Partnership;
(b) execute, swear to, acknowledge, deliver, file and record all ballots, consents, approval
waivers, certificates and other instruments necessary or appropriate, in the sole discretion of
the General Partner or the liquidator, to make, evidence, give, confirm or ratify any vote,
consent, approval, agreement or other action that is made or given by the Partners hereunder or is
consistent with the terms of this Agreement or is necessary or appropriate, in the sole discretion
of the General Partner or the liquidator, to effectuate the terms or intent of this Agreement,
provided, that when required by Section ___ or any other provision of this Agreement that
establishes a percentage of the Limited Partners or of the Limited Partners of any class or series
required to take any action, the General Partner or the liquidator may exercise the power of
attorney made in this Article 15 only after the necessary vote, consent or approval of the Limited
Partners or of the Limited Partners of such class or series;
(c) sign, execute and file with the Department of Interior (including any bureau, office or
other unit thereof, whether in Washington, D.C., or in the field, or any officer or employee
thereof), as well as with any other federal or state agencies, departments, bureaus, offices or
authorities, any documents or instruments related to the Partnership or its business which the
General Partner in its sole discretion determines should be filed, including, without limitation,
all statements of interest and holdings on behalf of the Partnership or the Partners, and any other
statements, notices or communications now or hereafter required or permitted to be filed under any
law, rule or regulation of the United States or any state.
15.2 The foregoing power of attorney is hereby declared to be irrevocable and a power coupled
with an interest and it shall survive and not be affected by the subsequent death, incompetency,
disability, incapacity, dissolution, bankruptcy or termination of any Limited Partner or Assignee
and the transfer of all or any portion of such Limited Partners or Assignees Partnership Interest
and shall extend to such Limited Partners or Assignees heirs, successors, assigns and personal
representatives. Each such Limited Partner or Assignee hereby agrees to be bound by any
representation made by the General Partner or the liquidator acting in good faith pursuant to such
power of attorney; and each such Limited Partner or Assignee hereby waives any and all defenses
that may be available to contest, negate or disaffirm the action of the General Partner or the
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liquidator taken in good faith under such power of attorney. Each Limited Partner or Assignee
shall execute and deliver to the General Partner or the liquidator, within 15 days after receipt of
the General Partners or the liquidators request therefor, such further designations, powers of
attorney and other instruments as the General Partner or the liquidator deems necessary to
effectuate this Agreement and the purposes of the Partnership.
Article 16
SUBSCRIPTION REQUESTS
16.1 In the event that the Capital Contributions together with the interest and other income
earned on temporary investment on such capital Contributions are deemed insufficient by the General
Partner to carry out the purposes for which the Partnership was formed, the General Partner may,
but need not, send a notice to each Limited Partner (the Subscription Request) requiring each
such Partner to make an additional Capital Contribution to the Partnership in an amount equal to
its pro rata share, determined on the basis of the proportion which such Partners Interest bears
to the Interests of all Partners, of the amount set forth in the Subscription Request, in which
case such additional Capital Contribution shall be made in cash on or before the date specified in
the Subscription Request, which shall in no event be less than 15 days after the date of such
Subscription Request.
16.2 The aggregate amount of Subscription Requests per Unit may not exceed
[5%]
of the initial
Contribution per Unit.
16.3 The Capital Account of any Limited Partner who fails to make the required additional
Capital Contribution as provided in any Subscription Request shall be converted into a capital
account of a retired partner, subordinated to all debts and obligations of the Partnership but
ranking pari passu with the capital accounts of the Limited Partners, and shall be due and payable
without interest only upon termination of the Partnership as provided in paragraph 16.1, and such
Limited Partner shall not at any time be entitled to vote or to share in any Profits or Losses of
any kind accruing after the date of default in payment of the additional Capital Contribution or in
any assets distributed to Partners at any time after such date.
16.4 No Subscription Request shall be made or shall require any contribution to be made after
[DATE]
.
Article 17
MISCELLANEOUS
17.1 Notices. Any notice, offer, consent or other communication required or permitted to be
given or made hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been sufficiently given or
made when delivered personally to the party (or an officer of the party) to whom the same is
directed, or (except in the event of a mail strike) five days
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after being mailed by first-class mail, postage prepaid, if to the Partnership or to a General
Partner, or if to a Limited Partner, to the address set forth on Exhibit A hereof. Any Partner may
change his address for the purpose of this Article by giving notice of such change to the
Partnership, such change to become effective on the tenth day after such notice is given.
17.2 Waiver of Partition. Each Partner hereby irrevocably waives during the term of the
Partnership any right that it or he may have to maintain any action for partition with respect to
any Partnership property.
17.3 Governing Law, Successors, Severability. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of
the State of Delaware, as such laws are applied by Delaware courts to agreements entered into and
to be performed in Delaware by and between residents of Delaware and shall, subject to the
restrictions on transferability set forth herein, bind and inure to the benefit of the heirs,
executors, personal representatives successors and assigns of the parties hereto. If any provision
of this Agreement shall be held to be invalid, the remained of this Agreement shall not be affected
thereby.
17.4 Entire Assignment. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement among the parties; it
supercedes any prior agreement or understanding among them, oral or written, all of which are
hereby canceled. This Agreement may not be modified or amended other than pursuant to Article 15.
17.5 Headings. The headings in this Agreement are inserted for convenience of reference only
and shall not affect interpretation of this Agreement. Wherever from the context it appears
appropriate, each term stated in either the singular or the plural shall include the singular and
the plural and pronouns stated in either the masculine or the neuter gender shall include the
masculine, the feminine and the neuter.
17.6 No Waiver. The failure of any Partner to seek redress for violation, or to insist on
strict performance, of any covenant or condition of this Agreement shall not prevent a subsequent
act which would have constituted a violation from having the effect of an original violation.
17.7 Legends. If certificates for any Interest or Interests are issued evidencing a Limited
Partners interest in the Partnerships, each such certificate shall bear such legends as may be
required by applicable Federal and state laws, or as may be deemed necessary or appropriate by the
General Partner to reflect restrictions upon transfer contemplated herein.
17.8 Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in several counterparts, each of which
shall be deemed an original but all of which shall constitute one and the same instrument.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement on the date first appearing
above.
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GENERAL PARTNER
Standard Asset Management, LLC
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By:
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ORGANIZATIONAL LIMITED
PARTNER
Wainwright Holdings, Inc.
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INITIAL LIMITED PARTNER
[_______]
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EXHIBIT A
Limited Partners
EXHIBIT C
MANAGEMENT FEE
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