UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF

THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): April 18, 2017 (April 12, 2017)

 

 

ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Yukon, Canada   001-33614   N/A

(State or other jurisdiction

of incorporation)

 

(Commission

File Number)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

400 North Sam Houston Parkway East,

Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (281) 876-0120

N/A

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company  ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.  ☐

 

 

 


Explanatory Note:

As previously disclosed, on April 29, 2016, Ultra Petroleum Corp. (the “Company”) and certain of its subsidiaries, including Keystone Gas Gathering, LLC, Ultra Resources, Inc., Ultra Wyoming, Inc., Ultra Wyoming LGS, LLC, UP Energy Corporation, UPL Pinedale, LLC and UPL Three Rivers Holdings, LLC (collectively, with the Company, the “Debtors”), filed voluntary petitions (the “Chapter 11 Cases”) for reorganization under chapter 11 of title 11 of the U.S. Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”) in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (the “Bankruptcy Court”) under the caption In re Ultra Petroleum Corp., et al., Case No. 16-32202 (MI).

On March 14, 2017, the Bankruptcy Court entered the Order Confirming Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (the “Confirmation Order”), which approved and confirmed the Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (the “Plan”), as modified by the Confirmation Order.

The Plan was previously filed as Exhibit 2.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on March 16, 2017 and is hereby incorporated by reference as Exhibit 2.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K (this “Current Report”). A copy of the Confirmation Order was previously filed as Exhibit 99.1 to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Commission on March 16, 2017 and is hereby incorporated by reference as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K.

On April 12, 2017 (the “Effective Date”), the Plan became effective in accordance with its terms and the Debtors emerged from their Chapter 11 Cases.

 

Section 1 Registrant’s Business and Operations

 

Item 1.01. Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

Term Loan Facility

On the Effective Date, pursuant to the terms of the Plan, Ultra Resources, Inc. (“OpCo”), as borrower, entered into a Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement with the Company and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantors, Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent, and the other lenders party thereto (the “Term Loan Agreement”), providing for senior secured first lien term loans (the “Term Loan Facility”) for an aggregate amount of $800.0 million consisting of initial term loan in the amount of $600.0 million and incremental term loan in the amount of $200.0 million to be drawn immediately after the funding of the initial term loan.

The Term Loan Facility has capacity for OpCo to increase the commitments subject to certain conditions.

The Term Loan Facility bears interest either at a rate equal to (a) a customary London interbank offered rate plus 300 basis points or (b) the base rate plus 200 basis points. The Term Loan Facility amortizes in equal quarterly installments in aggregate annual amounts equal to 0.25% of the aggregate principal amount beginning on June 30, 2019. The Term Loan Facility matures seven years after the Effective Date.

The Term Loan Facility is subject to mandatory prepayments and customary reinvestment rights. The mandatory prepayments include, without limitation, a prepayment requirement with the total net proceeds from certain asset sales and net proceeds on insurance received on account of any loss of OpCo property or assets, in each case subject to certain exceptions. In addition, subject to certain exceptions, there is a prepayment requirement if the asset coverage ratio is less than 2.0 to 1.0. To the extent any mandatory prepayments are required, prepayments are applied to prepay the Term Loan Facility.

The Term Loan Agreement also contains customary affirmative and negative covenants, including as to compliance with laws (including environmental laws, ERISA and anti-corruption laws), delivery of quarterly and annual financial statements and oil and gas engineering reports, maintenance and operation of property (including oil and gas properties), restrictions on the incurrence of liens, indebtedness, asset dispositions, fundamental changes, restricted payments and other customary covenants.

The Term Loan Agreement contains customary events of default and remedies for credit facilities of this nature. If OpCo does not comply with the financial and other covenants in the Term Loan Agreement, the lenders may, subject to customary cure rights, require immediate payment of all amounts outstanding under the Term Loan Agreement.

 

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This summary of the Term Loan Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text of the Term Loan Agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 to this Current Report and incorporated by reference herein.

Revolving Credit Facility

On the Effective Date, pursuant to the terms of the Plan, OpCo, as borrower, entered into a Credit Agreement with the Company and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantors, Bank of Montreal, as administrative agent, and the other lenders party thereto (the “RBL Credit Agreement”), providing for a revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility,” and together with the Term Loan Facility, the “Credit Facilities”) for an aggregate amount of $400.0 million. The initial borrowing base (which limits the aggregate amount of first lien debt under the Revolving Credit Facility and the Term Loan Facility) is $1.2 billion and there are no scheduled borrowing base redeterminations until October 1, 2017.

The Revolving Credit Facility has capacity for OpCo to increase the commitments subject to certain conditions, and has $50.0 million of the commitments available for the issuance of letters of credit. The Revolving Credit Facility bears interest either at a rate equal to (a) a customary London interbank offered rate plus an applicable margin that varies from 250 to 350 basis points or (b) the base rate plus an applicable margin that varies from 150 to 250 basis points. The Revolving Credit Facility loans mature on January 12, 2022.

The RBL Credit Agreement requires OpCo to maintain (i) an interest coverage ratio of 2.50 to 1.00; (ii) a current ratio of 1.00 to 1.00; (iii) a consolidated net leverage ratio of (A) 4.25 to 1.00 as of the last day of any fiscal quarter ending on or before December 31, 2017 and (B) 4.00 to 1.00, as of the last day of any fiscal quarter thereafter; and (iv) after the Company has obtained investment grade rating an asset coverage ratio of 1.50 to 1.00.

OpCo is required to pay a commitment fee on the average daily unused portion of the Revolving Credit Facility, which varies based upon a borrowing base utilization grid. OpCo is also required to pay customary letter of credit and fronting fees.

The RBL Credit Agreement also contains customary affirmative and negative covenants, including, among other things, as to compliance with laws (including environmental laws, ERISA and anti-corruption laws), delivery of quarterly and annual financial statements and oil and gas engineering reports, maintenance and operation of property (including oil and gas properties), restrictions on the incurrence of liens, indebtedness, asset dispositions, fundamental changes, restricted payments, hedging requirements and other customary covenants.

The RBL Credit Agreement contains customary events of default and remedies for credit facilities of this nature. If OpCo does not comply with the financial and other covenants in the RBL Credit Agreement, the lenders may, subject to customary cure rights, require immediate payment of all amounts outstanding under the RBL Credit Agreement and any outstanding unfunded commitments may be terminated.

This summary of the RBL Credit Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text of the RBL Credit Agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 10.2 to this Current Report and incorporated by reference herein.

Guarantee and Security of the Credit Facilities

The obligations under the Credit Facilities are guaranteed by the Company and the Company’s subsidiaries (other than OpCo), subject to customary exceptions (collectively, the “Grantors”). On the Effective Date, the Company and the Grantors entered into a Guaranty and Collateral Agreement in favor of Bank of Montreal, as administrative agent, for the benefit of the secured parties pursuant to which the obligations of the Grantors under the Credit Facilities are secured by the Grantors granting a security interest in all of the collateral described in the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement. The Credit Facilities are also secured on a pari passu basis pursuant to a customary Collateral Agency Agreement documenting the equal and ratable treatment of the obligations under the respective Credit Facilities.

 

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During any borrowing base period, the Revolving Credit Facility will also be secured by first priority, perfected liens and security interests (subject to permitted liens), including, with respect to its oil and gas properties, liens on 85% of the total value of proved oil and gas properties evaluated in reserve reports delivered to the lenders under the Revolving Credit Facility, as well as a negative pledge on substantially all non-mortgaged assets of the Company and other guarantors under the Revolving Credit Facility. During an investment grade period, the collateral securing the Revolving Credit Facility falls away.

This summary of the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text of the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, which is filed as Exhibit 10.3 to this Current Report and incorporated by reference herein.

Indenture

On the Effective Date, pursuant to the terms of the Plan, OpCo closed its previously announced issuance of $700.0 million of its 6.875% senior notes due 2022 (the “2022 Notes”) and $500.0 million of its 7.125% senior notes due 2025 (the “2025 Notes,” and together with the 2022 Notes, the “Notes”) and entered into an Indenture, dated April 12, 2017 (the “Indenture”), among OpCo, as issuer, the Company and its subsidiaries, as guarantors, and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee. The Notes are treated as a single class of securities under the Indenture. The 2022 Notes were sold at an issue price of 100% and the 2025 Notes were sold at an issue price of 98.507%, and resulted in net proceeds (after deducting purchasers’ discounts and commissions) to OpCo of $1.185 billion. The Notes are being offered and sold by OpCo pursuant to a Purchase Agreement, dated April 7, 2017, among OpCo, the guarantors party thereto and Barclays Capital Inc., as representative of the purchasers set forth on Schedule I thereto.

The Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) or any state securities laws, and unless so registered, the securities may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. The Notes may be resold to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act or to non-U.S. persons pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act.

The 2022 Notes will mature on April 15, 2022. The interest payment dates for the 2022 Notes are April 15 and October 15 of each year, commencing on October 15, 2017. The 2025 Notes will mature on April 15, 2025. The interest payment dates for the 2025 Notes are April 15 and October 15 of each year, commencing on October 15, 2017. Interest will be paid on the Notes from the issue date until maturity.

Prior to April 15, 2019, OpCo may, at any time or from time to time, redeem in the aggregate up to 35% of the aggregate principal amount of the 2022 Notes in an amount no greater than the net cash proceeds of certain equity offerings at a redemption price of 106.875% of the principal amount of the 2022 Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption, if at least 65% of the original principal amount of the 2022 Notes remains outstanding and the redemption occurs within 180 days of the closing of such equity offering. In addition, before April 15, 2019, OpCo may redeem all or a part of the 2022 Notes at a redemption price equal to the sum of (i) the principal amount thereof, plus (ii) a make-whole premium at the redemption date, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date. In addition, on or after April 15, 2019, OpCo may redeem all or a part of the 2022 Notes at redemption prices (expressed as percentages of principal amount) equal to 103.438% for the twelve-month period beginning on April 15, 2019, 101.719% for the twelve-month period beginning April 15, 2020, and 100.000% for the twelve-month period beginning April 15, 2021 and at any time thereafter, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the applicable redemption date on the 2022 Notes.

Prior to April 15, 2020, OpCo may, at any time or from time to time, redeem in the aggregate up to 35% of the aggregate principal amount of the 2025 Notes in an amount no greater than the net cash proceeds of certain equity offerings at a redemption price of 107.125% of the principal amount of the 2025 Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption, if at least 65% of the original principal amount of the 2025 Notes remains outstanding and the redemption occurs within 180 days of the closing of such equity offering. In addition, before April 15, 2020, OpCo may redeem all or a part of the 2025 Notes at a redemption price equal to the sum of (i) the principal amount thereof, plus (ii) a make-whole premium at the redemption date, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date. In addition, on or after April 15, 2019, OpCo may redeem all or a part of the 2025 Notes at redemption prices (expressed as percentages of principal amount) equal to 105.344% for the twelve-month

 

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period beginning on April 15, 2020, 103.563% for the twelve-month period beginning April 15, 2021, 101.781% for the twelve-month period beginning April 15, 2022, and 100.000% for the twelve-month period beginning April 15, 2023 and at any time thereafter, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the applicable redemption date on the 2025 Notes.

If OpCo experiences certain change of control triggering events set forth in the Indenture, each holder of the Notes may require OpCo to repurchase all or a portion of its Notes for cash at a price equal to 101% of the aggregate principal amount of such Notes, plus any accrued but unpaid interest to the date of repurchase.

The Indenture contains customary covenants that restrict the ability of OpCo and the guarantors and certain of its subsidiaries to: (i) sell assets and subsidiary equity; (ii) incur indebtedness; (iii) create or incur certain liens; (iv) enter into affiliate agreements; (v) enter into of agreements that restrict distribution from certain restricted subsidiaries and the consummation of mergers and consolidations; (vi) consolidate, merge or transfer all or substantially all of the assets of the Company or any Restricted Subsidiary (as defined in the Indenture); and (vii) create unrestricted subsidiaries. The covenants in the Indenture are subject to important exceptions and qualifications. Subject to conditions, the Indenture provides that the Company and its subsidiaries will no longer be subject to certain covenants when the Notes receive investment grade ratings from any two of S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Inc., and Fitch Ratings, Inc.

The Indenture contains customary events of default (each, an “Event of Default”).

Unless otherwise noted in the Indenture, upon a continuing Event of Default, the Trustee, by notice to the Company, or the holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the then outstanding Notes, by notice to the Company and the Trustee, may, declare the Notes immediately due and payable, except that an Event of Default resulting from entry into a bankruptcy, insolvency or reorganization with respect to the Company, any Significant Subsidiary (as defined in the Indenture) or group of Restricted Subsidiaries (as defined in the Indenture), that taken together would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, will automatically cause the Notes to become due and payable.

This summary of the Indenture does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text of the Indenture, which is filed as Exhibit 4.2 to this Current Report and incorporated by reference herein.

Registration Rights Agreement

Pursuant to the Plan, on the Effective Date, the Company entered into a registration rights agreement (the “Registration Rights Agreement”) with (i) the holders of the Company’s outstanding common shares and the HoldCo Notes (as defined below) receiving at least 10% or more of the new common shares of the Company (“New Equity”) issued under the Plan or the rights offering conducted in accordance with the Plan (the “Rights Offering”), or that cannot be sold under Rule 144 without volume or manner of sale restrictions and (ii) parties to the backstop commitment agreement between the Company and the parties set forth therein (the “Backstop Commitment Agreement”).

Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, among other things, the Company is required to file a shelf registration statement within 10 business days following the Effective Date that includes the Registrable Securities (as defined in the Registration Rights Agreement) whose inclusion has been timely requested, to the extent that the amount of such Registrable Securities does not exceed the amount as may be permitted to be included in such registration statement under the rules and regulations of the Commission and the applicable interpretations thereof by the Commission staff.

A description of the material provisions of the Registration Rights Agreement is contained in the Company’s registration statement on Form 8-A filed with the Commission on the Effective Date (“Form 8-A”), which description is incorporated by reference herein. The description of the Registration Rights Agreement is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Registration Rights Agreement, which is incorporated herein as Exhibit 10.4 to this Current Report, by reference to Form 8-A.

 

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Item 1.02. Termination of a Material Definitive Agreement.

Equity Interests

In accordance with the Plan, each of the Company’s equity interests outstanding prior to the Effective Date were cancelled and each such equity interest has no further force or effect after the Effective Date. Pursuant to the Plan, the holders of the Company’s common shares outstanding prior to the Effective Date (the “Existing Common Shares”) received (i) their proportionate distribution of New Equity and (ii) the right to participate in the Rights Offering. The holders of all other equity interests in the Company received no distribution under the Plan in respect thereof.

Debt Securities and Existing Credit Agreement

In accordance with the Plan, on the Effective Date, all outstanding obligations under the following notes issued by the Company (the “HoldCo Notes”) and the related registration rights were cancelled and the indentures governing such obligations were cancelled, except to the limited extent expressly set forth in the Plan:

 

    5.750% senior notes due December 2018, issued by the Company, pursuant to the Indenture, dated as of December 12, 2013, by and among the Company, as issuer, and Delaware Trust Company, in its capacity as successor trustee; and

 

    6.125% senior notes due October 2024, issued by the Company, pursuant to the Indenture, dated as of September 18, 2014, by and among the Company, as issuer, and Delaware Trust Company, in its capacity as successor trustee.

 

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In accordance with the Plan, the holders of the HoldCo Notes received (i) their proportionate distribution of New Equity and (ii) the right to participate in the Rights Offering.

In accordance with the Plan, on the Effective Date, all outstanding obligations under the following notes (the “OpCo Notes”) issued by OpCo were cancelled and the master note purchase agreement governing such obligations was cancelled, except to the limited extent expressly set forth in the Plan:

 

    7.31% senior notes due 2016, 4.98% senior notes due 2017, 5.92% senior notes due 2018, 7.77% senior notes due 2019, 5.50% senior notes due 2020, 4.51% senior notes due 2020, 5.60% senior notes due 2022, 4.66% senior notes due 2022, 5.85% senior notes due 2025 and 4.91% senior notes due 2025, issued by OpCo, pursuant to the Master Note Purchase Agreement, dated as of March 6, 2008 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified), by and among OpCo, as issuer, and the purchasers party thereto.

Pursuant to the Plan, the holders of claims under the OpCo Notes received payment in full, in cash of allowed claims.

Existing Credit Facility

Pursuant to the Plan, on the Effective Date, the credit agreement, dated as of October 6, 2011, among OpCo, as borrower, Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB, as successor administrative agent, and the lenders party thereto (the “Existing Credit Agreement”), was cancelled and the holders of claims under the Existing Credit Agreement received payment in full, in cash of allowed claims.

 

Section 2 Financial Information

 

Item 2.03. Creation of a Direct Financial Obligation or an Obligation under an Off-Balance Sheet Arrangement of a Registrant.

The description of the Revolving Credit Facility and the Term Loan Facility set forth in Item 1.01 of this Current Report is incorporated by reference herein.

 

Section 3 Securities and Trading Markets

 

Item 3.02. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities.

On the Effective Date, pursuant to the Plan:

 

    70,579,367 shares of New Equity were issued pro rata to holders of the HoldCo Notes with claims allowed under the Plan;

 

    80,022,410 shares of New Equity were issued pro rata to holders of Existing Common Shares;

 

    2,512,623 shares of New Equity were issued to commitment parties under the Backstop Commitment Agreement in respect of the commitment premium due thereunder;

 

    18,844,363 shares of New Equity were issued to commitment parties under the Backstop Commitment Agreement in connection with their backstop obligation thereunder (the “Backstop Shares”); and

 

    23,032,893 shares of New Equity were issued to participants in the Rights Offering.

With the exception of the Backstop Shares, New Equity was issued under the Plan pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act, under Section 1145 of the Bankruptcy Code. The Backstop Shares were issued under the exemption from registration requirements of the Securities Act provided by Section 4(a)(2) thereof.

As of the Effective Date, there were 194,991,656 shares of New Equity issued and outstanding.

 

Item 3.03. Material Modifications to Rights of Security Holders.

As provided in the Plan, all notes, equity, agreements, instruments, certificates and other documents evidencing any claim against or interest in the Debtors were cancelled on the Effective Date and the obligations of

 

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the Debtors thereunder or in any way related thereto were fully released. The securities to be cancelled on the Effective Date include all of the Existing Common Shares, other equity interests in the Company, the HoldCo Notes and the OpCo Notes. For further information, see the Explanatory Note and Items 1.02 and 5.03 of this Current Report, which are incorporated by reference herein.

 

Section 5 Corporate Governance and Management

 

Item 5.01. Changes in Control of Registrant.

As previously disclosed, on the Effective Date, all of the Existing Common Shares and the HoldCo Notes were cancelled, and the Company issued approximately 47% of New Equity to holders of the Existing Common Shares and approximately 53% of New Equity to holders of the HoldCo Notes pursuant to the Plan. For further information, see Items 1.02 and 3.02 of this Current Report, which are incorporated herein by reference.

Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

Board of Directors

As of the Effective Date, by operation of the Plan, the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) consists of seven members, comprised of five members of the pre-Effective Date board of directors and two new members selected in accordance with the Plan. The Board consists of one class of directors with terms expiring the later of two years or the date on which the successor of such director is elected.

Michael D. Watford was named our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer in 1999. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Watford served as Chief Executive Officer of Nuevo Energy Company from 1994 to 1998. Mr. Watford has enjoyed a full range of domestic and international industry experiences in the exploration and production, downstream refinery and chemicals businesses and managed product marketing, processing, and pipeline businesses while working over his 40-year career. Mr. Watford has held various management positions for a number of energy companies including Shell Oil, Superior Oil, Meridian Oil (Burlington Resources), Torch Energy, and Nuevo Energy. Mr. Watford attended the University of Florida where he earned his undergraduate degree in Finance in 1975. While working for Shell Oil, he attended night school at the University of New Orleans where he earned his MBA in 1978. Mr. Watford is on the board of Axip Energy Services. In addition, he is a member of the National Petroleum Council, an oil and natural gas advisory committee to the Secretary of Energy, and he serves as a voting member on the board of trustees for Northwest Assistance Ministries.

W. Charles Helton has been a director on the Board since August 1994. Dr. Helton is a medical doctor and has been the President, Chief Financial Officer and a director of Enterprise Exploration & Production Inc., a private oil and gas exploration and development company, for more than the past five years.

Stephen J. McDaniel has been a director on the Board since July 2006. Mr. McDaniel also previously served as a director of Midstates Petroleum Company (NYSE MKT: MPO), where he had previously been president and CEO. Mr. McDaniel’s previous experience included approximately ten years of oil and gas investment banking, the majority of which was with Merrill Lynch. He held the position of Managing Director at Merrill Lynch. He began his career with Conoco in 1983 and held various positions in Conoco’s engineering, operations, and business development organizations.

Roger A. Brown has been a director on the Board since October 2007. Prior to his retirement in 2007, Mr. Brown was Vice President-Strategic Initiatives for Smith International, Inc. from 2005 to 2007 and President of Smith Technologies, a division of Smith International, Inc., from 1998 to 2005. Before starting his thirty year career in oilfield services, Mr. Brown was a practicing attorney for eight years. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics, History and Political Science and a Juris Doctorate both from the University of Oklahoma. Mr. Brown currently serves on the board of directors of McDermott International (NYSE: MDR).

Michael J. Keeffe has been a director on the Board since July 2012. Prior to his retirement in 2011, Mr. Keeffe was a Senior Audit Partner with Deloitte & Touche LLP. He has 35 years of public accounting experience at

 

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Deloitte & Touche directing financial statement audits of public companies, principally in the oil field service and engineering and construction industries, most with significant international operations. He also served as a senior risk management and quality assurance partner in the firm’s consultation network. He is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Masters of Business Administration both from Tulane University. Mr. Keeffe currently serves on the board of directors of Gulf Island Fabrication, Inc. (NASDAQ: GIFI).

Neal P. Goldman has been a director on the Board since April 12, 2017. Mr. Goldman is currently the Managing Member of SAGE Capital Investments, LLC, a consulting firm specializing in independent board of director services, turnaround consulting, strategic planning, and special situation investments. Mr. Goldman was a Managing Director at Och Ziff Capital Management, L.P. from 2014 to 2016 and a Founding Partner of Brigade Capital Management, LLC from 2007 to 2012. Mr. Goldman has served on the board of directors of Midstates Petroleum Company, Inc. and Stone Energy Corporation since October 2016 and February 2017, respectively. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois.

Alan J. Mintz has been a director on the Board since April 12, 2017. He is a Managing Principal of Stone Lion. Mr. Mintz co-founded Stone Lion in August 2008 and launched the Stone Lion Funds in November 2008, as the Co-Director of Tudor’s Distressed Debt Group (2008-2010). Prior to joining Tudor in June 2008, Mr. Mintz was employed by Bear Stearns (1997-2008) where he served as a Senior Managing Director, a Global Co-Head of Distressed Debt Trading and Proprietary Investments and the Director of Distressed Research. Mr. Mintz also served as a member of the President’s Advisory Council of Bear Stearns (2006-2008) and as a board member of various Bear Stearns’ portfolio companies. Prior to his employment with Bear Stearns, Mr. Mintz worked at Policano & Manzo (1990-1997) as Restructuring Advisor for financially troubled companies. He also was employed by Meisel Tuteur Turkel Lewis & Co. (1989-1990) as Director of Taxation and by Arthur Andersen & Co. (1983-1989) as a Senior Manager. Mr. Mintz received a Bachelor of Arts from Boston University in 1983.

 

Item 5.03. Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws; Change in Fiscal Year.

On the Effective Date, pursuant to the Plan, the Company filed the Articles of Reorganization, which amended the Articles of Incorporation of the Company (the “Articles of Reorganization”), with the Registrar of Corporations under the Business Corporations Act (Yukon). Also on the Effective Date, in accordance with the Plan, the Company adopted the Amended and Restated Bylaw No. 1 (the “Bylaws”). Descriptions of the material provisions of the Articles of Reorganization and the Bylaws are contained in Form 8-A filed with the Commission on the Effective Date, which description is incorporated by reference herein.

 

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The descriptions of the Articles of Reorganization and the Bylaws are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full texts of the Articles of Reorganization and the Bylaws, which are incorporated herein as Exhibits 3.1 and 3.2, respectively, by reference to Form 8-A.

 

Section 7 Regulation FD

 

Item 7.01. Regulation FD Disclosure.

On April 12, 2017, the Company issued a press release announcing the consummation of the Plan and emergence from the Chapter 11 Cases on the Effective Date, as disclosed herein, a copy of which is furnished as Exhibit 99.2 hereto pursuant to Item 7.01 of Form 8-K.

In accordance with General Instruction B.2 of Form 8-K, the information furnished pursuant to this Item 7.01, including Exhibit 99.2 furnished herewith, will not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), nor shall such be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.

 

Section 8 Other Events

 

Item 8.01. Other Events.

On April 10, 2017, the Company reached an agreement to settle the Sempra Rockies Marketing, LLC’s (“Sempra”) breach of contract claim for $57.0 million payable, in full, on the earlier of June 30, 2017 or 45 days after the Effective Date. The stipulation of settlement with Sempra and request that the Bankruptcy Court sign a confirmatory order was filed with the Bankruptcy Court on April 11, 2017.

 

Section 9 Financial Statements and Exhibits

 

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description

  2.1    Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (incorporated by reference to Exhibit A of the Order Confirming Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization, filed as Exhibit 99.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on March 16, 2017).
  3.1    Articles of Reorganization of Ultra Petroleum Corp (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
  3.2    Amended and Restated Bylaw No. 1 of Ultra Petroleum Corp. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
  4.1*    Specimen Common Share Certificate.
  4.2*    Indenture dated April 12, 2017 among Ultra Resources, Inc., Ultra Petroleum Corp., the subsidiary guarantors party thereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee.
10.1*    Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Ultra Resources, Inc., as borrower, Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto.
10.2*    Credit Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Ultra Resources, Inc., as borrower, Bank of Montreal, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto.
10.3*    Guaranty and Collateral Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and the other parties signatory there to, as grantors, and Bank of Montreal, as collateral agent.
10.4    Registration Rights Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017 by and among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and the other parties signatory thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).

 

10


10.5    Ultra Petroleum Corp. 2017 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-8 filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
10.6    Form of Restricted Stock Unit Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registration Statement on Form S-8 filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
99.1    Order Confirming Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on March 16, 2017).
99.2*    News Release dated April 12, 2017.

 

* Filed herewith.

 

11


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

 

Dated:    April 18, 2017   ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP
  By:  

/s/ Garrett B. Smith

    Name:   Garrett B. Smith
    Title:   Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

 

12


Exhibit Index

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description

  2.1    Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (incorporated by reference to Exhibit A of the Order Confirming Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization, filed as Exhibit 99.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on March 16, 2017).
  3.1    Articles of Reorganization of Ultra Petroleum Corp (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
  3.2    Amended and Restated Bylaw No. 1 of Ultra Petroleum Corp. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
  4.1*    Specimen Common Share Certificate.
  4.2*    Indenture dated April 12, 2017 among Ultra Resources, Inc., Ultra Petroleum Corp., the subsidiary guarantors party thereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee.
10.1*    Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Ultra Resources, Inc., as borrower, Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto.
10.2*    Credit Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Ultra Resources, Inc., as borrower, Bank of Montreal, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto.
10.3*    Guaranty and Collateral Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017, among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and the other parties signatory there to, as grantors, and Bank of Montreal, as collateral agent.
10.4    Registration Rights Agreement dated as of April 12, 2017 by and among Ultra Petroleum Corp. and the other parties signatory thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registration Statement on Form 8-A filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
10.5    Ultra Petroleum Corp. 2017 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registration Statement on Form S-8 filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
10.6    Form of Restricted Stock Unit Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registration Statement on Form S-8 filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on April 12, 2017).
99.1    Order Confirming Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 99.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed by Ultra Petroleum Corp. on March 16, 2017).
99.2*    News Release dated April 12, 2017.

 

* Filed herewith.

 

13

Exhibit 4.1

 

 

LOGO

INCORPORATED UNDER THE LAWS OF YUKON TERRITORY SEE REVERSE FOR CERTAIN DEFINITIONS transferable on the books of the Company only upon surrender of this certificate properly endorsed. This certificate is not valid unless countersigned by the Transfer Agent and Registrar of the Company. IN WITNESS WHEREOF the Company has caused this certificate to be signed on its behalf by the facsimile signatures of its duly authorized officers. C0000000230 | M **SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800 000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM *CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIME N90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULT RA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zer o****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420 800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROL EUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPEC IMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000 ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP. zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****SPECIMEN90391 SPECIMEN **090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM *CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULT RA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420 800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero* ***090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEU M*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000UL TRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****09039142 0800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero ****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLE UM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000ULTRA*PETROLEUM*CORP.zero****090391420800000000U * * * 0 * * * Mar 23, 2017 00000000 Number Shares FULLY PAID AND NON-ASSESSABLE COMMON SHARES WITHOUT PAR VALUE IN THE CAPITAL OF IS THE REGISTERED HOLDER OF THIS CERTIFIES THAT Dated: The shares represented by this certificate are transferable at the office of Computershare Investor Services Inc. in Vancouver, BC. ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP. COUNTERSIGNED AND REGISTERED COMPUTERSHARE INVESTOR SERVICES INC. (VANCOUVER) TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR By Authorized Officer Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary * * * * 0 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 0 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 0 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 0 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 0 * * * * * CUSIP 903914208 ISIN CA9039142083 ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP. CSAE_WIP_UPQQ_C03.mtl.pulls/000001/000001/i 104598


LOGO

The following abbreviations shall be construed as though the words set forth below opposite each abbreviation were written out in full where such abbreviation appears: TEN COM    - as tenants in common (Name) CUST (Name) UNIF- (Name) as Custodian for (Name) under the TEN ENT- as tenants by the entiretiesGIFT MIN ACT (State)(State) Uniform Gifts to Minors Act JT TEN- as joint tenants with rights of survivorship and not as tenants in common Additional abbreviations may also be used though not in the above list. For value received the undersigned hereby sells, assigns and transfers unto Insert name and address of transferee shares represented by this certificate and does hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint the attorney of the undersigned to transfer the said shares on the books of the Company with full power of substitution in the premises. DATED: Signature of Shareholder Signature of Guarantor Signature Guarantee: The signature on this assignment must correspond with the name as written upon the face of the certificate(s), in every particular, without alteration or enlargement, or any change whatsoever and must be guaranteed by a major Canadian Schedule I chartered bank or a member of an acceptable Medallion Signature Guarantee Program (STAMP, SEMP, MSP). The Guarantor must affix a stamp bearing the actual words “Signature Guaranteed”. In the USA, signature guarantees must be done by members of a “Medallion Signature Guarantee Program” only. Signature guarantees are not accepted from Treasury Branches, Credit Unions or Caisses Populaires unless they are members of the Stamp Medallion Program.
SECURITY INSTRUCTIONS—INSTRUCTIONS DE SÉCURITÉ
THIS IS WATERMARKED PAPER, DO NOT ACCEPT WlTHOUT NOTING
WATERMARK HOLD TO LIGHT TO VERIFY WATERMARK
PAPIER FILIGRANÉ, NE PAS ACCEPTER SANS VÉRIFIER LA PRÉSENCE
DU FILIGRANE. POUR CE FAIRE, PLACER Á LA LUMIÉRE.
EN_COMP_V2_01

Exhibit 4.2

EXECUTION VERSION

 

 

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.

THE SUBSIDIARY GUARANTORS PARTY HERETO

AND

WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,

AS TRUSTEE

 

 

INDENTURE

Dated as of April 12, 2017

 

 

6.875% Senior Notes due 2022

7.125% Senior Notes due 2025

 

 

 


Table of Contents

 

            Page  

Article I DEFINITIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

     5  

SECTION 1.1

    

Definitions

     5  

SECTION 1.2

    

Other Definitions

     46  

SECTION 1.3

    

Incorporation by Reference of Trust Indenture Act

     47  

SECTION 1.4

    

Rules of Construction

     47  

Article II THE SECURITIES

     48  

SECTION 2.1

    

Form, Dating and Terms

     48  

SECTION 2.2

    

Execution and Authentication

     56  

SECTION 2.3

    

Registrar and Paying Agent

     57  

SECTION 2.4

    

Paying Agent to Hold Money in Trust

     57  

SECTION 2.5

    

Securityholder Lists

     58  

SECTION 2.6

    

Transfer and Exchange

     58  

SECTION 2.7

    

[Reserved]

     62  

SECTION 2.8

    

Form of Certificate to be Delivered in Connection with Transfers to Institutional Accredited Investors

     62  

SECTION 2.9

    

Form of Certificate to be Delivered in Connection with Transfers Pursuant to Regulation S

     64  

SECTION 2.10

    

Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities

     65  

SECTION 2.11

    

Outstanding Securities

     66  

SECTION 2.12

    

Temporary Securities

     66  

SECTION 2.13

    

Cancellation

     67  

SECTION 2.14

    

Payment of Interest; Defaulted Interest

     67  

SECTION 2.15

    

Computation of Interest

     68  

SECTION 2.16

    

CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN Numbers

     68  

SECTION 2.17

    

Trustee, Paying Agent, Registrar Not Responsible for Depositary

     69  

SECTION 2.18

    

Payment of Additional Amounts

     69  

Article III COVENANTS

     72  

SECTION 3.1

    

Payment of Securities

     72  

SECTION 3.2

    

Limitation on Indebtedness and Preferred Stock

     72  

SECTION 3.3

    

Limitation on Restricted Payments

     77  

SECTION 3.4

    

Limitation on Restrictions on Distributions from Restricted Subsidiaries

     83  

SECTION 3.5

    

Limitation on Sales of Assets and Subsidiary Stock

     86  

SECTION 3.6

    

Limitation on Liens

     90  

SECTION 3.7

    

Stay, Extension and Usury Laws

     90  

SECTION 3.8

    

Limitation on Affiliate Transactions

     90  

SECTION 3.9

    

Purchase of Securities Upon a Change of Control Triggering Event

     93  

SECTION 3.10

    

Provision of Financial Information

     96  

SECTION 3.11

    

Future Subsidiary Guarantors

     97  

SECTION 3.12

    

Maintenance of Office or Agency

     97  

SECTION 3.13

    

Corporate Existence

     98  

SECTION 3.14

    

Payment of Taxes

     98  

SECTION 3.15

    

Compliance Certificate

     98  

SECTION 3.16

    

Further Instruments and Acts

     98  

SECTION 3.17

    

Statement by Officers as to Default

     99  

SECTION 3.18

    

Covenant Termination

     99  

Article IV SUCCESSOR COMPANY

     99  

SECTION 4.1

    

Merger and Consolidation

     99  

Article V REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES

     101  

SECTION 5.1

    

Redemption

     101  

SECTION 5.2

    

Applicability of Article

     101  

SECTION 5.3

    

Election to Redeem; Notice to Trustee

     102  

SECTION 5.4

    

Selection by Trustee of Securities to Be Redeemed

     102  

SECTION 5.5

    

Notice of Redemption

     102  

SECTION 5.6

    

Deposit of Redemption Price

     104  

 

2


SECTION 5.7

    

Securities Payable on Redemption Date

     104  

SECTION 5.8

    

Securities Redeemed in Part

     104  

SECTION 5.9

    

Tax Redemption

     105  

Article VI DEFAULTS AND REMEDIES

     105  

SECTION 6.1

    

Events of Default

     105  

SECTION 6.2

    

Acceleration

     108  

SECTION 6.3

    

Other Remedies

     109  

SECTION 6.4

    

Waiver of Past Defaults

     109  

SECTION 6.5

    

Control by Majority

     109  

SECTION 6.6

    

Limitation on Suits

     110  

SECTION 6.7

    

Rights of Holders to Receive Payment

     110  

SECTION 6.8

    

Collection Suit by Trustee

     110  

SECTION 6.9

    

Trustee May File Proofs of Claim

     111  

SECTION 6.10

    

Priorities

     111  

SECTION 6.11

    

Undertaking for Costs

     111  

Article VII TRUSTEE

     112  

SECTION 7.1

    

Duties of Trustee

     112  

SECTION 7.2

    

Rights of Trustee

     113  

SECTION 7.3

    

Individual Rights of Trustee

     114  

SECTION 7.4

    

Trustee’s Disclaimer

     115  

SECTION 7.5

    

Notice of Defaults

     115  

SECTION 7.6

    

Reports by Trustee to Holders

     115  

SECTION 7.7

    

Compensation and Indemnity

     115  

SECTION 7.8

    

Replacement of Trustee

     116  

SECTION 7.9

    

Successor Trustee by Merger

     117  

SECTION 7.10

    

Eligibility; Disqualification

     117  

SECTION 7.11

    

Preferential Collection of Claims Against the Issuer

     118  

SECTION 7.12

    

Trustee’s Application for Instruction from the Issuer

     118  

Article VIII DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; DEFEASANCE

     118  

SECTION 8.1

    

Discharge of Liability on Securities; Defeasance

     118  

SECTION 8.2

    

Conditions to Defeasance

     120  

SECTION 8.3

    

Application of Trust Money

     121  

SECTION 8.4

    

Repayment to the Issuer

     121  

SECTION 8.5

    

Indemnity for U.S. Government Obligations

     122  

SECTION 8.6

    

Reinstatement

     122  

Article IX AMENDMENTS

     122  

SECTION 9.1

    

Without Consent of Holders

     122  

SECTION 9.2

    

With Consent of Holders

     123  

SECTION 9.3

    

[Reserved]

     125  

SECTION 9.4

    

Revocation and Effect of Consents and Waivers

     125  

SECTION 9.5

    

Notation on or Exchange of Securities

     125  

SECTION 9.6

    

Trustee to Sign Amendments

     125  

 

3


Article X GUARANTEE

     126  

SECTION 10.1

    

Guarantee

     126  

SECTION 10.2

    

Limitation on Liability; Termination, Release and Discharge

     127  

SECTION 10.3

    

Right of Contribution

     128  

SECTION 10.4

    

No Subrogation

     129  

Article XI [RESERVED]

     129  

Article XII MISCELLANEOUS

     129  

SECTION 12.1

    

[Reserved]

     129  

SECTION 12.2

    

Notices

     129  

SECTION 12.3

    

Communication by Holders with other Holders

     130  

SECTION 12.4

    

Certificate and Opinion as to Conditions Precedent

     130  

SECTION 12.5

    

Statements Required in Certificate or Opinion

     131  

SECTION 12.6

    

When Securities Disregarded

     131  

SECTION 12.7

    

Rules by Trustee, Paying Agent and Registrar

     131  

SECTION 12.8

    

Legal Holidays

     131  

SECTION 12.9

    

GOVERNING LAW

     132  

SECTION 12.10

    

No Personal Liability of Directors, Officers, Employees and Stockholders

     132  

SECTION 12.11

    

Successors

     132  

SECTION 12.12

    

Multiple Originals

     132  

SECTION 12.13

    

Force Majeure

     132  

SECTION 12.14

    

Table of Contents; Headings

     132  

SECTION 12.15

    

WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL

     132  

SECTION 12.16

    

Consent to Jurisdiction

     132  

SECTION 12.17

    

Waiver of Immunity

     133  

SECTION 12.18

    

Judgment Currency

     133  

SECTION 12.19

    

Severability

     133  

EXHIBIT A-1

    

Form of the 2022 Notes

 

EXHIBIT A-2

    

Form of the 2025 Notes

 

EXHIBIT B

    

Form of Indenture Supplement to Add Subsidiary Guarantors

 

 

4


This INDENTURE dated as of April 12, 2017, is among ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Issuer ”), ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP., a Yukon, Canada corporation (the “ Parent Guarantor ”), the Subsidiary Guarantors (as defined herein, together with the Parent Guarantor, the “ Guarantors ”) party hereto and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee (the “ Trustee ”).

Each party agrees as follows for the benefit of the other parties and for the equal and ratable benefit of the Holders of (i) the Issuer’s 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes (each as defined below), issued on the date hereof and the guarantees thereof by the Guarantors (the “ Initial Securities ”) and (ii) if and when issued, an unlimited principal amount of additional 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes in a non-registered offering of the Issuer, and the guarantees thereof by the Guarantors that may be offered from time to time subsequent to the Issue Date, in each case subject to Section  2.1 (the “ Additional Securities ” and together with the Initial Securities, the “ Securities ”) as provided in Section 2.1(a) :

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

SECTION 1.1     Definitions .

2022 Notes ” means any of the 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022, as amended or supplemented from time to time, that are issued under this Indenture.

2025 Notes ” means any of the 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025, as amended or supplemented from time to time, that are issued under this Indenture.

Acquired Indebtedness ” means Indebtedness (i) of a Person or any of its Subsidiaries existing at the time such Person becomes or is merged with and into a Restricted Subsidiary, (ii) assumed in connection with the acquisition of assets from such Person, in each case whether or not Incurred by such Person in connection with, or in anticipation or contemplation of, such Person becoming a Restricted Subsidiary or such acquisition or (iii) secured by a Lien encumbering any asset acquired by such specified Person. Acquired Indebtedness shall be deemed to have been Incurred, with respect to clause (i) of the preceding sentence, on the date such Person becomes or is merged with and into a Restricted Subsidiary and, with respect to clause (ii) or (iii) of the preceding sentence, on the date of consummation of such acquisition of assets.

Additional Assets ” means:

(1)    any properties or assets to be used by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary in the Oil and Gas Business;

(2)    capital expenditures by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary in the Oil and Gas Business;

 

5


(3)    the Capital Stock of a Person that becomes a Restricted Subsidiary as a result of the acquisition of such Capital Stock by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary; or

(4)    Capital Stock constituting a minority interest in any Person that at such time is a Restricted Subsidiary;

provided , however , that, in the case of clauses (3) and (4), such Restricted Subsidiary is primarily engaged in the Oil and Gas Business.

Additional Securities ” has the meaning ascribed to it in the second introductory paragraph of this Indenture.

Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets ” of the Parent Guarantor means (without duplication), as of the date of determination, the remainder of:

(a)    the sum of:

(i)    discounted future net revenues from proved oil and gas reserves of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but (x) utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Parent Guarantor were year-end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative) and (y) including Adjusted PUDs) before any state or federal income taxes, as estimated in a reserve report prepared as of the end of the Parent Guarantor’s most recently completed fiscal year for which audited financial statements are available, as increased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(A)    estimated proved oil and gas reserves acquired since such year end, which reserves were not reflected in such year-end reserve report, and

(B)    estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to extensions, discoveries and other additions and upward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to exploration, development or exploitation, production or other activities, which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions (including the impact to proved reserves and future net revenues from estimated development costs incurred and the accretion of discount since such year-end), and decreased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(C)    estimated proved oil and gas reserves produced or disposed of since such year end to the extent such estimated discounted future net revenues were included in such year-end reserve report or such estimated reserves under clauses (A) or (B) above, and

 

6


(D)    estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to downward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to changes in geological conditions or other factors which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions,

in the case of clauses (A) through (D) calculated on a pre-tax basis substantially in accordance with SEC guidelines (but (x) utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Parent Guarantor were year–end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative) and (y) including Adjusted PUDs); provided , however , that in the case of each of the determinations made pursuant to clauses (A) through (D), such increases and decreases shall be as estimated by the Parent Guarantor’s petroleum engineers;

(ii)    the capitalized costs that are attributable to oil and gas properties of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries to which no proved oil and gas reserves are attributable, based on the Parent Guarantor’s books and records as of a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest available annual or quarterly financial statements;

(iii)    the Net Working Capital of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries on a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements; and

(iv)    the greater of

(A)    the net book value of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements, and

(B)    the appraised value, as estimated by independent appraisers, of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest audited financial statements; provided , that, if no such appraisal has been performed, the Parent Guarantor shall not be required to obtain such an appraisal and only clause (iv)(A) of this definition shall apply;

minus

(b)    the sum of:

(i)    minority interests;

(ii)    any net gas balancing liabilities of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries reflected in the Parent Guarantor’s latest annual or quarterly balance sheet (to the extent not deducted in calculating Net Working Capital of the Parent Guarantor in accordance with clause (a)(iii) above of this definition);

 

7


(iii)    to the extent included in (a)(i) above, the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but (x) utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Parent Guarantor were year-end and (y) including Adjusted PUDs), attributable to reserves which are required to be delivered to third parties to fully satisfy the obligations of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to Volumetric Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto); and

(iv)    the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines, attributable to reserves subject to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments which, based on the estimates of production and price assumptions included in determining the discounted future net revenues specified in (a)(i) above, would be necessary to fully satisfy the payment obligations of the Parent Guarantor and its Subsidiaries with respect to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto).

If the Parent Guarantor changes its method of accounting from the full cost method of accounting to the successful efforts or a similar method, Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets will continue to be calculated as if the Parent Guarantor were still using the full cost method of accounting.

Adjusted PUDs ” means, to the extent not included in the calculation of Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets, oil and gas reserves that in the opinion of the Parent Guarantor’s independent petroleum engineers, meet and satisfy all of the technical requirements related to geoscience and engineering data for such reserves to be classified under Regulation S-X as “undeveloped oil and gas reserves” other than the lack of reasonable certainty by the Parent Guarantor as to its financial ability to execute a future development plan and/or its ability to drill a future location within five years as a result of a “going concern” audit qualification in the Parent Guarantor’s audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.

Affiliate ” of any specified Person means any other Person, directly or indirectly, controlling or controlled by or under direct or indirect common control with such specified Person. For the purposes of this definition, “control” when used with respect to any Person means the power to direct the management and policies of such Person, directly or indirectly, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract or otherwise; and the terms “controlling” and “controlled” have meanings correlative to the foregoing

Applicable Premium ” means, with respect to a Security on any Redemption Date, the greater of (i) 1.0% of the principal amount of such Security or (ii) the excess, if any, of (A) the present value at such time of (1) the redemption price of such Security on April 15, 2019 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and April 15, 2020 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) plus (2) all required interest payments (excluding accrued and unpaid interest to such Redemption Date) due on such Security through April 15, 2019 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) or April 15, 2020 (in the case of the 2025 Notes), computed using a discount rate equal to the Treasury Rate with respect to such Redemption Date plus 50 basis points discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis

 

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(assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day calendar months), over (B) the principal amount of such Security. The Trustee shall have no duty to calculate or verify the calculation of the Applicable Premium.

Approved Plan ” means the Debtors’ Second Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan of Reorganization.

Asset Disposition ” means any direct or indirect sale, lease (including by means of Production Payments and Reserve Sales and a Sale/Leaseback Transaction but excluding an operating lease entered into in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business), transfer, issuance or other disposition, or a series of related sales, leases, transfers, issuances or dispositions that are part of a common plan, of (A) any Capital Stock of a Restricted Subsidiary (other than Preferred Stock of Restricted Subsidiaries issued in compliance with Section  3.2 and directors’ qualifying shares or shares required by applicable law to be held by a Person other than the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary), (B) all or substantially all the assets of any division or line of business of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (excluding any division or line of business the assets of which are owned by an Unrestricted Subsidiary) or (C) any other assets of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary outside of the ordinary course of business of the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary (each referred to for the purposes of this definition as a “ disposition ”), in each case by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries, including any disposition by means of a merger, consolidation or similar transaction.

Notwithstanding the preceding, the following items shall not be deemed to be Asset Dispositions:

(1)    a disposition by a Restricted Subsidiary to the Parent Guarantor or by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary to a Restricted Subsidiary;

(2)    a disposition of cash, Cash Equivalents or other financial assets in the ordinary course of business;

(3)    a disposition of Hydrocarbons or mineral products inventory in the ordinary course of business;

(4)    a disposition of damaged, unserviceable, obsolete or worn out equipment or equipment that is no longer necessary for the proper conduct of the business of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries and that is disposed of in each case in the ordinary course of business;

(5)    transactions in accordance with Section  4.1 ;

(6)    an issuance of Capital Stock by a Restricted Subsidiary to the Parent Guarantor or to a Restricted Subsidiary;

(7)    the making of a Permitted Investment or a Restricted Payment (or a disposition that would constitute a Restricted Payment but for the exclusions from the definition thereof) permitted by Section  3.3 ;

 

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(8)    an Asset Swap;

(9)    dispositions of assets in a single transaction or a series of related transactions with a Fair Market Value of less than $10.0 million;

(10)    Permitted Liens;

(11)    dispositions of receivables in connection with the compromise, settlement or collection thereof in the ordinary course of business or in bankruptcy or similar proceedings and exclusive of factoring or similar arrangements;

(12)    the licensing or sublicensing of intellectual property (including, without limitation, the licensing of seismic data) or other general intangibles and licenses, leases or subleases of other property in the ordinary course of business which do not materially interfere with the business of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(13)    foreclosure on assets;

(14)    any Production Payments and Reserve Sales; provided that any such Production Payments and Reserve Sales, other than incentive compensation programs on terms that are reasonably customary in the Oil and Gas Business for geologists, geophysicists and other providers of technical services to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, shall have been created, Incurred, issued, assumed or guaranteed in connection with the financing of, and within 60 days after the acquisition of, the property that is subject thereto;

(15)    surrender or waiver of contract rights, oil and gas leases, or the settlement, release or surrender of contract, tort or other claims of any kind;

(16)    the abandonment, farmout, lease or sublease of developed or undeveloped oil and gas properties in the ordinary course of business; and

(17)    a disposition (whether or not in the ordinary course of business) of any oil and gas property or interest therein to which no proved reserves are attributable at the time of such disposition.

Asset Swap ” means any substantially contemporaneous (and in any event occurring within 180 days of each other) purchase and sale or exchange of any oil or natural gas properties or assets or interests therein between the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries and another Person; provided , that any cash received must be applied in accordance with Section  3.5 as if the Asset Swap were an Asset Disposition.

Average Life ” means, as of the date of determination, with respect to any Indebtedness or Preferred Stock, the quotient obtained by dividing (1) the sum of the products of the numbers of years from the date of determination to the dates of each successive scheduled principal payment of such Indebtedness or redemption or similar payment with respect to such Preferred Stock multiplied by the amount of such payment by (2) the sum of all such payments.

 

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Bankruptcy Law ” means Title 11 of the United States Code or similar federal or state law for the relief of debtors.

Beneficial Owner ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Rule 13d-3 and Rule 13d-5 under the Exchange Act, except that in calculating the beneficial ownership of any particular “person” (as that term is used in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act), such “person” will be deemed to have beneficial ownership of all securities that such “person” has the right to acquire by conversion or exercise of other securities, whether such right is currently exercisable or is exercisable only after the passage of time. The terms “ Beneficially Owns ” and “ Beneficially Owned ” have a corresponding meaning. For purposes of this definition, a Person shall not be deemed to Beneficially Own securities that are the subject of a stock purchase agreement, merger agreement or similar agreement until consummation of the transactions or, as applicable, series of related transactions contemplated thereby.

Board of Directors ” means, as to any Person that is a corporation, the board of directors of such Person or any duly authorized committee thereof or as to any Person that is not a corporation, the board of managers or such other individual or group serving a similar function.

Board Resolution ” means a copy of a resolution certified by the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of a Person to have been duly adopted by the Board of Directors of such Person and to be in full force and effect on the date of such certification.

Borrowing Base ” means the maximum amount in United States dollars determined or re-determined by the lenders under the Revolving Credit Facility as the aggregate lending value in the aggregate under the Revolving Credit Facility and the Term Loan Credit Agreement to be ascribed to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Issuer and the Guarantors against which such lenders are prepared to provide loans or other Indebtedness to the Issuer and the Guarantors under the Revolving Credit Facility, using their customary practices and standards for determining reserve based loans and which are generally applied by commercial lenders to borrowers in the Oil and Gas Business, as determined semi-annually during each year and/or on such other occasions as may be provided for by the Revolving Credit Facility, and which is based upon, inter alia, the review by such lenders of the Hydrocarbon reserves, royalty interests and assets and liabilities of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries.

Business Day ” means each day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions in New York, New York or a place of payment are authorized or required by law to close.

Capital Stock ” of any Person means any and all shares, units, interests, rights to purchase, warrants, options, participations or other equivalents of or interests in (however designated) equity of such Person, including any Preferred Stock, but excluding any debt securities convertible into, or exchangeable for, such equity.

Capitalized Lease Obligations ” means an obligation that is required to be classified and accounted for as a capitalized lease for financial reporting purposes in accordance with GAAP, and the amount of Indebtedness represented by such obligation will be the capitalized amount of such obligation at the time any determination thereof is to be made as determined in accordance

 

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with GAAP, and the Stated Maturity thereof will be the date of the last payment of rent or any other amount due under such lease prior to the first date such lease may be terminated without penalty. Notwithstanding the preceding, (1) obligations under the LGS Lease shall not constitute Capitalized Lease Obligations and (2) any lease (whether entered into before or after the Issue Date) that would have been classified as an operating lease pursuant to GAAP as in effect on the Issue Date will be deemed not to represent a Capitalized Lease Obligation.

Cash Equivalents ” means:

(1)    securities issued or directly and fully guaranteed or insured by the United States Government or any agency or instrumentality of the United States ( provided that the full faith and credit of the United States is pledged in support thereof), having maturities of not more than one year from the date of acquisition;

(2)    marketable general obligations issued by any state of the United States of America or any political subdivision of any such state or any public instrumentality thereof maturing within one year from the date of acquisition and, at the time of acquisition, having a credit rating of “A” (or the equivalent thereof) or better from any of S&P, Moody’s or Fitch;

(3)    certificates of deposit, time deposits, eurodollar time deposits, overnight bank deposits or bankers’ acceptances having maturities of not more than one year from the date of acquisition thereof issued by any commercial bank the short-term deposit of which is rated at the time of acquisition thereof at least “A-2” or the equivalent thereof by S&P, “P-2” or the equivalent thereof by Moody’s or “F-2” or the equivalent thereof by Fitch, and having combined capital and surplus in excess of $100.0 million;

(4)    repurchase obligations with a term of not more than seven days for underlying securities of the types described in clauses (1), (2) and (3) entered into with any bank meeting the qualifications specified in clause (3) above;

(5)    commercial paper rated at the time of acquisition thereof at least “A-2” or the equivalent thereof by S&P, “P-2” or the equivalent thereof by Moody’s or “F-2” or the equivalent thereof by Fitch, or carrying an equivalent rating by a nationally recognized rating agency, if each of the three named Rating Agencies cease publishing ratings of investments, and in any case maturing within one year after the date of acquisition thereof; and

(6)    interests in any investment company or money market fund which invests 95% or more of its assets in instruments of the type specified in clauses (1) through (5) above.

Cash Management Obligations ” means, with respect to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary, any obligations of such Person to any lender in respect of treasury management arrangements, depositary or other cash management services, including any treasury management line of credit.

 

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Change of Control Triggering Event ” means, with respect to a series of the Securities:

(1)    (A) any “person” or “group” of related persons (as such terms are used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act) is or becomes the Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of more than 50% of the total voting power of the Voting Stock of the Parent Guarantor (or its successor by merger, consolidation or purchase of all or substantially all of its assets) (for the purposes of this clause (1), such person or group shall be deemed to Beneficially Own any Voting Stock of the Parent Guarantor held by a parent entity, if such person or group Beneficially Owns, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the total voting power of the Voting Stock of such parent entity) and (B) a Rating Decline with respect to such series of the Securities occurs within 90 days after the earlier of (x) the occurrence of the event set forth in clause (A) and (y) public notice of the intention to effect the event set forth in clause (A) (which 90-day period shall be extended so long as the rating of the Securities of such series is under publicly announced consideration for possible downgrade by S&P or Moody’s (or any other Rating Agency substituted therefor));

(2)    (A) the sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition (other than by way of merger or consolidation), in one or a series of related transactions, of all or substantially all of the assets of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries taken as a whole to any “person” (as such term is used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act) and (B) a Rating Decline with respect to such series of the Securities occurs within 90 days after the earlier of (x) the occurrence of the event set forth in clause (A) and (y) public notice of the intention to effect the event set forth in clause (A) (which 90-day period shall be extended so long as the rating of the Securities of such series is under publicly announced consideration for possible downgrade by S&P or Moody’s (or any other Rating Agency substituted therefor));

(3)    the adoption by the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor of a plan or proposal for the liquidation or dissolution of the Parent Guarantor; or

(4)    the Parent Guarantor shall cease to beneficially own at least 80% of the Voting Stock of the Issuer.

Notwithstanding the preceding, a conversion of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries from a limited liability company, corporation, limited partnership or other form of entity to a limited liability company, corporation, limited partnership or other form of entity or an exchange of all of the outstanding Capital Stock in one form of entity for Capital Stock for another form of entity shall not constitute a Change of Control Triggering Event, so long as following such conversion or exchange the “persons” (as that term is used in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act) who Beneficially Owned the Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor immediately prior to such transactions continue to Beneficially Own in the aggregate more than 50% of the Voting Stock of such entity, or continue to Beneficially Own sufficient Equity Interests in such entity to elect a majority of its directors, managers, trustees or other persons serving in a similar capacity for such entity, and, in either case no “person” Beneficially Owns more than 50% of the Voting Stock of such entity.

 

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Code ” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

Commodity Agreements ” means, in respect of any Person, any forward contract, commodity swap agreement, commodity option agreement or other similar agreement or arrangement in respect of Hydrocarbons used, produced, processed or sold by such Person that are customary in the Oil and Gas Business and designed to protect such Person against fluctuation in Hydrocarbon prices.

Common Stock ” means, with respect to any Person, any and all shares, interests or other participations in, and other equivalents (however designated and whether voting or nonvoting) of such Person’s common stock whether or not outstanding on the Issue Date, and includes, without limitation, all series and classes of such common stock.

Consolidated Coverage Ratio ” means as of any date of determination, the ratio of (x) the aggregate amount of Consolidated EBITDAX of the Parent Guarantor for the period of the most recent four consecutive fiscal quarters ending prior to the date of such determination for which internal financial statements are available to (y) Consolidated Interest Expense for such four fiscal quarters, provided , however , that:

(1)    if the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary:

(a)    has Incurred any Indebtedness since the beginning of such period that remains outstanding on such date of determination or if the transaction giving rise to the need to calculate the Consolidated Coverage Ratio is an Incurrence of Indebtedness, Consolidated EBITDAX and Consolidated Interest Expense for such period will be calculated after giving effect on a pro forma basis to such Indebtedness and the use of proceeds thereof as if such Indebtedness had been Incurred on the first day of such period and such proceeds had been applied as of such date (except that in making such computation, the amount of Indebtedness under any revolving Credit Facility outstanding on the date of such calculation will be deemed to be (i) the average daily balance of such Indebtedness during such four fiscal quarters or such shorter period for which such facility was outstanding or (ii) if such revolving Credit Facility was created after the end of such four fiscal quarters, the average daily balance of such Indebtedness during the period from the date of creation of such revolving Credit Facility to the date of such calculation, in each case, provided that such average daily balance shall take into account any repayment of Indebtedness under such revolving Credit Facility as provided in clause (b)); or

(b)    has repaid, repurchased, defeased or otherwise discharged any Indebtedness since the beginning of the period, including with the proceeds of such new Indebtedness, that is no longer outstanding on such date of determination or if the transaction giving rise to the need to calculate the Consolidated Coverage Ratio involves a discharge of Indebtedness (in each case other than Indebtedness Incurred under any revolving Credit Facility unless such Indebtedness has been permanently repaid and the related commitment terminated), Consolidated EBITDAX and Consolidated Interest Expense for such period will be calculated after giving effect on a pro forma basis to such discharge of such Indebtedness as if such discharge had occurred on the first day of such period;

 

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(2)    if, since the beginning of such period, the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary has made any Asset Disposition or if the transaction giving rise to the need to calculate the Consolidated Coverage Ratio is such an Asset Disposition, the Consolidated EBITDAX for such period will be reduced by an amount equal to the Consolidated EBITDAX (if positive) directly attributable to the assets which are the subject of such Asset Disposition for such period or increased by an amount equal to the Consolidated EBITDAX (if negative) directly attributable thereto for such period and Consolidated Interest Expense for such period shall be reduced by an amount equal to the Consolidated Interest Expense directly attributable to any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary repaid, repurchased, defeased or otherwise discharged with respect to the Parent Guarantor and its continuing Restricted Subsidiaries in connection with or with the proceeds from such Asset Disposition for such period (or, if the Capital Stock of any Restricted Subsidiary is sold, the Consolidated Interest Expense for such period directly attributable to the Indebtedness of such Restricted Subsidiary to the extent the Parent Guarantor and its continuing Restricted Subsidiaries are no longer liable for such Indebtedness after such sale);

(3)    if, since the beginning of such period, the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (by merger or otherwise) has made an Investment in any Restricted Subsidiary (or any Person which becomes a Restricted Subsidiary or is merged with or into the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary) or an acquisition (or will have received a contribution) of assets, including any acquisition or contribution of assets occurring in connection with a transaction causing a calculation to be made under this Indenture, which constitutes all or substantially all of a company, division, operating unit, segment, business, group of related assets or line of business, Consolidated EBITDAX and Consolidated Interest Expense for such period will be calculated after giving pro forma effect thereto (including the Incurrence of any Indebtedness) as if such Investment or acquisition or contribution had occurred on the first day of such period; and

(4)    if, since the beginning of such period, any Person (that subsequently became a Restricted Subsidiary or was merged with or into the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary since the beginning of such period) made any Asset Disposition or any Investment or acquisition of assets that would have required an adjustment pursuant to clause (2) or (3) above if made by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary during such period, Consolidated EBITDAX and Consolidated Interest Expense for such period will be calculated after giving pro forma effect thereto as if such Asset Disposition or Investment or acquisition of assets had occurred on the first day of such period.

For purposes of this definition, whenever pro forma effect is to be given to any calculation under this definition, the pro forma calculations will be determined either (i) in accordance with Regulation S-X under the Securities Act or (ii) in good faith by the chief financial or accounting officer of the Parent Guarantor; provided that such Officer may in his or her discretion include any reasonably identifiable and factually supportable pro forma changes to

 

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Consolidated EBITDAX, including any pro forma expenses and cost reductions, that have occurred or in the judgment of such officer are reasonably expected to occur within 12 months of the date of the applicable transaction and that are set forth in an Officers’ Certificate signed by the chief financial or accounting officer of the Parent Guarantor that states (a) the amount of each such adjustment, (b) that such adjustments are based on the reasonable good faith belief of the Officers executing such Officers’ Certificate at the time of such execution and (c) the factual basis on which such good faith belief is based. If any Indebtedness bears a floating rate of interest and is being given pro forma effect, the interest expense on such Indebtedness will be calculated as if the average rate in effect from the beginning of such period to the date of determination had been the applicable rate for the entire period (taking into account any Interest Rate Agreement applicable to such Indebtedness, but if the remaining term of such Interest Rate Agreement is less than 12 months, then such Interest Rate Agreement shall only be taken into account for that portion of the period equal to the remaining term thereof). If any Indebtedness that is being given pro forma effect bears an interest rate at the option of the Parent Guarantor, the interest rate shall be calculated by applying such optional rate chosen by the Parent Guarantor. Interest on Indebtedness that may optionally be determined at an interest rate based upon a factor of a prime or similar rate, a eurocurrency interbank offered rate, or other rate, shall be deemed to have been based upon the rate actually chosen, or, if none, then based upon such optional rate chosen as the Parent Guarantor may designate.

Consolidated EBITDAX ” for any period means, without duplication, the Consolidated Net Income for such period, plus the following, without duplication and to the extent deducted (and not added back) in calculating such Consolidated Net Income:

(1)    Consolidated Interest Expense;

(2)    Consolidated Income Tax Expense;

(3)    consolidated depletion and depreciation expense of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(4)    consolidated amortization expense or impairment charges of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries recorded in connection with the application of FASB Accounting Standards Codification (“ ASC ”) Topic No. 350, Intangibles — Goodwill and Others , and FASB ASC Topic No. 360, Property, Plant and Equipment ”;

(5)    other non-cash charges of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries (excluding any such non-cash charge to the extent it represents an accrual of or reserve for cash charges in any future period or amortization of a prepaid cash expense that was paid in a prior period not included in the calculation);

(6)    consolidated exploration (including all drilling, completion, geological and geophysical costs) and abandonment expense of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries; and

(7)    the amount of any non-controlling interest consisting of income attributable to non-controlling interests of third parties in any non-Wholly Owned Subsidiary that is a Restricted Subsidiary that is not included or deducted (and not added back) in calculating such Consolidated Net Income, but excluding cash distributions made in respect of such non-controlling interests,

 

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if applicable for such period; and less, to the extent included in calculating such Consolidated Net Income and in excess of any costs or expenses attributable thereto that were deducted (and not added back) in calculating such Consolidated Net Income, the sum of (x) the amount of deferred revenues that are amortized during such period and are attributable to reserves that are subject to Volumetric Production Payments, (y) amounts recorded in accordance with GAAP as repayments of principal and interest pursuant to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments and (z) other non-cash gains (excluding any non-cash gain to the extent it represents the reversal of an accrual or reserve for a potential cash item that reduced Consolidated EBITDAX in any prior period).

Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, clauses (2) through (6) relating to amounts of a Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor will be added to Consolidated Net Income to compute Consolidated EBITDAX of the Parent Guarantor only to the extent (and in the same proportion) that the net income (loss) of such Restricted Subsidiary was included in calculating the Consolidated Net Income of the Parent Guarantor and, to the extent the amounts set forth in clauses (2) through (6) are in excess of those necessary to offset a net loss of such Restricted Subsidiary or if such Restricted Subsidiary has net income for such period included in Consolidated Net Income, only if a corresponding amount would be permitted at the date of determination to be dividended to the Parent Guarantor by such Restricted Subsidiary (unless it is the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor) without prior approval (that has not been obtained), pursuant to the terms of its charter and all agreements, instruments, judgments, decrees, orders, statutes, rules and governmental regulations applicable to that Restricted Subsidiary or the holders of its Capital Stock.

Consolidated Income Tax Expense ” means, with respect to any period, the provision for federal, state, local and foreign income taxes (including state franchise taxes) of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries for such period as determined in accordance with GAAP.

Consolidated Interest Expense ” means, for any period, the total consolidated interest expense (less interest income) of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries, whether paid or accrued, plus, to the extent not included in such interest expense and without duplication:

(1)    interest expense attributable to Capitalized Lease Obligations and the interest component of any deferred payment obligations;

(2)    amortization of debt discount and debt issuance cost ( provided that any amortization of bond premium will be credited to reduce Consolidated Interest Expense unless, pursuant to GAAP, such amortization of bond premium has otherwise reduced Consolidated Interest Expense);

(3)    non-cash interest expense;

(4)    commissions, discounts and other fees and charges owed with respect to letters of credit and bankers’ acceptance financing;

 

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(5)    the interest expense on Indebtedness of another Person that is guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor or one of its Restricted Subsidiaries or secured by a Lien on assets of the Parent Guarantor or one of its Restricted Subsidiaries, to the extent such guarantee becomes payable or such Lien becomes subject to foreclosure;

(6)    cash costs associated with Interest Rate Agreements (including amortization of fees); provided , however , that if Interest Rate Agreements result in net cash benefits rather than costs, such benefits shall be credited to reduce Consolidated Interest Expense unless, pursuant to GAAP, such net benefits are otherwise reflected in Consolidated Net Income;

(7)    the consolidated interest expense of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries that was capitalized during such period; and

(8)    all dividends paid or payable in cash, Cash Equivalents or Indebtedness or accrued during such period on any series of Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor or on Preferred Stock of its Restricted Subsidiaries payable to a party other than the Parent Guarantor or a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary,

minus, to the extent included above, any interest attributable to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments.

For the purpose of calculating the Consolidated Coverage Ratio in connection with the Incurrence of any Indebtedness described in the final paragraph of the definition of “Indebtedness,” the calculation of Consolidated Interest Expense shall include all interest expense (including any amounts described in clauses (1) through (8) above) relating to any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary described in the final paragraph of the definition of “Indebtedness.”

Consolidated Net Income ” means, for any period, the aggregate net income (loss) attributable to the Parent Guarantor and its consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries determined in accordance with GAAP and before any reduction in respect of Preferred Stock dividends of such Person; provided , however , that there will not be included (to the extent otherwise included therein) in such Consolidated Net Income:

(1)    any net income (loss) of any Person (other than the Parent Guarantor) if such Person is not a Restricted Subsidiary, except that:

(a)    subject to the limitations contained in clauses (3) and (4) below, the Parent Guarantor’s equity in the net income of any such Person for such period will be included in such Consolidated Net Income up to the aggregate amount of cash actually distributed by such Person during such period to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary as a dividend or other distribution (subject, in the case of a dividend or other distribution to a Restricted Subsidiary, to the limitations contained in clause (2) below); and

(b)    the Parent Guarantor’s equity in a net loss of any such Person for such period will be included in determining such Consolidated Net Income to the extent such loss has been funded with cash from the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary during such period;

 

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(2)    any net income (but not loss) of any Restricted Subsidiary (other than the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor) if such Restricted Subsidiary is subject to restrictions, directly or indirectly, on the payment of dividends or the making of distributions by such Restricted Subsidiary, directly or indirectly, to the Parent Guarantor, except that:

(a)    subject to the limitations contained in clauses (3), (4) and (5) below, the Parent Guarantor’s equity in the net income of any such Restricted Subsidiary for such period will be included in such Consolidated Net Income up to the aggregate amount of cash that could have been distributed by such Restricted Subsidiary during such period to the Parent Guarantor or another Restricted Subsidiary as a dividend or other distribution (subject, in the case of a dividend or other distribution paid to another Restricted Subsidiary, to the limitation contained in this clause); and

(b)    the Parent Guarantor’s equity in a net loss of any such Restricted Subsidiary for such period will be included in determining such Consolidated Net Income;

(3)    any gain (loss) realized upon the sale or other disposition of any property, plant or equipment of the Parent Guarantor or its consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (including pursuant to any Sale/Leaseback Transaction) which is not sold or otherwise disposed of in the ordinary course of business and any gain (loss) realized upon the sale or other disposition of any Capital Stock of any Person;

(4)    any extraordinary or nonrecurring gains or losses, together with any related provision for taxes on such gains or losses and all related fees and expenses;

(5)    the cumulative effect of a change in accounting principles;

(6)    any asset impairment writedowns and any non-cash charges associated with full cost ceiling test impairments or other similar tests resulting in non-cash charges on Oil and Gas Properties under GAAP or SEC guidelines;

(7)    any unrealized non-cash gains or losses or charges in respect of Hedging Obligations (including those resulting from the application of FASB ASC Topic No. 815, Derivatives and Hedging );

(8)    income or loss attributable to discontinued operations (including, without limitation, operations disposed of during such period whether or not such operations were classified as discontinued);

(9)    all deferred financing costs written off, and premiums paid, in connection with any early extinguishment of Indebtedness; and

 

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(10)    any non-cash compensation charge arising from any grant of stock, stock options or other equity based awards.

Credit Facility ” means, with respect to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary, one or more debt facilities (including, without limitation, the Senior Secured Credit Agreements), indentures or commercial paper facilities providing for revolving credit loans, term loans, capital markets financings, receivables financing (including through the sale of receivables to such lenders or to special purpose entities formed to borrow from such lenders against such receivables) or letters of credit, in each case, as amended, restated, modified, renewed, refunded, replaced or refinanced in whole or in part from time to time (and whether or not with the original administrative agent and lenders or another administrative agent or agents or other lenders and whether provided under the Senior Secured Credit Agreements or any other credit or other agreement or indenture).

Currency Agreement ” means in respect of a Person any foreign exchange contract, currency swap agreement, futures contract, option contract or other similar agreement as to which such Person is a party or a beneficiary.

Custodian ” means any receiver, trustee, assignee, liquidator, custodian or similar official under any Bankruptcy Law.

Customary Recourse Exceptions ” means, with respect to any Non-Recourse Debt of an Unrestricted Subsidiary, exclusions from the exculpation provisions with respect to such Non-Recourse Debt for the voluntary bankruptcy of such Unrestricted Subsidiary, fraud, misapplication of cash, environmental claims, waste, willful destruction and other circumstances, in each case, customarily excluded by lenders from exculpation provisions or included in separate indemnification agreements in non-recourse financings.

Default ” means any event which is, or after notice or passage of time or both would be, an Event of Default.

Definitive Securities ” means the 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 and Exhibit A-2 (but without the Global Security Legend thereon and without the “Schedule of Increases and Decreases in the Global Security” attached thereto).

Designated Noncash Consideration ” means the Fair Market Value of noncash consideration received by the Parent Guarantor or one of its Restricted Subsidiaries in connection with an Asset Disposition that is so designated as Designated Noncash Consideration pursuant to an Officers’ Certificate setting forth the basis of such valuation, less the amount of cash or Cash Equivalents received in connection with a subsequent sale, redemption or payment of, on or with respect to such Designated Noncash Consideration.

Disqualified Stock ” means, with respect to any Person, any Capital Stock of such Person which by its terms (or by the terms of any security into which it is convertible or for which it is exchangeable) at the option of the holder of the Capital Stock or upon the happening of any event:

(1)    matures or is mandatorily redeemable (other than redeemable only for Capital Stock of such Person which is not itself Disqualified Stock) pursuant to a sinking fund obligation or otherwise;

 

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(2)    is convertible or exchangeable for Disqualified Stock or other Indebtedness (excluding Capital Stock which is convertible or exchangeable solely at the option of such Person or a Subsidiary thereof); or

(3)    is redeemable at the option of the holder of the Capital Stock in whole or in part,

in each case on or prior to the date that is 91 days after the earlier of the date (a) of the Stated Maturity of the Securities or (b) on which there are no Securities outstanding; provided that only the portion of Capital Stock which so matures or is mandatorily redeemable, is so convertible or exchangeable or is so redeemable at the option of the holder thereof prior to such date will be deemed to be Disqualified Stock; provided further , that any Capital Stock that would constitute Disqualified Stock solely because the holders thereof have the right to require the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to repurchase such Capital Stock upon the occurrence of a change of control or asset sale (each defined in a substantially identical manner to the corresponding definitions in this Indenture) shall not constitute Disqualified Stock if the terms of such Capital Stock (and all such securities into which it is convertible or for which it is exchangeable) provide that (i) the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries may not repurchase or redeem any such Capital Stock (and all such securities into which it is convertible or for which it is ratable or exchangeable) pursuant to such provision prior to compliance by the Issuer with Section  3.5 and Section  3.9 and (ii) such repurchase or redemption will be permitted solely to the extent also permitted in accordance with Section  3.3 .

Dollar-Denominated Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as liabilities in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

Domestic Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is organized under the laws of the United States of America or any state thereof or the District of Columbia.

DTC ” means The Depository Trust Company, its nominees and their respective successors and assigns, or such other depository institution hereinafter appointed by the Parent Guarantor.

Equity Interests ” means Capital Stock and all warrants, options or other rights to acquire Capital Stock (but excluding any debt security that is convertible into, or exchangeable for, Capital Stock).

Equity Offering ” means a public or private offering for cash by the Parent Guarantor (or any direct or indirect parent company of the Parent Guarantor to the extent such cash is received by or contributed to the Parent Guarantor) of Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock), other than public offerings registered on Form S-8.

 

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Exchange Act ” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder.

Fair Market Value ” means, with respect to any asset or property, the sale value that would be obtained in an arm’s-length free market transaction between an informed and willing seller under no compulsion to sell and an informed and willing buyer under no compulsion to buy. Fair Market Value of an asset or property in excess of $20.0 million shall be determined by the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor acting in good faith, whose determination shall be conclusive and evidenced by a Board Resolution, and any lesser Fair Market Value may be determined by an officer of the Parent Guarantor acting in good faith.

Fitch ” means Fitch Ratings, Inc., or any successor to the rating agency business thereof.

Foreign Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is not a Domestic Subsidiary, and any Subsidiary of such Restricted Subsidiary.

GAAP ” means generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America as in effect from time to time. All ratios and computations based on GAAP contained in this Indenture will be computed in conformity with GAAP. If there occurs a change in generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America occurring after the Issue Date (including with respect to the treatment of leases and revenue recognition) and such change would cause a change in the method of calculation of standards or terms used in this Indenture (an “ Accounting Change ”), then the Parent Guarantor may elect, as evidenced by a written notice to the Trustee, that such standards or terms shall be calculated as if such Accounting Change had not occurred. Any such election with respect to such Accounting Change may not thereafter be changed.

Global Securities ” means the 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes that are substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 and Exhibit A-2 , respectively, bearing the Global Security Legend, and which are deposited with the Depositary or its custodian and registered in the name of the Depositary or its nominee.

Global Securities Legend ” means the legend set forth in Section 2.1(d)(2) .

Guarantee ” means, individually, any guarantee of payment of the Securities by a Guarantor pursuant to the terms of this Indenture and any supplemental indenture thereto, and, collectively, all such guarantees.

guarantee ” means any obligation, contingent or otherwise, of any Person directly or indirectly guaranteeing any Indebtedness of any other Person and any obligation, direct or indirect, contingent or otherwise, of such Person:

(i)    to purchase or pay (or advance or supply funds for the purchase or payment of) such Indebtedness of such other Person (whether arising by virtue of partnership arrangements, or by agreement to keep-well, to purchase assets, goods, securities or services, to take-or-pay, or to maintain financial statement conditions or otherwise); or

 

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(ii)    entered into for purposes of assuring in any other manner the obligee of such Indebtedness of the payment thereof or to protect such obligee against loss in respect thereof (in whole or in part);

provided , however , that the term “ guarantee ” will not include endorsements for collection or deposit in the ordinary course of business or any obligation to the extent it is payable only in Capital Stock of the Guarantor that is not Disqualified Stock. The term “ guarantee ” used as a verb has a corresponding meaning.

Guarantors ” has the meaning ascribed to it in the first introductory paragraph of this Indenture.

Guarantor Subordinated Obligation ” means, with respect to a Guarantor, any Indebtedness of such Guarantor (whether outstanding on the Issue Date or thereafter Incurred) which is expressly subordinated in right of payment to the obligations of such Guarantor under its Guarantee pursuant to a written agreement.

Hedging Obligations ” of any Person means the obligations of such Person pursuant to any Interest Rate Agreement, Currency Agreement or Commodity Agreement.

Holder ” or “ Securityholder ” means a Person in whose name a Security is registered in the Securities Register.

Hydrocarbons ” means oil, natural gas, casing head gas, drip gasoline, natural gasoline, condensate, distillate, liquid hydrocarbons, gaseous hydrocarbons and all constituents, elements or compounds thereof and products refined or processed therefrom.

IAI ” means an institutional “accredited investor” as described in Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act.

Immaterial Subsidiary ” means, as of any date, any Restricted Subsidiary whose total assets, as of the end of the most recent month for which internal financial statements are available, are less than $1,000,000 and whose total revenues for the most recent 12-month period for which internal financial statements are available do not exceed $1,000,000; provided that a Restricted Subsidiary will not be considered to be an Immaterial Subsidiary if it, directly or indirectly, guarantees or otherwise provides direct credit support for any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor; provided , further, that (i) the aggregate total assets of all Immaterial Subsidiaries as of the end of the most recent month for which internal financial statements are available and (ii) the aggregate total revenues of all Immaterial Subsidiaries for the most recent 12-month period for which internal financial statements are available shall not, in each case of (i) and (ii), exceed 5.0% of the Parent Guarantor’s consolidated total assets as of such date or Parent Guarantor’s consolidated total revenues for such 12-month period, as the case may be.

Incur ” means issue, create, assume, guarantee, incur or otherwise become directly or indirectly liable for, contingently or otherwise; provided , however , that any Indebtedness or Capital Stock of a Person existing at the time such Person becomes a Restricted Subsidiary (whether by merger, consolidation, acquisition or otherwise) will be deemed to be Incurred by such Restricted Subsidiary at the time it becomes a Restricted Subsidiary; and the terms “Incurred” and “Incurrence” have meanings correlative to the foregoing.

 

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Indebtedness ” means, with respect to any Person on any date of determination (without duplication, whether or not contingent):

(1)    the principal of and premium (if any) in respect of indebtedness of such Person for borrowed money;

(2)    the principal of and premium (if any) in respect of obligations of such Person evidenced by bonds, debentures, notes or other similar instruments;

(3)    the principal component of all obligations of such Person in respect of letters of credit, bankers’ acceptances or other similar instruments (including reimbursement obligations with respect thereto except to the extent such reimbursement obligation relates to a trade payable, and except to the extent such letters of credit are not drawn upon or, if and to the extent drawn upon, such obligation is satisfied within 30 days of payment on the letter of credit);

(4)    the principal component of all obligations of such Person (other than obligations payable solely in Capital Stock that is not Disqualified Stock) to pay the deferred and unpaid purchase price of property (except as described in clause (8) of the penultimate paragraph of this definition of “Indebtedness”), which purchase price is due more than six months after the date of placing such property in service or taking delivery and title thereto to the extent such obligations would appear as a liabilities upon the consolidated balance sheet of such Person in accordance with GAAP;

(5)    Capitalized Lease Obligations of such Person to the extent such Capitalized Lease Obligations would appear as liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet of such Person in accordance with GAAP;

(6)    the principal component or liquidation preference of all obligations of such Person with respect to the redemption, repayment or other repurchase of any Disqualified Stock or, with respect to any Subsidiary of such Person, any Preferred Stock (but excluding, in each case, any accrued dividends);

(7)    the principal component of all Indebtedness of other Persons secured by a Lien on any asset of such Person, whether or not such Indebtedness is assumed by such Person; provided , however , that the amount of such Indebtedness will be the lesser of (a) the Fair Market Value of such asset at such date of determination and (b) the amount of such Indebtedness of such other Persons;

(8)    the principal component of Indebtedness of other Persons to the extent guaranteed by such Person; and

(9)    to the extent not otherwise included in this definition, net obligations of such Person under Commodity Agreements, Currency Agreements and Interest Rate Agreements (the amount of any such obligations to be equal at any time to the termination value of such agreement or arrangement giving rise to such obligation that would be payable by such Person at such time);

 

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provided , however , that any indebtedness which has been defeased in accordance with GAAP or defeased pursuant to the deposit of cash or Cash Equivalents (in an amount sufficient to satisfy all such indebtedness obligations at maturity or redemption, as applicable, and all payments of interest and premium, if any) in a trust or account created or pledged for the sole benefit of the holders of such indebtedness, and subject to no other Liens, shall not constitute “Indebtedness.”

The amount of Indebtedness of any Person at any date will be the outstanding balance at such date of all unconditional obligations as described above and the maximum liability, upon the occurrence of the contingency giving rise to the obligation, of any contingent obligations at such date.

Notwithstanding the preceding, “Indebtedness” of a Person shall not include:

(1)    Production Payments and Reserve Sales;

(2)    any obligation of such Person in respect of a farm-in agreement or similar arrangement whereby such Person agrees to pay all or a share of the drilling, completion or other expenses of an exploratory or development well (which agreement may be subject to a maximum payment obligation, after which expenses are shared in accordance with the working or participation interest therein or in accordance with the agreement of the parties) or perform the drilling, completion or other operation on such well in exchange for an ownership interest in an oil or gas property;

(3)    any obligations under Currency Agreements, Commodity Agreements and Interest Rate Agreements; provided that such Agreements are entered into for bona fide hedging purposes of such Person or its Subsidiaries (as determined in good faith by the Board of Directors or senior management of such Person, whether or not accounted for as a hedge in accordance with GAAP) and, in the case of Currency Agreements or Commodity Agreements, such Currency Agreements or Commodity Agreements are related to business transactions of such Person or its Subsidiaries entered into in the ordinary course of business and, in the case of Interest Rate Agreements, such Interest Rate Agreements substantially correspond in terms of notional amount, duration and interest rates, as applicable, to Indebtedness of such Person or its Subsidiaries Incurred without violation of this Indenture;

(4)    any obligation arising from agreements of such Person or a Subsidiary providing for indemnification, guarantees, adjustment of purchase price, holdbacks, contingency payment obligations or similar obligations, in each case, Incurred or assumed in connection with the acquisition or disposition of any business, assets or Capital Stock of a Restricted Subsidiary, provided that such Indebtedness is not reflected on the face of the balance sheet of such Person or any Subsidiary;

(5)    any obligation arising from the honoring by a bank or other financial institution of a check, draft or similar instrument (including daylight overdrafts) drawn against insufficient funds in the ordinary course of business, provided that such Indebtedness is extinguished within five Business Days of Incurrence;

 

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(6)    in-kind obligations relating to net oil or natural gas balancing positions arising in the ordinary course of business;

(7)    all contracts and other obligations, agreements, instruments or arrangements described in clause (19), (20), (21) or (28)(a) of the definition of “Permitted Liens”;

(8)    accrued expenses and trade payables and other accrued liabilities arising in the ordinary course of business that are not overdue by 90 days past the invoice or billing date or more or are being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings promptly instituted and diligently conducted;

(9)    any repayment or reimbursement obligation of such Person or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to Customary Recourse Exceptions, unless and until an event or circumstance occurs that triggers the Person’s or such Subsidiary’s direct repayment or reimbursement obligation (as opposed to contingent or performance obligations) to the lender or other Person to whom such obligation is actually owed, in which case the amount of such direct payment or reimbursement obligation shall constitute Indebtedness; and

(10)    obligations under the LGS Lease and any guarantee thereof.

In addition, “Indebtedness” of any Person shall include Indebtedness described in the first paragraph of this definition of “Indebtedness” that would not appear as a liability on the balance sheet of such Person if:

(1)    such Indebtedness is the obligation of a partnership or joint venture that is not a Restricted Subsidiary of such Person (a “ Joint Venture ”);

(2)    such Person or a Restricted Subsidiary of such Person is a general partner of the Joint Venture or otherwise liable for all or a portion of the Joint Venture’s liabilities (a “ General Partner ”); and

(3)    there is recourse, by contract or operation of law, with respect to the payment of such Indebtedness to property or assets of such Person or a Restricted Subsidiary of such Person; and then such Indebtedness shall be included in an amount not to exceed:

(a)    the lesser of (i) the net assets of the General Partner and (ii) the amount of such obligations to the extent that there is recourse, by contract or operation of law, to the property or assets of such Person or a Restricted Subsidiary of such Person; or

(b)    if less than the amount determined pursuant to clause (a) immediately above, the actual amount of such Indebtedness that is with recourse

 

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to such Person or a Restricted Subsidiary of such Person, if the Indebtedness is evidenced by a writing and is for a determinable amount and the related interest expense shall be included in Consolidated Interest Expense to the extent actually paid by such Person and its Subsidiaries.

Indenture ” means this Indenture as amended or supplemented from time to time.

Initial Purchasers ” means Barclays Capital Inc. and the other initial purchasers listed in Schedule I of the Purchase Agreement dated April 7, 2017 among the Issuer, the Guarantors and Barclays Capital Inc., as representative of such initial purchasers relating to the Initial Securities.

Initial Securities ” has the meaning ascribed to it in the second introductory paragraph of this Indenture.

Interest Rate Agreement ” means with respect to any Person any interest rate protection agreement, interest rate future agreement, interest rate option agreement, interest rate swap agreement, interest rate cap agreement, interest rate collar agreement, interest rate hedge agreement or other similar agreement or arrangement as to which such Person is party or a beneficiary.

Investment ” means, with respect to any Person, all investments by such Person in other Persons (including Affiliates) in the form of any direct or indirect advance, loan or other extensions of credit (including by way of guarantee or similar arrangement, but excluding any debt or extension of credit represented by a bank deposit other than a time deposit and advances or extensions of credit to customers in the ordinary course of business) or capital contribution to (by means of any transfer of cash or other property to others or any payment for property or services for the account or use of others), or any purchase or acquisition of Capital Stock, Indebtedness or other similar instruments (excluding any interest in a crude oil or natural gas leasehold to the extent constituting a security under applicable law) issued by, such other Person and all other items that are or would be classified as investments on a balance sheet prepared in accordance with GAAP; provided that none of the following will be deemed to be an Investment:

(1)    Hedging Obligations entered into in the ordinary course of business and in compliance with this Indenture;

(2)    endorsements of negotiable instruments and documents in the ordinary course of business; and

(3)    an acquisition of assets, Capital Stock or other securities by such Person or a Subsidiary for consideration to the extent such consideration consists of Common Stock of such Person.

The amount of any Investment shall not be adjusted for increases or decreases in value, write-ups, write-downs or write-offs with respect to such Investment.

For purposes of the definition of “ Unrestricted Subsidiary ” and Section  3.3 ,

 

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(1)    “ Investment ” will include the portion (proportionate to the Parent Guarantor’s equity interest in a Restricted Subsidiary to be designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary) of the Fair Market Value of the net assets of such Restricted Subsidiary at the time that such Restricted Subsidiary is designated an Unrestricted Subsidiary; provided , however , that upon a re-designation of such Subsidiary as a Restricted Subsidiary, the Parent Guarantor will be deemed to continue to have a permanent “ Investment ” in an Unrestricted Subsidiary in an amount (if positive) equal to (a) the Parent Guarantor’s “ Investment ” in such Subsidiary at the time of such re-designation less (b) the portion (proportionate to the Parent Guarantor’s equity interest in such Subsidiary) of the Fair Market Value of the net assets of such Subsidiary at the time that such Subsidiary is so re-designated a Restricted Subsidiary;

(2)    any property transferred to or from an Unrestricted Subsidiary will be valued at its Fair Market Value at the time of such transfer; and

(3)    if the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary sells or otherwise disposes of any Capital Stock of any Restricted Subsidiary such that, after giving effect to any such sale or disposition, such entity is no longer a Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor, then the Parent Guarantor shall be deemed to have made an Investment on the date of any such sale or disposition equal to the Fair Market Value of the Capital Stock of such former Subsidiary not sold or disposed of.

Investment Grade Rating ” means a rating equal to or higher than:

(1)    Baa3 (or the equivalent) with a stable or better outlook by Moody’s;

(2)    BBB- (or the equivalent) with a stable or better outlook by S&P; or

(3)    BBB- (or the equivalent) with a stable or better outlook by Fitch;

or, if any such entity ceases to make a rating on the Securities publicly available for reasons outside of the Parent Guarantor’s control, the equivalent investment grade credit rating from any other Rating Agency.

Investment Grade Rating Event ” means the first day on which the Securities have an Investment Grade Rating from any two of the three named Rating Agencies, and no Default has occurred and is then continuing under this Indenture.

Issue Date ” means the first date on which the Securities are issued under this Indenture.

Issuer ” means, as applicable, the Person named as the “Issuer” in the first introductory paragraph of this Indenture until a successor Person shall have become such pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture, and thereafter “Issuer” shall mean such successor Person.

LGS Lease ” means the lease agreement pursuant to which the Parent Guarantor or a Subsidiary leases the liquids gathering system used for the purposes of gathering, separating, collecting, and delivering for sale or transport, condensate and water, together with associated natural gas, produced from natural gas and oil wells located in the Pinedale field in Sublette County, Wyoming, as amended, restated, modified, renewed or replaced in whole or in part from time to time.

 

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Lien ” means, with respect to any asset, any mortgage, lien (statutory or otherwise), pledge, hypothecation, charge, security interest, preference, priority or encumbrance of any kind in respect of such asset, whether or not filed, recorded or otherwise perfected under applicable law, including any conditional sale or other title retention agreement, any lease in the nature thereof, any option or other agreement to sell or give a security interest in and any filing of or agreement to give any financing statement under the Uniform Commercial Code (or equivalent statutes) of any jurisdiction; provided that in no event shall an operating lease be deemed to constitute a Lien.

Midstream, Disposal and Electrical Assets ” means (i) assets used primarily for gathering, transmission, storage, processing or treatment of natural gas, natural gas liquids or other hydrocarbons or carbon dioxide, (ii) assets used primarily for the gathering, processing and disposal of saltwater, including disposal wells, gathering pipelines, processing and disposal facilities, well connections and related infrastructure, (iii) assets used primarily for transmission and delivery of electricity, including electrical substations, power lines and other electrical infrastructure assets, and (iv) equity interests of any Person (including an Unrestricted Subsidiary) that has no substantial assets other than assets referred to in clauses (i) through (iii).

Moody’s ” means Moody’s Investors Service, Inc., or any successor to the rating agency business thereof.

Net Available Cash ” from an Asset Disposition means cash payments received (including any cash payments received by way of deferred payment of principal pursuant to a note or installment receivable or otherwise and net proceeds from the sale or other disposition of any securities received as consideration, but only as and when received, but excluding any other consideration received in the form of assumption by the acquiring Person of Indebtedness or other obligations relating to the properties or assets that are the subject of such Asset Disposition or received in any other non-cash form), including consideration deemed to be cash pursuant to the Section 3.5(g) , in each case net of:

(1)    all legal, accounting, investment banking, title and recording tax expenses, commissions and other fees and expenses Incurred, and all federal, state, provincial, foreign and local taxes required to be paid or accrued as a liability under GAAP (after taking into account any available tax credits or deductions and any tax sharing agreements), as a consequence of such Asset Disposition;

(2)    all payments made on any Indebtedness (including any Hedging Obligation) which is secured by any assets subject to such Asset Disposition, in accordance with the terms of any Lien upon such assets, or which must by its terms, or in order to obtain a necessary consent to such Asset Disposition, or by applicable law be repaid out of the proceeds from such Asset Disposition;

 

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(3)    all distributions and other payments required to be made to minority interest holders in Subsidiaries or joint ventures or to holders of royalty or similar interests as a result of such Asset Disposition;

(4)    the deduction of appropriate amounts to be provided by the seller as a reserve, in accordance with GAAP, against any liabilities associated with the assets disposed of in such Asset Disposition and retained by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary after such Asset Disposition; and

(5)    all relocation expenses incurred as a result thereof and all related severance and associated costs, expenses and charges of personnel related to assets and related operations disposed of;

provided , however , that if any consideration for an Asset Disposition (that would otherwise constitute Net Available Cash) is required to be held in escrow pending determination of whether or not a purchase price adjustment will be made, such consideration (or any portion thereof) shall become Net Available Cash only at such time as it is released to the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries from escrow.

Net Cash Proceeds ” with respect to any issuance or sale of Capital Stock or any contribution to equity capital, means the cash proceeds of such issuance, sale or contribution net of attorneys’ fees, accountants’ fees, underwriters’ or placement agents’ fees, listing fees, discounts or commissions and brokerage, consultant and other fees and charges actually Incurred in connection with such issuance, sale or contribution and net of taxes paid or payable as a result of such issuance or sale (after taking into account any available tax credit or deductions and any tax sharing arrangements).

Net Working Capital ” means (a) all current assets of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries, except current assets from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, less (b) all current liabilities of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries, except current liabilities (i) associated with asset retirement obligations relating to oil and gas properties, (ii) included in Indebtedness and (iii) any current liabilities from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, in each case as set forth in the consolidated financial statements of the Parent Guarantor prepared in accordance with GAAP (excluding any adjustments made pursuant to FASB ASC 815).

Non-Recourse Debt ” means Indebtedness of a Person:

(1)    as to which neither the Parent Guarantor nor any Restricted Subsidiary (a) provides any guarantee or credit support of any kind (including any undertaking, guarantee, indemnity, agreement or instrument that would constitute Indebtedness) or (b) is directly or indirectly liable (as a guarantor or otherwise), except for Customary Recourse Exceptions;

(2)    no default with respect to which (including any rights that the holders thereof may have to take enforcement action against an Unrestricted Subsidiary) would permit (upon notice, lapse of time or both) any holder of any other Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary to declare a default under such other Indebtedness or cause the payment thereof to be accelerated or payable prior to its stated maturity; and

 

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(3)    as to which the lenders have no recourse against any of the assets of the Parent Guarantor or its Restricted Subsidiaries, except for Customary Recourse Exceptions.

Non-U.S. Person ” means a Person who is not a U.S. Person (as defined in Regulation S).

Obligations ” means any principal, interest (including any interest accruing subsequent to the filing of a petition in bankruptcy, reorganization or similar proceeding at the rate provided for in the documentation with respect thereto, whether or not such interest is an allowed claim under applicable state, federal or foreign law), other monetary obligations, penalties, fees, indemnifications, reimbursements (including reimbursement obligations with respect to letters of credit and banker’s acceptances), damages and other liabilities, and guarantees of payment of such principal, interest, penalties, fees, indemnifications, reimbursements, damages and other liabilities, payable under the documentation governing any Indebtedness.

Offering Memorandum ” means the final offering memorandum, dated April 7, 2017, relating to the offering by the Issuer of the Initial Securities.

Officer ” means the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the President, the Chief Financial Officer, any Vice President, the Treasurer or the Secretary of the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or any other Person, as the case may be.

Officers’ Certificate ” means a certificate signed by two Officers on behalf of the Parent Guarantor (where specified), another Guarantor (where specified) or the Issuer.

Oil and Gas Business ” means:

(1)    the business of acquiring, exploring, exploiting, developing, producing, operating and disposing of interests in oil, natural gas, liquefied natural gas and other Hydrocarbon and mineral properties or products produced in association with any of the foregoing;

(2)    the business of gathering, marketing, distributing, treating, processing, storing, refining, selling and transporting of any production from such interests or properties and products produced in association therewith and the marketing of oil, natural gas, other Hydrocarbons and minerals obtained from unrelated Persons; and

(3)    any business or activity relating to, arising from, or necessary, appropriate or incidental to the activities described in the foregoing clauses (1) and (2) of this definition.

Oil and Gas Properties ” means all properties, including equity or other ownership interests therein, owned by a Person which contain or are believed to contain oil and gas reserves.

 

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Opinion of Counsel ” means a written opinion from legal counsel who is acceptable to the Trustee. The counsel may be an employee of or counsel to the Issuer, a Guarantor or the Trustee.

Parent Guarantor ” means Ultra Petroleum Corp., a Yukon, Canada corporation, and parent of the Issuer.

Pari Passu Indebtedness ” means any Indebtedness of the Issuer or any Guarantor that ranks equally in right of payment to the Securities or the Guarantees, as the case may be.

Patriot Act ” means the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001, Pub. L. 107-56, as amended, and signed into law October 26, 2001.

Permitted Acquisition Indebtedness ” means Indebtedness (including Disqualified Stock) of the Parent Guarantor or any of the Restricted Subsidiaries to the extent such Indebtedness was Indebtedness:

(1)    of an acquired Person prior to the date on which such Person became a Restricted Subsidiary that was not incurred in contemplation of such acquisition; or

(2)    of a Person that was merged, consolidated or amalgamated with or into the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary that was not incurred in contemplation of such merger, consolidation or amalgamation,

provided that on the date such Person became a Restricted Subsidiary or the date such Person was merged, consolidated and amalgamated with or into the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, as applicable, after giving pro forma effect thereto,

(a)    the Parent Guarantor would be permitted to incur at least $1.00 of additional Indebtedness pursuant to Section 3.2(a) or

(b)    the Consolidated Coverage Ratio for the Parent Guarantor would be greater than the Consolidated Coverage Ratio for the Parent Guarantor immediately prior to such transaction.

Permitted Business Investment ” means any Investment made in the ordinary course of, and of a nature that is or shall have become customary in, the Oil and Gas Business including investments or expenditures for actively exploiting, exploring for, acquiring, developing, producing, processing, gathering, marketing or transporting oil, natural gas or other Hydrocarbons and minerals through agreements, transactions, interests or arrangements which permit one to share risks or costs, comply with regulatory requirements regarding local ownership or satisfy other objectives customarily achieved through the conduct of the Oil and Gas Business jointly with third parties including:

(1)    ownership interests in oil, natural gas, other Hydrocarbons and minerals properties, liquefied natural gas facilities, processing facilities, gathering systems, pipelines, storage facilities or related systems or ancillary real property interests;

 

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(2)    Investments in the form of or pursuant to operating agreements, working interests, royalty interests, mineral leases, processing agreements, farm-in agreements, farm-out agreements, contracts for the sale, transportation or exchange of oil, natural gas, other Hydrocarbons and minerals, production sharing agreements, participation agreements, development agreements, area of mutual interest agreements, unitization agreements, pooling agreements, joint bidding agreements, service contracts, joint venture agreements, partnership agreements (whether general or limited), subscription agreements, stock purchase agreements, stockholder agreements and other similar agreements (including for limited liability companies) with third parties; and

(3)    direct or indirect ownership interests in drilling rigs and related equipment, including, without limitation, transportation equipment;

in each case, excluding (i) Investments in publicly traded corporations or publicly traded limited partnerships and (ii) Investments in Unrestricted Subsidiaries; provided , that Investments in publicly traded corporations and publicly traded limited partnerships that do not own material assets other than Midstream, Disposal and Electrical Assets shall be permitted.

Permitted Investment ” means an Investment by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary in:

(1)    the Parent Guarantor, a Restricted Subsidiary or a Person which will, upon the making of such Investment, become a Restricted Subsidiary; provided , however , that the primary business of such Restricted Subsidiary is the Oil and Gas Business;

(2)    another Person whose primary business is the Oil and Gas Business if as a result of such Investment such other Person becomes a Restricted Subsidiary or is merged or consolidated with or into, or transfers or conveys all or substantially all its assets to, the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary and, in each case, any Investment held by such Person; provided that such Investment was not acquired by such Person in contemplation of such acquisition, merger, consolidation or transfer;

(3)    cash and Cash Equivalents;

(4)    receivables owing to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary created or acquired in the ordinary course of business and payable or dischargeable in accordance with customary trade terms; provided , however , that such trade terms may include such concessionary trade terms as the Parent Guarantor or any such Restricted Subsidiary deems reasonable under the circumstances;

(5)    payroll, commission, travel, relocation and similar advances to cover matters that are expected at the time of such advances ultimately to be treated as expenses for accounting purposes and that are made in the ordinary course of business;

(6)    loans or advances to employees (other than executive officers) made in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practices of the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary;

 

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(7)    Capital Stock, obligations or securities received in settlement of debts (x) created in the ordinary course of business and owing to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary or in satisfaction of judgments or (y) pursuant to any plan of reorganization or similar arrangement in a bankruptcy or insolvency proceeding;

(8)    any Person as a result of the receipt of non-cash consideration from an Asset Disposition that was made pursuant to and in compliance with Section  3.5 ;

(9)    Investments in existence on the Issue Date;

(10)    Commodity Agreements, Currency Agreements, Interest Rate Agreements and related Hedging Obligations, which transactions or obligations are Incurred in compliance with Section  3.2 ;

(11)    guarantees issued in accordance with Section  3.2 ;

(12)    Permitted Business Investments;

(13)    any Person where such Investment was acquired by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries (a) in exchange for any other Investment or accounts receivable held by the Parent Guarantor or any such Restricted Subsidiary in connection with or as a result of a bankruptcy, workout, reorganization or recapitalization of the issuer of such other Investment or accounts receivable or (b) as a result of a foreclosure by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to any secured Investment or other transfer of title with respect to any secured Investment in default;

(14)    any Person to the extent such Investments consist of prepaid expenses, negotiable instruments held for collection and lease, utility and workers’ compensation, performance and other similar deposits made in the ordinary course of business by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(15)    guarantees of performance or other obligations (other than Indebtedness) arising in the ordinary course in the Oil and Gas Business, including obligations under oil and natural gas exploration, development, joint operating, and related agreements and licenses, concessions or operating leases related to the Oil and Gas Business;

(16)    Investments in the Securities; and

(17)    Investments by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries, together with all other Investments pursuant to this clause (17), in an aggregate amount outstanding at the time of such Investment not to exceed the greater of (x) $100.0 million and (y) 2.5% of the Parent Guarantor’s Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets (with the Fair Market Value of such Investment being measured at the time such Investment is made and without giving effect to subsequent changes in value); provided , however , that if any Investment pursuant to this clause (17) is made in any Person that is not a Restricted Subsidiary at the date of the making of such Investment and such Person becomes a Restricted Subsidiary after such date, such Investment shall thereafter be deemed to have been made pursuant to clause (1) of this definition and shall cease to have been made pursuant to this clause (17) for so long as such Person continues to be a Restricted Subsidiary.

 

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Permitted Liens ” means, with respect to any Person:

(1)    (x) Liens securing Indebtedness under a Credit Facility incurred in accordance with clause (1)(a) of Section 3.2(b) and (y) Liens securing Indebtedness incurred in accordance with clause (1)(b) of Section 3.2(b) so long as such Liens extend only to assets of Foreign Subsidiaries;

(2)    pledges or deposits by such Person under workers’ compensation laws, unemployment insurance laws, social security or old age pension laws or similar legislation, or good faith deposits in connection with bids, tenders, contracts (other than for the payment of Indebtedness) or leases to which such Person is a party, or deposits (which may be secured by a Lien) to secure public or statutory obligations of such Person including letters of credit and bank guarantees required or requested by the United States, any State thereof or any foreign government or any subdivision, department, agency, organization or instrumentality of any of the foregoing in connection with any contract or statute (including lessee or operator obligations under statutes, governmental regulations, contracts or instruments related to the ownership, exploration and production of oil, natural gas, other Hydrocarbons and minerals on State, Federal or foreign lands or waters), or deposits of cash or United States government bonds to secure indemnity performance, surety or appeal bonds or other similar bonds to which such Person is a party, or deposits as security for contested taxes or import or customs duties or for the payment of rent, in each case Incurred in the ordinary course of business;

(3)    statutory and contractual Liens of landlords and Liens imposed by law, including carriers’, warehousemen’s, mechanics’, materialmen’s and repairmen’s Liens, in each case for sums not yet due or being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings if a reserve or other appropriate provisions, if any, as shall be required by GAAP shall have been made in respect thereof;

(4)    Liens for taxes, assessments or other governmental charges or claims not yet subject to penalties for non-payment or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings; provided that appropriate reserves, if any, required pursuant to GAAP have been made in respect thereof;

(5)    Liens in favor of issuers of surety or performance bonds or bankers’ acceptances issued pursuant to the request of and for the account of such Person in the ordinary course of its business;

(6)    survey exceptions, encumbrances, ground leases, easements or reservations of, or rights of others for, licenses, rights of way, sewers, electric lines, telegraph and telephone lines and other similar purposes, or zoning, building codes or other restrictions (including, without limitation, minor defects or irregularities in title and similar encumbrances) as to the use of real properties or Liens incidental to the conduct of the business of such Person or to the ownership of its properties which do not in the

 

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aggregate materially adversely affect the value of the assets of such Person and its Restricted Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or materially impair their use in the operation of the business of such Person;

(7)    Liens securing Hedging Obligations;

(8)    leases, licenses, subleases and sublicenses of assets (including, without limitation, real property and intellectual property rights) which do not materially interfere with the ordinary conduct of the business of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(9)    prejudgment Liens and judgment Liens not giving rise to an Event of Default so long as such Lien is adequately bonded and any appropriate legal proceedings which may have been duly initiated for the review of such judgment have not been finally terminated or the period within which such proceedings may be initiated has not expired;

(10)    Liens for the purpose of securing the payment of all or a part of the purchase price of, or Capitalized Lease Obligations, purchase money obligations or other payments Incurred to finance the acquisition, lease, improvement or construction of or repairs or additions to, assets or property acquired or constructed in the ordinary course of business; provided that:

(a)    the aggregate principal amount of Indebtedness secured by such Liens is otherwise permitted to be Incurred under this Indenture and does not exceed the cost of the assets or property so acquired or constructed; and

(b)    such Liens are created within 360 days of the later of the acquisition, lease, completion of improvements, construction, repairs or additions or commencement of full operation of the assets or property subject to such Lien and do not encumber any other assets or property of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary other than such assets or property and assets affixed or appurtenant thereto and the proceeds and the products thereof; provided , however , that individual financings of equipment provided by one lender may be cross collateralized to other financings of equipment provided by such lender;

(11)    Liens arising solely by virtue of any statutory or common law provisions relating to banker’s Liens, rights of set-off or similar rights and remedies as to deposit accounts or other funds maintained with a depositary institution; provided that:

(a)    such deposit account is not a dedicated cash collateral account and is not subject to restrictions against access by the Parent Guarantor in excess of those set forth by regulations promulgated by the Federal Reserve Board; and

(b)    such deposit account is not intended by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary to provide collateral to the depository institution;

 

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(12)    Liens arising from Uniform Commercial Code financing statement filings regarding operating leases entered into by the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries in the ordinary course of business;

(13)    Liens existing on the Issue Date (other than Liens permitted under clause (1) of this definition);

(14)    Liens on property or Capital Stock of a Person at the time such Person becomes a Restricted Subsidiary; provided , however , that such Liens are not created or Incurred in connection with, or in contemplation of, such other Person becoming a Restricted Subsidiary; provided further , however , that any such Lien may not extend to any other property owned by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (other than assets or property affixed or appurtenant thereto and the proceeds and the products thereof);

(15)    Liens on property at the time the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries acquired the property, including any acquisition by means of a merger or consolidation with or into the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries; provided, however, that such Liens are not created or Incurred in connection with, or in contemplation of, such acquisition; provided further , however , that such Liens may not extend to any other property owned by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (other than assets or property affixed or appurtenant thereto and the proceeds and the products thereof);

(16)    Liens securing the Securities, Guarantees and other obligations under this Indenture;

(17)    Liens securing Refinancing Indebtedness Incurred to refinance Indebtedness that was previously so secured pursuant to clauses (10), (13), (14), (15), (16), (17) and (22) of this definition, provided that any such Lien is limited to all or part of the same property or assets (plus improvements, accessions, proceeds or dividends or distributions in respect thereof) that secured (or, under the written arrangements under which the original Lien arose, could secure) the Indebtedness being refinanced or is in respect of property or assets that is the security for a Permitted Lien hereunder;

(18)    any interest or title of a lessor under the LGS Lease or any Capitalized Lease Obligation or operating lease;

(19)    Liens in respect of Production Payments and Reserve Sales, which Liens shall be limited to the property that is the subject of such Production Payments and Reserve Sales;

(20)    Liens arising under farm-out agreements, farm-in agreements, division orders, contracts for the sale, purchase, exchange, transportation, gathering or processing of Hydrocarbons, unitizations and pooling designations, declarations, orders and agreements, development agreements, joint venture agreements, partnership agreements, operating agreements, royalties, working interests, net profits interests, joint interest billing arrangements, participation agreements, production sales contracts, area of mutual

 

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interest agreements, gas balancing or deferred production agreements, injection, repressuring and recycling agreements, salt water or other disposal agreements, seismic or geophysical permits or agreements, and other agreements which are customary in the Oil and Gas Business; provided , however , in all instances that such Liens are limited to the assets that are the subject of the relevant agreement, program, order or contract;

(21)    Liens on pipelines or pipeline facilities that arise by operation of law;

(22)    Liens securing Indebtedness in an aggregate outstanding principal amount, together with all other Indebtedness secured by Liens Incurred pursuant to this clause (22) then outstanding and any outstanding Indebtedness secured by Liens Incurred under clause (17) above to refinance Indebtedness secured by Liens initially Incurred in reliance on this clause (22), not to exceed the greater of (x) $50.0 million and (y) 1.0% of the Parent Guarantor’s Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets, as determined on the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness after giving pro forma effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom;

(23)    Liens in favor of the Issuer or any Guarantor;

(24)    deposits made in the ordinary course of business to secure liability to insurance carriers;

(25)    Liens in favor of customs and revenue authorities arising as a matter of law to secure payment of customs duties in connection with the importation of goods in the ordinary course of business;

(26)    Liens deemed to exist in connection with Investments in repurchase agreements permitted under Section  3.3 ; provided that such Liens do not extend to any assets other than those that are the subject of such repurchase agreement;

(27)    Liens encumbering reasonable customary initial deposits and margin deposits and similar Liens attaching to commodity trading accounts or other brokerage accounts incurred in the ordinary course of business and not for speculative purposes;

(28)    any (a) interest or title of a lessor or sublessor under any lease, liens reserved in oil, gas or other Hydrocarbons, minerals, leases for bonus, royalty or rental payments and for compliance with the terms of such leases; (b) restriction or encumbrance that the interest or title of such lessor or sublessor may be subject to (including, without limitation, ground leases or other prior leases of the demised premises, mortgages, mechanics’ liens, tax liens, and easements); or (c) subordination of the interest of the lessee or sublessee under such lease to any restrictions or encumbrance referred to in the preceding clause (b);

(29)    Liens upon specific items of inventory or other goods and proceeds of any Person securing such Person’s obligations in respect of bankers’ acceptances issued or created for the account of such Person to facilitate the purchase, shipment or storage of such inventory or other goods;

 

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(30)    Liens arising under this Indenture in favor of the Trustee for its own benefit and similar Liens in favor of other trustees, agents and representatives arising under instruments governing Indebtedness permitted to be incurred under this Indenture, provided , however , that such Liens are solely for the benefit of the trustees, agents or representatives in their capacities as such and not for the benefit of the holders of such Indebtedness;

(31)    Liens arising from the deposit of funds or securities in trust for the purpose of satisfaction and discharge or defeasance of Indebtedness so long as such deposit of funds or securities and such satisfaction and discharge or defeasance of Indebtedness are permitted under Section  3.3 ;

(32)    Liens in favor of collecting or payer banks having a right of setoff, revocation, or charge back with respect to money or instruments of the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor on deposit with or in possession of such bank; and

(33)    Liens on cash, surety, performance or appeal bonds and similar instruments securing satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Funded Debt Claims under the Approved Plan, including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment (capitalized terms used in this clause (33) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Approved Plan).

In each case set forth above, notwithstanding any stated limitation on the assets that may be subject to such Lien, a Permitted Lien on a specified asset or group or type of assets may include Liens on all improvements, additions and accessions thereto and all products and proceeds thereof (including dividends, distributions and increases in respect thereof) and may include accrued interest on Indebtedness permitted to be secured by such Permitted Lien.

For purposes of determining compliance with this definition, (i) a Lien need not be incurred solely by reference to one category of Permitted Liens described in this definition but are permitted to be incurred in part under any combination thereof and of any other available exemption and (ii) in the event that a Lien (or any portion thereof) meets the criteria of one or more of the categories of Permitted Liens, the Parent Guarantor shall, in its sole discretion, classify or reclassify such Lien (or any portion thereof) in any manner that complies with this definition.

Person ” means any individual, corporation, partnership, joint venture, association, joint-stock company, trust, unincorporated organization, limited liability company, government or any agency or political subdivision thereof or any other entity.

Preferred Stock ” as applied to the Capital Stock of any corporation or other Person, means Capital Stock of any class or classes (however designated) which is preferred as to the payment of dividends, or as to the distribution of assets upon any voluntary or involuntary liquidation or dissolution of such corporation or other Person, over Capital Stock of any other class of such corporation or other Person.

 

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Production Payments and Reserve Sales ” means the grant or transfer by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary to any Person of a royalty, overriding royalty, net profits interest, production payment (whether volumetric or dollar denominated), partnership or other interest in Oil and Gas Properties, reserves or the right to receive all or a portion of the production or the proceeds from the sale of production attributable to such properties where the holder of such interest has recourse solely to such production or proceeds of production, subject to the obligation of the grantor or transferor to operate and maintain, or cause the subject interests to be operated and maintained, in a reasonably prudent manner or other customary standard or subject to the obligation of the grantor or transferor to indemnify for environmental, title or other matters customary in the Oil and Gas Business, including any such grants or transfers pursuant to incentive compensation programs on terms that are reasonably customary in the Oil and Gas Business for geologists, geophysicists or other providers of technical services to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary.

QIB ” means any “qualified institutional buyer” as such term is defined in Rule 144A.

Rating Agency ” means each of S&P, Moody’s and Fitch, or if any of S&P, Moody’s or Fitch shall not make a rating on the Securities publicly available, a nationally recognized statistical rating agency or agencies, as the case may be, selected by the Parent Guarantor (as certified by a Board Resolution of the Parent Guarantor) which shall be substituted for S&P, Moody’s or Fitch, or any combination, as the case may be.

Rating Decline ” means the occurrence of a decrease of one or more gradations (including gradations within rating categories as well as between rating categories) in the rating of the Securities by either S&P or Moody’s (or any Rating Agency substituted therefor).

Redemption Date ” means, with respect to any redemption of Securities, the date of redemption with respect thereto.

Refinancing Indebtedness ” means Indebtedness that is Incurred to refund, refinance, replace, exchange, renew, repay, extend, prepay, redeem or retire (including pursuant to any defeasance or discharge mechanism) (collectively, “refinance” and “refinances” and “refinanced” shall have correlative meanings) any Indebtedness (including Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor that refinances Indebtedness of any Restricted Subsidiary and Indebtedness of any Restricted Subsidiary that refinances Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or another Restricted Subsidiary, but excluding Indebtedness of an Unrestricted Subsidiary that refinances Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary and Indebtedness of a Restricted Subsidiary that is not the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor that refinances Indebtedness of the Issuer or any Guarantor), including Indebtedness that refinances Refinancing Indebtedness, provided , however , that:

(1)    (a) if the Stated Maturity of the Indebtedness being refinanced is the same as or earlier than the Stated Maturity of the Securities, the Refinancing Indebtedness has a Stated Maturity no earlier than the Stated Maturity of the Indebtedness being refinanced

 

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or (b) if the Stated Maturity of the Indebtedness being refinanced is later than the Stated Maturity of the Securities, the Refinancing Indebtedness has a Stated Maturity at least 91 days later than the Stated Maturity of the Securities;

(2)    the Refinancing Indebtedness has an Average Life at the time such Refinancing Indebtedness is Incurred that is equal to or greater than the Average Life of the Indebtedness being refinanced;

(3)    such Refinancing Indebtedness is Incurred in an aggregate principal amount (or if issued with original issue discount, an aggregate issue price) that is equal to or less than the sum of the aggregate principal amount (or if issued with original issue discount, the aggregate accreted value) then outstanding of the Indebtedness being refinanced (plus, without duplication, any additional Indebtedness Incurred to pay interest, premiums or defeasance costs required by the instruments governing such existing Indebtedness and fees and expenses Incurred in connection therewith); and

(4)    if the Indebtedness being refinanced is subordinated in right of payment to the Securities or a Guarantee, such Refinancing Indebtedness is subordinated in right of payment to the Securities or the Guarantee on terms at least as favorable to the holders as those contained in the documentation governing the Indebtedness being refinanced.

Reporting Failure ” means the failure of the Parent Guarantor to file with the SEC and make available or otherwise deliver to the Trustee and each Holder of the Securities, within the time periods specified in Section  3.10 , the periodic reports, information, documents or other reports which the Parent Guarantor may be required to file with the SEC pursuant to such provision.

Regulation S ” means Regulation S under the Securities Act.

Restricted Investment ” means any Investment other than a Permitted Investment.

Restricted Securities ” means Securities bearing the Restricted Securities Legend substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) of this Indenture.

Restricted Securities Legend ” means the legend set forth in Section 2.1(d)(1) .

Restricted Subsidiary ” means any Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor other than an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

Revolving Credit Facility ” means the Credit Agreement, dated as of the Issue Date, among the Issuer, as borrower, the Parent Guarantor and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto from time to time, including any guarantees, collateral documents, instruments and agreements executed in connection therewith, and any amendments, supplements, modifications, extensions, renewals, restatements, refundings or refinancings thereof and any indentures or credit facilities or commercial paper facilities with banks or other institutional lenders or investors that replace, refund or refinance any part of the loans, notes, other credit facilities or

 

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commitments thereunder, including any such replacement, refunding or refinancing facility or indenture that increases the amount borrowable thereunder or alters the maturity thereof ( provided that such increase in borrowings is permitted under Section  3.2 ).

Rule 144A ” means Rule 144A under the Securities Act.

S&P ” means S&P Global Ratings, a division of S&P Global, Inc., or any successor to the rating agency business thereof.

Sale/Leaseback Transaction ” means an arrangement relating to property now owned or hereafter acquired whereby the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary transfers such property to a Person and the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary leases it from such Person.

SEC ” means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.

Secured Indebtedness ” means any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries secured by a Lien.

Securities ” has the meaning ascribed to it in the second introductory paragraph of this Indenture.

Securities Act ” means the Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. §§ 77a-77aa), as amended, and the rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder.

Securities Custodian ” means the custodian with respect to the Global Security (as appointed by DTC), or any successor Person thereto and shall initially be the Trustee.

Senior Secured Credit Agreements ” means the Revolving Credit Facility and Term Loan Credit Agreement.

Significant Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that would be a “Significant Subsidiary” of the Parent Guarantor within the meaning of Rule 1-02 under Regulation S-X promulgated by the SEC, as in effect on the Issue Date.

Stated Maturity ” means, with respect to any security, the date specified in such security as the fixed date on which the payment of principal of such security is due and payable, including pursuant to any mandatory redemption provision, but shall not include any contingent obligations to repay, redeem or repurchase any such principal prior to the date originally scheduled for the payment thereof.

Subordinated Obligation ” means any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor (whether outstanding on the Issue Date or thereafter Incurred) which is expressly subordinated in right of payment to the Securities pursuant to a written agreement.

Subsidiary ” of any Person means (a) any corporation, association or other business entity (other than a partnership, joint venture, limited liability company or similar entity) of which more than 50% of the total ordinary voting power of its Capital Stock entitled (without

 

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regard to the occurrence of any contingency) to vote in the election of directors, managers or trustees thereof (or Persons performing similar functions) or (b) any partnership, joint venture, limited liability company or similar entity of which more than 50% of the capital accounts, distribution rights, total equity and voting interests or general or limited partnership interests, as applicable, that is, in the case of clauses (a) and (b), at the time owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by (1) such Person, (2) such Person and one or more Subsidiaries of such Person or (3) one or more Subsidiaries of such Person. Unless otherwise specified in this Indenture or the context indicates otherwise, each reference to a Subsidiary (other than in this definition) will refer to a Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor.

Subsidiary Guarantor ” means any Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor that is a guarantor of the Securities, including any Person that is required after the Issue Date to guarantee the Securities pursuant to Section  3.11 , in each case until a successor replaces such Person pursuant to the applicable provisions of this Indenture and, thereafter, means such successor; provided that upon the release or discharge of such Restricted Subsidiary from its Guarantee in accordance with this Indenture, such Restricted Subsidiary ceases to be a Guarantor.

Term Loan Credit Agreement ” means the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of the Issue Date, among the Issuer, as borrower, the Parent Guarantor and UP Energy Corporation, as parent guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other parties party thereto from time to time, including any guarantees, collateral documents, instruments and agreements executed in connection therewith, and any amendments, supplements, modifications, extensions, renewals, restatements, refundings or refinancings thereof and any indentures or credit facilities or commercial paper facilities with banks or other institutional lenders or investors that replace, refund or refinance any part of the loans, notes, other credit facilities or commitments thereunder, including any such replacement, refunding or refinancing facility or indenture that increases the amount borrowable thereunder or alters the maturity thereof ( provided that such increase in borrowings is permitted under Section  3.2 ).

TIA ” or “ Trust Indenture Act ” means the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (15 U.S.C. §§ 77aaa-77bbbb), as in effect on the date of this Indenture.

Trustee ” means the party named as such in this Indenture until a successor replaces it and, thereafter, means the successor.

Trust Officer ” means, when used with respect to the Trustee, any officer within the corporate trust department of the Trustee, including any vice president, assistant vice president, secretary, assistant treasurer, trust officer or any other officer of the Trustee who customarily performs functions similar to those performed by the Persons who at the time shall be such officers, respectively, or to whom any corporate trust matter relating to this Indenture is referred because of such person’s knowledge of and familiarity with the particular subject and who, in each case, shall have direct responsibility for the administration of this Indenture.

 

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Unrestricted Subsidiary ” means:

(1)    any Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor that at the time of determination shall be designated an Unrestricted Subsidiary by the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor in the manner provided below; and

(2)    any Subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

The Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor may designate any Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor (including any newly acquired or newly formed Subsidiary or a Person becoming a Subsidiary through merger or consolidation or Investment therein) to be an Unrestricted Subsidiary only if:

(1)    such Subsidiary or any of its Subsidiaries does not own any Capital Stock or Indebtedness of or have any Investment in, or own or hold any Lien on any property of, the Parent Guarantor or any other Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor which is not a Subsidiary of the Subsidiary to be so designated or otherwise an Unrestricted Subsidiary;

(2)    all the Indebtedness of such Subsidiary and its Subsidiaries shall, at the date of designation, and will at all times thereafter, consist of Non-Recourse Debt;

(3)    on the date of such designation, such designation and the Investment of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary in such Subsidiary complies with Section  3.3 ;

(4)    such Subsidiary is a Person with respect to which neither the Parent Guarantor nor any of its Restricted Subsidiaries has any direct or indirect obligation to subscribe for additional Capital Stock of such Person;

(5)    such Subsidiary, either alone or in the aggregate with all other Unrestricted Subsidiaries, does not operate, directly or indirectly, all or substantially all of the business of the Parent Guarantor and its Subsidiaries; and

(6)    on the date such Subsidiary is designated an Unrestricted Subsidiary, such Subsidiary is not a party to any agreement, contract, arrangement or understanding with the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary with terms substantially less favorable to the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary than those that might have been obtained from Persons who are not Affiliates of the Parent Guarantor.

Any such designation by the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor shall be evidenced to the Trustee by filing with the Trustee a Board Resolution of the Parent Guarantor giving effect to such designation and an Officers’ Certificate certifying that such designation complies with the foregoing conditions. If, at any time, any Unrestricted Subsidiary would fail to meet the foregoing requirements as an Unrestricted Subsidiary, it shall thereafter cease to be an Unrestricted Subsidiary for purposes of this Indenture and any Indebtedness of such Subsidiary shall be deemed to be incurred as of such date. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Issuer shall not be designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary at any time.

The Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor may designate any Unrestricted Subsidiary to be a Restricted Subsidiary; provided that immediately after giving effect to such

 

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designation, no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing or would occur as a consequence thereof and the Parent Guarantor could Incur at least $1.00 of additional Indebtedness under Section 3.2(a) on a pro forma basis taking into account such designation.

U.S. Government Obligations ” means securities that are (a) direct obligations of the United States of America for the timely payment of which its full faith and credit is pledged or (b) obligations of a Person controlled or supervised by and acting as an agency or instrumentality of the United States of America the timely payment of which is unconditionally guaranteed as a full faith and credit obligation of the United States of America, which, in either case, are not callable or redeemable at the option of the issuer thereof, and shall also include a depositary receipt issued by a bank (as defined in Section 3(a)(2) of the Securities Act), as custodian with respect to any such U.S. Government Obligations or a specific payment of principal of or interest on any such U.S. Government Obligations held by such custodian for the account of the holder of such depositary receipt; provided that (except as required by law) such custodian is not authorized to make any deduction from the amount payable to the holder of such depositary receipt from any amount received by the custodian in respect of the U.S. Government Obligations or the specific payment of principal of or interest on the U.S. Government Obligations evidenced by such depositary receipt.

Volumetric Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as deferred revenue in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

Voting Stock ” of an entity means all classes of Capital Stock of such entity then outstanding and normally entitled to vote in the election of members of such entity’s Board of Directors.

Wholly-Owned Subsidiary ” means a Restricted Subsidiary, all of the Capital Stock of which (other than directors’ qualifying shares) is owned by the Parent Guarantor or another Wholly-Owned Subsidiary.

 

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SECTION 1.2     Other Definitions .

 

Term

   Defined in Section  

Accounting Change

     1.1  

Additional Amounts

     2.18(b)  

Additional Restricted Securities

     2.1(b)  

Affiliate Transaction

     3.8  

Agent Members

     2.1(e)(iii)  

Alternate Offer

     3.9  

Asset Disposition Offer

     3.5  

Asset Disposition Offer Amount

     3.5  

Asset Disposition Offer Period

     3.5  

Asset Disposition Purchase Date

     3.5  

Authenticating Agent

     2.2  

Change of Control Offer

     3.9  

Change of Control Payment

     3.9(b)(1)  

Change of Control Payment Date

     3.9(b)(2)  

Clearstream

     2.1(b)  

covenant defeasance option

     8.1(b)  

cross acceleration provision

     6.1(6)(b)  

Defaulted Interest

     2.14  

Eliminated Covenants

     3.18  

Euroclear

     2.1(b)  

Event Default

     6.1  

Excess Proceeds

     3.5  

Excluded Holder

     2.18(b)  

General Partner

     1.1  

Global Securities

     2.1(b)  

Initial Lien

     3.6  

Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note

     2.1(b)  

Institutional Accredited Investor Notes

     2.1(b)  

Issuer Order

     2.2  

Joint Venture

     1.1  

judgment currency

     12.18  

judgment default provision

     6.1(8)  

legal defeasance option

     8.1(b)  

Legal Holiday

     12.8  

Notice of Default

     6.1(5), 6.1(4)  

Paying Agent

     2.3  

payment default

     6.1(6)(a)  

Plan of Reorganization

     3.2(b)(10)  

protected purchaser

     2.10  

Registrar

     2.3  

Regulation S Global Note

     2.1(b)  

Regulation S Notes

     2.1(b)  

Reimbursed Payment

     2.18(d)  

Resale Restriction Termination Date

     2.6(b)  

 

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Restricted Payment

     3.3(4)  

Restricted Period

     2.1(b)  

Rule 144A Global Note

     2.1(b)  

Rule 144A Notes

     2.1(b)  

Securities Register

     2.3  

Special Interest Payment Date

     2.14(a)  

Special Record Date

     2.14(a)  

Successor Company

     4.1(a)(1)  

Taxes

     2.18(a)  

Taxing Authority

     2.18(a)  

SECTION 1.3     Incorporation by Reference of Trust Indenture Act . The Issuer and the Guarantors, if any, shall not be required to qualify this Indenture under the Trust Indenture Act, and this Indenture shall not be governed by the Trust Indenture Act, except as specifically provided for herein. Whenever this Indenture refers to a provision of the Trust Indenture Act, the provision is incorporated by reference in and made a part of this Indenture. The following TIA term has the following meanings:

“obligor” means the Issuer, the Guarantors and any other obligor on the Securities and the Guarantees.

All other TIA terms used in this Indenture that are defined by the TIA, defined in the TIA by reference to another statute or defined by SEC rule have the meanings assigned to them by such definitions.

SECTION 1.4     Rules of Construction . Unless the context otherwise requires:

(1)    a term has the meaning assigned to it;

(2)    an accounting term not otherwise defined has the meaning assigned to it in accordance with GAAP;

(3)    “or” is not exclusive;

(4)    including” means including without limitation;

(5)    words in the singular include the plural and words in the plural include the singular;

(6)    all amounts expressed in this Indenture or in any of the Securities in terms of money refer to the lawful currency of the United States of America; and

(7)    the words “herein,” “hereof” and “hereunder” and other words of similar import refer to this Indenture as a whole and not to any particular Article, Section or other subdivision.

 

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ARTICLE II

THE SECURITIES

SECTION 2.1     Form, Dating and Terms .

(a)    The aggregate principal amount of Securities that may be authenticated and delivered under this Indenture is unlimited. The 2022 Notes issued on the Issue Date shall be in an aggregate principal amount of $700,000,000, and the 2025 Notes issued on the Issue Date shall be in an aggregate principal amount of $500,000,000. In addition, the Issuer may issue, from time to time in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture, Additional Securities, subject to compliance with Section  3.2 . Any Additional Securities of a series that are not fungible with the Initial Securities of such series for U.S. federal income tax purposes shall have a separate CUSIP number and ISIN from the Initial Securities of such series. Furthermore, Securities may be authenticated and delivered upon registration of transfer, exchange or in lieu of, other Securities pursuant to Section  2.2 , 2.6 , 2.10 , 2.12 , 5.8 or 9.5 , in connection with an Asset Disposition Offer pursuant to Section  3.5 or in connection with a Change of Control Offer pursuant to Section  3.9 .

The 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes that are Initial Securities shall be known and designated as “6.875% Senior Notes due 2022” and “7.125% Senior Notes due 2025”, respectively, of the Issuer. The 2022 Notes and 2025 Notes that are Additional Securities issued as Restricted Securities shall be known and designated as “6.875% Senior Notes due 2022” and “7.125% Senior Notes due 2025”, respectively, of the Issuer.

With respect to any Additional Securities, the Issuer shall set forth in (a) a Board Resolution of the Issuer and (b) (i) an Officers’ Certificate and (ii) one or more indentures supplemental hereto, the following information:

(1)    the aggregate principal amount of such Additional Securities to be authenticated and delivered pursuant to this Indenture; and

(2)    the issue price, the issue date of such Additional Securities, including the date from which interest shall accrue, the initial interest payment date of such Additional Securities and, if different from the Initial Securities of the applicable series, the CUSIP number and ISIN of such Additional Securities.

In authenticating and delivering Additional Securities, the Trustee shall be entitled to receive and shall be fully protected in relying upon, in addition to the Opinion of Counsel and Officers’ Certificate required by Section  12.4 , an Opinion of Counsel as to the due authorization, execution, delivery, validity and enforceability of such Additional Securities.

The Initial Securities of a series and any Additional Securities of such series shall be considered collectively as a single class for all purposes of this Indenture. Holders of the Initial Securities of a series and any Additional Securities of such series will vote and consent together on all matters to which such Holders are entitled to vote or consent as one class, and none of the Holders of the Initial Securities or any Additional Securities of such series shall have the right to vote or consent as a separate class on any matter to which such Holders are entitled to vote or consent.

 

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A copy of an appropriate record of the terms of any Additional Securities that are established by action taken pursuant to Board Resolutions of the Issuer shall be certified by the Secretary or any Assistant Secretary of the Issuer and delivered to the Trustee at or prior to the delivery of the Officers’ Certificate and the indenture supplemental hereto setting forth the terms of the Additional Securities.

(b)    The Initial Securities are being offered and sold by the Issuer pursuant to a Purchase Agreement, dated April 7, 2017, among the Issuer, the Guarantors and Barclays Capital Inc., as representative of the Initial Purchasers. The Initial Securities and any Additional Securities (if issued as Restricted Securities) (the “ Additional Restricted Securities ”) shall be resold initially only to (A) persons reasonably believed to be QIBs in reliance on Rule 144A and (B) Non-U.S. Persons in reliance on Regulation S. Such Initial Securities and Additional Restricted Securities may thereafter be transferred to, among others, QIBs, purchasers in reliance on Regulation S and IAIs in accordance with Rule 501 of the Securities Act, in each case, in accordance with the procedure described herein. Additional Securities offered after the Issue Date may be offered and sold by the Issuer from time to time pursuant to one or more purchase agreements in accordance with applicable law.

Initial Securities and Additional Restricted Securities offered and sold to persons reasonably believed to be QIBs in the United States of America in reliance on Rule 144A (the “ Rule 144A Notes ”) shall be issued in the form of a permanent global Security substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes), which is hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this Indenture, including appropriate legends as set forth in Section 2.1(d) (the “ Rule 144A Global Note ”), deposited with the Trustee, as Securities Custodian, duly executed by the Issuer and authenticated by the Trustee as hereinafter provided. The Rule 144A Global Note may be represented by more than one certificate, if so required by DTC’s rules regarding the maximum principal amount to be represented by a single certificate. The aggregate principal amount of the Rule 144A Global Note may from time to time be increased or decreased by adjustments made on the records of the Trustee, as Securities Custodian, as hereinafter provided.

Initial Securities and any Additional Restricted Securities offered and sold outside the United States of America (the “ Regulation S Notes ”) in reliance on Regulation S shall initially be issued in the form of a permanent global Security substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) including appropriate legends as set forth in Section 2.1(d) (the “ Regulation S Global Note ”) deposited upon issuance with, or on behalf of, the Trustee as Securities Custodian in the manner described in this Article II for credit to the respective accounts of the purchasers (or to such other accounts as they may direct), including, but not limited to, accounts at Euroclear Bank S.A./N.V. (“ Euroclear ”) or Clearstream Banking, société anonyme (“ Clearstream ”). Prior to the 40th day after the later of the commencement of the offering of the Initial Securities and the Issue Date (such period through and including such 40th day, the “ Restricted Period ”), interests in the Regulation S Global Note may only be transferred to Non-U.S. Persons pursuant to Regulation S, unless exchanged for interests in another Global Security in accordance with the transfer and

 

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certification requirements described herein. Investors may hold their interests in the Regulation S Global Note through organizations other than Euroclear or Clearstream that are participants in DTC’s system or directly through Euroclear or Clearstream, if they are participants in such systems, or indirectly through organizations which are participants in such systems. If such interests are held through Euroclear or Clearstream, Euroclear and Clearstream shall hold such interests in the applicable Regulation S Global Note on behalf of their participants through customers’ securities accounts in their respective names on the books of their respective depositaries. Such depositaries, in turn, shall hold such interests in the applicable Regulation S Global Note in customers’ securities accounts in the depositaries’ names on the books of DTC. The Regulation S Global Note may be represented by more than one certificate, if so required by DTC’s rules regarding the maximum principal amount to be represented by a single certificate. The aggregate principal amount of the Regulation S Global Note may from time to time be increased or decreased by adjustments made on the records of the Trustee, as custodian for DTC or its nominee, as hereinafter provided.

Initial Securities and Additional Restricted Securities resold to IAIs (the “ Institutional Accredited Investor Notes ”) in the United States of America shall be issued in the form of a permanent global Security substantially in the form of Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) including appropriate legends as set forth in Section 2.1(d) (the “ Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note ”) deposited with the Trustee, as Securities Custodian, duly executed by the Issuer and authenticated by the Trustee as hereinafter provided. The Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note may be represented by more than one certificate, if so required by DTC’s rules regarding the maximum principal amount to be represented by a single certificate. The aggregate principal amount of the Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note may from time to time be increased or decreased by adjustments made on the records of the Trustee, as custodian for DTC or its nominee, as hereinafter provided.

The Rule 144A Global Note, the Regulation S Global Note, and the Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note are sometimes collectively herein referred to as the “ Global Securities .”

The principal of (and premium, if any) and interest on the Securities shall be payable at the office or agency of the Issuer maintained for such purpose pursuant to Section  2.3 ; provided, however, that, at the option of the Issuer, each installment of interest may be paid by check mailed to addresses of the Persons entitled thereto as such addresses shall appear on the Securities Register. Payments in respect of Securities represented by a Global Security (including principal, premium, if any, and interest) will be made by wire transfer of immediately available funds to the accounts specified by DTC.

The Securities may have notations, legends or endorsements required by law, stock exchange rule or usage, in addition to those set forth on Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) and in Section 2.1(d) . The Issuer shall approve any notation, endorsement or legend on the Securities. Each Security shall be dated the date of its authentication, and the Trustee’s certificate of authentication shall be substantially in the form set forth on Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) . The terms of the Securities set forth in Exhibit A-1 and Exhibit A-2 are part of the terms of this Indenture and, to the extent applicable, the Issuer, the Guarantors and the Trustee, by their execution and delivery of this Indenture, expressly agree to be bound by such terms.

 

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(c)    Denominations. The Securities shall be issuable only in fully registered form, without coupons, and only in minimum denominations of $2,000 and any integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof.

(d)    Restrictive Legends. Unless and until an Initial Security or an Additional Security issued as a Restricted Security is sold under an effective registration statement:

(1)    the Rule 144A Global Note, the Regulation S Global Note and the Institutional Accredited Investor Global Note shall bear the following legend on the face thereof:

THIS SECURITY HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “ SECURITIES ACT ”), OR THE SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION. NEITHER THIS SECURITY NOR ANY INTEREST OR PARTICIPATION HEREIN MAY BE REOFFERED, SOLD, ASSIGNED, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED, ENCUMBERED, OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF IN THE ABSENCE OF SUCH REGISTRATION UNLESS SUCH TRANSACTION IS EXEMPT FROM, OR NOT SUBJECT TO, SUCH REGISTRATION.

THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY, BY ITS ACCEPTANCE HEREOF, AGREES ON ITS OWN BEHALF AND ON BEHALF OF ANY INVESTOR ACCOUNT FOR WHICH IT HAS PURCHASED SECURITIES, TO OFFER, SELL, OR OTHERWISE TRANSFER SUCH SECURITY, PRIOR TO THE DATE (THE “ RESALE RESTRICTION TERMINATION DATE ”) THAT IS ONE YEAR (IN THE CASE OF RULE 144A SECURITIES) AFTER THE LATER OF THE ISSUE DATE HEREOF AND THE LAST DATE ON WHICH THE ISSUER OR ANY AFFILIATE OF THE ISSUER WAS THE OWNER OF THIS SECURITY (OR ANY PREDECESSOR OF SUCH SECURITY) OR 40 DAYS (IN THE CASE OF REGULATION S SECURITIES) AFTER THE LATER OF THE ORIGINAL ISSUE DATE HEREOF AND THE DATE ON WHICH THIS SECURITY (OR ANY PREDECESSOR OF SUCH SECURITY) WAS FIRST OFFERED TO PERSONS OTHER THAN DISTRIBUTORS (AS DEFINED IN RULE 902 OF REGULATION S) IN RELIANCE ON REGULATION S, ONLY (A) TO THE PARENT GUARANTOR OR ANY SUBSIDIARY THEREOF, (B) PURSUANT TO A REGISTRATION STATEMENT THAT HAS BEEN DECLARED EFFECTIVE UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT, (C) FOR SO LONG AS THE SECURITIES ARE ELIGIBLE FOR RESALE PURSUANT TO RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT, TO A PERSON IT REASONABLY BELIEVES IS A “ QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER ” AS DEFINED IN RULE 144A UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT THAT PURCHASES FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF A QUALIFIED INSTITUTIONAL BUYER TO WHOM NOTICE IS GIVEN THAT THE TRANSFER IS BEING MADE IN RELIANCE ON RULE 144A, (D) PURSUANT TO OFFERS AND SALES THAT OCCUR OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES WITHIN THE MEANING OF REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT, (E) TO AN INSTITUTIONAL “ ACCREDITED INVESTOR ” WITHIN THE MEANING OF RULE 501(a)(1), (2), (3), OR (7) UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT THAT

 

51


IS AN INSTITUTIONAL ACCREDITED INVESTOR ACQUIRING THE SECURITY FOR ITS OWN ACCOUNT OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OF SUCH AN INSTITUTIONAL ACCREDITED INVESTOR, IN EACH CASE IN A MINIMUM PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF THE SECURITIES OF $250,000, FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES AND NOT WITH A VIEW TO OR FOR OFFER OR SALE IN CONNECTION WITH ANY DISTRIBUTION IN VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES ACT, OR (F) PURSUANT TO ANOTHER AVAILABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE SECURITIES ACT, SUBJECT TO THE ISSUER’S AND THE REGISTRAR’S RIGHT PRIOR TO ANY SUCH OFFER, SALE, OR TRANSFER PURSUANT TO CLAUSE (D), (E), OR (F) TO REQUIRE THE DELIVERY OF AN OPINION OF COUNSEL, CERTIFICATION, AND/OR OTHER INFORMATION SATISFACTORY TO EACH OF THEM. THE HOLDER AGREES THAT IT WILL DELIVER TO EACH PERSON TO WHOM THIS SECURITY OR AN INTEREST HEREIN IS TRANSFERRED A NOTICE SUBSTANTIALLY TO THE EFFECT OF THIS LEGEND. THIS LEGEND WILL BE REMOVED UPON THE REQUEST OF THE HOLDER OR THE ISSUER ON OR AFTER THE RESALE RESTRICTION TERMINATION DATE.

BY ITS ACQUISITION AND HOLDING OF THIS SECURITY, THE HOLDER THEREOF WILL BE DEEMED TO HAVE REPRESENTED, WARRANTED AND AGREED THAT EITHER (1) NO PORTION OF THE ASSETS USED BY SUCH HOLDER TO ACQUIRE OR HOLD THIS SECURITY (OR ANY INTEREST IN THIS SECURITY) CONSTITUTES THE ASSETS OF AN EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLAN THAT IS SUBJECT TO TITLE I OF THE U.S. EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974, AS AMENDED (“ERISA”), A PLAN, INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNT OR OTHER ARRANGEMENT THAT IS SUBJECT TO SECTION 4975 OF THE U.S. INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED (THE “ CODE ”), OR ANY GOVERNMENTAL PLAN, CHURCH PLAN, NON-U.S. PLAN, OR OTHER PLAN SUBJECT TO OTHER FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL, NON-U.S. OR OTHER LAWS OR REGULATIONS THAT ARE SIMILAR TO SUCH PROVISIONS OF ERISA OR THE CODE (“ SIMILAR LAWS ”), OR AN ENTITY WHOSE UNDERLYING ASSETS ARE CONSIDERED TO INCLUDE “ PLAN ASSETS ” OF SUCH PLAN, ACCOUNT OR ARRANGEMENT, OR (2) THE ACQUISITION, HOLDING AND DISPOSITION OF THIS SECURITY (OR ANY INTEREST IN THIS SECURITY) WILL NOT CONSTITUTE A NON-EXEMPT PROHIBITED TRANSACTION UNDER SECTION 406 OF ERISA OR SECTION 4975 OF THE CODE OR A SIMILAR VIOLATION UNDER ANY APPLICABLE SIMILAR LAWS.

IN THE CASE OF REGULATION S NOTES: BY ITS ACQUISITION HEREOF, THE HOLDER HEREOF REPRESENTS THAT IT IS NOT A U.S. PERSON NOR IS IT PURCHASING FOR THE ACCOUNT OF A U.S. PERSON AND IS ACQUIRING THIS SECURITY IN AN OFFSHORE TRANSACTION IN ACCORDANCE WITH REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT.

(2)    Each Global Security, whether or not an Initial Security, shall bear the following legend on the face thereof:

UNLESS THIS CERTIFICATE IS PRESENTED BY AN AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE DEPOSITORY TRUST COMPANY, A NEW YORK CORPORATION (“ DTC ”), NEW YORK, NEW YORK, TO THE ISSUER OR ITS AGENT

 

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FOR REGISTRATION OF TRANSFER, EXCHANGE OR PAYMENT, AND ANY CERTIFICATE ISSUED IS REGISTERED IN THE NAME OF CEDE & CO. OR IN SUCH OTHER NAME AS IS REQUESTED BY AN AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF DTC (AND ANY PAYMENT IS MADE TO CEDE & CO. OR TO SUCH OTHER ENTITY AS IS REQUESTED BY AN AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF DTC), ANY TRANSFER, PLEDGE OR OTHER USE HEREOF FOR VALUE OR OTHERWISE BY OR TO ANY PERSON IS WRONGFUL INASMUCH AS THE REGISTERED OWNER HEREOF, CEDE & CO., HAS AN INTEREST HEREIN.

TRANSFERS OF THIS GLOBAL SECURITY SHALL BE LIMITED TO TRANSFERS IN WHOLE, BUT NOT IN PART, TO DTC, TO NOMINEES OF DTC OR TO A SUCCESSOR THEREOF OR SUCH SUCCESSOR’S NOMINEE AND TRANSFERS OF PORTIONS OF THIS GLOBAL SECURITY SHALL BE LIMITED TO TRANSFERS MADE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE RESTRICTIONS SET FORTH IN THE INDENTURE REFERRED TO ON THE REVERSE HEREOF.

(3)    Each Security issued hereunder that has more than a de minimis amount of original issue discount for U.S. federal income tax purposes shall bear a legend in substantially the following form:

THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS SUPPLIED SOLELY FOR U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX PURPOSES. THIS SECURITY IS ISSUED WITH ORIGINAL ISSUE DISCOUNT UNDER SECTIONS 1272, 1273 AND 1275 OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986, AS AMENDED. A HOLDER MAY OBTAIN THE ISSUE PRICE, AMOUNT OF ORIGINAL ISSUE DISCOUNT, ISSUE DATE AND YIELD TO MATURITY FOR THIS SECURITY BY SUBMITTING A REQUEST FOR SUCH INFORMATION TO THE ISSUER AT THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS: ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., 400 NORTH SAM HOUSTON PARKWAY EAST, SUITE 1200, HOUSTON, TEXAS 77060, ATTENTION: CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.

(4)     Each Security issued hereunder shall also bear a legend in substantially the following form:

UNLESS PERMITTED UNDER SECURITIES LEGISLATION, THE HOLDER OF THIS SECURITY MUST NOT TRADE THIS NOTE BEFORE THE DATE THAT IS 4 MONTHS AND A DAY AFTER THE LATER OF (I) APRIL 12, 2017 AND (II) THE DATE THE ISSUER BECAME A REPORTING ISSUER IN ANY PROVINCE OR TERRITORY.

(e)     Book-Entry Provisions .

(i)    This Section 2.1(e) shall apply only to Global Securities deposited with the Trustee, as Securities Custodian.

(ii)    Each Global Security initially shall (x) be registered in the name of Cede & Co. as the nominee of DTC, (y) be delivered to the Trustee as Securities Custodian and (z) bear legends as set forth in Section 2.1(d) . Transfers of a Global Security (but not a beneficial interest therein) will be limited to transfers thereof in whole, but not in part, to the Depositary, its successors or their respective nominees,

 

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except as set forth in Section 2.1(e)(v) and 2.1(f) . If a beneficial interest in a Global Security is transferred or exchanged for a beneficial interest in another Global Security, the Trustee will (x) record a decrease in the principal amount of the Global Security being transferred or exchanged equal to the principal amount of such transfer or exchange and (y) record a like increase in the principal amount of the other Global Security. Any beneficial interest in one Global Security that is transferred to a Person who takes delivery in the form of an interest in another Global Security, or exchanged for an interest in another Global Security, will, upon transfer or exchange, cease to be an interest in such Global Security and become an interest in the other Global Security and, accordingly, will thereafter be subject to all transfer and exchange restrictions, if any, and other procedures applicable to beneficial interests in such other Global Security for as long as it remains such an interest.

(iii)    Members of, or participants in, DTC (“ Agent Members ”) shall have no rights under this Indenture with respect to any Global Security held on their behalf by DTC or by the Trustee as the Securities Custodian or under such Global Security, and DTC may be treated by the Issuer, the Guarantors, the Trustee and any agent of the Issuer, the Guarantors or the Trustee as the absolute owner of such Global Security for all purposes whatsoever. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing herein shall prevent the Issuer, the Guarantors, the Trustee or any agent of the Issuer, the Guarantors or the Trustee from giving effect to any written certification, proxy or other authorization furnished by DTC or impair, as between DTC and its Agent Members, the operation of customary practices of DTC governing the exercise of the rights of a Holder of a beneficial interest in any Global Security.

(iv)    In connection with any transfer of a portion of the beneficial interest in a Global Security pursuant to Section 2.1(f) to beneficial owners who are required to hold Definitive Securities, the Securities Custodian shall reflect on its books and records the date and a decrease in the principal amount of such Global Security in an amount equal to the principal amount of the beneficial interest in the Global Security to be transferred, and the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, one or more Definitive Securities of like tenor and amount.

(v)    In connection with the transfer of an entire Global Security to beneficial owners pursuant to Section 2.1(f) , such Global Security shall be deemed to be surrendered to the Trustee for cancellation, and the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, to each beneficial owner identified by DTC in exchange for its beneficial interest in such Global Security, an equal aggregate principal amount of Definitive Securities of authorized denominations.

(vi)    The registered Holder of a Global Security may grant proxies and otherwise authorize any person, including Agent Members and persons that may hold interests through Agent Members, to take any action which a Holder is entitled to take under this Indenture or the Securities.

 

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(vii)    Any Holder of a Global Security shall, by acceptance of such Global Security, agree that transfers of beneficial interests in such Global Security may be effected only through a book-entry system maintained by (a) the Holder of such Global Security (or its agent) or (b) any holder of a beneficial interest in such Global Security, and that ownership of a beneficial interest in such Global Security shall be required to be reflected in a book entry.

(f)     Definitive Securities .

(i)    Except as provided below, owners of beneficial interests in Global Securities will not be entitled to receive Definitive Securities. If required to do so pursuant to any applicable law or regulation, beneficial owners may obtain Definitive Securities in exchange for their beneficial interests in a Global Security upon written request in accordance with DTC’s and the Registrar’s procedures. In addition, Definitive Securities shall be transferred to all beneficial owners in exchange for their beneficial interests in a Global Security if (A) DTC notifies the Issuer that it is unwilling or unable to continue as depositary for such Global Security or DTC ceases to be a clearing agency registered under the Exchange Act, at a time when DTC is required to be so registered in order to act as depositary, and in each case a successor depositary is not appointed by the Issuer within 90 days of such notice or (B) the Issuer, in its sole discretion, executes and delivers to the Trustee and Registrar an Officers’ Certificate stating that such Global Security shall be so exchangeable. In the event of the occurrence of any of the events specified in the preceding sentence or in clause (A) or (B) of the preceding sentence, Definitive Securities delivered in exchange for any Global Security or beneficial interests therein will be registered in the names, and issued in any approved denominations, requested by or on behalf of DTC (in accordance with its customary procedures).

(ii)    Any Definitive Security delivered in exchange for an interest in a Global Security pursuant to Section 2.1(e)(iv) shall, except as otherwise provided by Section 2.6(d) , bear the Restricted Securities Legend.

(iii)    If a Definitive Security is transferred or exchanged for a beneficial interest in a Global Security, the Trustee will (x) cancel such Definitive Security, (y) record an increase in the principal amount of such Global Security equal to the principal amount of such transfer or exchange and (z) in the event that such transfer or exchange involves less than the entire principal amount of the canceled Definitive Security, the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, to the transferring Holder a new Definitive Security representing the principal amount not so transferred.

(iv)    If a Definitive Security is transferred or exchanged for another Definitive Security, (x) the Trustee will cancel the Definitive Security being transferred or exchanged, (y) the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, one or more new Definitive Securities in authorized denominations having an aggregate principal amount equal to the principal amount of such transfer or exchange to the transferee (in the case of a transfer) or the Holder of the canceled Definitive Security (in the case of an exchange), registered in the

 

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name of such transferee or Holder, as applicable, and (z) if such transfer or exchange involves less than the entire principal amount of the canceled Definitive Security, the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery to the Holder thereof, one or more Definitive Securities in authorized denominations having an aggregate principal amount equal to the untransferred or unexchanged portion of the canceled Definitive Securities, registered in the name of the Holder thereof.

SECTION 2.2     Execution and Authentication . One Officer shall sign the Securities for the Issuer by manual or facsimile signature. If the Officer whose signature is on a Security no longer holds that office at the time the Trustee authenticates the Security, the Security shall be valid nevertheless.

A Security shall not be valid until an authorized officer of the Trustee manually authenticates the Security. The signature of the Trustee on a Security shall be conclusive evidence that such Security has been duly and validly authenticated and issued under this Indenture. A Security shall be dated the date of its authentication.

At any time and from time to time after the execution and delivery of this Indenture, the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery: (1) the 2022 Notes for original issue on the Issue Date in an aggregate principal amount of $700,000,000, (2) the 2025 Notes for original issue on the Issue Date in an aggregate principal amount of $500,000,000, (3) subject to the terms of this Indenture, (including compliance with Section  3.2 ), Additional Securities for original issue in an unlimited principal amount and (4) when sold in connection with an effective registration statement, Initial Securities in the form of an unrestricted Global Security, in each case upon a written order of the Issuer signed by one Officer of the Issuer (the “ Issuer Order ”). Such Issuer Order shall specify whether the Securities will be in the form of Definitive Securities or Global Securities, the amount of the Securities to be authenticated and the date on which the original issue of Securities is to be authenticated and whether the Securities are to be Initial Securities or Additional Securities. For the avoidance of doubt, each of the 2022 Notes and the 2025 Notes shall constitute a separate series hereunder.

The Trustee may appoint an agent (the “ Authenticating Agent ”) reasonably acceptable to the Issuer to authenticate the Securities. Any such instrument shall be evidenced by an instrument signed by a Trust Officer, a copy of which shall be furnished to the Issuer. Unless limited by the terms of such appointment, any such Authenticating Agent may authenticate Securities whenever the Trustee may do so. Each reference in this Indenture to authentication by the Trustee includes authentication by the Authenticating Agent. An Authenticating Agent has the same rights as any Registrar, Paying Agent or agent for delivery of notices and demands.

In case the Issuer or any Guarantor shall be consolidated or merged with or into any other Person or shall convey, transfer, lease or otherwise dispose of its properties and assets substantially as an entirety to any Person, and the successor Person resulting from such consolidation, or surviving such merger, or into which the Issuer or any Guarantor shall have been merged, or the Person which shall have received a conveyance, transfer, lease or other disposition as aforesaid, shall have executed an indenture supplemental hereto with the Trustee in accordance with Article IV , as applicable, any of the Securities authenticated or delivered

 

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prior to such consolidation, merger, conveyance, transfer, lease or other disposition may, from time to time, at the request of the successor Person, be exchanged for other Securities executed in the name of the successor Person (in the case of Global Securities, subject to the applicable procedures of the Depositary) with such changes in phraseology and form as may be appropriate, but otherwise in substance of like tenor as the Securities surrendered for such exchange and of like principal amount; and the Trustee, upon Issuer Order of the successor Person, shall authenticate and make available for delivery Securities as specified in such order for the purpose of such exchange. If Securities shall at any time be authenticated and delivered in any new name of a successor Person pursuant to this Section  2.2 in exchange or substitution for or upon registration of transfer of any Securities, such successor Person, at the option of the Holders but without expense to them, shall provide for the exchange of all Securities at the time outstanding for Securities authenticated and delivered in such new name.

SECTION 2.3     Registrar and Paying Agent . The Issuer shall maintain in the continental United States an office or agency where Securities may be presented for registration of transfer or for exchange (the “ Registrar ”), and an office or agency where Securities may be presented for payment (the “ Paying Agent ”). The Registrar shall keep a register of the Securities and of their transfer and exchange (the “ Securities Register ”). The Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may act as Registrar or Paying Agent. The Issuer may have one or more co-registrars and one or more additional paying agents. The term “Paying Agent” includes any additional paying agent and the term “Registrar” includes any co-registrar.

The Issuer shall enter into an appropriate agency agreement with any Registrar or Paying Agent not a party to this Indenture. The agreement shall implement the provisions of this Indenture that relate to such agent. The Issuer shall notify the Trustee of the name and address of each such agent. If the Issuer fails to maintain a Registrar or Paying Agent, the Trustee shall act as such and shall be entitled to appropriate compensation therefor pursuant to Section  7.7 . The Parent Guarantor or any of its wholly-owned Restricted Subsidiaries organized in the United States may act as Paying Agent, Registrar or transfer agent.

The Issuer initially appoints the Trustee as Registrar for the Securities at its corporate trust office in the United States, and as Paying Agent for the Securities at its corporate trust office in the United States The Issuer may remove any Registrar or Paying Agent upon written notice to such Registrar or Paying Agent and to the Trustee; provided, however, that no such removal shall become effective until (i) acceptance of any appointment by a successor as evidenced by an appropriate agreement entered into by the Issuer and such successor Registrar or Paying Agent, as the case may be, and delivered to the Trustee or (ii) notification to the Trustee that the Trustee shall serve as Registrar or Paying Agent until the appointment of a successor in accordance with clause (i) above. The Registrar or Paying Agent may resign at any time upon written notice to the Issuer and the Trustee.

SECTION 2.4     Paying Agent to Hold Money in Trust . By no later than 11:00 a.m. (New York City time) on the date on which any principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any Security is due and payable, the Issuer shall deposit with the Paying Agent a sum sufficient in immediately available funds to pay such principal, premium or interest when due. The Issuer shall require each Paying Agent (other than the Trustee) to agree in writing that such Paying Agent shall hold in trust for the benefit of Securityholders or the Trustee all money held by such

 

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Paying Agent for the payment of principal of, premium, if any, or interest on the Securities (whether such assets have been distributed to it by the Issuer or other obligors on the Securities), shall notify the Trustee in writing of any default by the Issuer or any Guarantor in making any such payment and shall during the continuance of any default by the Issuer (or any other obligor upon the Securities) in the making of any payment in respect of the Securities, upon the written request of the Trustee, forthwith deliver to the Trustee all sums held in trust by such Paying Agent for payment in respect of the Securities together with a full accounting thereof. If the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary acts as Paying Agent, it shall segregate the money held by it as Paying Agent and hold it as a separate trust fund. The Issuer at any time may require a Paying Agent (other than the Trustee) to pay all money held by it to the Trustee and to account for any funds or assets disbursed by such Paying Agent. Upon complying with this Section  2.4 , the Paying Agent (if other than the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary) shall have no further liability for the money delivered to the Trustee. Upon any bankruptcy, reorganization or similar proceeding with respect to the Issuer or the Parent Guarantor, the Trustee shall serve as Paying Agent for the Securities.

SECTION 2.5     Securityholder Lists . The Trustee shall preserve in as current a form as is reasonably practicable the most recent list available to it of the names and addresses of Securityholders. If the Trustee is not the Registrar, each of the Issuer and the Parent Guarantor, on its own behalf and on behalf of each of the Subsidiary Guarantors, shall furnish or cause the Registrar to furnish to the Trustee, in writing at least five Business Days before each interest payment date and at such other times as the Trustee may request in writing, a list in such form and as of such date as the Trustee may reasonably require of the names and addresses of Securityholders.

SECTION 2.6     Transfer and Exchange .

(a)    A Holder may transfer a Security (or a beneficial interest therein) to another Person or exchange a Security (or a beneficial interest therein) for another Security or Securities of any authorized denomination by presenting to the Trustee a written request therefor stating the name of the proposed transferee or requesting such an exchange, accompanied by any certification, opinion or other document required by this Section  2.6 . The Trustee shall promptly register any transfer or exchange that meets the requirements of this Section  2.6 by noting the same in the register maintained by the Trustee for the purpose, and no transfer or exchange shall be effective until it is registered in such register. The transfer or exchange of any Security (or a beneficial interest therein) may only be made in accordance with this Section  2.6 and Section 2.1(e) and 2.1(f) , as applicable, and, in the case of a Global Security (or a beneficial interest therein), the applicable rules and procedures of DTC, Euroclear and Clearstream. Subject to Section 2.6(h) , the Trustee shall refuse to register any requested transfer or exchange that does not comply with this Section 2.6(a) .

(b)     Transfers of Rule 144A Notes and Institutional Accredited Investor Notes . The following provisions shall apply with respect to any proposed registration of transfer of a Rule 144A Note or an Institutional Accredited Investor Note prior to the date which is one year

 

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after the later of the date of its original issue and the last date on which the Issuer or any Affiliate of Issuer was the owner of such Securities (or any predecessor thereto) (the “ Resale Restriction Termination Date ”):

(i)    a registration of transfer of a Rule 144A Note or an Institutional Accredited Investor Note or a beneficial interest therein to a QIB shall be made upon the representation of the transferee in the form as set forth on the reverse of the Security that it is purchasing for its own account or an account with respect to which it exercises sole investment discretion and that it and any such account is a “qualified institutional buyer” within the meaning of Rule 144A, and is aware that the sale to it is being made in reliance on Rule 144A and acknowledges that it has received such information regarding the Issuer as the undersigned has requested pursuant to Rule 144A or has determined not to request such information and that it is aware that the transferor is relying upon its foregoing representations in order to claim the exemption from registration provided by Rule 144A; provided that no such written representation or other written certification shall be required in connection with the transfer of a beneficial interest in the Rule 144A Global Note to a transferee in the form of a beneficial interest in that Rule 144A Global Note in accordance with this Indenture and the applicable procedures of DTC;

(ii)    a registration of transfer of a Rule 144A Note or an Institutional Accredited Investor Note or a beneficial interest therein to an IAI shall be made upon receipt by the Registrar or its agent of a certificate substantially in the form set forth in Section  2.8 from the proposed transferee and, if requested by the Issuer or the Registrar, the delivery of an opinion of counsel, certification and/or other information satisfactory to the Issuer; and

(iii)    a registration of transfer of a Rule 144A Note or an Institutional Accredited Investor Note or a beneficial interest therein to a Non-U.S. Person shall be made upon receipt by the Registrar or its agent of a certificate substantially in the form set forth in Section  2.9 from the proposed transferee and, if requested by the Issuer or the Registrar, the delivery of an opinion of counsel, certification and/or other information satisfactory to the Issuer.

(c)     Transfers of Regulation S Notes . The following provisions shall apply with respect to any proposed transfer of a Regulation S Note prior to the expiration of the Restricted Period:

(i)    a transfer of a Regulation S Note or a beneficial interest therein to a QIB shall be made upon the representation of the transferee, in the form of assignment on the reverse of the Security, that it is purchasing the Security for its own account or an account with respect to which it exercises sole investment discretion and that it and any such account is a “qualified institutional buyer” within the meaning of Rule 144A, is aware that the sale to it is being made in reliance on Rule 144A and acknowledges that it has received such information regarding the Issuer as the undersigned has requested pursuant to Rule 144A or has determined not to request such information and that it is aware that the transferor is relying upon its foregoing representations in order to claim the exemption from registration provided by Rule 144A;

(ii)    a transfer of a Regulation S Note or a beneficial interest therein to an IAI shall be made upon receipt by the Registrar or its agent of a certificate substantially in the form set forth in Section  2.8 from the proposed transferee and, if requested by the Issuer or the Registrar, the delivery of an opinion of counsel, certification and/or other information satisfactory to each of them; and

 

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(iii)    a transfer of a Regulation S Note or a beneficial interest therein to a Non-U.S. Person shall be made upon receipt by the Registrar or its agent of a certificate substantially in the form set forth in Section  2.9 hereof from the proposed transferee and, if requested by the Issuer or the Registrar, receipt by the Registrar or its agent of an opinion of counsel, certification and/or other information satisfactory to the Issuer.

After the expiration of the Restricted Period, interests in the Regulation S Note may be transferred in accordance with applicable law without requiring the certification set forth in Section  2.8 , Section  2.9 or any additional certification.

(d)     Restricted Securities Legend . Upon the transfer, exchange or replacement of Securities not bearing a Restricted Securities Legend, the Registrar shall deliver Securities that do not bear a Restricted Securities Legend. Upon the transfer, exchange or replacement of Securities bearing a Restricted Securities Legend, the Registrar shall deliver only Securities that bear a Restricted Securities Legend unless (i) an Initial Security is being transferred pursuant to an effective registration statement or (ii) there is delivered to the Issuer and the Registrar an Opinion of Counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Issuer and the Registrar to the effect that neither such legend nor the related restrictions on transfer are required in order to maintain compliance with the provisions of the Securities Act. Any Additional Securities sold in a registered offering shall not be required to bear the Restricted Securities Legend.

(e)    [Reserved].

(f)     Retention of Written Communications . The Registrar shall retain copies of all letters, notices and other written communications received pursuant to Section  2.1 or this Section  2.6 in accordance with its customary procedures . The Issuer shall have the right to inspect and make copies of all such letters, notices or other written communications at any reasonable time upon the giving of reasonable prior written notice to the Registrar.

(g)     Obligations with Respect to Transfers and Exchanges of Securities .

(i)    To permit registrations of transfers and exchanges, the Issuer shall, subject to the other terms and conditions of this Article II , execute and the Trustee shall authenticate Definitive Securities and Global Securities at the Registrar’s request.

(ii)    No service charge shall be made to a Holder for any registration of transfer or exchange, but the Issuer may require the Holder to pay a sum sufficient to cover any transfer tax assessments or similar governmental charge payable in connection therewith (other than any such transfer taxes, assessments or similar governmental charges payable upon exchange or transfer pursuant to Sections 2.2 , 2.6 , 2.10 , 2.12 , 3.5 , 3.9 , 5.8 or 9.5 ).

(iii)    The Issuer (and the Registrar) shall not be required to register the transfer of or exchange of any Security (A) for a period (1) of 15 days before a selection of Securities to be redeemed or (2) beginning 15 days before an interest payment date and ending on such interest payment date or (B) selected for redemption, except the unredeemed portion of any Security being redeemed in part.

 

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(iv)    Prior to the due presentation for registration of transfer of any Security, the Issuer, any Guarantor, the Trustee, the Paying Agent or the Registrar may deem and treat the person in whose name a Security is registered as the owner of such Security for the purpose of receiving payment of principal of, premium, if any, and (subject to paragraph 2 of the forms of Securities attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes)) interest on such Security and for all other purposes whatsoever, including without limitation the transfer or exchange of such Security, whether or not such Security is overdue, and none of the Issuer, any Guarantor, the Trustee, the Paying Agent or the Registrar shall be affected by notice to the contrary.

(v)    Any Definitive Security delivered in exchange for an interest in a Global Security pursuant to Section 2.1(f) shall, except as otherwise provided by Section 2.6(d) , bear the Restricted Securities Legend.

(vi)    All Securities issued upon any transfer or exchange pursuant to the terms of this Indenture shall evidence the same debt and shall be entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture as the Securities surrendered upon such transfer or exchange.

(h)     No Obligation of the Trustee . The Trustee (in each of its capacities) shall have no responsibility or obligation to any beneficial owner of a Global Security, Agent Member or other Person with respect to the accuracy of the records of DTC or its nominee or of any participant or member thereof, with respect to any ownership interest in the Securities or with respect to the delivery to any participant, member, beneficial owner or other Person (other than DTC) of any notice (including any notice of redemption or purchase) or the payment of any amount or delivery of any Securities (or other security or property) under or with respect to such Securities. All notices and communications to be given to the Holders and all payments to be made to Holders in respect of the Securities shall be given or made only to or upon the order of the registered Holders (which shall be DTC or its nominee in the case of a Global Security). The rights of beneficial owners in any Global Security shall be exercised only through DTC subject to the applicable rules and procedures of DTC. The Trustee may rely and shall be fully protected in relying upon information furnished by DTC with respect to its Agent Members and any beneficial owners. The Trustee (in each of its capacities) shall have no obligation or duty to monitor, determine or inquire as to compliance with any restrictions on transfer imposed under this Indenture or under applicable law with respect to any transfer of any interest in any Security (including any transfers between or among Agent Members or beneficial owners in any Global Security) other than to require delivery of such certificates and other documentation or evidence as are expressly required by, and to do so if and when expressly required by, the terms of this Indenture, and to examine the same to determine substantial compliance as to form with the express requirements hereof.

 

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(i)     Affiliate Holders . By accepting a beneficial interest in a Global Security, any Person that is an Affiliate of the Issuer agrees to give notice to the Issuer, the Trustee and the Registrar of the acquisition of such interest and its Affiliate status.

SECTION 2.7     [Reserved] .

SECTION 2.8     Form of Certificate to be Delivered in Connection with Transfers to Institutional Accredited Investors .

[Date]                     

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 N. Sam Houston Parkway E., Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attn: Chief Financial Officer

Wilmington Trust, National Association

15950 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 550

Dallas, Texas 75248

Attn: Ultra Resources, Inc. Notes Administrator

Ladies and Gentlemen:

This certificate is delivered to request a transfer of $[        ] principal amount of the [6.875]% [7.125]% Senior Notes due [2022] [2025] (the “Securities”) of Ultra Resources, Inc. (the “ Issuer ”).

Upon transfer, the Securities would be registered in the name of the new beneficial owner as follows:

 

  

Name:                                                                                  

  
  

Address:                                                                              

  
  

Taxpayer ID Number:                                                        

  

The undersigned represents and warrants to you that:

1.    We are an institutional “accredited investor” (as defined in Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities Act ”)) purchasing for our own account or for the account of such an institutional “accredited investor” at least $250,000 principal amount of the Securities, and we are acquiring the Securities not with a view to, or for offer or sale in connection with, any distribution in violation of the Securities Act. We have such knowledge and experience in financial and business matters as to be capable of evaluating the merits and risk of our investment in the Securities and we invest in or purchase securities similar to the Securities in the normal course of our business. We and any accounts for which we are acting are each able to bear the economic risk of our or its investment.

 

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2.    We understand that the Securities have not been registered under the Securities Act and, unless so registered, may not be sold except as permitted in the following sentence. We agree on our own behalf and on behalf of any investor account for which we are purchasing Securities to offer, sell or otherwise transfer such Securities prior to the date that is one year after the later of the date of original issue and the last date on which the Issuer or any affiliate of the Issuer was the owner of such Securities (or any predecessor thereto) (the “ Resale Restriction Termination Date ”) only (a) to the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary thereof, (b) pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act, (c) in a transaction complying with the requirements of Rule 144A under the Securities Act, to a person we reasonably believe is a “qualified institutional buyer” under Rule 144A of the Securities Act (a “ QIB ”) that is purchasing for its own account or for the account of a QIB and to whom notice is given that the transfer is being made in reliance on Rule 144A, (d) pursuant to offers and sales to non-U.S. persons that occur outside the United States within the meaning of Regulation S under the Securities Act, (e) to an institutional “accredited investor” within the meaning of Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act that is purchasing for its own account or for the account of such an institutional “accredited investor,” in each case in a minimum principal amount of Securities of $250,000 for investment purposes and not with a view to or for offer or sale in connection with any distribution in violation of the Securities Act or (f) pursuant to any other available exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act, subject in each of the foregoing cases to any requirement of law that the disposition of our property or the property of such investor account or accounts be at all times within our or their control and in compliance with any applicable state securities laws. The foregoing restrictions on resale will not apply subsequent to the Resale Restriction Termination Date. If any resale or other transfer of the Securities is proposed to be made pursuant to clause (e) above prior to the Resale Restriction Termination Date, the transferor shall deliver a letter from the transferee substantially in the form of this letter to the Issuer and the Trustee, which shall provide, among other things, that the transferee is an institutional “accredited investor” (within the meaning of Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act) and that it is acquiring such Securities for investment purposes and not for distribution in violation of the Securities Act. Each purchaser acknowledges that the Issuer and the Trustee reserve the right prior to any offer, sale or other transfer prior to the Resale Termination Date of the Securities pursuant to clauses (d), (e) or (f) above to require the delivery of an opinion of counsel, certifications and/or other information satisfactory to the Issuer and the Trustee.

3.    We [are][are not] an Affiliate of the Issuer.

 

TRANSFEREE:  

 

BY:  

 

 

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SECTION 2.9     Form of Certificate to be Delivered in Connection with Transfers Pursuant to Regulation S.

[Date]                     

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 N. Sam Houston Parkway E., Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attn: Chief Financial Officer

Wilmington Trust, National Association

15950 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 550

Dallas, Texas 75248

Attn: Ultra Resources, Inc. Notes Administrator

 

  Re: Ultra Resources, Inc. (the “Issuer”)

[6.875]% [7.125]% Senior Notes due [2022] [2025] (the “Securities”)

Ladies and Gentlemen:

In connection with our proposed sale of $[        ] aggregate principal amount of the Securities, we confirm that such sale has been effected pursuant to and in accordance with Regulation S under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities Act ”), and, accordingly, we represent that:

(a)    the offer of the Securities was not made to a person in the United States;

(b)    either (i) at the time the buy order was originated, the transferee was outside the United States or we and any person acting on our behalf reasonably believed that the transferee was outside the United States or (ii) the transaction was executed in, on or through the facilities of a designated off-shore securities market and neither we nor any person acting on our behalf knows that the transaction has been pre-arranged with a buyer in the United States;

(c)    no directed selling efforts have been made in the United States in contravention of the requirements of Rule 903(a)(2) or Rule 904(a)(2) of Regulation S, as applicable; and

(d)    the transaction is not part of a plan or scheme to evade the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

In addition, if the sale is made during a restricted period and the provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1) of Regulation S are applicable thereto, we confirm that such sale has been made in accordance with the applicable provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1), as the case may be.

We also hereby certify that we [are][are not] an Affiliate of the Issuer and, to our knowledge, the transferee of the Securities [is][is not] an Affiliate of the Issuer.

You and the Issuer are entitled to rely upon this letter and are irrevocably authorized to produce this letter or a copy hereof to any interested party in any administrative or legal proceedings or official inquiry with respect to the matters covered hereby. Terms used in this certificate have the meanings set forth in Regulation S.

 

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Very truly yours,
[Name of Transferor]
By:  

 

  Authorized Signature

SECTION 2.10     Mutilated, Destroyed, Lost or Stolen Securities . If a mutilated Security is surrendered to the Registrar or if the Holder of a Security claims that the Security has been lost, destroyed or wrongfully taken, the Issuer shall issue and the Trustee shall authenticate a replacement Security if the Trustee’s requirements are met, such that the Securityholder (a) satisfies the Issuer or the Trustee that such Security has been lost, destroyed or wrongfully taken within a reasonable time after such Securityholder has notice of such loss, destruction or wrongful taking and the Registrar has not registered a transfer prior to receiving such notification, (b) makes such request to the Issuer or Trustee prior to the Security being acquired by a protected purchaser as defined in Section 8-303 of the Uniform Commercial Code (a “ protected purchaser ”) and (c) satisfies any other customary requirements of the Trustee; provided, however, if after the delivery of such replacement Security, a protected purchaser of the Security for which such replacement Security was issued presents for payment or registration such replaced Security, the Trustee or the Issuer shall be entitled to recover such replacement Security from the Person to whom it was issued and delivered or any Person taking therefrom, except a protected purchaser, and shall be entitled to recover upon the security or indemnity provided therefor to the extent of any loss, damage, cost or expense incurred by the Issuer or the Trustee in connection therewith. If required by the Trustee or the Issuer, such Holder shall furnish an indemnity bond sufficient in the judgment of the Trustee to protect the Trustee and the Issuer to protect the Issuer, the Trustee, the Paying Agent and the Registrar from any loss which any of them may suffer if a Security is replaced, and, in the absence of notice to the Issuer, any Guarantor or the Trustee that such Security has been acquired by a protected purchaser, the Issuer shall execute, and upon receipt of an Issuer Order the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery, in exchange for any such mutilated Security or in lieu of any such destroyed, lost or wrongfully taken Security, a new Security of like tenor and principal amount, bearing a number not contemporaneously outstanding.

In case any such mutilated, destroyed, lost or wrongfully taken Security has become or is about to become due and payable, the Issuer in its discretion may, instead of issuing a new Security, pay such Security.

Upon the issuance of any new Security under this Section  2.10 , the Issuer may require that such Holder pay a sum sufficient to cover any transfer tax or other governmental charge that may be imposed in relation thereto and any other expenses (including the fees and expenses of counsel and of the Trustee) in connection therewith.

Subject to the proviso in the initial paragraph of this Section  2.10 , every new Security issued pursuant to this Section in lieu of any mutilated, destroyed, lost or wrongfully taken

 

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Security shall constitute an original additional contractual obligation of the Issuer, any Guarantor and any other obligor upon the Securities, whether or not the mutilated, destroyed, lost or wrongfully taken Security shall be at any time enforceable by anyone, and shall be entitled to all benefits of this Indenture equally and proportionately with any and all other Securities duly issued hereunder.

The provisions of this Section  2.10 are exclusive and shall preclude (to the extent lawful) all other rights and remedies with respect to the replacement or payment of mutilated, destroyed, lost or wrongfully taken Securities.

SECTION 2.11     Outstanding Securities . Securities outstanding at any time are all Securities authenticated by the Trustee except for those cancelled by it, those delivered to it for cancellation and those described in this Section as not outstanding. A Security does not cease to be outstanding in the event the Issuer or an Affiliate of the Issuer holds the Security; provided , however , that (i) for purposes of determining which are outstanding for consent or voting purposes hereunder, the provisions of Section  12.6 shall apply and (ii) in determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in making a determination whether the Holders of the requisite principal amount of outstanding Securities are present at a meeting of Holders of Securities for quorum purposes or have consented to or voted in favor of any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent, waiver, amendment or modification hereunder, or relying upon any such quorum, consent or vote, only Securities which a Trust Officer of the Trustee actually knows to be held by the Issuer or an Affiliate of the Issuer shall not be considered outstanding.

If a Security is replaced pursuant to Section  2.10 (other than a mutilated Security surrendered for replacement), it ceases to be outstanding unless the Trustee and the Issuer receive proof satisfactory to them that the replaced Security is held by a protected purchaser. A mutilated Security ceases to be outstanding upon surrender of such Security and replacement pursuant to Section  2.10 .

If the Paying Agent segregates and holds in trust, in accordance with this Indenture, by 11:00 a.m. (New York City time) on a Redemption Date or other maturity date money sufficient to pay all principal, premium, if any, and accrued interest payable on that date with respect to the Securities (or portions thereof) to be redeemed or otherwise maturing, as the case may be, then on and after that date such Securities (or portions thereof) cease to be outstanding and interest on them ceases to accrue.

SECTION 2.12     Temporary Securities . In the event that Definitive Securities are to be issued under the terms of this Indenture, until such Definitive Securities are ready for delivery, the Issuer may prepare and the Trustee shall authenticate temporary Securities. Temporary Securities shall be substantially in the form, and shall carry all rights, of Definitive Securities but may have variations that the Issuer consider appropriate for temporary Securities. Without unreasonable delay, the Issuer shall prepare and the Trustee shall authenticate Definitive Securities. After the preparation of Definitive Securities, the temporary Securities shall be exchangeable for Definitive Securities upon surrender of the temporary Securities at any office or agency maintained by the Issuer for that purpose and such exchange shall be without charge to the Holder. Upon surrender for cancellation of any one or more temporary Securities, the Issuer shall execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery in exchange

 

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therefor, one or more Definitive Securities representing an equal principal amount of Securities. Until so exchanged, the Holder of temporary Securities shall in all respects be entitled to the same benefits under this Indenture as a Holder of Definitive Securities.

SECTION 2.13     Cancellation . The Issuer at any time may deliver Securities to the Trustee for cancellation. The Registrar and the Paying Agent shall forward to the Trustee any Securities surrendered to them for registration of transfer, exchange or payment. The Trustee and no one else shall cancel all Securities surrendered for registration of transfer, exchange, payment or cancellation and dispose of such Securities in accordance with its internal policies and customary procedures including delivery of a certificate describing such Securities disposed (subject to the record retention requirements of the Exchange Act). If the Issuer or any Guarantor acquires any of the Securities, such acquisition shall not operate as a redemption or satisfaction of the Indebtedness represented by such Securities unless and until the same are surrendered to the Trustee for cancellation pursuant to this Section  2.13 . The Issuer may not issue new Securities to replace Securities they have paid or delivered to the Trustee for cancellation for any reason other than in connection with a transfer or exchange.

At such time as all beneficial interests in a Global Security have either been exchanged for Definitive Securities, transferred, redeemed, repurchased or canceled, such Global Security shall be returned by DTC or the Securities Custodian to the Trustee for cancellation or retained and canceled by the Trustee. At any time prior to such cancellation, if any beneficial interest in a Global Security is exchanged for Definitive Securities, transferred in exchange for an interest in another Global Security, redeemed, repurchased or canceled, the principal amount of Securities represented by such Global Security shall be reduced and an adjustment shall be made on the books and records of the Trustee (if it is then the Securities Custodian for such Global Security) with respect to such Global Security, by the Trustee or the Securities Custodian, to reflect such reduction.

SECTION 2.14     Payment of Interest; Defaulted Interest . Interest on any Security which is payable, and is punctually paid or duly provided for, on any interest payment date shall be paid to the Person in whose name such Security (or one or more predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the regular record date for such payment at the office or agency of the Issuer maintained for such purpose pursuant to Section  2.3 .

Any interest on any Security which is payable, but is not paid when the same becomes due and payable and such nonpayment continues for a period of 30 days shall forthwith cease to be payable to the Holder on the regular record date, and such defaulted interest and (to the extent lawful) interest on such defaulted interest at the rate borne by the Securities (such defaulted interest and interest thereon herein collectively called “ Defaulted Interest ”) shall be paid by the Issuer, at its election in each case, as provided in clause (a) or (b) below:

(a)    The Issuer may elect to make payment of any Defaulted Interest to the Persons in whose names the Securities (or their respective predecessor Securities) are registered at the close of business on a Special Record Date (as defined below) for the payment of such Defaulted Interest, which shall be fixed in the following manner. The Issuer shall notify the Trustee in writing of the amount of Defaulted Interest proposed to be paid on each Security and the date of the proposed payment (the “ Special Interest Payment Date ”), and at the same time the

 

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Issuer shall deposit with the Trustee an amount of money equal to the aggregate amount proposed to be paid in respect of such Defaulted Interest or shall make arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for such deposit prior to the date of the proposed payment, such money when deposited to be held in trust for the benefit of the Persons entitled to such Defaulted Interest as in this clause provided. Thereupon the Issuer shall fix a record date (the “ Special Record Date ”) for the payment of such Defaulted Interest, which date shall be not more than 15 days and not less than 10 days prior to the Special Interest Payment Date and not less than 10 days after the receipt by the Trustee of the notice of the proposed payment. The Issuer shall promptly notify the Trustee of such Special Record Date, and shall cause notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the Special Record Date and Special Interest Payment Date therefor to be given in the manner provided for in Section  12.2 , not less than 10 days prior to such Special Record Date. Notice of the proposed payment of such Defaulted Interest and the Special Record Date and Special Interest Payment Date therefor having been so given, such Defaulted Interest shall be paid on the Special Interest Payment Date to the Persons in whose names the Securities (or their respective predecessor Securities) are registered at the close of business on such Special Record Date and shall no longer be payable pursuant to the following clause (b).

(b)    The Issuer may make payment of any Defaulted Interest in any other lawful manner not inconsistent with the requirements of any securities exchange on which the Securities may be listed, and upon such notice as may be required by such exchange, if, after notice given by the Issuer to the Trustee of the proposed payment pursuant to this clause, such manner of payment shall be deemed practicable by the Trustee.

Subject to the foregoing provisions of this Section  2.14 , each Security delivered under this Indenture upon registration of, transfer of or in exchange for or in lieu of any other Security shall carry the rights to interest accrued and unpaid, and to accrue, which were carried by such other Security.

SECTION 2.15     Computation of Interest .

(a)    Interest on the Securities shall be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months.

(b)    Solely for the purposes of the Interest Act (Canada), whenever any interest is calculated using a rate based on a year of 360 days, such rate determined pursuant to such calculation, when expressed as an annual rate, is equivalent to (i) the applicable rate based on a year of 360 days, multiplied by (ii) the actual number of days in the calendar year in which the period for such interest is payable (or compounded) ends, divided by (iii) 360. The principle of deemed reinvestment of interest shall not apply to any interest calculation under this Indenture; all interest payments to be made under this Indenture shall be paid without allowance or deduction for deemed reinvestment or otherwise, before and after demand, default and judgment. The rates of interest specified in this Indenture are intended to be nominal rates and not effective rates, and any interest calculated hereunder shall be calculated using the nominal rate method and not the effective rate method of calculation.

SECTION 2.16     CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN Numbers . The Issuer in issuing the Securities may use “CUSIP”, “Common Code” and “ISIN” numbers and, if so, the Trustee shall

 

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use “CUSIP”, “Common Code” and “ISIN” numbers in notices of redemption or purchase as a convenience to Holders; provided , however , that any such notice may state that no representation is made as to the correctness of such numbers either as printed on the Securities or as contained in any notice of a redemption or purchase and that reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers printed on the Securities, and any such redemption or purchase shall not be affected by any defect in or omission of such CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers. The Issuer shall promptly notify the Trustee in writing of any change in the CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers.

SECTION 2.17     Trustee, Paying Agent, Registrar Not Responsible for Depositary . None of the Trustee, any Paying Agent or the Registrar shall have any responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in any Global Security or for maintaining, supervising or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial ownership interests. The Trustee, any Paying Agent and the Registrar shall be entitled to deal with any Depositary, and any nominee thereof, that is the Holder of any Global Security for all purposes of this Indenture relating to such Global Security (including the payment of principal, premium, if any, and interest, the giving of instructions or directions by or to the owner or holder of a beneficial ownership interest in such Global Security) as the sole Holder of such Global Security and shall have no obligations to the beneficial owners thereof. None of the Trustee, any Paying Agent or the Registrar shall have any responsibility or liability for any acts or omissions of any such Depositary with respect to any Global Security, for the records of any Depositary, including records in respect of beneficial ownership interests in respect of any Global Security, for any transactions between such Depositary and any participant in such Depositary or between or among any such Depositary, any such participant or any holder or owner of a beneficial interest in any Global Security or for any transfers of beneficial interests in any Global Security.

SECTION 2.18     Payment of Additional Amounts .

(a)    All payments made (or deemed to be made) to a holder of the Securities by a Guarantor pursuant to any Guarantee shall be made free and clear of and without withholding or deduction for or on account of any present or future tax, duty, levy, impost, assessment or other governmental charge (including penalties, interest and other liabilities related thereto) (collectively, “ Taxes ”) imposed or levied by or on behalf of any Canadian government (or, with respect to any Guarantor incorporated or organized outside the United States or Canada, the government of the country in which such Guarantor is incorporated or organized) or political subdivision or territory or authority or agency therein or thereof having the power to tax (each a “ Non-U.S. Taxing Authority ”), unless the obligor thereon is required to withhold or deduct Taxes under any law or by the interpretation, application or administration thereof.

(b)    If any such obligor is so required to withhold or deduct any amount of or on account of Taxes imposed by a Non-U.S. Taxing Authority from any payment made with respect to any Guarantee, such obligor shall pay, as additional interest, to each Holder or beneficial owner of the Securities that are outstanding on the date of the required payment such additional amounts (“ Additional Amounts ”) as may be necessary so that the net amount received by such Holder or beneficial owner (including the Additional Amounts) after such withholding

 

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or deduction (including withholdings and deductions on Additional Amounts) shall not be less than the amount such Holder or beneficial owner would have received if such Taxes had not been withheld or deducted; provided that no Additional Amounts shall be payable with respect to a payment made to a Holder or beneficial owner of the Securities (an “ Excluded Holder ”):

(1)    which is subject to such Taxes by reason of the fact that it does not deal at arm’s length (within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada)) with the Parent Guarantor or any other Guarantor resident in Canada for tax purposes at the time of payment, if such payment is made by the Parent Guarantor or such other Canadian Guarantor;

(2)    which is subject to such Taxes by reason of its being or having been connected with any Non-U.S. Taxing Authority other than by the mere holding or ownership, or deemed holding or ownership of the Securities or the receipt of payments thereunder or under any Guarantee or the enforcement of rights under the Securities, this Indenture or any Guarantee (as a matter of, for example, citizenship, nationality, residence, domicile, or existence of a business or permanent establishment, a dependent agent, a place of business or a place of management present or deemed present within the Non-U.S. Taxing Authority);

(3)    where such Taxes are on account of any Tax imposed pursuant to Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code, any current or future regulations or official interpretations thereof, any fiscal or regulatory legislation, rules or practices adopted pursuant to an intergovernmental agreement between a non-U.S. jurisdiction and the United States, with respect to the forgoing or any agreements entered into pursuant to Section 1471(b)(1) of the Code;

(4)    which failed to duly and timely comply with a timely request of the Issuer or any Guarantor in writing to provide information, documents or other evidence concerning such Holder’s or beneficial owner’s nationality, residence, entitlement to treaty benefits or identity, if and to the extent that (i) such Holder and/or beneficial owner was legally able to comply with such request and (ii) due and timely compliance with such request is required by applicable law or administrative policy as a precondition to reduction or elimination of, and would have reduced or eliminated, any Taxes as to which Additional Amounts would have otherwise been payable to such Holder or beneficial owner but for this clause;

(5)    which is a fiduciary or a partnership or not the sole beneficial owner of the relevant Security, if and to the extent that any beneficiary or settlor with respect to such fiduciary, any partner with respect to such partnership or any beneficial owner of such Security (as the case may be) would not have been entitled to receive Additional Amounts with respect to the payment in question had such beneficiary, settlor, partner or beneficial owner been the actual Holder of such Security;

(6)    in respect of any estate, gift, inheritance, value added, excise, transfer, or similar tax; or

 

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(7)    any combination of the above clauses in this proviso.

For the avoidance of doubt, no Additional Amounts will be owed for Taxes imposed by the United States government or any political subdivision or territory or authority or agency therein or thereof having the power to tax.

(c)    The applicable obligor on the Securities, this Indenture or any Guarantee, as the case may be, shall also be entitled to make any withholding or deduction required by a Non-U.S. Taxing Authority or other taxing authority and remit the full amount deducted or withheld to the relevant authority in accordance with applicable law. The applicable obligor on the Securities, this Indenture or any Guarantee, as the case may be, shall furnish to the Holders , within 30 days after the date the payment of any Taxes is due pursuant to applicable law, copies of tax receipts, if any, evidencing that such payment has been made by such obligor, as applicable.

(d)    In addition, the Issuer and the Guarantors shall jointly and severally indemnify and hold harmless each Holder or beneficial owner (without duplication) of the Securities that are outstanding on the date of the required payment and upon written request reimburse each such Holder or beneficial owner for the amount of: (i) any Taxes so levied or imposed by a Non-U.S. Taxing Authority and paid by such Holder or beneficial owner (without duplication) as a result of payments made under or with respect to the Securities, this Indenture or any Guarantee (including, for greater certainty, any Taxes payable under Section 803 of the regulations under the Income Tax Act (Canada)), but excluding any Taxes with respect to which such Holder or beneficial owner is an Excluded Holder, and (ii) any Taxes imposed on such Holder or beneficial owner by a Non-U.S. Tax Authority (other than any Taxes with respect to which such Holder or beneficial owner is an Excluded Holder) with respect to any reimbursement under clause (i) immediately above (collectively, a “ Reimbursement Payment ”).

(e)    At least 30 days prior to each date on which any payment under or with respect to any Note is due and payable, if any Guarantor becomes obligated to pay Additional Amounts with respect to such payment, such Guarantor shall deliver to the Trustee (or other applicable paying agent) an Officers’ Certificate stating the fact that such Additional Amounts shall be payable and the amounts so payable and shall set forth such other information as is necessary to enable the Trustee (or other applicable paying agent) to pay such Additional Amounts to Holders on the payment date.

(f)    Whenever in this Indenture there is mentioned, in any context: (i) the payment of principal (and premium, if any), (ii) purchase prices in connection with a repurchase or a redemption of the Securities, (iii) interest, or (iv) any other amount payable on or with respect to any of the Securities, this Indenture or the Guarantees, such mention shall be deemed to include mention of the payment of Additional Amounts and Reimbursement Payments provided for in this Section  2.18 to the extent that, in such context, Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments are, were or would be payable in respect thereof.

(g)    The Issuer and the Guarantors will pay any present or future stamp, court or documentary Taxes, or any other excise, property or similar Taxes that are imposed by any Non-U.S. Taxing Authority from the execution, delivery, issuance, initial resale, registration or

 

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enforcement of any Securities, this Indenture, the Guarantee or any other document or instrument in relation thereto (other than a transfer of the Securities). The obligations described in this Section  2.18 shall survive any termination, defeasance or discharge of this Indenture and shall apply mutatis mutandis to any successor person to the Issuer or any Guarantor and to any jurisdiction in which such successor is organized or is otherwise resident or doing business for tax purposes or any jurisdiction from or through which payment is made by such successor or its respective agents.

ARTICLE III

COVENANTS

SECTION 3.1     Payment of Securities . The Issuer shall promptly pay the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the Securities on the dates and in the manner provided in the Securities and in this Indenture. Principal, premium, if any, and interest shall be considered paid on the date due if by 11:00 a.m. (New York City time) on such date the Trustee or the Paying Agent holds in accordance with this Indenture money sufficient to pay all principal, premium, if any, and interest then due and the Trustee or the Paying Agent, as the case may be, is not prohibited from paying such money to the Securityholders on that date pursuant to the terms of this Indenture.

The Issuer shall pay interest on overdue principal at the rate specified therefor in the Securities, and it shall pay interest on overdue installments of interest at the same rate to the extent lawful.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Indenture, and subject to Section  2.18 , the Issuer may, to the extent it is required to do so by law, deduct or withhold income or other similar taxes imposed by the United States of America from principal or interest payments hereunder.

SECTION 3.2     Limitation on Indebtedness and Preferred Stock .

(a)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly, Incur any Indebtedness (including Acquired Indebtedness), and the Parent Guarantor will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to issue Preferred Stock; provided , however , that the Parent Guarantor may Incur Indebtedness and the Issuer and any of the Subsidiary Guarantors may Incur Indebtedness and issue Preferred Stock if on the date thereof:

(1)    the Consolidated Coverage Ratio for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries is at least 2.00 to 1.00, determined on a pro forma basis (including a pro forma application of proceeds); and

(2)    no Default would occur as a consequence of, and no Default or Event of Default would be continuing following, the Incurrence of the Indebtedness or its application.

 

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(b)     Section 3.2(a) will not prohibit the Incurrence of the following Indebtedness:

(1)    Indebtedness under one or more Credit Facilities of (i) the Issuer or any Guarantor Incurred pursuant to this Section 3.2(b)(1) in an aggregate amount not to exceed the greatest of (x) $1.25 billion, (y) the sum of $400.0 million and 30.0% of the Parent Guarantor’s Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets determined as of the date of the Incurrence of such Indebtedness after giving effect to the application of the proceeds therefrom and (z) the Borrowing Base then in effect, and (ii) Indebtedness Incurred by any Foreign Subsidiary pursuant to this Section 3.2(b)(1)(ii) in an aggregate amount not to exceed $50.0 million as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness, after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom;

(2)    guarantees of Indebtedness Incurred in accordance with the provisions of this Indenture; provided that in the event such Indebtedness that is being guaranteed is a Subordinated Obligation or a Guarantor Subordinated Obligation, then the related guarantee shall be subordinated in right of payment to the Securities or the Guarantee to at least the same extent as the Indebtedness being guaranteed, as the case may be;

(3)    Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor owing to and held by any Restricted Subsidiary or Indebtedness of a Restricted Subsidiary owing to and held by the Parent Guarantor or any other Restricted Subsidiary; provided , however , that (i)(a) if the Issuer is the obligor on such Indebtedness and the obligee is not a Guarantor, such Indebtedness must be expressly subordinated to the prior payment in full in cash of all obligations with respect to the Securities and (b) if a Guarantor is the obligor of such Indebtedness and the obligee is neither the Issuer nor another Guarantor, such Indebtedness must be expressly subordinated to the prior payment in full in cash of all obligations of such Guarantor with respect to its Guarantee and (ii)(a) any subsequent issuance or transfer of Capital Stock or any other event which results in any such Indebtedness being held by a Person other than the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary and (b) any sale or other transfer of any such Indebtedness to a Person other than the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor shall be deemed, in each case, to constitute an Incurrence of such Indebtedness by the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, that was not permitted by this Section 3.2(b)(3) ;

(4)    Indebtedness represented by (i) the Securities issued on the Issue Date and all Guarantees, (ii) any Indebtedness (other than the Indebtedness described in Section 3.2(b)(1) , (2) and 4(i) ) outstanding on the Issue Date and (iii) any Refinancing Indebtedness Incurred in respect of any Indebtedness described in this Section 3.2(b)(4) or Section 3.2(b)(5) or (7)  or Incurred pursuant to Section 3.2(a) ;

(5)    (i) Permitted Acquisition Indebtedness and (ii) Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries incurred or issued to finance or assumed in connection with an acquisition or Investment in an aggregate principal amount, together with all other outstanding Indebtedness, Disqualified Stock or Preferred Stock issued under this clause (ii) of Section 3.2(b)(5) and any outstanding Indebtedness under Section 3.2(b)(4) incurred to refinance Indebtedness initially incurred in reliance on this clause (ii) of Section 3.2(b)(5) , not to exceed $100.0 million as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness, after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom;

 

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(6)    Indebtedness Incurred in respect of (i) self-insurance obligations, bid, appeal, reimbursement, performance, surety and similar bonds and completion guarantees provided by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary in the ordinary course of business and any guarantees or letters of credit functioning as or supporting any of the foregoing bonds or obligations and (ii) obligations represented by letters of credit for the account of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary in order to provide security for workers’ compensation claims (in the case of clauses (i) and (ii) other than for an obligation for money borrowed);

(7)    Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary represented by Capitalized Lease Obligations (whether or not incurred pursuant to Sale/Leaseback Transactions) or other Indebtedness Incurred in connection with the acquisition, construction, improvement or development of real or personal, movable or immovable, property, in each case Incurred for the purpose of financing, refinancing, renewing, defeasing or refunding all or any part of the purchase price or cost of acquisition, construction, improvement or development of property used in the business of the Parent Guarantor or its Restricted Subsidiaries; provided that the outstanding Indebtedness Incurred by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary pursuant to this Section 3.2(b)(7) , and any outstanding Indebtedness under Section 3.2(b)(4) incurred to refinance Indebtedness initially incurred in reliance on this Section 3.2(b)(7) , shall not exceed the greater of (x) $100.0 million and (y) 2.5% of the Parent Guarantor’s Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness, after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom; and provided further that the principal amount of any Indebtedness permitted under this Section 3.2(b)(7) did not in each case at the time of incurrence exceed the Fair Market Value, as determined in accordance with the definition of such term, of the acquired or constructed asset or improvement or development so financed;

(8)    Preferred Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) of the Issuer and any Subsidiary Guarantor;

(9)    Cash Management Obligations of the Issuer or any Guarantor in an aggregate amount not to exceed $50.0 million as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness, after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom;

(10)    Indebtedness issued in satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Funded Debt Claims under the Approved Plan (capitalized terms used in this clause (10) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Approved Plan), including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment, which, when taken together with the principal amount

 

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of all other Indebtedness Incurred pursuant to this Section 3.2(b)(10) and then outstanding, will not exceed $300.0 million, determined as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom; and

(11)    in addition to the items referred to in Sections 3.2(b)(1) through (10)  above, Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries in an aggregate outstanding principal amount which, when taken together with the principal amount of all other Indebtedness Incurred pursuant to this Section 3.2(b)(11) and then outstanding, will not exceed the greater of (x) $125.0 million and (y) 2.5% of the Parent Guarantor’s Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets, determined as of the date of Incurrence of such Indebtedness after giving effect to such Incurrence and the application of the proceeds therefrom.

(c)    For purposes of determining compliance with, and the outstanding principal amount of any particular Indebtedness Incurred pursuant to and in compliance with, this Section  3.2 :

(1)    in the event an item of that Indebtedness meets the criteria of more than one of the types of Indebtedness described in Section 3.2(a) and (b) , the Parent Guarantor, in its sole discretion, will classify such item of Indebtedness on the date of Incurrence and, subject to Section 3.2(c)(2) below, may later classify, reclassify or redivide all or a portion of such item of Indebtedness, in any manner that complies with this Section  3.2 ;

(2)    all Indebtedness outstanding on the date of this Indenture under the Senior Secured Credit Agreements shall be deemed Incurred on the Issue Date under Section 3.2(b)(1) ;

(3)    guarantees of, or obligations in respect of letters of credit supporting, Indebtedness which is otherwise included in the determination of a particular amount of Indebtedness shall not be included;

(4)    if obligations in respect of letters of credit are Incurred pursuant to a Credit Facility and are being treated as Incurred pursuant to Section 3.2(b)(1) and the letters of credit relate to other Indebtedness, then such other Indebtedness shall not be included;

(5)    the principal amount of any Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, or Preferred Stock of a Restricted Subsidiary, will be equal to the greater of the maximum mandatory redemption or repurchase price (not including, in either case, any redemption or repurchase premium) or the liquidation preference thereof;

(6)    Indebtedness permitted by this Section  3.2 need not be permitted solely by reference to one provision permitting such Indebtedness but may be permitted in part by one such provision and in part by one or more other provisions of this Section  3.2 permitting such Indebtedness; and

 

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(7)    the amount of Indebtedness issued at a price that is less than the principal amount thereof will be equal to the amount of the liability in respect thereof determined in accordance with GAAP.

Accrual of interest, accrual of dividends, the amortization of debt discount or the accretion of accreted value, the payment of interest in the form of additional Indebtedness, the payment of dividends in the form of additional Preferred Stock or Disqualified Stock and unrealized losses or charges in respect of Hedging Obligations (including those resulting from the application of FASB ASC Topic No. 815, Derivatives and Hedging ) will not be deemed to be an Incurrence of Indebtedness for purposes of this Section  3.2 .

The Parent Guarantor will not permit any of its Unrestricted Subsidiaries to Incur any Indebtedness (including to issue any Disqualified Stock) other than Non-Recourse Debt. If at any time an Unrestricted Subsidiary becomes a Restricted Subsidiary, any Indebtedness of such Subsidiary shall be deemed to be Incurred by a Restricted Subsidiary as of such date (and, if such Indebtedness is not permitted to be Incurred as of such date under this Section  3.2 , the Parent Guarantor shall be in Default of this Section  3.2 ).

For purposes of determining compliance with any U.S. dollar-denominated restriction on the Incurrence of Indebtedness, the U.S. dollar-equivalent principal amount of Indebtedness denominated in a foreign currency shall be calculated based on the relevant currency exchange rate in effect on the date such Indebtedness was Incurred, in the case of term Indebtedness, or first committed, in the case of revolving credit Indebtedness; provided that if such Indebtedness is Incurred to refinance other Indebtedness denominated in a foreign currency, and such refinancing would cause the applicable U.S. dollar-denominated restriction to be exceeded if calculated at the relevant currency exchange rate in effect on the date of such refinancing, such U.S. dollar-denominated restriction shall be deemed not to have been exceeded so long as the principal amount of such refinancing Indebtedness does not exceed the principal amount of such Indebtedness being refinanced. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section  3.2 , the maximum amount of Indebtedness that any Person may Incur pursuant to this Section  3.2 shall not be deemed to be exceeded solely as a result of fluctuations in the exchange rates of currencies. The principal amount of any Indebtedness Incurred to refinance other Indebtedness, if Incurred in a different currency from the Indebtedness being refinanced, shall be calculated based on the currency exchange rate applicable to the currencies in which such Refinancing Indebtedness is denominated that is in effect on the date of such refinancing.

This Indenture shall not treat (1) unsecured Indebtedness as subordinated or junior to secured Indebtedness merely because it is unsecured or (2) senior Indebtedness as subordinated or junior to any other senior Indebtedness merely because it has a junior priority with respect to the same collateral.

 

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SECTION 3.3     Limitation on Restricted Payments .

(a)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries, directly or indirectly, to:

(1)    declare or pay any dividend or make any payment or distribution on or in respect of the Parent Guarantor’s or any Restricted Subsidiary’s Capital Stock (including any payment or distribution in connection with any merger or consolidation involving the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries) except:

(A)    dividends or distributions by the Parent Guarantor payable solely in Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor (other than Disqualified Stock but including options, warrants or other rights to purchase such Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor); and

(B)    dividends or distributions payable to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary and if such Restricted Subsidiary is not a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary, to minority stockholders (or owners of an equivalent interest in the case of a Subsidiary that is an entity other than a corporation) so long as the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary receives at least its pro rata share of such dividend or distribution;

(2)    purchase, repurchase, redeem, defease or otherwise acquire or retire for value any Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor or any direct or indirect parent of the Parent Guarantor held by Persons other than the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary (other than in exchange for Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor (other than Disqualified Stock));

(3)    purchase, repurchase, redeem, defease or otherwise acquire or retire for value, prior to scheduled maturity, scheduled repayment or scheduled sinking fund payment, any Subordinated Obligations or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations (other than (x) Indebtedness permitted under Section 3.2(b)(3) or (y) the purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Subordinated Obligations or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations purchased in anticipation of satisfying a sinking fund obligation, principal installment or final maturity, in each case due within one year of the date of purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value); or

(4)    make any Restricted Investment;

(any such dividend, distribution, purchase, redemption, repurchase, defeasance, other acquisition, retirement or Restricted Investment referred to in clauses (1) through (4) is referred to herein as a “ Restricted Payment ”), if at the time the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary makes such Restricted Payment:

 

  (A) a Default shall have occurred and be continuing (or would result therefrom);

 

  (B) the Parent Guarantor is not able to Incur an additional $1.00 of Indebtedness pursuant to Section 3.2(a) after giving effect, on a pro forma basis, to such Restricted Payment; or

 

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  (C) the aggregate amount of such Restricted Payment and all other Restricted Payments declared or made subsequent to the Issue Date would exceed the sum of:

(i)    50% of Consolidated Net Income for the period (treated as one accounting period) from the first day of the fiscal quarter during which the Issue Date occurs to the end of the most recent fiscal quarter ending prior to the date of such Restricted Payment for which internal financial statements are available (or, in case such Consolidated Net Income is a deficit, minus 100% of such deficit);

(ii)    100% of the aggregate Net Cash Proceeds and the Fair Market Value of property or securities other than cash (including Capital Stock of Persons engaged primarily in the Oil and Gas Business or assets used in the Oil and Gas Business), in each case received by the Parent Guarantor from the issue or sale of its Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) or other capital contributions subsequent to the Issue Date (other than Net Cash Proceeds received from an issuance or sale of such Capital Stock to (x) management, employees, directors or any direct or indirect parent of the Parent Guarantor, to the extent such Net Cash Proceeds have been used to make a Restricted Payment pursuant to clause (5)(a) of Section 3.3(b) , (y) a Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor or (z) an employee stock ownership plan, option plan or similar trust (to the extent such sale to an employee stock ownership plan, option plan or similar trust is financed by loans from or guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary unless such loans have been repaid with cash on or prior to the date of determination));

(iii)    the amount by which Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or its Restricted Subsidiaries is reduced on the Parent Guarantor’s balance sheet upon the conversion or exchange (other than by a Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor) subsequent to the Issue Date of any Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or its Restricted Subsidiaries convertible or exchangeable for Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) of the Parent Guarantor (less the amount of any cash, or the Fair Market Value of any other property (other than such Capital Stock), distributed by the Parent Guarantor upon such conversion or exchange), together with the net proceeds, if any, received by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries upon such conversion or exchange; and

(iv)    the amount equal to the aggregate net reduction in Restricted Investments made by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries in any Person after the Issue Date resulting from:

(1)    repurchases, repayments or redemptions of such Restricted Investments by such Person, proceeds realized upon the sale of such Restricted Investment (other than to a Subsidiary of

 

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the Parent Guarantor), repayments of loans or advances or other transfers of assets (including by way of dividend or distribution) by such Person to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(2)    the re-designation of Unrestricted Subsidiaries as Restricted Subsidiaries (valued in each case as provided in the definition of “Investment”) not to exceed, in the case of any Unrestricted Subsidiary, the amount of Investments previously made by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary in such Unrestricted Subsidiary, which amount in each case under this clause (iv) was included in the calculation of the amount of Restricted Payments; provided, however, that no amount will be included under this clause (iv) to the extent it is already included in Consolidated Net Income; and

(3)    the sale by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (other than to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary) of all or a portion of the Capital Stock of an Unrestricted Subsidiary or a distribution from an Unrestricted Subsidiary or a dividend from an Unrestricted Subsidiary (whether any such distribution or dividend is made with proceeds from the issuance by such Unrestricted Subsidiary of its Capital Stock or otherwise) (other than, in each case, to the extent the Investment in such Unrestricted Subsidiary constituted a Permitted Investment).

(b)    The provisions of Section 3.3(a) will not prohibit:

(1)    any Restricted Payment made by exchange for, or out of the proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale of, Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor (other than Disqualified Stock and other than Capital Stock issued or sold to a Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor or an employee stock ownership plan or similar trust to the extent such sale to an employee stock ownership plan or similar trust is financed by loans from or guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary unless such loans have been repaid with cash on or prior to the date of determination) or a substantially concurrent cash capital contribution received by the Parent Guarantor from its shareholders; provided , however , that (a) such Restricted Payment will be excluded from subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments and (b) the Net Cash Proceeds from such sale of Capital Stock or capital contribution will be excluded from clause (C)(ii) of Section 3.3(a) ;

(2)    any purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Subordinated Obligations of the Issuer or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations of any Guarantor made by exchange for, or out of the proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale of, Subordinated Obligations of the Issuer or any purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Guarantor Subordinated Obligations made by exchange for or out of the proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale of Guarantor Subordinated Obligations that, in each case, is

 

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permitted to be Incurred pursuant to Section  3.2 ; provided , however , that such purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance, acquisition or retirement for value will be excluded from subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(3)    any purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary made by exchange for, or out of the proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale of, Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, that, in each case, is permitted to be Incurred pursuant to Section  3.2 ; provided , however , that such purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance, acquisition or retirement for value will be excluded from subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(4)    dividends paid or distributions made within 60 days after the date of declaration if at such date of declaration such dividend or distribution would have complied with this Section  3.3 ; provided , however , that such dividends and distributions will be included in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments; and provided further , however , that for purposes of clarification, this clause (4) shall not include cash payments in lieu of the issuance of fractional shares included in clause (9) below;

(5)    so long as no Default has occurred and is continuing, (a) the repurchase or other acquisition of Capital Stock (including options, warrants, equity appreciation rights or other rights to purchase or acquire Capital Stock) of the Parent Guarantor held by any existing or former employees, management or directors of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor or their assigns, estates or heirs, in each case pursuant to the repurchase or other acquisition provisions under employee stock option or stock purchase plans or agreements or other agreements to compensate management, employees or directors, in each case approved by the Parent Guarantor’s Board of Directors; provided that such repurchases or other acquisitions pursuant to this subclause (a) during any calendar year will not exceed $2.0 million in the aggregate (with unused amounts in any calendar year being carried over to succeeding calendar years without limitation); provided further , that such amount in any calendar year may be increased by an amount not to exceed (A) the cash proceeds received by the Parent Guarantor from the sale of Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor to members of management or directors of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries that occurs after the Issue Date (to the extent the cash proceeds from the sale of such Capital Stock have not otherwise been applied to the payment of Restricted Payments by virtue of clause (C) of Section 3.3(a) ), plus (B) the cash proceeds of key man life insurance policies received by the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries after the Issue Date, less (C) the amount of any Restricted Payments made pursuant to clauses (A) and (B) of this clause (5)(a); provided further , however , that the amount of any such repurchase or other acquisition under this subclause (a) will be excluded in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments and the proceeds received from any such transaction will be excluded from clause (C)(ii) of Section 3.3(a) ; and (b) loans or advances to employees or directors of the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor, in each case as permitted by Section 402 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of

 

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2002, the proceeds of which are used to purchase Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor, or to refinance loans or advances made pursuant to this clause (5)(b), in an aggregate principal amount not in excess of $2.0 million at any one time outstanding; provided , however , that the amount of such loans and advances will be excluded in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(6)    purchases, repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions or retirements for value of Capital Stock deemed to occur upon the exercise of stock options, warrants, rights to acquire Capital Stock or other convertible securities if such Capital Stock represents a portion of the exercise or exchange price thereof, and any purchases, repurchases, redemptions or other acquisitions or retirements for value of Capital Stock made in lieu of withholding taxes in connection with any exercise or exchange of warrants, options or rights to acquire Capital Stock; provided , however , that such acquisitions or retirements will be excluded from subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(7)    the purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of any Subordinated Obligation (i) at a purchase price not greater than 101% of the principal amount of such Subordinated Obligation in the event of a Change of Control Triggering Event in accordance with provisions similar to Section  3.9 or (ii) at a purchase price not greater than 100% of the principal amount thereof in accordance with provisions similar to Section  3.5 ; provided that, prior to or simultaneously with such purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement, the Issuer has made the Change of Control Offer or Asset Disposition Offer, as applicable, as provided in such Section with respect to the Securities of each series and has completed the repurchase or redemption of all Securities validly tendered for payment in connection with such Change of Control Offer or Asset Disposition Offer; provided , however , that such acquisitions or retirements will be included in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(8)    payments or distributions to dissenting stockholders pursuant to applicable law or in connection with the settlement or other satisfaction of legal claims made pursuant to or in connection with a consolidation, merger or transfer of assets; provided , however , that any payment pursuant to this clause (8) will be excluded in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(9)    cash payments in lieu of the issuance of fractional shares; provided , however , that any payment pursuant to this clause (9) will be excluded in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

(10)    the declaration and payment of scheduled or accrued dividends to Holders of any class of or series of Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor issued after the Issue Date in accordance with Section  3.2 , to the extent such dividends are included in Consolidated Interest Expense; provided , however , that any payment pursuant to this clause (10) will be excluded in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments;

 

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(11)    any purchase or redemption of Subordinated Obligations or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations from Net Available Cash to the extent permitted under Section  3.5 ; provided , however , that any payment pursuant to this clause (11) will be included in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments; and

(12)    Restricted Payments in an amount not to exceed $50.0 million in the aggregate since the Issue Date; provided , however , that the amount of such Restricted Payments will be included in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments.

The amount of all Restricted Payments (other than cash) shall be the Fair Market Value on the date of such Restricted Payment of the asset(s) or securities proposed to be paid, transferred or issued by the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, pursuant to such Restricted Payment, except that the Fair Market Value of any non-cash dividend or distribution made within 60 days after the date of declaration shall be determined as of such date. The Fair Market Value of any cash Restricted Payment shall be its face amount and the Fair Market Value of any non-cash Restricted Payment shall be determined in accordance with the definition of that term. Not later than the date of making any Restricted Payment in excess of $20.0 million that will be included in subsequent calculations of the amount of Restricted Payments, the Parent Guarantor shall deliver to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate stating that such Restricted Payment is permitted and setting forth the basis upon which the calculations required by this Section  3.3 were computed.

In the event that a Restricted Payment meets the criteria of more than one of the exceptions described in (1) through (12) above or is entitled to be made pursuant to Section 3.3(a) , the Parent Guarantor shall, in its sole discretion, classify or reclassify such Restricted Payment.

The Parent Guarantor shall not permit any Unrestricted Subsidiary to become a Restricted Subsidiary except pursuant to the last sentence of the definition of “Unrestricted Subsidiary.” For purpose of designating any Restricted Subsidiary as an Unrestricted Subsidiary, all outstanding Investments by the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries (except to the extent such Investments are repaid) in the Subsidiary so designated will be deemed to be Restricted Payments in an amount determined as set forth in the last sentence of the definition of “Investment.” Such designation will be permitted only if a Restricted Payment in such amount would be permitted at such time, whether pursuant to Section 3.3(a) or under Section 3.3(b)(12) , or pursuant to the definition of “Permitted Investments,” and if such Subsidiary otherwise meets the definition of “Unrestricted Subsidiary.”

 

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SECTION 3.4     Limitation on Restrictions on Distributions from Restricted Subsidiaries .

(a)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create or otherwise cause or permit to exist or become effective any consensual encumbrance or consensual restriction on the ability of any such Restricted Subsidiary that is not the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor to:

(1)    pay dividends or make any other distributions on its Capital Stock or pay any Indebtedness or other obligations owed to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (it being understood that the priority of any Preferred Stock in receiving dividends or liquidating distributions prior to dividends or liquidating distributions being paid on Common Stock shall not be deemed a restriction on the ability to make distributions on Capital Stock);

(2)    make any loans or advances to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary (it being understood that the subordination of loans or advances made to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary to other Indebtedness Incurred by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary shall not be deemed a restriction on the ability to make loans or advances); or

(3)    sell, lease or transfer any of its property or assets to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary.

(b)    The preceding provisions will not prohibit:

(1)    any encumbrance or restriction pursuant to or by reason of an agreement in effect at or entered into on the Issue Date, including, without limitation, this Indenture as in effect on such date;

(2)    any encumbrance or restriction with respect to a Person pursuant to or by reason of an agreement relating to any Capital Stock or Indebtedness Incurred by a Person on or before the date on which such Person was acquired by the Parent Guarantor or another Restricted Subsidiary (other than Capital Stock or Indebtedness Incurred as consideration in, or to provide all or any portion of the funds utilized to consummate, the transaction or series of related transactions pursuant to which such Person was acquired by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary or in contemplation of the transaction) and outstanding on such date; provided that any such encumbrance or restriction shall not extend to any assets or property of the Parent Guarantor or any other Restricted Subsidiary other than the assets and property of such acquired Person;

(3)    encumbrances and restrictions contained in contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business, not relating to any Indebtedness, and that do not, individually or in the aggregate, detract from the value of, or from the ability of the Parent Guarantor and the Restricted Subsidiaries to realize the value of, property or assets of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary in any manner material to the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(4)    any encumbrance or restriction with respect to a Unrestricted Subsidiary pursuant to or by reason of an agreement that the Unrestricted Subsidiary is a party to entered into before the date on which such Unrestricted Subsidiary became a Restricted Subsidiary; provided that such agreement was not entered into in anticipation of the Unrestricted Subsidiary becoming a Restricted Subsidiary and any such encumbrance or restriction shall not extend to any assets or property of the Parent Guarantor or any other Restricted Subsidiary other than the assets and property of such Unrestricted Subsidiary;

 

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(5)    with respect to any Foreign Subsidiary, any encumbrance or restriction contained in the terms of any Indebtedness or any agreement pursuant to which such Indebtedness was Incurred if either (1) the encumbrance or restriction applies to such Foreign Subsidiary and its Subsidiaries only in the event of a payment default or a default with respect to a financial covenant in such Indebtedness or agreement or (2) the Parent Guarantor determines that any such encumbrance or restriction will not materially affect the Parent Guarantor’s ability to make principal or interest payments on the Securities, as determined in good faith by the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor, whose determination shall be conclusive;

(6)    any encumbrance or restriction with respect to a Restricted Subsidiary pursuant to an agreement effecting a refunding, replacement or refinancing of Indebtedness Incurred pursuant to an agreement referred to in clauses (1) through (5) or clause (12) of this Section 3.4(b) or this clause (6) or contained in any amendment, restatement, modification, renewal, supplemental, refunding, replacement or refinancing of an agreement referred to in clauses (1) through (5) or clause (12) of this Section 3.4(b) or this clause (6); provided that the encumbrances and restrictions with respect to such Restricted Subsidiary contained in any such agreement taken as a whole are no less favorable in any material respect to the Holders than the encumbrances and restrictions contained in the agreements governing the Indebtedness being refunded, replaced or refinanced;

(7)    in the case of Section 3.4(a)(3) , any encumbrance or restriction:

(A)    that restricts in a customary manner the subletting, assignment or transfer of any property or asset that is subject to a lease (including leases governing leasehold interests or farm-in agreements or farm-out agreements relating to leasehold interests in oil and gas properties), license or similar contract, or the assignment or transfer of any such lease (including leases governing leasehold interests or farm-in agreements or farm-out agreements relating to leasehold interests in oil and gas properties), license (including, without limitation, licenses of intellectual property) or other contract;

(B)    contained in mortgages, pledges or other security agreements permitted under this Indenture securing Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary to the extent such encumbrances or restrictions restrict the transfer of the property subject to such mortgages, pledges or other security agreements;

(C)    contained in any agreement creating Hedging Obligations permitted from time to time under this Indenture;

(D)    pursuant to customary provisions restricting dispositions of real property interests set forth in any reciprocal easement agreements of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary;

 

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(E)    restrictions on cash or other deposits imposed by customers under contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business; or

(F)    provisions with respect to the disposition or distribution of assets or property in operating agreements, joint venture agreements, development agreements, area of mutual interest agreements and other agreements that are customary in the Oil and Gas Business and entered into in the ordinary course of business;

(8)    any encumbrance or restriction contained in (a) purchase money obligations for property acquired in the ordinary course of business and (b) Capitalized Lease Obligations permitted under this Indenture, in each case, that impose encumbrances or restrictions of the nature described in Section 3.4(a)(3) on the property so acquired;

(9)    any encumbrance or restriction with respect to a Restricted Subsidiary (or any of its property or assets) imposed pursuant to an agreement entered into for the direct or indirect sale or disposition of all or a portion of the Capital Stock or assets of such Restricted Subsidiary (or the property or assets that are subject to such restriction) pending the closing of such sale or disposition;

(10)    any customary encumbrances or restrictions imposed pursuant to any agreement of the type described in the definition of “Permitted Business Investment”;

(11)    encumbrances or restrictions arising or existing by reason of applicable law or any applicable rule, regulation or order;

(12)    encumbrances or restrictions contained in agreements governing Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries permitted to be Incurred pursuant to an agreement entered into subsequent to the Issue Date in accordance with Section  3.2 ; provided that the provisions relating to such encumbrance or restriction contained in such Indebtedness are not materially less favorable to the Parent Guarantor taken as a whole, as determined by the Board of Directors or a responsible financial officer of the Parent Guarantor in good faith, than the provisions contained in the Senior Secured Credit Agreements and in this Indenture as in effect on the Issue Date;

(13)    the issuance of Preferred Stock by a Restricted Subsidiary or the payment of dividends thereon in accordance with the terms thereof; provided that issuance of such Preferred Stock is permitted pursuant to Section  3.2 and the terms of such Preferred Stock do not expressly restrict the ability of a Restricted Subsidiary to pay dividends or make any other distributions on its Capital Stock (other than requirements to pay dividends or liquidation preferences on such Preferred Stock prior to paying any dividends or making any other distributions on such other Capital Stock);

(14)    supermajority voting requirements existing under corporate charters, bylaws, stockholders agreements and similar documents and agreements;

 

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(15)    restrictions on cash or other deposits or net worth imposed by customers under contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business; and

(16)    any encumbrance or restriction contained in the Senior Secured Credit Agreements as in effect as of the Issue Date, and in any amendments, modifications, restatements, renewals, increases, supplements, refundings, replacements or refinancings thereof; provided that such amendments, modifications, restatements, renewals, increases, supplements, refundings, replacements or refinancings are not materially less favorable to the Parent Guarantor taken as a whole, as determined by the Board of Directors or a responsible financial officer of the Parent Guarantor in good faith, than those contained in the Senior Secured Credit Agreements as in effect on the Issue Date.

SECTION 3.5     Limitation on Sales of Assets and Subsidiary Stock .

(a)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, make any Asset Disposition unless:

(1)    the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries receives consideration at the time of such Asset Disposition at least equal to the Fair Market Value (such Fair Market Value to be determined on the date of contractually agreeing to such Asset Disposition) of the Capital Stock or other assets subject to such Asset Disposition;

(2)    except in the case of an Asset Swap, at least 75% of the consideration (determined on the date of contractually agreeing to such Asset Disposition) received by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries from such Asset Disposition and all other Asset Dispositions since the Issue Date, on a cumulative basis, is in the form of cash or Cash Equivalents, or any combination thereof; and

(3)    except as provided in Section 3.5(b) , an amount equal to 100% of the Net Available Cash from such Asset Disposition is applied, within 365 days from the later of the date of such Asset Disposition or the receipt of such Net Available Cash, by the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be:

(A)    to prepay, repay, redeem or purchase (x) Secured Indebtedness of the Issuer or a Guarantor (other than Disqualified Stock, Subordinated Obligations or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations) or (y) Indebtedness (other than Disqualified Stock) of a Restricted Subsidiary that is not a Subsidiary Guarantor (other than the Issuer) (in each case, excluding Indebtedness owed to the Parent Guarantor or an Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor);

(B)    to prepay, repay, redeem or purchase other Pari Passu Indebtedness of the Issuer or a Guarantor (in each case, excluding Indebtedness owed to the Parent Guarantor or an Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor); provided , however , that the Issuer will either (1) reduce the aggregate principal amount of the Securities on an equal or ratable basis with any Pari Passu Indebtedness repaid pursuant to this clause (B) by, at its option, (x) redeeming Securities as provided under paragraph 5 of the form of Securities set forth in Exhibit A- 1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A- 2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) and/or (y) purchasing

 

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Securities through open-market purchases or in privately negotiated transactions at market prices (which shall be at or above par) and/or (2) make an offer (in accordance with the provisions set forth in this Section  3.5 for an Asset Disposition Offer) to all Holders to purchase their Securities on an equal or ratable basis with any Pari Passu Indebtedness repaid pursuant to this clause (B) (which offer shall be deemed to be an Asset Disposition Offer for purposes hereof); or

(C)    to invest in Additional Assets;

provided that pending the final application of any such Net Available Cash in accordance with clause (A), (B) or (C) above, the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries may temporarily reduce Indebtedness or otherwise invest such Net Available Cash in any manner not prohibited by this Indenture. The requirement of clause (C) above shall be deemed to be satisfied if an agreement (including a lease, whether a capital lease or an operating lease) committing to make the acquisitions or expenditures referred to therein is entered into by the Parent Guarantor or its Restricted Subsidiary within the specified time period and such Net Available Cash is subsequently applied in accordance with such agreement within six months following such agreement.

(b)    Any Net Available Cash from Asset Dispositions that is not applied or invested as provided in Section 3.5(a)(3) will be deemed to constitute “ Excess Proceeds .” Not later than the 366th day from the later of the date of such Asset Disposition or the receipt of such Net Available Cash, if the aggregate amount of Excess Proceeds exceeds $20.0 million, the Issuer will be required to make an offer (“ Asset Disposition Offer ”) to all Holders (with a copy to the Trustee) and, to the extent required by the terms of other Pari Passu Indebtedness, to all holders of other Pari Passu Indebtedness outstanding with similar provisions requiring the Issuer to make an offer to purchase such Pari Passu Indebtedness with the proceeds from any Asset Disposition to purchase the maximum principal amount of the Securities and any such Pari Passu Indebtedness to which the Asset Disposition Offer applies that may be purchased out of the Excess Proceeds, at an offer price in cash in an amount equal to 100% of the principal amount (or, in the event such Pari Passu Indebtedness was issued with significant original issue discount, 100% of the accreted value thereof) of the Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any (or in respect of such Pari Passu Indebtedness, such lesser price, if any, as may be provided for by the terms of such Indebtedness), to, but excluding, the date of purchase (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date), in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section  3.5 or the agreements governing the Pari Passu Indebtedness, as applicable, in each case in integral multiples of $1,000 in excess of $2,000, provided that the unpurchased portion of each Security must be equal to a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000. If the aggregate principal amount of the Securities surrendered by Holders thereof and other Pari Passu Indebtedness surrendered by holders or lenders, collectively, exceeds the amount of Excess Proceeds, the Issuer shall select the Securities to be purchased on a pro rata basis on the basis of the aggregate principal amount of tendered Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness. To the extent that the aggregate principal amount of the Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness so validly tendered and not properly withdrawn pursuant to an Asset Disposition Offer is less than the Excess Proceeds, the Parent Guarantor and its

 

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Restricted Subsidiaries may use any remaining Excess Proceeds for general corporate purposes, subject to the other covenants contained in this Indenture. Upon completion of such Asset Disposition Offer, the amount of Excess Proceeds shall be reset at zero.

(c)    The Asset Disposition Offer will remain open for a period of 20 Business Days following its commencement, except to the extent that a longer period is required by applicable law (the “ Asset Disposition Offer Period ”). No later than five Business Days after the termination of the Asset Disposition Offer Period (the “ Asset Disposition Purchase Date ”), the Issuer will purchase the principal amount of the Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness required to be purchased pursuant to this Section  3.5 (the “ Asset Disposition Offer Amount ”) or, if less than the Asset Disposition Offer Amount has been so validly tendered and not properly withdrawn, all Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness validly tendered and not properly withdrawn in response to the Asset Disposition Offer.

(d)    If the Asset Disposition Purchase Date is on or after an interest record date and on or before the related interest payment date, any accrued and unpaid interest, if any, will be paid to the Person in whose name a Security is registered at the close of business on such record date, and no further interest will be payable to Holders who tender the Securities pursuant to the Asset Disposition Offer.

(e)    On or before the Asset Disposition Purchase Date, the Issuer will, to the extent lawful, accept for payment, on a pro rata basis to the extent necessary, the Asset Disposition Offer Amount of Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness or portions of Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness so validly tendered and not properly withdrawn pursuant to the Asset Disposition Offer, or if less than the Asset Disposition Offer Amount has been validly tendered and not properly withdrawn, all Securities and Pari Passu Indebtedness so validly tendered and not properly withdrawn, in each case in integral multiples of $1,000 in excess of $2,000, provided that the unpurchased portion of each Security must be equal to a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000. The Issuer will deliver to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate stating that such Securities or portions thereof were accepted for payment by the Issuer in accordance with the terms of this Section  3.5 and, in addition, the Issuer will deliver all certificates and notes required, if any, by the agreements governing the Pari Passu Indebtedness. The Issuer or the paying agent, as the case may be, will promptly (but in any case not later than five Business Days after the termination of the Asset Disposition Offer Period) mail or deliver to each tendering Holder of the Securities or holder or lender of Pari Passu Indebtedness, as the case may be, an amount equal to the purchase price of the Securities or Pari Passu Indebtedness so validly tendered and not properly withdrawn by such holder or lender, as the case may be, and accepted by the Issuer for purchase, and the Issuer will promptly issue a new Security, and the Trustee, upon delivery of an Issuer Order and Officers’ Certificate from the Issuer, will authenticate and mail or deliver such new Security to such Holder, in a principal amount equal to any unpurchased portion of the Security surrendered; provided that each such new Security will be in a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000. In addition, the Issuer will take any and all other actions required by the agreements governing the Pari Passu Indebtedness. Any Security not so accepted will be promptly mailed or delivered by the Issuer to the Holder thereof. The Issuer will publicly announce the results of the Asset Disposition Offer on the Asset Disposition Purchase Date.

 

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(f)    The Issuer will comply, to the extent applicable, with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 of the Exchange Act and any other securities laws or regulations in connection with the repurchase of the Securities pursuant to an Asset Disposition Offer. To the extent that the provisions of any securities laws or regulations conflict with provisions of this Section  3.5 , the Issuer will comply with the applicable securities laws and regulations and will not be deemed to have breached its obligations under this Indenture by virtue of its compliance with such securities laws or regulations.

(g)    For the purposes of Section 3.5(a)(2) , the following will be deemed to be cash:

(1)    the assumption by the transferee of Indebtedness of the Parent Guarantor (other than Guarantor Subordinated Obligations or Disqualified Stock of the Parent Guarantor) or Indebtedness of a Restricted Subsidiary (other than Subordinated Obligations of the Issuer, Guarantor Subordinated Obligations of any Subsidiary Guarantor or Disqualified Stock of any Restricted Subsidiary) and the release of the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary from all liability on such Indebtedness in connection with such Asset Disposition (in which case the Parent Guarantor will, without further action, be deemed to have applied such deemed cash to Indebtedness in accordance with Section 3.5(a)(3) ;

(2)    with respect to any Asset Disposition of oil and gas properties by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries in which the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary still retains an interest, any agreement by the transferee (or any Affiliate thereof) to pay all or a portion of the costs and expenses related to the exploration, development, completion or production of such properties and activities related thereto;

(3)    securities, notes or other obligations received by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary from the transferee that are converted by the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary into cash within 180 days after receipt thereof; and

(4)    any Designated Noncash Consideration received by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries in such Asset Disposition having an aggregate Fair Market Value, taken together with all other Designated Noncash Consideration received pursuant to this clause (4) that is at that time outstanding, not to exceed 2.5% of Adjusted Consolidated Net Tangible Assets at the time of the receipt of such Designated Noncash Consideration (with the Fair Market Value of each item of Designated Noncash Consideration being determined on the date of contractually agreeing to such Asset Disposition).

(h)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, engage in any Asset Swaps, unless:

(1)    at the time of entering into such Asset Swap and immediately after giving effect to such Asset Swap, no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing or would occur as a consequence thereof; and

 

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(2)    in the event such Asset Swap involves the transfer by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary of assets having an aggregate Fair Market Value in excess of $20.0 million, the terms of such Asset Swap have been approved by a majority of the members of the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor.

(i)    Other than as specifically provided in this Section  3.5 , any purchase pursuant to this Section  3.5 shall be made pursuant to the applicable provisions of Article V.

SECTION 3.6     Limitation on Liens . The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly, create, Incur or suffer to exist any Lien (the “ Initial Lien ”) other than Permitted Liens upon any of its property or assets (including Capital Stock of Restricted Subsidiaries), including any income or profits therefrom, whether owned on the date of this Indenture or acquired after that date, which Lien is securing any Indebtedness, unless contemporaneously with the Incurrence of such Lien effective provision is made to secure the Securities (in the case of the Issuer) or, in respect of Liens on any property or assets of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries (other than the Issuer), any Guarantee of the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, equally and ratably with (or senior in priority to, in the case of Liens with respect to Subordinated Obligations or Guarantor Subordinated Obligations, as the case may be) the Indebtedness secured by such Lien for so long as such Indebtedness is so secured.

Any Lien created for the benefit of the Holders pursuant to the preceding paragraph shall provide by its terms that such Lien shall be automatically and unconditionally released and discharged upon the release and discharge of the Initial Lien.

SECTION 3.7     Stay, Extension and Usury Laws . The Parent Guarantor and each of its Restricted Subsidiaries covenant (to the extent that they may lawfully do so) that they shall not at any time insist upon, plead, or in any manner whatsoever claim or take the benefit or advantage of, any stay, extension or usury law wherever enacted, now or at any time hereafter in force, that may affect the covenants or the performance of this Indenture; and the Parent Guarantor and each of its Restricted Subsidiaries (to the extent that they may lawfully do so) hereby expressly waive all benefit or advantage of any such law, and covenant that they shall not, by resort to any such law, hinder, delay or impede the execution of any power herein granted to the Trustee, but shall suffer and permit the execution of every such power as though no such law has been enacted.

SECTION 3.8     Limitation on Affiliate Transactions .

(a)    The Parent Guarantor will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly, enter into, make, amend or conduct any transaction (including making a payment to, the purchase, sale, lease or exchange of any property or the rendering of any service), contract, agreement or understanding with or for the benefit of any Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor in excess of $5.0 million (an “ Affiliate Transaction ”) unless:

(1)    the terms of such Affiliate Transaction are not materially less favorable to the Parent Guarantor or such Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, than those that could reasonably be expected to be obtained in a comparable transaction at the time of such transaction in arm’s-length dealings with a Person who is not such an Affiliate; and

 

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(2)    either:

(A)    if such Affiliate Transaction involves an aggregate consideration in excess of $20.0 million but not greater than $50.0 million, the Parent Guarantor delivers to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate certifying that such Affiliate Transaction satisfies the criteria in clause (1) above; or

(B)    if such Affiliate Transaction involves an aggregate consideration in excess of $50.0 million, the Parent Guarantor delivers to the Trustee a Board Resolution adopted by a majority of the members of the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor having no personal stake in such transaction approving the terms of such transaction and set forth in an Officers’ Certificate certifying that such Affiliate Transaction satisfies the criteria in clause (1) above.

(b)     Section 3.8(a) will not apply to:

(1)    any Restricted Payment permitted to be made pursuant to Section  3.3 or any Permitted Investment;

(2)    any issuance of Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock), or other payments, awards or grants in cash, Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) or otherwise pursuant to, or the funding of, employment or severance agreements and other compensation arrangements, options to purchase Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) of the Parent Guarantor, restricted stock plans, long-term incentive plans, stock appreciation rights plans, participation plans or similar employee benefits plans and/or insurance and indemnification arrangements provided to or for the benefit of directors and employees approved by the Board of Directors or properly designated committee of the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor;

(3)    loans or advances to employees, officers or directors in the ordinary course of business of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(4)    advances to or reimbursements of employees for moving, entertainment and travel expenses, drawing accounts and similar expenditures in the ordinary course of business of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(5)    any transaction between the Parent Guarantor and a Restricted Subsidiary or between Restricted Subsidiaries, and guarantees issued by the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary for the benefit of the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, in accordance with Section  3.2 ;

(6)    any transaction with a joint venture or similar entity which would constitute an Affiliate Transaction solely because the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary owns, directly or indirectly, an Equity Interest in or otherwise controls such joint venture or similar entity;

 

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(7)    the issuance or sale of any Capital Stock (other than Disqualified Stock) of the Parent Guarantor to an Affiliate, or the receipt by the Parent Guarantor of any capital contribution from its shareholders;

(8)    indemnities of officers, directors and employees of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries permitted by bylaw or statutory provisions and any employment agreement or other employee compensation plan or arrangement entered into in the ordinary course of business by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries;

(9)    the payment of reasonable compensation and fees paid to, and indemnity provided on behalf of, officers or directors of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(10)    the performance of obligations of the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries under the terms of any agreement to which the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries is a party as of or on the Issue Date, as these agreements may be amended, modified, supplemented, extended or renewed from time to time; provided , however , that any future amendment, modification, supplement, extension or renewal entered into after the Issue Date will be permitted only to the extent that its terms are not materially more disadvantageous, taken as a whole, to the Holders than the terms of the agreements in effect on the Issue Date;

(11)    transactions with customers, clients, suppliers, or purchasers or sellers of goods or services, in each case in the ordinary course of business and otherwise in compliance with the terms of this Indenture, provided that in the reasonable determination of the Board of Directors of the Parent Guarantor or the senior management of the Parent Guarantor, such transactions are on terms not materially less favorable to the Parent Guarantor or the relevant Restricted Subsidiary than those that could reasonably be expected to be obtained in a comparable transaction at such time on an arm’s-length basis from a Person that is not an Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor;

(12)    transactions with a Person (other than an Unrestricted Subsidiary) that is an Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor solely because the Parent Guarantor owns, directly or through a Restricted Subsidiary, an Equity Interest in such Person;

(13)    transactions between the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary and any Person, a director of which is also a director of the Parent Guarantor or any direct or indirect parent of the Parent Guarantor, and such director is the sole cause for such Person to be deemed an Affiliate of the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary; provided , however , that such director shall abstain from voting as a director of the Parent Guarantor or such direct or indirect parent, as the case may be, on any matter involving such other Person; and

(14)    any transaction or arrangement contemplated or required by the Approved Plan.

 

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SECTION 3.9     Purchase of Securities Upon a Change of Control Triggering Event .

(a)    If a Change of Control Triggering Event occurs with respect to a series of Securities, unless one of the three exceptions described in Section 3.9(f) applies, each Holder will have the right to require the Issuer to repurchase all or any part of such Holder’s Securities of such series at a purchase price in cash equal to 101% of the principal amount of the Securities of such series plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the date of purchase (subject to the right of Holders of record of such series on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date).

(b)    Within 30 days following any Change of Control Triggering Event, unless one of the three exceptions described below in Section 3.9(f) applies, the Issuer will send a notice (the “ Change of Control Offer ”) to each Holder of the Securities of such series, with a copy to the Trustee, stating:

(1)    that a Change of Control Offer is being made and that such Holder has the right to require the Issuer to purchase such Holder’s Securities of such series at a purchase price in cash equal to 101% of the principal amount of such Securities plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the date of purchase (subject to the right of Holders of record on a record date to receive interest on the relevant interest payment date) (the “ Change of Control Payment ”);

(2)    the repurchase date (which shall be no earlier than 30 days nor later than 60 days from the date such notice is sent) (the “ Change of Control Payment Date ”); provided , that the Change of Control Payment Date may be delayed, in the Issuer’s discretion, until such time (including more than 60 days after the date such notice is sent (subject to the applicable procedures of DTC)) as any or all such conditions referred to in clause (9) below shall be satisfied;

(3)    that any Security not properly tendered will remain outstanding and continue to accrue interest;

(4)    that unless the Issuer defaults in the payment of the Change of Control Payment, all Securities accepted for payment pursuant to the Change of Control Offer will cease to accrue interest on the Change of Control Payment Date;

(5)    that Holders electing to have any Definitive Securities purchased pursuant to a Change of Control Offer will be required to surrender such Securities, with the form entitled “Option of Holder to Elect Purchase” on the reverse of such Securities in certificated form completed, to the Paying Agent specified in the notice at the address specified in the notice prior to the close of business on the third Business Day preceding the Change of Control Payment Date;

(6)    that Holders will be entitled to withdraw their tendered Securities and their election to require the Issuer to purchase such Securities, provided that the Paying Agent receives, not later than the close of business on the third Business Day preceding the Change of Control Payment Date, a telegram, telex, facsimile transmission or letter setting forth the name of the Holder of the Securities, the principal amount of the Securities tendered for purchase, and a statement that such Holder is withdrawing its tendered Securities and its election to have such Securities purchased;

 

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(7)    that if the Issuer is repurchasing a portion of the Security of any Holder, the Holder will be issued a new Security equal in principal amount to the unpurchased portion of the Security surrendered, provided that the unpurchased portion of the Security must be equal to a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000;

(8)    the procedures determined by the Issuer, consistent with this Indenture, that a Holder must follow in order to have its Securities repurchased; and

(9)    if such notice is sent prior to the occurrence of a Change of Control Triggering Event, stating that the Change of Control Offer is conditional on the occurrence of such Change of Control Triggering Event or such other conditions specified therein and shall describe each such condition, and, if applicable, shall state that, in the Issuer’s discretion, the Change of Control Payment Date may be delayed until such time as any or all such conditions shall be satisfied, or that such purchase may not occur and such notice may be rescinded in the event that the Issuer reasonably believes that any or all such conditions (including the occurrence of such Change of Control Triggering Event) will not be satisfied by the Change of Control Payment Date, or by the Change of Control Payment Date as so delayed.

(c)    On the Change of Control Payment Date, the Issuer will, to the extent lawful:

(1)    accept for payment all Securities or portions of the Securities properly tendered pursuant to the Change of Control Offer and not properly withdrawn, provided that the unpurchased portion of the Security must be equal to a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000;

(2)    deposit with the Paying Agent an amount equal to the Change of Control Payment in respect of all Securities or portions of the Securities accepted for payment; and

(3)    deliver or cause to be delivered to the Trustee the Securities so accepted together with an Officers’ Certificate stating the aggregate principal amount of the Securities or portions of the Securities being purchased by the Issuer.

(d)    The Paying Agent will promptly mail or deliver to each Holder of the Securities accepted for payment the Change of Control Payment for such Securities, and the Trustee will promptly authenticate and mail (or cause to be transferred by book-entry) to each Holder a new Security equal in principal amount to any unpurchased portion of the Securities surrendered, if any; provided that each such new Security will be in a minimum principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000.

(e)    If the Change of Control Payment Date is on or after an interest record date and on or before the related interest payment date, any accrued and unpaid interest, will be paid to the Person in whose name a Security is registered at the close of business on such record date, and no further interest will be payable to Holders who tender pursuant to the Change of Control Offer.

 

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(f)    The Issuer is not required to make a Change of Control Offer upon a Change of Control Triggering Event if (i) any other Person makes the Change of Control Offer in the manner, at the times and otherwise in compliance with this Section  3.9 applicable to a Change of Control Offer made by the Issuer and purchases all Securities of the applicable series validly tendered and not properly withdrawn under such Change of Control Offer, (ii) notice of redemption of all outstanding Securities of the applicable series has been given pursuant to Section  5.5 of this Indenture, unless and until there is a default in payment of the applicable redemption price or (iii) in connection with or in contemplation of any Change of Control Triggering Event, the Issuer has made an offer to purchase (an “ Alternate Offer ”) any and all Securities of the applicable series validly tendered at a cash price equal to or higher than the Change of Control Payment and has purchased all Securities of such series properly tendered in accordance with the terms of such Alternate Offer.

(g)    A Change of Control Offer may be made in advance of a Change of Control Triggering Event, and conditioned upon the occurrence of a Change of Control Triggering Event, if a definitive agreement is in place for the Change of Control Triggering Event at the time of making the Change of Control Offer.

(h)    The Issuer will comply, to the extent applicable, with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 of the Exchange Act and any other securities laws or regulations in connection with the repurchase of the Securities as a result of a Change of Control Triggering Event. To the extent that the provisions of any securities laws or regulations conflict with provisions of this Section  3.9 , the Issuer will comply with the applicable securities laws and regulations and will not be deemed to have breached its obligations under this Section  3.9 by virtue of its compliance with such securities laws or regulations.

(i)    If Holders of not less than 90% in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding Securities of a series validly tender and do not withdraw such Securities in a Change of Control Offer or Alternate Offer and the Issuer, or any other Person making a Change of Control Offer or Alternate Offer in lieu of the Issuer as described above, purchases all of the Securities of such series validly tendered and not withdrawn by such Holders, the Issuer will have the right, upon not less than 15 nor more than 60 days’ prior notice, given not more than 30 days following such purchase pursuant to the Change of Control Offer or Alternate Offer, as applicable, to redeem all Securities of such series that remain outstanding following such purchase at a redemption price in cash equal to the applicable Change of Control Payment plus, to the extent not included in the Change of Control Payment, accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date).

(j)    The Issuer’s obligation to make a Change of Control Offer with respect to a series of Securities pursuant to this Section  3.9 may be waived or modified or terminated with the consent of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of such series then outstanding (including consents obtained in connection with a tender offer or exchange offer for the Securities of such series) prior to the occurrence of such Change of Control Triggering Event.

 

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(k)    Other than as specifically provided in this Section  3.9 , any purchase pursuant to this Section  3.9 shall be made pursuant to the applicable provisions of Article V.

SECTION 3.10     Provision of Financial Information .

(a)    Whether or not the Parent Guarantor is subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act, to the extent not prohibited by the Exchange Act, the Parent Guarantor will file with the SEC, and deliver to the Trustee and make available to the Holders without cost to any Holder, the annual reports and the information, documents and other reports (or copies of such portions of any of the foregoing as the SEC may by rules and regulations prescribe) that are specified in Sections 13 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act and applicable to a U.S. corporation within the time periods specified therein with respect to a non-accelerated filer. In the event that the Parent Guarantor is not permitted to file such reports, documents and information with the SEC pursuant to the Exchange Act, the Parent Guarantor will nevertheless deliver such Exchange Act information to the Trustee and make available to the Holders without cost to any Holder as if the Parent Guarantor were subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act and applicable to a U.S. corporation within the time periods specified therein with respect to a non-accelerated filer.

(b)    If the Parent Guarantor has designated any of its Subsidiaries as Unrestricted Subsidiaries, then the financial information required will include a reasonably detailed presentation, either on the face of the financial statements or in the footnotes thereto, or in any accompanying Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, of the financial condition and results of operations of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries separate from the financial condition and results of operations of the Unrestricted Subsidiaries.

(c)    Any direct or indirect parent entity of the Parent Guarantor may satisfy the obligations of the Parent Guarantor set forth in this Section  3.10 by providing the requisite financial and other information of such parent entity instead of the Parent Guarantor so long as (i) the Parent Guarantor is a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of such parent entity and (ii) such parent entity does not conduct any business other than the holding of Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor, does not have any material liabilities other than liabilities of the Parent Guarantor, does not own any material assets other than the Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor and does not generate or derive any material revenues other than the revenues of the Parent Guarantor; provided that to the extent such parent entity holds assets (other than its direct or indirect interest in the Parent Guarantor) that exceeds the lesser of (i) 0.5% of the total assets of such parent entity and (ii) 0.5% of the total revenue for the preceding fiscal year of such parent entity, then such information related to such parent entity shall be accompanied by consolidating information, which may be unaudited, that explains in reasonable detail the differences between the information of such parent entity, on the one hand, and the information relating to the Parent Guarantor and its Subsidiaries on a stand-alone basis, on the other hand.

 

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(d)    The availability of the foregoing materials on the SEC’s website or on the Parent Guarantor’s (or its parent entity’s) website shall be deemed to satisfy the foregoing delivery obligations to the Holders.

(e)    For so long as any Securities remain outstanding and constitute “restricted securities” under Rule 144, if the Parent Guarantor is not subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, the Parent Guarantor will furnish to the Holders, and to securities analysts and bona fide prospective investors, upon their request, the information required to be delivered pursuant to Rule 144A(d)(4) under the Securities Act.

(f)    In addition, no later than five Business Days after the date the annual and quarterly financial information for the prior fiscal period have been filed or furnished pursuant to Section 3.10(a) (or customary earnings releases in respect thereof), the Parent Guarantor (or its parent entity) shall also hold live quarterly conference calls (which may be the same call held by the Parent Guarantor (or its parent entity) for its public equity holders).

(g)    The Trustee shall have no obligation to determine if and when the reports, information and documents of the Parent Guarantor are filed with the SEC via the EDGAR system and available on the SEC’s EDGAR website or available on the Issuer’s website.

(h)    Delivery of such reports, information and documents to the Trustee is for informational purposes only and the Trustee’s receipt of such shall not constitute constructive notice of any information contained therein or determinable from information contained therein, including the Issuer’s compliance with any of its covenants hereunder (as to which the Trustee is entitled to rely conclusively on Officers’ Certificates). The Trustee is under no duty to examine such reports, information or documents to ensure compliance with the provision of this Indenture or to ascertain the correctness or otherwise of the information or the statements contained therein.

SECTION 3.11     Future Subsidiary Guarantors . The Parent Guarantor will cause (a) each of its Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries (other than a Foreign Subsidiary) formed or acquired after the Issue Date and (b) any other Domestic Subsidiary (other than the Issuer) that is not already a Subsidiary Guarantor that guarantees any of the Parent Guarantor’s or the Issuer’s Indebtedness or any Indebtedness of a Subsidiary Guarantor, in each case to execute and deliver to the Trustee within 30 days a supplemental indenture (in substantially the form specified in Exhibit B to this Indenture) pursuant to which such Subsidiary will unconditionally guarantee, on a joint and several basis, the full and prompt payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the Securities on a senior basis; provided that any Restricted Subsidiary that constitutes an Immaterial Subsidiary need not become a Subsidiary Guarantor until such time as it ceases to be an Immaterial Subsidiary.

SECTION 3.12     Maintenance of Office or Agency . The Issuer shall maintain an office or agency where the Securities may be presented or surrendered for payment, where, if applicable, the Securities may be surrendered for registration of transfer or exchange and where notices and demands to or upon the Issuer in respect of the Securities and this Indenture may be made. The corporate trust office of the Trustee indicated in Section  2.3 shall be such office or agency of the Issuer, unless the Issuer shall designate and maintain some other office or agency

 

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for one or more of such purposes. The Issuer shall give prompt written notice to the Trustee of any change in the location of any such office or agency. If at any time the Issuer shall fail to maintain any such required office or agency or shall fail to furnish the Trustee with the address thereof, such presentations, surrenders, notices and demands may be made or served at the corporate trust office of the Trustee indicated in Section  12.2 , and the Issuer hereby appoints the Trustee as its agent to receive all such presentations, surrenders, notices and demands. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no service of legal process may be made on the Issuer at any office of the Trustee.

The Issuer may also from time to time designate one or more other offices or agencies where the Securities may be presented or surrendered for any or all such purposes and may from time to time rescind any such designation. The Issuer shall give prompt written notice to the Trustee of any such designation or rescission and any change in the location of any such other office or agency.

SECTION 3.13     Corporate Existence . Except as otherwise provided in Article IV , the Parent Guarantor shall, and shall cause each of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve and keep in full force and effect its existence, rights (charter and statutory), licenses and franchises; provided , however , that the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries shall not be required to preserve any such right, license or franchise if it shall determine that the preservation thereof is no longer desirable in the conduct of the business of the Parent Guarantor.

SECTION 3.14     Payment of Taxes . The Parent Guarantor shall, and shall cause each of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, pay or discharge or cause to be paid or discharged, before the same shall become delinquent, all material taxes, assessments and governmental charges levied or imposed upon the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary or upon the income, profits or property of the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary; provided , however , that the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries shall not be required to pay or discharge or cause to be paid or discharged any such tax, assessment or charge the amount, applicability or validity of which is being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings.

SECTION 3.15     Compliance Certificate . The Issuer shall deliver to the Trustee within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Issuer ending after the Issue Date a statement (which need not be an Officers’ Certificate) signed by the principal executive officer, the principal accounting officer or the principal financial officer of the Issuer, stating that a review of the activities of the Issuer and its Restricted Subsidiaries during the preceding fiscal year has been made under the supervision of the signing Officers with a view to determining whether the Issuer and each of its Restricted Subsidiaries has performed their respective obligations under this Indenture, and further stating whether or not the signers know of any Default or Event of Default that occurred during such period. If they do, the certificate shall describe such Default or Event of Default, its status and what action the Issuer is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto.

SECTION 3.16     Further Instruments and Acts . Upon request of the Trustee, the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries will execute and deliver such further instruments and do such further acts as may be reasonably necessary or proper to carry out more effectively the purpose of this Indenture.

 

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SECTION 3.17     Statement by Officers as to Default . The Issuer shall, so long as any Security is outstanding, deliver to the Trustee within 10 Business Days after the occurrence of a Default, a written notice setting forth the details of such Default, or Events of Default, and what action the Issuer is taking or proposing to take with respect thereto.

SECTION 3.18     Covenant Termination .

(a)    From and after the occurrence of an Investment Grade Rating Event, the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries will no longer be subject to the provisions of this Indenture described above in Sections 3.2 , 3.3 , 3.4 , 3.5 , 3.8 and Section 4.1(a)(3) hereof (collectively, the “ Eliminated Covenants ”).

(b)    After the Eliminated Covenants have been terminated, the Parent Guarantor may not designate any of its Subsidiaries as Unrestricted Subsidiaries pursuant to the second sentence of the definition of “Unrestricted Subsidiary.” After the Eliminated Covenants have been terminated, the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries shall be entitled to incur Liens permitted under Section  3.6 (including, without limitation, Permitted Liens). To the extent Section  3.6 and any Permitted Liens refer to one or more Eliminated Covenants, such Section  3.6 or definition shall be interpreted as though such applicable Eliminated Covenant(s) continued to be applicable following such termination (but solely for purposes of Section  3.6 and the “Permitted Liens” definition and for no other section of this Indenture).

(c)    On the date of the occurrence of an Investment Grade Rating Event, the Issuer shall deliver an Officers’ Certificate to the Trustee, specifying (i) that a termination of the foregoing covenants under this Section  3.18 has occurred and (ii) the date of the commencement of any termination of the foregoing covenants under this Section  3.18 . The Trustee shall not have any duty to monitor the ratings of the Securities or whether or not an Investment Grade Rating Event or the termination of the foregoing covenants has occurred, nor any duty to notify the Securityholders of any of the foregoing.

ARTICLE IV

SUCCESSOR COMPANY

SECTION 4.1     Merger and Consolidation .

(a)    Neither the Parent Guarantor nor the Issuer will consolidate with or merge with or into or wind up into (whether or not it is the surviving Person), or sell, lease, transfer, convey or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all its assets in one or more related transactions to, any Person, unless:

(1)    (A) the resulting, surviving or transferee Person (the “ Successor Company ”) will be a corporation, partnership, trust or limited liability company organized and existing under the laws of the United States of America, any State of the United States or the District of Columbia; provided that in the case where the Successor

 

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Company of the Issuer is not a corporation, a co-issuer of the Securities is a corporation; and (B) the Successor Company (if not the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be) will expressly assume, by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the Trustee, all the obligations of the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, under this Indenture, the Securities or the relevant Guarantee, as applicable;

(2)    immediately after giving effect to such transaction (and treating any Indebtedness that becomes an obligation of the Successor Company or any Subsidiary of the Successor Company as a result of such transaction as having been Incurred by the Successor Company or such Subsidiary at the time of such transaction), no Default or Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing;

(3)    immediately after giving effect to such transaction on a pro forma basis and any related financing transactions as if the same had occurred at the beginning of the applicable four quarter period, either (A) the Successor Company would be able to Incur at least an additional $1.00 of Indebtedness pursuant to Section 3.2(a) or (B) the Consolidated Coverage Ratio of the Parent Guarantor is equal to or greater than the Consolidated Coverage Ratio of the Parent Guarantor immediately before such transaction;

(4)    if the Successor Company of the Issuer is not the Issuer, each Guarantor (unless it is the other party to the transactions, in which case clause (1) shall apply) shall have by supplemental indenture confirmed that its Guarantee shall apply to the Successor Company’s obligations in respect of this Indenture and the Securities and that its Guarantee shall continue to be in effect; and

(5)    the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, shall have delivered to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that such transaction and such supplemental indenture (if any) comply with this Indenture.

For purposes of this Section  4.1 , the sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of one or more Subsidiaries of the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, which assets, if held by the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer instead of such Subsidiaries, would constitute all or substantially all of the assets of the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as applicable, on a consolidated basis, shall be deemed to be the disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as applicable.

The Successor Company will succeed to, and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, under this Indenture; and its predecessor, except in the case of a lease of all or substantially all its assets, will be released from all obligations under this Indenture, the Securities or the relevant Guarantee, as applicable.

Notwithstanding Section 4.1(a)(3) , (x) any Restricted Subsidiary may consolidate with, merge into or wind up into, or dispose of all or part of its assets to, the Parent Guarantor, and the Parent Guarantor may consolidate with, merge into or wind up into, or dispose of all or part of its assets to, the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor and (y) the Parent Guarantor and the Issuer may

 

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merge with or into an Affiliate incorporated solely for the purpose of reorganizing the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, in another State of the United States or the District of Columbia; provided that, in the case of a Restricted Subsidiary that consolidates with, merges into, winds up into or disposes of all or part of its properties and assets to the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, the Parent Guarantor or the Issuer, as the case may be, will not be required to comply with the preceding Section 4.1(a)(5) .

(b)    In addition, the Parent Guarantor will not permit any Subsidiary Guarantor to consolidate with, merge with or into or wind up into, and will not permit the disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of any Subsidiary Guarantor to, any Person (other than the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or another Subsidiary Guarantor) unless:

(1)    (a) the resulting, surviving or transferee Person will be a corporation, partnership, trust or limited liability company organized and existing under the laws of the United States of America, any state of the United States or the District of Columbia and such Person (if not such Subsidiary Guarantor) will expressly assume, by supplemental indenture, executed and delivered to the Trustee, all the obligations of such Subsidiary Guarantor under this Indenture and its Guarantee; and (b) immediately after giving effect to such transaction (and treating any Indebtedness that becomes an obligation of the resulting, surviving or transferee Person or any Restricted Subsidiary as a result of such transaction as having been Incurred by such Person or such Restricted Subsidiary at the time of such transaction), no Default shall have occurred and be continuing; or

(2)    the transaction results in the release of the Subsidiary Guarantor from its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee after and in compliance with the provisions of Section  10.2 and

(3)    the Parent Guarantor will have delivered to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, each stating that such transaction and such supplemental indenture (if any) comply with this Indenture.

ARTICLE V

REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES

SECTION 5.1     Redemption . The Securities of a series may be redeemed (a) as a whole or from time to time in part, subject to the conditions and at the redemption prices specified in paragraph 5 of the form of Securities set forth in Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes) hereto, which are hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this Indenture, or (b) as a whole, and not less than as a whole, subject to the conditions and at the redemption price specified in Section 3.9( i ) or Section  5.9 , as applicable, in each case together with accrued and unpaid interest to the Redemption Date.

SECTION 5.2     Applicability of Article . Redemption of Securities at the election of the Issuer, as permitted by any provision of this Indenture, shall be made in accordance with such provision and this Article.

 

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SECTION 5.3     Election to Redeem; Notice to Trustee . The election of the Issuer to redeem any Securities of a series pursuant to Section  5.1 shall be evidenced by an Officers’ Certificate of the Issuer. In case of any redemption at the election of the Issuer, the Issuer shall, not later than five Business Days prior to giving notice of any redemption pursuant to Section  5.5 (unless a shorter notice shall be satisfactory to the Trustee), notify the Trustee in writing of such Redemption Date and of the principal amount of Securities of a series to be redeemed and, in the case of any redemption of less than all Securities of such series, shall deliver to the Trustee such documentation and records as shall enable the Trustee to select the Securities of such series to be redeemed pursuant to Section  5.4 . Any such notice may be cancelled at any time prior to notice of such redemption being sent to any Holder and shall thereby be void and of no effect.

SECTION 5.4     Selection by Trustee of Securities to Be Redeemed . If less than all Securities of a series are to be redeemed at any time pursuant to an optional redemption, the particular Securities of such series to be redeemed shall be selected not more than 60 days prior to the Redemption Date by the Trustee, from the outstanding Securities of such series not previously called for redemption, in compliance with the requirements, as set forth in an Officers’ Certificate delivered by the Issuer to the Trustee, of the principal national securities exchange, if any, on which such Securities are listed, or, if such Securities of such series are not so listed, then on a pro rata basis, by lot or by such other method as the Trustee in its sole discretion shall deem to be fair and appropriate (or, in the case of Global Securities, the Trustee will select Securities of such series for redemption based on such method as DTC may prescribe); provided , however , that no such partial redemption shall reduce the portion of the principal amount of a Security not redeemed to less than $2,000.

The Trustee shall promptly notify the Issuer in writing of the Securities selected for redemption and, in the case of any Securities selected for partial redemption, the method it has chosen for the selection of Securities and the principal amount thereof to be redeemed.

For all purposes of this Indenture, unless the context otherwise requires, all provisions relating to redemption of Securities shall relate, in the case of any Security redeemed or to be redeemed only in part, to the portion of the principal amount of such Security which has been or is to be redeemed.

SECTION 5.5     Notice of Redemption .

(a)    Notice of redemption shall be given in the manner provided for in Section  12.2 , not less than 15 nor more than 60 days prior to the Redemption Date, to each Holder of Securities to be redeemed, except that that redemption notices may be sent more than 60 days prior to a Redemption Date if the notice is issued in connection with a legal defeasance or covenant defeasance of the Securities or a satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture pursuant to Article VIII or except as set forth in the penultimate sentence of Section 5.5(b) . At the Issuer’s request, the Trustee shall give notice of redemption in the Issuer’s name and at the Issuer’s expense; provided , however , that the Issuer shall deliver to the Trustee, at least five Business Days prior to the giving of such notice (unless a shorter period shall be satisfactory to the Trustee), an Officers’ Certificate requesting that the Trustee give such notice at the Issuer’s expense and setting forth the information to be stated in such notice as provided in the following items.

 

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All notices of redemption shall state:

(1)    the Redemption Date,

(2)    the redemption price, if then determinable, and otherwise the method for its determination and the amount of accrued interest to the Redemption Date payable as provided in Section  5.7 , if any,

(3)    if less than all outstanding Securities of a series are to be redeemed, the identification of the particular Securities of such series (or portion thereof) to be redeemed, as well as the aggregate principal amount of Securities of such series to be redeemed and the aggregate principal amount of Securities to be outstanding after such partial redemption,

(4)    in case any Security of a series is to be redeemed in part only, the notice which relates to such Security of such series shall state that on and after the Redemption Date, upon surrender of such Security of such series, the Holder will receive, without charge, a new Security or Securities of authorized denominations for the principal amount thereof remaining unredeemed,

(5)    that on the Redemption Date, the redemption price (and accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date payable as provided in Section  5.7 ) will become due and payable upon each such Security, or the portion thereof, to be redeemed, and, unless the Issuer defaults in making the redemption payment, that interest on Securities called for redemption (or the portion thereof) will cease to accrue on and after said date,

(6)    the place or places where such Securities are to be surrendered for payment of the redemption price and accrued interest, if any,

(7)    the name and address of the Paying Agent,

(8)    that Securities called for redemption must be surrendered to the Paying Agent to collect the redemption price,

(9)    the CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, and that no representation is made as to the accuracy or correctness of the CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, if any, listed in such notice or printed on the Securities,

(10)    the Section of this Indenture or the paragraph of the Securities pursuant to which the Securities are to be redeemed, and

(11)    if in connection with any conditional notice of redemption pursuant to the Issuer’s right to redeem all of the Securities upon a Change of Control Triggering Event, and in compliance with Section 5.5(b) , that such redemption is conditional upon such Change of Control Triggering Event occurring.

(b)    Any redemption or notice of redemption may, at the Issuer’s discretion, be subject to one or more conditions precedent and, in the case of a redemption with the Net Cash

 

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Proceeds of an Equity Offering, be given prior to the completion of the related Equity Offering. If such redemption is subject to satisfaction of one or more conditions precedent, such notice shall describe each such condition, and if applicable, shall state that, in the Issuer’s discretion, the Redemption Date may be delayed until such time (including more than 60 days after the date the notice of redemption was mailed or delivered, including by electronic transmission (subject to the applicable procedures of DTC)) as any or all such conditions shall be satisfied, or such redemption or purchase may not occur and such notice may be rescinded in the event that any or all such conditions shall not have been satisfied by the redemption or by the Redemption Date as so delayed, or such notice may be rescinded at any time in the Issuer’s discretion if the Issuer reasonably believes that any or all of such conditions will not be satisfied. In addition, the Issuer may provide in such notice that payment of the redemption and performance of the Issuer’s obligations with respect to such redemption may be performed by another Person.

SECTION 5.6     Deposit of Redemption Price . Prior to 11:00 a.m., New York City time, on any Redemption Date, the Issuer shall deposit with the Trustee or with a Paying Agent (or, if the Issuer or any of the Issuer’s Restricted Subsidiaries is acting as its own Paying Agent, segregate and hold in trust as provided in Section  2.4 ) an amount of money sufficient (as determined by the Issuer) to pay the redemption price of and accrued interest on, all Securities of a series which are to be redeemed on that date, other than Securities of such series or portions of Securities called for redemption that are beneficially owned by the Issuer and have been delivered by the Issuer to the Trustee for cancellation.

SECTION 5.7     Securities Payable on Redemption Date . Notice of redemption having been given as aforesaid, the Securities or portions of Securities of a series so to be redeemed without a condition precedent shall, on the Redemption Date, become due and payable at the redemption price therein specified (together with accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date), and from and after such date (unless the Issuer shall default in the payment of the redemption price and accrued interest) such Securities shall cease to bear interest and the only right of the Holders thereof will be to receive payment of the redemption price and, subject to the next sentence, unpaid interest on such Securities to the Redemption Date. Upon surrender of any such Security for redemption in accordance with said notice, such Security shall be paid by the Issuer at the redemption price, together with accrued interest, if any, to the Redemption Date, provided , however , that installments of interest whose Stated Maturity is on or prior to the Redemption Date will be payable to the Holder of such Security, or one or more predecessor Securities, registered as such as of the relevant record date.

If any Security called for redemption shall not be so paid upon surrender thereof for redemption, the unpaid principal (and premium, if any) shall, until paid, bear interest from the Redemption Date at the rate borne by the Securities.

SECTION 5.8     Securities Redeemed in Part . Any Security of a series which is to be redeemed only in part (pursuant to the provisions of this Article) shall be surrendered at the office or agency of the Issuer maintained for such purpose pursuant to Section  3.12 (with, if the Issuer or the Trustee so require, due endorsement by, or a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Issuer and the Trustee duly executed by, the Holder thereof or such Holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing), and the Issuer shall execute, and the Trustee shall authenticate and make available for delivery to the Holder of such Security at the expense of the

 

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Issuer, a new Security or Securities, of any authorized denomination as requested by such Holder, in an aggregate principal amount equal to and in exchange for the unredeemed portion of the principal of the Security so surrendered; provided , that each such new Security will be in a principal amount of $2,000 or integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof.

SECTION 5.9     Tax Redemption .

(a)    The Issuer may, at its option, upon providing not less than 30 days’ notice to the Trustee and the Holders, redeem, in whole but not in part, the outstanding Securities at a redemption price of 100% of the principal amount thereof plus accrued and unpaid interest to the date of redemption if any Guarantor has become or would become obligated to pay any Additional Amounts or any Reimbursement Payments in respect of any Guarantee as a result of:

(1)    any change in or amendment to the laws (or regulations promulgated thereunder) of any Non-U.S. Taxing Authority, or

(2)    any change in or amendment to any official position regarding the application, administration or interpretation of such laws, regulations, rulings, technical interpretations, income tax folios, interpretation bulletins, information circulars or equivalent documents issued by a Non-U.S. Taxing Authority (including a holding, judgment or order by a court of competent jurisdiction), which change or amendment is announced and becomes effective after the Issue Date (without regard to whether the Issuer or any Guarantor is or has been making any payments under the Securities prior to, at or after the time such change or amendment is announced or effective).

(b)    It shall be a condition to the Issuer’s right to redeem the Securities pursuant to the provisions of Section 5.9(a) that, prior to giving any notice of redemption of the Securities, the Issuer shall have delivered to the Trustee (i) an Officers’ Certificate stating that the Issuer has determined in its reasonable judgment that the obligations to pay such Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments cannot be avoided by such Guarantor taking reasonable measures available to it and (ii) an Opinion of Counsel that such Guarantor has or will become obligated to pay Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments as a result of an amendment or change described in Section 5.9(a) .

(c)    No such notice of redemption may be given more than 60 days before or more than 180 days after any Guarantor first becomes liable (or, if later, the earlier of the date on which such Guarantor first becomes aware of its liability or the date on which it reasonably should have become aware of its liability) to pay any Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments as a result of a change or amendment described in Section 5.9(a) .

ARTICLE VI

DEFAULTS AND REMEDIES

SECTION 6.1     Events of Default .

(a)    An “ Event of Default ” wherever used herein, means any one of the following events in relation to the Securities of a series (whatever the reason for such Event of

 

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Default and whether it shall be voluntary or involuntary or be effected by operation of law or pursuant to any judgment, decree or order of any court or any order, rule or regulation of any administrative or governmental body):

(1)    default in any payment of interest on any Security of such series when due, continued for 30 days;

(2)    default in the payment of principal of or premium, if any, on any Security of such series when due at its Stated Maturity, upon optional redemption, upon required repurchase, upon declaration of acceleration or otherwise;

(3)    failure by the Issuer or any Guarantor to comply with its obligations under Article IV ;

(4)    failure by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary to comply for 30 days (or 180 days in the case of a Reporting Failure) after notice has been given, by registered or certified mail, to the Parent Guarantor by the Trustee or to the Parent Guarantor and the Trustee by the Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of the applicable series a written notice specifying such default or breach and requiring it to be remedied and stating that such notice is a “ Notice of Default ” hereunder with Sections 3.2 , 3.3 , 3.4 , 3.5 , 3.6 , 3.8 , 3.9 , 3.10 and 3.11 (in each case, other than a failure to purchase Securities of such series which will constitute an Event of Default under clause (2) above and other than a failure to comply with Article IV which is covered by clause (3));

(5)    failure by the Parent Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary to comply with any agreement in this Indenture or the Securities (other than an agreement, a default in or failure to comply with that is elsewhere in this Section specifically dealt with) and continuance of such default or breach for a period of 60 days after there has been given, by registered or certified mail, to the Parent Guarantor by the Trustee or to the Parent Guarantor and the Trustee by the Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of the applicable series a written notice specifying such default or breach and requiring it to be remedied and stating that such notice is a “ Notice of Default ” hereunder;

(6)    default under any mortgage, indenture or instrument under which there may be issued or by which there may be secured or evidenced any Indebtedness for money borrowed by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries (or the payment of which is guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries), other than Indebtedness owed to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, whether such Indebtedness or guarantee existed at the Issue Date, or was created thereafter, which default:

(A)    is caused by a failure to pay principal of, or interest or premium, if any, on such Indebtedness prior to the expiration of the grace period provided in such Indebtedness (and any extensions of any grace period) (“ payment default ”); or

 

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(B)    results in the acceleration of such Indebtedness prior to its Stated Maturity (the “ cross acceleration provision ”);

and, in each case, the principal amount of any such Indebtedness, together with the principal amount of any other such Indebtedness under which there has been a payment default or the maturity of which has been so accelerated, aggregates $50.0 million or more;

(7)    the entry by a court having jurisdiction in the premises of (A) a decree or order for relief in respect of the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries), would constitute a Significant Subsidiary in an involuntary case or proceeding under any applicable Federal or State bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or other similar law or (B) a decree or order adjudging the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries), would constitute a Significant Subsidiary bankrupt or insolvent, or approving as properly filed a petition seeking reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition of or in respect of the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, under any applicable Federal or State law, or appointing a custodian, receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, sequestrator or other similar official of the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, or of any substantial part of its or their property, or ordering the winding up or liquidation of its or their affairs, and the continuance of any decree or order for relief or any such other decree or order unstayed and in effect for a period of 60 consecutive days;

(8)    the commencement by the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary of a voluntary case or proceeding under any applicable Federal or State bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or similar law or of any other case or proceeding to be adjudicated as bankrupt or insolvent, or the consent by it or them to the entry of a decree or order for relief or in an involuntary case or proceeding under any applicable Federal or State bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization or other similar law or to the commencement of any bankruptcy or insolvency case or proceeding against it or them, or the filing by it or them of a petition or answer or consent seeking reorganization or relief under any applicable Federal or State law, or the consent by it or them to the filing of such petition or to the appointment of or taking possession by a custodian, receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, sequestrator or other similar official of the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements

 

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for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary or of any substantial part of its or their property, or the making by it or them of an assignment for the benefit of creditors, or the admission by it or them in writing of its or their inability to pay its or their debts generally as they become due, or the taking of corporate action by the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary in furtherance of any such action;

(9)    failure by the Parent Guarantor, the Issuer or any Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries), would constitute a Significant Subsidiary to pay final judgments aggregating in excess of $50.0 million (to the extent not covered by insurance by a reputable and creditworthy insurer as to which the insurer has not disclaimed coverage), which judgments are not paid or discharged, and there shall be any period of 60 consecutive days following entry of such final judgment or decree during which a stay of enforcement of such final judgment or decree, by reason of pending appeal or otherwise, shall not be in effect (the “ judgment default provision ”); or

(10)    any Guarantee of the Parent Guarantor or a Significant Subsidiary or group of Restricted Subsidiaries that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements for the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, ceases to be in full force and effect (except as contemplated by the terms of this Indenture) or is declared null and void in a judicial proceeding or the Parent Guarantor or any Subsidiary Guarantor that is a Significant Subsidiary or group of Subsidiary Guarantors that, taken together (as of the latest audited consolidated financial statements of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries) would constitute a Significant Subsidiary, denies or disaffirms its obligations under this Indenture or its Guarantee.

(b)    However, a default under clauses (4) and (5) of Section 6.1(a) will not constitute an Event of Default until the Trustee or the Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of the applicable series notify the Parent Guarantor in writing and, in the case of a notice given by the Holders, the Trustee of the default and the Parent Guarantor does not cure such default within the time specified in clauses (4) and (5) of Section 6.1(a) after receipt of such notice.

SECTION 6.2     Acceleration . If an Event of Default (other than an Event of Default described in clauses (7) and (8) of Section 6.1(a) ) occurs and is continuing, the Trustee by notice to the Issuer, or the Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of the applicable series by notice to the Issuer and the Trustee, may declare the principal of, premium, if any, accrued and unpaid interest, if any, on all Securities of such series to be due and payable. Upon such declaration, the principal of, premium, if any, accrued and unpaid interest, if any, on all Securities of such series shall become and be immediately due and payable. If an Event of Default described in clauses (7) and (8) of Section 6.1(a) occurs and is continuing with respect to a series of Securities, the principal of, premium, if any, accrued and unpaid interest, if

 

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any, on all Securities of such series will become and be immediately due and payable without any declaration or other act on the part of the Trustee or any Holders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Event of Default specified clause (6) of Section 6.1(a) shall have occurred and be continuing with respect to a series of Securities, such Event of Default and any consequential acceleration (to the extent not in violation of any applicable law or in conflict with any judgment or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction) shall be automatically rescinded if (i) the Indebtedness that is the subject of such Event of Default has been repaid or (ii) if the default relating to such Indebtedness is waived by the holders of such Indebtedness or cured and if such Indebtedness has been accelerated, then the holders thereof have rescinded their declaration of acceleration in respect of such Indebtedness, in each case within 20 days after the declaration of acceleration with respect thereto, and (iii) any other existing Events of Default relating to Securities of such series, except nonpayment of principal, premium or interest on the Securities of such series that became due solely because of the acceleration of the Securities of such series, have been cured or waived.

SECTION 6.3     Other Remedies . If an Event of Default occurs and is continuing with respect to a series of Securities, the Trustee may pursue any available remedy by proceeding at law or in equity to collect the payment of principal of (or premium) or interest on the Securities of such series or to enforce the performance of any provision of the Securities of such series, this Indenture with respect to such series or the Guarantees with respect to such Securities.

The Trustee may maintain a proceeding even if it does not possess any of the Securities or does not produce any of them in the proceeding. A delay or omission by the Trustee or any Securityholder in exercising any right or remedy accruing upon an Event of Default shall not impair the right or remedy or constitute a waiver of or acquiescence in the Event of Default. No remedy is exclusive of any other remedy. All available remedies are cumulative.

SECTION 6.4     Waiver of Past Defaults . The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of a series by notice to the Trustee (with a copy to the Issuer, but the applicable waiver or rescission shall be effective when the notice is given to the Trustee) may (a) waive, by their consent (including, without limitation, consents obtained in connection with a purchase of, or tender offer or exchange offer for, Securities of such series), an existing Default or Event of Default and its consequences except (i) a Default or Event of Default in the payment of the principal of, or premium, if any, or interest on a Security of such series or (ii) a Default or Event of Default in respect of a provision that under Section  9.2 cannot be amended without the consent of each Securityholder of such series affected and (b) rescind any acceleration with respect to the Securities of such series and its consequences if (1) such rescission would not conflict with any judgment or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction and (2) all existing Events of Default, other than the nonpayment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the Securities of such series that have become due solely by such declaration of acceleration, have been cured or waived. When a Default or Event of Default is waived, it is deemed cured, but no such waiver shall extend to any subsequent or other Default or Event of Default or impair any consequent right.

SECTION 6.5     Control by Majority . The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of a series may direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee or of exercising any trust or power conferred

 

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on the Trustee with respect to such series. However, the Trustee may refuse to follow any direction that conflicts with law or this Indenture with respect to such series, the Securities of such series or the Guarantees or, subject to Sections 7.1 and 7.2 , that the Trustee determines is unduly prejudicial to the rights of other Securityholders of such series or would involve the Trustee in personal liability; provided , however , that the Trustee may take any other action deemed proper by the Trustee that is not inconsistent with such direction. Prior to taking any such action hereunder, the Trustee shall be entitled to indemnification or security satisfactory to it in its sole discretion against all losses, liabilities and expenses caused or that may be caused by taking or not taking such action.

SECTION 6.6     Limitation on Suits . Subject to Section  6.7 , a Securityholder of a series may not pursue any remedy with respect to this Indenture or the Securities of such series unless:

(1)    such Holder has previously given to the Trustee written notice stating that an Event of Default with respect to such series of the Securities is continuing;

(2)    Holders of at least 25% in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of such series have requested that the Trustee pursue the remedy;

(3)    such Holders have offered to the Trustee security or indemnity, reasonably satisfactory to the Trustee, against any loss, liability or expense;

(4)    the Trustee has not complied with such request within 60 days after receipt of the request and the offer of security or indemnity; and

(5)    the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the outstanding Securities of such series have not waived such Event of Default or otherwise given the Trustee a direction that, in the opinion of the Trustee, is inconsistent with such request during such 60-day period.

A Securityholder may not use this Indenture to prejudice the rights of another Securityholder or to obtain a preference or priority over another Securityholder.

SECTION 6.7     Rights of Holders to Receive Payment . Notwithstanding any other provision of this Indenture (including, without limitation, Section  6.6 ), the contractual right expressly set forth in this Indenture or the Securities of any Holder to receive payment of principal of, premium (if any) or interest on the Securities held by such Holder, on or after the respective due dates expressed or provided for in the Securities of such series, or to bring suit for the enforcement of any such payment on or after such respective dates, shall not be amended without the consent of such Holder.

SECTION 6.8     Collection Suit by Trustee . If an Event of Default specified in clauses (1) or (2) of Section 6.1(a) occurs and is continuing, the Trustee may recover judgment in its own name and as trustee of an express trust against the Issuer for the whole amount then due and owing (together with interest on any unpaid interest to the extent lawful) and the amounts provided for in Section  7.7 .

 

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SECTION 6.9     Trustee May File Proofs of Claim . The Trustee may file such proofs of claim and other papers or documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Trustee (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and counsel) and the Securityholders allowed in any judicial proceedings relative to the Issuer, the Parent Guarantor or the Subsidiary Guarantors or its or their respective creditors or properties and, unless prohibited by law or applicable regulations, may be entitled and empowered to participate as a member of any official committee of creditors appointed in such matter and may vote on behalf of the Holders in any election of a trustee in bankruptcy or other Person performing similar functions, and any Custodian in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each Holder to make payments to the Trustee and, in the event that the Trustee shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Holders, to pay to the Trustee any amount due it for the compensation and reasonable expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee, its agents and its counsel, and any other amounts due the Trustee under Section  7.7 .

No provision of this Indenture shall be deemed to authorize the Trustee to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of any Holder any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Securities or the rights of any Holder thereof or to authorize the Trustee to vote in respect of the claim of any Holder in any such proceeding.

SECTION 6.10     Priorities . If the Trustee collects any money or property pursuant to this Article VI , it shall pay out the money in the following order:

FIRST: to the Trustee for amounts due to it under Section  7.7 , including payment of all compensation, expense and liabilities incurred, and all advances made, by the Trustee and the costs and expenses of collection;

SECOND: to Holders of Securities for amounts due and unpaid on the Securities for principal, premium, if any, and interest, ratably, without preference or priority of any kind, according to the amounts due and payable on the Securities for principal, premium, if any, and interest, respectively; and

THIRD: to the Issuer or to such party as a court of competent jurisdiction shall direct.

The Trustee may fix a record date and payment date for any payment to Holders of Securities pursuant to this Section  6.10 .

SECTION 6.11     Undertaking for Costs . In any suit for the enforcement of any right or remedy under this Indenture or in any suit against the Trustee for any action taken or omitted by it as Trustee, a court in its discretion may require the filing by any party litigant in the suit of an undertaking to pay the costs of the suit, and the court in its discretion may assess reasonable costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses, against any party litigant in the suit, having due regard to the merits and good faith of the claims or defenses made by the party litigant. This Section does not apply to a suit by the Trustee, a suit by the Parent Guarantor or its Subsidiaries, a suit by a Holder pursuant to Section  6.7 or a suit by Holders of more than 10% in outstanding principal amount of the Securities.

 

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ARTICLE VII

TRUSTEE

SECTION 7.1     Duties of Trustee .

(a)    If an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the Trustee shall exercise the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture and use the same degree of care and skill in its exercise as a prudent person would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of such person’s own affairs.

(b)    Except during the continuance of an Event of Default:

(1)    the Trustee undertakes to perform such duties and only such duties as are specifically set forth in this Indenture and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee; and

(2)    in the absence of bad faith on its part, the Trustee may conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon certificates, opinions or orders furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees, as applicable. However, in the case of any such certificates or opinions which by any provisions hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall examine such certificates and opinions to determine whether or not they conform to the requirements of this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees, as the case may be (but need not confirm or investigate the accuracy of mathematical calculations or other facts stated therein).

(c)    The Trustee may not be relieved from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act or its own willful misconduct, except that:

(1)     Section 7.1(c) does not limit the effect of Section 7.1(b) ;

(2)    the Trustee shall not be liable for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Trust Officer unless it is proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts;

(3)    the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action it takes or omits to take in good faith in accordance with a direction received by it pursuant to Section  6.5 ; and

(4)    no provision of this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees shall require the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur financial liability in the performance of any of its duties hereunder or thereunder or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers, if it shall have reasonable grounds to believe that repayment of such funds or indemnity or security satisfactory to the Trustee against such risk or liability is not reasonably assured to it.

 

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(d)    Every provision of this Indenture that in any way relates to the Trustee is subject to paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this Section  7.1 .

(e)    The Trustee shall not be liable for interest on any money received by it except as the Trustee may agree in writing with the Issuer. The Trustee shall not be required to give any bond or surety in respect of the performance of its powers or duties under the Indenture.

(f)    Money held in trust by the Trustee need not be segregated from other funds except to the extent required by law.

(g)    Unless otherwise specifically provided in this Indenture, any demand, request, direction or notice from the Issuer shall be sufficient if signed by one Officer of the Issuer.

SECTION 7.2     Rights of Trustee . Subject to Section  7.1 :

(a)    The Trustee may conclusively rely on any document (whether in its original or facsimile form) reasonably believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper person. The Trustee need not investigate any fact or matter stated in the document. The Trustee shall receive and retain financial reports and statements of the Issuer as provided herein, but shall have no duty to review or analyze such reports or statements to determine compliance with covenants or other obligations of the Issuer.

(b)    Before the Trustee acts or refrains from acting, it may require an Officers’ Certificate and/or an Opinion of Counsel. The Trustee shall not be liable for any action it takes or omits to take in good faith in reliance on an Officers’ Certificate or Opinion of Counsel.

(c)    The Trustee may act through its attorneys and agents and shall not be responsible for the misconduct or negligence of any agent appointed with due care.

(d)    The Trustee shall not be liable for any action it takes or omits to take in good faith which it believes to be authorized or within its rights or powers, unless the Trustee’s conduct constitutes willful misconduct or negligence.

(e)    The Trustee may consult with counsel of its selection, and the advice or opinion of counsel with respect to legal matters relating to this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees shall be full and complete authorization and protection from liability in respect of any action taken, omitted or suffered by it hereunder or under the Securities or the Guarantees in good faith and in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel.

(f)    The Trustee shall not be deemed to have notice of any Default or Event of Default or whether any entity or group of entities constitutes a Significant Subsidiary unless a Trust Officer of the Trustee has actual knowledge thereof or unless written notice of any event which is in fact such a Default or of any such Significant Subsidiary is received by the Trustee at the corporate trust office of the Trustee specified in Section  12.2 , and such notice references the Securities and this Indenture.

 

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(g)    The rights, privileges, protections, immunities and benefits given to the Trustee, including, without limitation, its right to be indemnified, are extended to, and shall be enforceable by, the Trustee in each of its capacities hereunder, and to each agent, custodian and other Person employed to act hereunder.

(h)    The Trustee shall be under no obligation to exercise any of the rights or powers vested in it by this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees at the request, order or direction of any of the Holders pursuant to the provisions of this Indenture, unless such Holders shall have offered (and if requested, provided) to the Trustee security or indemnity satisfactory to the Trustee against the losses, costs, expenses and liabilities which may be incurred therein or thereby.

(i)    Whenever in the administration of this Indenture, the Securities or the Guarantees the Trustee shall deem it desirable that a matter be proved or established prior to taking, suffering or omitting any action hereunder or thereunder, the Trustee (unless other evidence be herein specifically prescribed) may request and in the absence of bad faith or willful misconduct on its part, rely upon an Officers’ Certificate.

(j)    In no event shall the Trustee be responsible or liable for any special, indirect, punitive or consequential loss or damage of any kind whatsoever (including, but not limited to, loss of profit), irrespective of whether the Trustee has been advised of the likelihood of such loss or damage and regardless of the form of action.

(k)    The parties hereto acknowledge, in accordance with Section 326 of the Patriot Act, that the Trustee, like all financial institutions and in order to help fight the funding of terrorism and money laundering, is required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies each person or legal entity that establishes a relationship or opens an account with the Trustee. The Issuer and the Guarantors agree that they will provide the Trustee with all such information as it may reasonably request in order to satisfy the requirements or its obligations under the Patriot Act.

(l)    Any discretion, permissive right or privilege in favor of the Trustee, if any, shall not be construed as a duty or obligation.

(m)    The rights, privileges, protections, immunities and benefits given to the Trustee, including, without limitation, its right to be indemnified, are extended to, and shall be enforceable by, the Trustee in each of its capacities hereunder, and each agent, custodian and other Person employed to act hereunder

(n)    The Trustee may request that the Issuer deliver a certificate setting forth the names of individuals and/or titles of officers authorized at such time to take specified actions pursuant to this Indenture, which certificate may be signed by any person authorized to sign an Officers’ Certificate, including any person specified as so authorized in any such certificate previously delivered and not superseded.

SECTION 7.3     Individual Rights of Trustee . The Trustee in its individual or any other capacity may become the owner or pledgee of Securities and may otherwise deal with the Issuer, the Guarantors or their Affiliates with the same rights it would have if it were not Trustee. Any

 

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Paying Agent or Registrar may do the same with like rights. However, the Trustee must comply with Sections 7.10 and 7.11 . In addition, the Trustee shall be permitted to engage in transactions with the Issuer; provided , however , that if the Trustee acquires any conflicting interest under the TIA, the Trustee must (i) eliminate such conflict within 90 days of acquiring such conflicting interest, (ii) apply to the SEC for permission to continue acting as Trustee or (iii) resign.

SECTION 7.4     Trustee s Disclaimer . The Trustee shall not be responsible for and makes no representation as to the validity or adequacy of this Indenture, the Guarantees or the Securities, shall not be accountable for the Issuer’s use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities, shall not be responsible for the use or application of any money received by any Paying Agent other than the Trustee or any money paid to the Issuer pursuant to the terms of this Indenture and shall not be responsible for any statement of the Issuer in this Indenture or in any document issued in connection with the sale of the Securities or in the Securities other than the Trustee’s certificate of authentication.

SECTION 7.5     Notice of Defaults . If a Default or Event of Default with respect to a series of Securities occurs and is continuing and if a Trust Officer has actual knowledge thereof, the Trustee shall send to each Securityholder of such series in the manner provided in Section  12.02 , notice of the Default or Event of Default within 90 days after it occurs. Except in the case of a Default or Event of Default in payment of principal of, premium (if any), or interest on any Security (including payments pursuant to the optional redemption or required repurchase provisions of such Security), the Trustee may withhold the notice if and so long as the Trustee in good faith determines that withholding the notice is in the interests of Securityholders of such series.

SECTION 7.6     Reports by Trustee to Holders .

A copy of each report at the time it is sent to Securityholders shall be filed with the SEC and each stock exchange (if any) on which the Securities are listed. The Issuer agrees to notify promptly the Trustee whenever the Securities become listed on any stock exchange and of any delisting thereof and the Trustee shall comply with TIA § 313(d).

SECTION 7.7     Compensation and Indemnity . The Issuer shall pay to the Trustee from time to time reasonable compensation for its services hereunder and under the Securities and the Guarantees as the Issuer and the Trustee shall from time to time agree in writing. The Trustee’s compensation shall not be limited by any law on compensation of a trustee of an express trust. The Issuer shall reimburse the Trustee upon request for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred or made by it, including, but not limited to, costs of collection, costs of preparing reports, certificates and other documents, costs of preparation and sending of notices to Securityholders. Such expenses shall include the reasonable compensation and expenses, disbursements and advances of the Trustee’s agents, counsel, accountants and experts. The Issuer and the Guarantors shall, jointly and severally, indemnify the Trustee (including its officers, directors, agents and employees) against any and all loss, liability, damages, claims or expense (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses) incurred by it without willful misconduct or gross negligence on its part (as determined by a final non-appealable order of a court of competent jurisdiction) in connection with the administration of this trust and the performance of its duties hereunder and under the Securities and the Guarantees, including the

 

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costs and expenses of enforcing this Indenture (including this Section  7.7 ), the Securities and the Guarantees and of defending itself against any claims (whether asserted by any Securityholder, the Issuer or otherwise). The Trustee shall notify the Issuer promptly of any claim for which it may seek indemnity of which it has received written notice. Failure by the Trustee to so notify the Issuer shall not relieve the Issuer of its obligations hereunder. The Issuer shall defend the claim and the Trustee shall provide reasonable cooperation at the Issuer’s expense in the defense. The Trustee may have separate counsel and the Issuer shall pay the fees and expenses of such counsel; provided that the Issuer shall not be required to pay the fees and expenses of such separate counsel if it assumes the Trustee’s defense, and, in the reasonable judgment of outside counsel to the Trustee, there is no conflict of interest between the Issuer and the Trustee in connection with such defense.

To secure the Issuer’s payment obligations in this Section  7.7 , the Trustee shall have a lien prior to the Securities on all money or property held or collected by the Trustee other than money or property held in trust to pay principal of, premium, if any, and interest on particular Securities. Such lien shall survive the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture or the earlier resignation or removal of the Trustee. The Trustee’s right to receive payment of any amounts due under this Section  7.7 shall not be subordinate to any other liability or Indebtedness of the Issuer.

The Issuer’s payment obligations pursuant to this Section shall survive the discharge of this Indenture or the earlier resignation or removal of the Trustee. Without prejudice to any other rights available to the Trustee under applicable law, when the Trustee incurs expenses after the occurrence of a Default specified in clause (7) or clause (8) of Section  6.1 , the expenses are intended to constitute expenses of administration under any Bankruptcy Law. “Trustee” for purposes of this Section 7.7 shall include any predecessor Trustee; provided, however, the gross negligence or willful misconduct of any Trustee hereunder shall not affect the rights of any other Trustee hereunder.

SECTION 7.8     Replacement of Trustee . The Trustee may resign at any time by so notifying the Issuer in writing. The Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of a series may remove the Trustee with respect to such series by so notifying the removed Trustee in writing and may appoint a successor Trustee with the Issuer’s written consent, which consent will not be unreasonably withheld. The Issuer shall remove the Trustee if:

(1)    the Trustee fails to comply with Section  7.10 hereof or TIA §310;

(2)    the Trustee is adjudged bankrupt or insolvent;

(3)    a receiver or other public officer takes charge of the Trustee or its property; or

(4)    the Trustee otherwise becomes incapable of acting.

If the Trustee resigns or is removed by the Issuer or by the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities and such Holders do not reasonably promptly appoint a successor Trustee as described in the preceding paragraph, or if a vacancy exists in the office of the Trustee for any other reason (the Trustee in such event being referred to herein as the retiring Trustee), the Issuer shall promptly appoint a successor Trustee.

 

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A successor Trustee shall deliver a written acceptance of its appointment to the retiring Trustee and to the Issuer. Thereupon the resignation or removal of the retiring Trustee shall become effective, and the successor Trustee shall have all the rights, powers and duties of the Trustee under this Indenture. The successor Trustee shall send a notice of its succession to Securityholders. The retiring Trustee shall promptly transfer all property held by it as Trustee to the successor Trustee, subject to the lien provided for in Section  7.7 .

If a successor Trustee does not take office within 60 days after the retiring Trustee resigns or is removed, the retiring Trustee or the Holders of at least 10% in principal amount of the Securities may petition, at the Issuer’s expense, any court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Trustee.

If the Trustee fails to comply with Section  7.10 , unless the Trustee’s duty to resign is stayed as provided in TIA § 310(b), any Securityholder, who has been a bona fide Holder of a Security for at least six months, may petition any court of competent jurisdiction for the removal of the Trustee and the appointment of a successor Trustee.

Notwithstanding the replacement of the Trustee pursuant to this Section  7.8 , the Issuer’s obligations under Section  7.7 shall continue for the benefit of the retiring Trustee.

SECTION 7.9     Successor Trustee by Merger . If the Trustee consolidates with, merges or converts into, or transfers all or substantially all its corporate trust business or assets to, another corporation or banking association, the resulting, surviving or transferee corporation without any further act shall be the successor Trustee.

In case at the time such successor or successors by merger, conversion or consolidation to the Trustee shall succeed to the trusts created by this Indenture, any of the Securities shall have been authenticated but not delivered, any such successor to the Trustee may adopt the certificate of authentication of any predecessor trustee, and deliver such Securities so authenticated; and in case at that time any of the Securities shall not have been authenticated, any successor to the Trustee may authenticate such Securities either in the name of any predecessor hereunder or in the name of the successor to the Trustee; provided that the right to adopt the certificate of authentication of any predecessor Trustee or authenticate Securities in the name of any predecessor Trustee shall only apply to its successor or successors by merger, consolidation or conversion.

SECTION 7.10     Eligibility; Disqualification . This Indenture shall always have a Trustee that satisfies the requirements of TIA § 310(a)(1), (2) and (5) in every respect. The Trustee shall have a combined capital and surplus of at least $100 million as set forth in its most recent published annual report of condition. The Trustee shall comply with TIA § 310(b); provided , however , that there shall be excluded from the operation of TIA § 310(b)(1) any indenture or indentures under which other securities or certificates of interest or participation in other securities of the Issuer are outstanding if the requirements for such exclusion set forth in TIA § 310(b)(1) are met.

 

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SECTION 7.11     Preferential Collection of Claims Against the Issuer . The Trustee shall comply with TIA § 311(a), excluding any creditor relationship listed in TIA § 311(b). A Trustee who has resigned or been removed shall be subject to TIA § 311(a) to the extent indicated.

SECTION 7.12     Trustee s Application for Instruction from the Issuer . Any application by the Trustee for written instructions from the Issuer may, at the option of the Trustee, set forth in writing any action proposed to be taken or omitted by the Trustee under this Indenture and the date on and/or after which such action shall be taken or such omission shall be effective. The Trustee shall not be liable for any action taken by, or omission of, the Trustee in accordance with a proposal included in such application on or after the date specified in such application (which date shall not be less than three Business Days after the date any Officer of the Issuer actually receives such application, unless any such Officer shall have consented in writing to any earlier date) unless prior to taking any such action (or the effective date in the case of an omission), the Trustee shall have received written instructions in response to such application specifying the action to be taken or omitted.

ARTICLE VIII

DISCHARGE OF INDENTURE; DEFEASANCE

SECTION 8.1     Discharge of Liability on Securities; Defeasance .

(a)    Subject to Section 8.1(c) , when (i) either (x) all Securities of a series that have been authenticated (other than Securities of such series replaced or paid pursuant to Section  2.10 and such Securities for whose payment money has been deposited in trust or segregated and held in trust by the Issuer and thereafter repaid to the Issuer or discharged from such trust), have been delivered to the Trustee for cancellation or (y) all outstanding Securities of a series not theretofore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation have become due and payable by reason of the making of a notice of redemption or otherwise, will become due and payable within one year or may be called for redemption within one year under arrangements satisfactory to the Trustee for the giving of notice of redemption by the Trustee in the name, and at the expense, of the Issuer, and the Issuer or any Guarantor has irrevocably deposited or caused to be irrevocably deposited with the Trustee, as trust funds in trust solely for the benefit of the Holders, cash in U.S. dollars, U.S. Government Obligations, or a combination thereof, in such amounts as will be sufficient, in the opinion of an accounting, appraisal or investment banking firm of national standing, without consideration of any reinvestment of interest, to pay and discharge the entire Indebtedness on the Securities of such series not theretofore delivered to the Trustee for cancellation for principal, premium, if any, and accrued interest to the date of final maturity or redemption ( provided that if such redemption is made as provided in the fifth paragraph of paragraph 5 of the forms of Securities attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes), (1) the amount of cash in U.S. dollars, U.S. Government Obligations, or a combination thereof, that must be irrevocably deposited will be determined using an assumed Applicable Premium calculated as of the date of such deposit and (2) the depositor must irrevocably deposit or cause to be deposited additional money in trust on the Redemption Date as necessary to pay the Applicable Premium as determined by such date); (ii) in respect of clause (i)(y), no Default or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing on the date of the deposit (other than a Default or Event of Default resulting from the

 

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borrowing of funds to be applied to such deposit and any similar deposit relating to other Indebtedness and, in each case, the granting of Liens to secure such borrowings) and the deposit will not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, any other instrument to which either the Issuer or any Guarantor is a party or by which either the Issuer or any Guarantor is bound (other than with respect to the borrowing of funds to be applied concurrently to make the deposit required to effect such satisfaction and discharge and any similar concurrent deposit relating to other Indebtedness, and in each case the granting of Liens to secure such borrowings); (iii) the Issuer has paid or caused to be paid all sums payable by it under this Indenture; and (iv) the Issuer has delivered irrevocable instructions to the Trustee under this Indenture to apply the deposited money toward the payment of such Securities at final maturity or the Redemption Date, as the case may be, then the Trustee shall acknowledge satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture on demand of the Issuer (accompanied by an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel, which may be subject to customary assumptions and exclusions, stating that all conditions precedent specified herein relating to the satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture have been complied with) and at the cost and expense of the Issuer. If U.S. Government Obligations shall have been deposited in connection with such satisfaction and discharge, then as a further condition to such satisfaction and discharge, the Trustee shall have received a certificate from a nationally recognized firm of independent accountants to the effect set forth in Section  8.2(1) .

(b)    Subject to Sections 8.1(c) and 8.2 , the Issuer at any time may terminate (i) all of its obligations under the Securities of a series and this Indenture (“ legal defeasance option ”), and after giving effect to such legal defeasance, any omission to comply with such obligations shall no longer constitute a Default or Event of Default or (ii) its obligations under Sections 3.2 , 3.3 , 3.4 , 3.5 , 3.6 , 3.8 , 3.9 , 3.10 , and 3.11, and clause (a)(3) of Section  4.1 , and the Issuer may omit to comply with and shall have no liability in respect of any term, condition or limitation set forth in any such Section, whether directly or indirectly, by reason of any reference elsewhere herein to any such Section or by reason of any reference in any such Section to any other provision herein or in any other document and such omission to comply with such Sections shall no longer constitute a Default or an Event of Default under Section 6.1(a)(3) (as it relates to Section 4.1(a)(3 ) only), Section 6.1(a)(4) (to the extent applicable to such other defeased covenants), Section 6.1(a)(6) , Section 6.1(a)(7) (only with respect to Significant Subsidiaries and a group of Restricted Subsidiaries constituting a Significant Subsidiary), Section 6.1(a)(8) (only with respect to Significant Subsidiaries and a group of Restricted Subsidiaries constituting a Significant Subsidiary), Section 6.1(a)(9) and Section 6.1(a)(10) (other than with respect to the Guarantee of the Parent Guarantor), and the events specified in such Sections shall no longer constitute an Event of Default (clause (ii) being referred to as the “ covenant defeasance option ”), but except as specified above, the remainder of this Indenture and the Securities shall be unaffected thereby. The Issuer may exercise its legal defeasance option notwithstanding its prior exercise of its covenant defeasance option. If the Issuer exercises its legal defeasance or its covenant defeasance option, the Guarantees in effect at such time shall terminate.

If the Issuer exercises its legal defeasance option, payment of the Securities of such series may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default. If the Issuer exercises its covenant defeasance option, payment of the Securities of such series may not be accelerated because of an Event of Default specified in Section 6.1(a)(3) (as it relates to Section 4.1(a)(3) only) Section 6.1(a)(4) (to the extent applicable to Sections 3.2 , 3.3 , 3.4 , 3.5 , 3.6 , 3.8 , 3.9 , 3.10 and 3.11 ),

 

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Section 6.1(a)(6) , Section 6.1(a)(7) (only with respect to Significant Subsidiaries and a group of Restricted Subsidiaries constituting a Significant Subsidiary), Section 6.1(a)(8) (only with respect to Significant Subsidiaries and a group of Restricted Subsidiaries constituting a Significant Subsidiary), Section  6.1(9) or Section  6.1(10) (other than with respect to the Guarantee of the Parent Guarantor).

Upon satisfaction of the conditions set forth herein and upon request and expense of the Issuer, the Trustee shall acknowledge in writing the discharge of those obligations that the Issuer terminates.

(c)    Notwithstanding the provisions of Sections 8.1(a) and (b)  to the extent relating to a satisfaction and discharge or a legal defeasance, the Issuer’s obligations in Sections 2.2 , 2.3 , 2.4 , 2.5 , 2.6 , 2.10 , 2.11 , 2.12 , 2.13 , 2.18 , 7.7 and 7.8 and in this Article VIII shall survive until the Securities have been paid in full. Thereafter, the Issuer’s obligations in Sections 7.7 , 8.4 and 8.5 shall survive.

SECTION 8.2     Conditions to Defeasance . The Issuer may exercise its legal defeasance option or its covenant defeasance option with respect to Securities of a series only if:

(1)    in accordance with Section  8.1 , the Issuer irrevocably deposits with the Trustee, in trust, for the benefit of the Holders of Securities of such series, cash in U.S. dollars, U.S. Government Obligations, or a combination of cash in U.S. dollars and U.S. Government Obligations, in amounts as will be sufficient, in the opinion of an accounting, appraisal or investment banking firm of national standing, to pay the principal of, and premium, if any, and interest, if any, due on the outstanding Securities of such series on the Stated Maturity or on the applicable Redemption Date, as the case may be, and the Issuer must specify whether such Securities are being defeased to Stated Maturity or to a particular Redemption Date ( provided that if such redemption is made as provided in the fifth paragraph of paragraph 5 of the forms of Securities attached hereto as Exhibit A-1 (in the case of the 2022 Notes) and Exhibit A-2 (in the case of the 2025 Notes), (x) the amount of cash in U.S. dollars, U.S. Government Obligations, or a combination thereof, that must be irrevocably deposited will be determined using an assumed Applicable Premium calculated as of the date of such deposit and (y) the depositor must irrevocably deposit or cause to be deposited additional money in trust on the Redemption Date as necessary to pay the Applicable Premium as determined on such date);

(2)    in the case of legal defeasance, the Issuer has delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel (subject to customary assumptions and exclusions) confirming that, subject to customary assumptions and exclusions, (a) the Issuer has received from, or there has been published by, the Internal Revenue Service a ruling or (b) since the Issue Date, there has been a change in the applicable federal income tax law, in either case to the effect that, and based thereon such Opinion of Counsel will confirm that, the Holders of the respective outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such legal defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such legal defeasance had not occurred;

 

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(3)    in the case of covenant defeasance, the Issuer has delivered to the Trustee an Opinion of Counsel (subject to customary assumptions and exclusions) confirming that the Holders of the respective outstanding Securities of such series will not recognize income, gain or loss for federal income tax purposes as a result of such covenant defeasance and will be subject to federal income tax on the same amounts, in the same manner and at the same times as would have been the case if such covenant defeasance had not occurred;

(4)    no Default or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing on the date of such deposit or will occur as a result of such deposit (other than a Default or Event of Default resulting from the borrowing of funds to be applied to such deposit (and any similar concurrent deposit relating to other Indebtedness), and the grant of any Lien securing such borrowings);

(5)    such legal defeasance or covenant defeasance will not result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under, any material agreement or instrument (other than this Indenture and the agreements governing any other Indebtedness being defeased, discharged or replaced) to which the Issuer or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Issuer or any of its Subsidiaries are bound;

(6)    the Issuer must deliver to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate stating that the deposit was not made by the Issuer with the intent of preferring the Holders of the respective outstanding Securities of such series over the creditors of the Issuer or with the intent of defeating, hindering, delaying or defrauding creditors of the Issuer or others;

(7)    the Issuer must deliver to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel (which Opinion of Counsel may be subject to customary assumptions and exclusions), each stating that all conditions precedent relating to the legal defeasance or the covenant defeasance have been complied with; and

(8)    the Issuer has delivered irrevocable instructions to the Trustee to apply the deposited money toward the payment of the Securities of such series at maturity or the Redemption Date, as the case may be (which instructions may be contained in the Officers’ Certificate referred to in clause (7) above).

SECTION 8.3     Application of Trust Money . The Trustee shall hold in trust all money or U.S. Government Obligations (including proceeds thereof) deposited with it pursuant to this Article VIII . It shall apply the deposited money and the money from U.S. Government Obligations through the Paying Agent and in accordance with this Indenture and the Securities to the Holders of all sums due in respect of the payment of principal of, premium, if any, and accrued interest on the Securities.

SECTION 8.4     Repayment to the Issuer . The Trustee and the Paying Agent shall promptly turn over to the Issuer upon request any excess money, U.S. Government Obligations or other Securities held by them upon payment of all the Obligations under this Indenture.

Subject to any applicable abandoned property law, the Trustee and the Paying Agent shall pay to the Issuer upon request any money held by them for the payment of principal of or

 

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premium, if any, or interest on the Securities that remains unclaimed by the Holders thereof for two years, and, thereafter, Securityholders entitled to the money must look to the Issuer for payment as unsecured general creditors unless an abandoned property law designates another Person and the Trustee and the Paying Agent shall have no further liability with respect to such money.

SECTION 8.5     Indemnity for U.S. Government Obligations . The Issuer shall pay and shall indemnify the Trustee against any tax, fee or other charge imposed on or assessed against deposited U.S. Government Obligations or the principal and interest received on such U.S. Government Obligations.

SECTION 8.6     Reinstatement . If the Trustee or Paying Agent is unable to apply any money or U.S. Government Obligations in accordance with this Article VIII by reason of any legal proceeding or by reason of any order or judgment of any court or governmental authority enjoining, restraining or otherwise prohibiting such application, the obligations of the Issuer and each Guarantor under this Indenture, the Securities and the Guarantees shall be revived and reinstated as though no deposit had occurred pursuant to this Article VIII until such time as the Trustee or Paying Agent is permitted to apply all such money or U.S. Government Obligations in accordance with this Article VIII ; provided , however , that, if the Issuer or the Guarantors have made any payment of principal, premium, if any, or interest on any Securities because of the reinstatement of their obligations, the Issuer or Guarantors, as the case may be, shall be subrogated to the rights of the Holders of such Securities to receive such payment from the money or U.S. Government Obligations held by the Trustee or Paying Agent.

The Trustee’s rights under this Article VIII shall survive termination of this Indenture.

ARTICLE IX

AMENDMENTS

SECTION 9.1     Without Consent of Holders . The Issuer, the Guarantors (in the case of the Subsidiary Guarantors, with respect to its Guarantee) and the Trustee may amend or supplement this Indenture, the Securities of a series and the related Guarantees without notice to or consent of any Securityholder:

(1)    to cure any ambiguity, omission, defect, mistake or inconsistency;

(2)    to provide for the assumption by a successor corporation, partnership, trust or limited liability company of the obligations of the Issuer or any Guarantor under this Indenture and the Securities of such series or the applicable Guarantee in accordance with Article IV ;

(3)    to provide for or facilitate the issuance of uncertificated Securities of such series in addition to or in place of certificated Securities; provided , however , that such uncertificated Securities are issued in registered form for purposes of Section 163(f) of the Code;

 

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(4)    to add Guarantors with respect to the Securities of such series, or release a Guarantor from its Guarantee and terminate such Guarantee; provided that the release and termination is in accordance with the applicable provisions of this Indenture;

(5)    to secure the Securities of such series or the related Guarantees;

(6)    to add covenants of the Issuer or a Guarantor for the benefit of, or to make changes that would provide additional rights to, the Holders or to surrender any right or power herein conferred upon the Issuer or a Guarantor;

(7)    to make any change that does not adversely affect the rights under this Indenture of any Securityholder, provided , however , that any change made to conform this Indenture to the “Description of Notes” contained in the Offering Memorandum shall not be deemed to adversely affect such rights;

(8)    to comply with any requirement of the SEC in connection with any qualification of this Indenture under the TIA;

(9)    to evidence and provide for the acceptance of an appointment under this Indenture of a successor Trustee; provided that the successor Trustee is otherwise qualified and eligible to act as such under the terms of this Indenture;

(10)    to provide for the issuance of Additional Securities in accordance with limitations set forth in this Indenture; or

(11)    to modify this Indenture solely for the purpose of providing the removal of the Restricted Securities Legend on any Security and to allow for the transfer of a Definitive Security or a beneficial interest in a Global Security to a Security that has an unrestricted CUSIP number, in each case in accordance with applicable securities laws.

After an amendment, supplement, or waiver under this Section becomes effective, the Parent Guarantor shall send to Securityholders (with a copy to the Trustee) a notice briefly describing such amendment. The failure to give such notice to all Securityholders, or any defect therein, shall not impair or affect the validity of an amendment, supplement or waiver under this Section.

SECTION 9.2     With Consent of Holders . The Issuer, the Guarantors and the Trustee may amend or supplement this Indenture, the Securities of a series and the related Guarantees without notice to any Securityholder but with the consent of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of such series then outstanding (including, without limitation, consents obtained in connection with a purchase of, or tender offer or exchange offer for, Securities of such series). Except as provided in Section  6.4 , any past default or compliance with the provisions of this Indenture, the Securities of a series or the related Guarantees may be waived with the consent of the Holders of a majority in principal amount of the Securities of such series then outstanding (including, without limitation, consents obtained in connection with a purchase of, or tender offer or exchange offer for, Securities of such series). However, without the consent of each Securityholder of such series affected, an amendment, supplement or waiver may not (with respect to any Securities of such series held by a non-consenting Holder):

(1)    reduce the principal amount of the Securities of such series whose Holders must consent to an amendment or waiver;

 

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(2)    reduce the stated rate of interest or extend the stated time for payment of interest on any Security of such series;

(3)    reduce the principal of or extend the Stated Maturity of any Security of such series;

(4)    waive a Default or Event of Default in the payment of principal of, premium, if any, or interest on the Securities of such series (except a rescission of acceleration of the Securities of such series by the Holders of at least a majority in aggregate principal amount of the then outstanding Securities of such series with respect to a nonpayment default and a waiver of the payment default that resulted from such acceleration);

(5)    reduce the premium payable upon the redemption of any Security of such series as described in Article V hereof or paragraph 5 of any Security, change the time at which any Security of such series may be redeemed as described in Article V hereof or paragraph 5 of any Security (except provisions relating to minimum required notice of optional redemption) or make any change relative to the Issuer’s obligation to make an offer to repurchase the Securities of such series as a result of a Change of Control Triggering Event as described in Section  3.9 after (but not before) the occurrence of such Change of Control Triggering Event;

(6)    make any Security of such series payable in money other than that stated in such Security;

(7)    amend the contractual right expressly set forth in this Indenture with respect to such series of the Securities or any Security of any Holder to institute a suit for the enforcement of any payment of principal, premium, if any, and interest on such Holder’s Securities of such series on or after the due dates therefor;

(8)    make any change to this Section  9.2 which requires the consent of each Holder of the Securities of such series;

(9)    modify the Guarantees in any manner adverse to the Holders of Securities of such series; or

(10)    make any change to or modify the ranking of the Securities that would adversely affect the Holders of such Securities.

It shall not be necessary for the consent of the Holders under this Section to approve the particular form of any proposed amendment, supplement, or waiver, but it shall be sufficient if such consent approves the substance thereof. A consent to any amendment, supplement or waiver under this Indenture by any Holder of the Securities given in connection with a tender or exchange of such Holder’s Securities will not be rendered invalid by such tender or exchange.

 

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After an amendment, supplement, or waiver under this Section becomes effective, the Parent Guarantor shall send to Securityholders (with a copy to the Trustee) a notice briefly describing such amendment. The failure to give such notice to all Securityholders, or any defect therein, shall not impair or affect the validity of an amendment, supplement or waiver under this Section.

SECTION 9.3     [Reserved] .

SECTION 9.4     Revocation and Effect of Consents and Waivers . A consent to an amendment, supplement or a waiver by a Holder of a Security shall bind the Holder and every subsequent Holder of that Security or portion of the Security that evidences the same debt as the consenting Holder’s Security, even if notation of the consent or waiver is not made on the Security. Any such Holder or subsequent Holder may revoke the consent or waiver as to such Holder’s Security or portion of the Security if the Trustee and the Issuer receive the notice of revocation before the date the amendment, supplement or waiver becomes effective or otherwise in accordance with any related solicitation documents. After an amendment, supplement or waiver becomes effective, it shall bind every Securityholder unless it makes a change described in any of clauses (1) through (10) of Section  9.2 , and in that case the amendment, supplement, waiver or other action shall bind each Securityholder who has consented to it and every subsequent Securityholder that evidences the same debt as the consenting Holder’s Securities. An amendment, supplement or waiver under Section  9.2 shall become effective upon receipt by the Issuer of the requisite number of consents, and in relation to any Securities evidenced by Global Securities, such consents need not be in written form and may be evidenced by any electronic transmissions that comport with the applicable procedures of DTC.

The Issuer may, but shall not be obligated to, fix a record date for the purpose of determining the Securityholders entitled to give their consent or take any other action described above or required or permitted to be taken pursuant to this Indenture. If a record date is fixed, then notwithstanding the immediately preceding paragraph, those Persons who were Securityholders at such record date (or their duly designated proxies), and only those Persons, shall be entitled to give such consent or to revoke any consent previously given or to take any such action, whether or not such Persons continue to be Holders after such record date. No such consent shall become valid or effective more than 120 days after such record date.

SECTION 9.5     Notation on or Exchange of Securities . If an amendment, supplement or waiver changes the terms of a Security, the Issuer or the Trustee may require the Holder of the Security to deliver it to the Trustee. The Issuer may instruct the Trustee to place an notation designated by the Issuer on the Security regarding the changed terms and return it to the Holder. Alternatively, if the Issuer or the Trustee so determine, the Issuer in exchange for the Security shall issue and the Trustee shall authenticate a new Security that reflects the changed terms. Failure to make the appropriate notation or to issue a new Security shall not affect the validity of such amendment.

SECTION 9.6     Trustee to Sign Amendments . The Trustee shall sign any amendment, supplement or waiver authorized pursuant to this Article IX if the amendment, supplement or waiver does not adversely affect the rights, duties, liabilities or immunities of the Trustee. If it does, the Trustee may but need not sign it. In signing any amendment, supplement or waiver the

 

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Trustee shall be entitled to receive indemnity satisfactory to it and shall be provided with, and (subject to Sections 7.1 and 7.2 ) shall be fully protected in relying upon, an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel stating that such amendment, supplement or waiver is authorized or permitted by this Indenture and that such amendment, supplement or waiver is the legal, valid and binding obligation of the Issuer and any Guarantors, enforceable against them in accordance with its terms, subject to customary exceptions, and complies with the provisions hereof.

ARTICLE X

GUARANTEE

SECTION 10.1     Guarantee . Subject to the provisions of this Article X , each Guarantor hereby fully, unconditionally and irrevocably guarantees, as primary obligor and not merely as surety, jointly and severally with each other Guarantor, to each Holder of the Securities, to the extent lawful, and the Trustee the full and punctual payment when due, whether at final maturity, by acceleration, by redemption or otherwise, of the Obligations under this Indenture, the Securities or the obligations of the Issuer hereunder or thereunder. Each Guarantor agrees that the Obligations will rank equally in right of payment with all other existing and future Indebtedness of such Guarantor, except to the extent such other Indebtedness is subordinate to the Obligations. Each Guarantor further agrees (to the extent permitted by law) that the Obligations may be extended or renewed, in whole or in part, without notice or further assent from it, and that it will remain bound under this Article X notwithstanding any extension or renewal of any Obligation.

Each Guarantor waives presentation to, demand of payment from and protest to the Issuer of any of the Obligations and also waives notice of protest for nonpayment. Each Guarantor waives notice of any default under the Securities or the Obligations.

Each Guarantor further agrees that its Guarantee herein constitutes a guarantee of payment when due (and not a guarantee of collection) and waives any right to require that any resort be had by any Holder to any security held for payment of the Obligations.

Except as set forth in Section  10.2 , the obligations of each Guarantor hereunder shall not be subject to any reduction, limitation, impairment or termination for any reason (other than payment of the Obligations in full), including any claim of waiver, release, surrender, alteration or compromise, and shall not be subject to any defense of setoff, counterclaim, recoupment or termination whatsoever or by reason of the invalidity, illegality or unenforceability of the Obligations or otherwise. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the obligations of each Guarantor herein shall not be discharged or impaired or otherwise affected by (a) the failure of any Holder to assert any claim or demand or to enforce any right or remedy against the Issuer or any other person under this Indenture, the Securities or any other agreement or otherwise; (b) any extension or renewal of any thereof; (c) any rescission, waiver, amendment or modification of any of the terms or provisions of this Indenture, the Securities or any other agreement; (d) the release of any security held by any Holder for the Obligations or any of them; (e) the failure of any Holder to exercise any right or remedy against any other Guarantor; (f) any change in the ownership of the Issuer; (g) any default, failure or delay, willful or otherwise, in the performance of the Obligations; or (h) any other act or thing or omission or delay to do any other act or thing which may or might in any manner or to any extent vary the risk of any Guarantor or would otherwise operate as a discharge of such Guarantor as a matter of law or equity.

 

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Each Guarantor agrees that its Guarantee herein shall remain in full force and effect until payment in full of all the Obligations or such Guarantor is released from its Guarantee upon the merger or the sale of all the Capital Stock or assets of the Guarantor or otherwise in compliance with Article IV , Section  10.2 or Article VIII , as applicable. Each Guarantor further agrees that its Guarantee herein shall continue to be effective or be reinstated, as the case may be, if at any time payment, or any part thereof, of principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any of the Obligations is rescinded or must otherwise be restored by any Holder upon the bankruptcy or reorganization of the Issuer or otherwise.

In furtherance of the foregoing and not in limitation of any other right which any Holder has at law or in equity against any Guarantor by virtue hereof, upon the failure of the Issuer to pay any of the Obligations when and as the same shall become due, whether at final maturity, by acceleration, by redemption or otherwise, each Guarantor hereby promises to and will, upon receipt of written demand by the Trustee, forthwith pay, or cause to be paid, in cash, to the Trustee or the Trustee on behalf of the Holders an amount equal to the sum of (i) the unpaid amount of such Obligations then due and owing and (ii) accrued and unpaid interest on such Obligations then due and owing (but only to the extent not prohibited by law).

Each Guarantor further agrees that, as between such Guarantor, on the one hand, and the Holders, on the other hand, (x) the maturity of the Obligations guaranteed hereby may be accelerated as provided in this Indenture for the purposes of its Guarantee herein, notwithstanding any stay, injunction or other prohibition preventing such acceleration in respect of the Obligations guaranteed hereby and (y) in the event of any such declaration of acceleration of such Obligations, such Obligations (whether or not due and payable) shall forthwith become due and payable by the Guarantor for the purposes of this Guarantee.

Each Guarantor also agrees to pay any and all reasonable costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) incurred by the Trustee or the Holders in enforcing any rights under this Section.

Neither the Issuer nor the Guarantors shall be required to make a notation on the Securities to reflect any Guarantee or any release, termination or discharge thereof and any such notation shall not be a condition to the validity of any Guarantee.

SECTION 10.2     Limitation on Liability; Termination, Release and Discharge .

(a)    Any term or provision of this Indenture to the contrary notwithstanding, the obligations of each Subsidiary Guarantor hereunder will be limited to the maximum amount as will, after giving effect to all other contingent and fixed liabilities of such Subsidiary Guarantor (including, without limitation, any guarantees under the Senior Secured Credit Agreements) and after giving effect to any collections from or payments made by or on behalf of any other Subsidiary Guarantor in respect of the obligations of such other Subsidiary Guarantor under its Guarantee or pursuant to its contribution obligations under this Indenture, result in the obligations of such Subsidiary Guarantor under its Guarantee not constituting a fraudulent conveyance or fraudulent transfer under federal or state law and not otherwise being void or voidable under any similar laws affecting the rights of creditors generally.

 

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(b)    Upon the sale or disposition of a Subsidiary Guarantor, whether by merger, consolidation, the sale of a sufficient amount of its Capital Stock so that it no longer qualifies as a “Subsidiary” of the Issuer or the sale of all or substantially all of its assets (other than by lease) and whether or not such Subsidiary Guarantor is the surviving entity in such transaction, to a Person which is not the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary, such Subsidiary Guarantor will be released from all its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee if the sale or other disposition does not violate Section  3.5 .

(c)    Each Subsidiary Guarantor will be released from its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee upon the release or discharge of such Subsidiary Guarantor from its guarantee of (i) the Senior Secured Credit Agreements (so long as such Subsidiary Guarantor is not then otherwise required to provide a Guarantee under Section  3.11 ) or (ii) such other Indebtedness that resulted in the obligation of such Subsidiary Guarantor to guarantee the Securities pursuant to Section 3.11(b) , except, in each case, a discharge or release by or as a result of payment under such guarantee.

(d)    Each Subsidiary Guarantor will be released from its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee if the Parent Guarantor designates such Subsidiary Guarantor as an Unrestricted Subsidiary and such designation complies with the other applicable provisions of this Indenture.

(e)    Each Subsidiary Guarantor will be deemed released from all its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee, and such Guarantee will terminate, upon any covenant defeasance of the Securities.

(f)    Each Guarantor will be deemed released from all its obligations under this Indenture and its Guarantee, and such Guarantee will terminate, upon any legal defeasance or upon satisfaction and discharge of this Indenture, in each case pursuant to the provisions of Article VIII hereof.

(g)    The release of any Guarantor from its obligations pursuant to this Section  10.2 shall be conditioned upon such Guarantor delivering to the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate and an Opinion of Counsel stating that all conditions precedent provided for in this Indenture relating to the transactions specified in clauses (b), (c), (d) (e), or (f) of this Section  10.2 have been complied with.

SECTION 10.3     Right of Contribution . Each Guarantor hereby agrees that to the extent that any Guarantor shall have paid more than its proportionate share of any payment made on the obligations under the Guarantees, such Guarantor shall be entitled to seek and receive contribution from and against the Issuer or any other Guarantor who has not paid its proportionate share of such payment. The provisions of this Section  10.3 shall in no respect limit the obligations and liabilities of each Guarantor to the Trustee and the Holders and each Guarantor shall remain liable to the Trustee and the Holders for the full amount guaranteed by such Guarantor hereunder.

 

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SECTION 10.4     No Subrogation . Notwithstanding any payment or payments made by each Guarantor hereunder, no Guarantor shall be entitled to be subrogated to any of the rights of the Trustee or any Holder against the Issuer or any other Guarantor or guarantee or right of offset held by the Trustee or any Holder for the payment of the Obligations, nor shall any Guarantor seek or be entitled to seek any contribution or reimbursement from the Issuer or any other Guarantor in respect of payments made by such Guarantor hereunder, until all amounts owing to the Trustee and the Holders by the Issuer on account of the Obligations are paid in full. If any amount shall be paid to any Guarantor on account of such subrogation rights at any time when all of the Obligations shall not have been paid in full, such amount shall be held by such Guarantor in trust for the Trustee and the Holders, segregated from other funds of such Guarantor, and shall, forthwith upon receipt by such Guarantor, be turned over to the Trustee in the exact form received by such Guarantor (duly indorsed by such Guarantor to the Trustee, if required), to be applied against the Obligations.

ARTICLE XI

[RESERVED]

ARTICLE XII

MISCELLANEOUS

SECTION 12.1     [Reserved] .

SECTION 12.2     Notices . Any notice or communication shall be in writing in the English language and delivered in person, sent by facsimile, other electronic means, delivered by commercial courier service or mailed by first-class mail, postage prepaid, addressed as follows:

if to the Issuer or to any Guarantor:

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 North Sam Houston Parkway East, Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attention: Chief Financial Officer

Telecopy: (281) 876-2831

with a copy (which shall not constitute notice) to:

Kirkland & Ellis LLP

600 Travis St., Suite 3300

Houston, Texas 77002

Attention: Justin F. Hoffman, Esq.

Telecopy: (713) 835-3601

 

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if to the Trustee, at its corporate trust office in the United States,

which corporate trust office for purposes of this

Indenture is at the date hereof located at:

Wilmington Trust, National Association

15950 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 550

Dallas, Texas 75248

Attn: Ultra Resources, Inc. Notes Administrator

Telecopy: (888) 316-6238

The Issuer, any Guarantor or the Trustee by written notice to the others may designate additional or different addresses for subsequent notices or communications.

Any notice or communication to the Issuer or the Guarantors shall be deemed to have been given or made as of the date so delivered if personally delivered; when receipt is acknowledged, if telecopied; and five calendar days after mailing if sent by U.S. Postal Service registered or certified mail, postage prepaid (except that a notice of change of address shall not be deemed to have been given until actually received by the addressee). Any notice or communication to the Trustee shall be deemed delivered upon actual receipt by a Trust Officer. Notices given by publication will be deemed given on the first date on which publication is made.

Any notice or communication sent to a Securityholder shall be mailed to the Securityholder at the Securityholder’s address as it appears in the Securities Register and shall be sufficiently given if so mailed within the time prescribed; provided, however, that in any case where DTC or its nominee is the Securityholder, any notice or communication sent to it shall be given in accordance with the applicable procedures of DTC, notwithstanding any contrary indication in this Indenture.

Failure to send a notice or communication to a Securityholder or any defect in it shall not affect its sufficiency with respect to other Securityholders. If a notice or communication is sent in the manner provided above, it is duly given, whether or not the addressee receives it, except that notices to the Trustee shall be effective only upon actual receipt by a Trust Officer.

In case by reason of the suspension of regular mail service or by reason of any other cause it shall be impracticable to give such notice by mail, then such notification as shall be made with the approval of the Trustee shall constitute a sufficient notification for every purpose hereunder.

SECTION 12.3     Communication by Holders with other Holders . Securityholders may communicate pursuant to TIA § 312(b) with other Securityholders with respect to their rights under this Indenture or the Securities. The Issuer, the Trustee, the Registrar and anyone else shall have the protection of TIA § 312(c).

SECTION 12.4     Certificate and Opinion as to Conditions Precedent . Upon any request or application by the Issuer to the Trustee to take or refrain from taking any action under this Indenture (except for an Opinion of Counsel in connection with the original issuance of Securities on the date hereof), the Issuer shall furnish to the Trustee:

(1)    an Officers’ Certificate stating that, in the opinion of the signers, all conditions precedent, if any, provided for in this Indenture relating to the proposed action have been complied with; and

 

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(2)    an Opinion of Counsel stating that, in the opinion of such counsel, all such conditions precedent have been complied with.

SECTION 12.5     Statements Required in Certificate or Opinion . Each certificate or opinion with respect to compliance with a covenant or condition provided for in this Indenture shall include:

(1)    a statement that the individual making such certificate or opinion has read such covenant or condition;

(2)    a brief statement as to the nature and scope of the examination or investigation upon which the statements or opinions contained in such certificate or opinion are based;

(3)    a statement that, in the opinion of such individual, he has made such examination or investigation as is necessary to enable him to express an informed opinion as to whether or not such covenant or condition has been complied with; and

(4)    a statement as to whether or not, in the opinion of such individual, such covenant or condition has been complied with.

In giving such Opinion of Counsel, counsel may rely as to factual matters on an Officers’ Certificate or on certificates of public officials.

SECTION 12.6     When Securities Disregarded . In determining whether the Holders of the required aggregate principal amount of Securities have concurred in any direction, waiver or consent, Securities owned by the Issuer, any Guarantor or any Affiliate of them shall be disregarded and deemed not to be outstanding, except that, for the purpose of determining whether the Trustee shall be protected in relying on any such direction, waiver or consent, only Securities which the Trustee actually knows are so owned shall be so disregarded. Also, subject to the foregoing, only Securities outstanding at the time shall be considered in any such determination.

SECTION 12.7     Rules by Trustee, Paying Agent and Registrar . The Trustee may make reasonable rules for action by, or at meetings of, Securityholders. The Registrar and the Paying Agent may make reasonable rules for their functions.

SECTION 12.8     Legal Holidays . A “ Legal Holiday ” is a Saturday, a Sunday or other day on which commercial banking institutions are authorized or required to be closed in New York, New York or a place of payment. If a payment date is a Legal Holiday, payment shall be made on the next succeeding day that is not a Legal Holiday, and no interest shall accrue for the intervening period. If a regular record date is a Legal Holiday, the record date shall not be affected.

 

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SECTION 12.9     GOVERNING LAW . THIS INDENTURE, THE SECURITIES AND THE GUARANTEES SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

SECTION 12.10     No Personal Liability of Directors, Officers, Employees and Stockholders . No director, officer, employee, incorporator, stockholder, member, partner or trustee of the Issuer or any Guarantor, as such, shall have any liability for any obligations of the Issuer or any Guarantor under the Securities, this Indenture or the Guarantees or for any claim based on, in respect of, or by reason of, such obligations or their creation. Each Holder by accepting a Security waives and releases all such liability. The waiver and release are part of the consideration for issuance of the Securities.

SECTION 12.11     Successors . All agreements of the Issuer and each Guarantor in this Indenture and the Securities shall bind their respective successors. All agreements of the Trustee in this Indenture shall bind its successors.

SECTION 12.12     Multiple Originals . The parties may sign any number of copies of this Indenture. Each signed copy shall be an original, but all of them together represent the same agreement. One signed copy is enough to prove this Indenture. The exchange of copies of this Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile or PDF transmission shall constitute effective execution and delivery of this Indenture as to the parties hereto and may be used in lieu of the original Indenture for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile or PDF shall be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes.

SECTION 12.13     Force Majeure . In no event shall the Trustee be responsible or liable for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations hereunder arising out of or caused by, directly or indirectly, forces beyond its control, including, without limitation, strikes, work stoppages, accidents, acts of war or terrorism, civil or military disturbances, nuclear or natural catastrophes or acts of God, and interruptions, loss or malfunctions of utilities, communications or computer (software and hardware) services; it being understood that the Trustee shall use reasonable efforts which are consistent with accepted practices in the banking industry to resume performance as soon as practicable under the circumstances.

SECTION 12.14     Table of Contents; Headings . The table of contents and headings of the Articles and Sections of this Indenture have been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not intended to be considered a part hereof and shall not modify or restrict any of the terms or provisions hereof.

SECTION 12.15     WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL . EACH OF THE ISSUER, THE GUARANTORS AND THE TRUSTEE HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, ANY AND ALL RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS INDENTURE, THE SECURITIES, THE GUARANTEES OR THE TRANSACTION CONTEMPLATED HEREBY.

SECTION 12.16     Consent to Jurisdiction. Each party agrees that any suit or proceeding arising in respect of this Indenture will be tried exclusively in the U.S. District Court for the

 

132


Southern District of New York or, if that court does not have subject matter jurisdiction, in any state court located in the City and County of New York and each party agrees to submit to the jurisdiction of, and to venue in, such courts. Each party agrees that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court shall be conclusive and binding each party, as applicable, and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which each party, as applicable, is subject by a suit upon such judgment. The Issuer and the Guarantors irrevocably appoint CT Corporation System, located at 111 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10011, as its authorized agent in the City of New York upon which process may be served in any such suit or proceeding, and agrees that service of process upon such authorized agent, and written notice of such service to such party by the person serving the same to the address provided in this Section  12.16 , shall be deemed in every respect effective service of process upon such party in any such suit or proceeding. The Issuers and the Guarantors represent and warrant that such authorized agent has accepted such appointment and has agreed to act as such authorized agent for service of process. The Issuers and the Guarantors further agree to take any and all action as may be necessary to maintain such designation and appointment of such authorized agent in full force and effect for a period of eight years from the date of this Indenture.

SECTION 12.17     Waiver of Immunity . To the extent that any party has or hereafter may acquire any immunity (sovereign or otherwise) from jurisdiction of any court of (i) Canada, or any political subdivision thereof, (ii) the United States or the State of New York, (iii) any jurisdiction in which it owns or leases property or assets or from any legal process (whether through service of notice, attachment prior to judgment, attachment in aid of execution, execution, set-off or otherwise) with respect to such party’s property and assets or this Indenture, each party hereby irrevocably waives such immunity in respect of each of their obligations under this Indenture to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.

SECTION 12.18     Judgment Currency . Each of the Issuer and the Guarantors, jointly and severally, agree to indemnify each Holder, its directors, officers, affiliates and each person, if any, who controls such Holder within the meaning of Section 15 of the Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, against any loss incurred by such Holder as a result of any judgment or order being given or made for any amount due hereunder and such judgment or order being expressed and paid in a currency (the “ judgment currency ”) other than U.S. dollars and as a result of any variation as between (i) the rate of exchange at which the U.S. dollar amount is converted into the judgment currency for the purpose of such judgment or order, and (ii) the rate of exchange at which such indemnified person is able to purchase U.S. dollars with the amount of the judgment currency actually received by the indemnified person. The foregoing indemnity shall constitute a separate and independent obligation of the Issuer and the Guarantors and shall continue in full force and effect notwithstanding any such judgment or order as aforesaid. The term “rate of exchange” shall include any premiums and costs of exchange payable in connection with the purchase of, or conversion into, the relevant currency.

SECTION 12.19     Severability . In case any provision in this Indenture or in the Securities shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby and such provision shall be ineffective only to the extent of such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability.

 

133


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have caused this Indenture to be duly executed all as of the date and year first written above.

 

Issuer:
ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

  Name:   Michael D. Watford
  Title:   President
Parent Guarantor:
ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

  Name:   Michael D. Watford
  Title:   President
Subsidiary Guarantors:
UP ENERGY CORPORATION
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President
KEYSTONE GAS GATHERING, LLC
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President
ULTRA WYOMING, LLC
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President
UPL PINEDALE, LLC
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President


UPL THREE RIVERS HOLDINGS, LLC
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President
ULTRA WYOMING LGS, LLC
By:  

/s/ Michael D. Watford

Name:   Michael D. Watford
Title:   President
Trustee:

WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION , as Trustee

By:  

/s/ Shawn Goffinet

Name:   Shawn Goffinet
Title:   Assistant Vice President


EXHIBIT A-1

[FORM OF FACE OF SECURITY]

[RULE 144A] [REGULATION S] GLOBAL SECURITY

[Restricted Securities Legend]

[Global Securities Legend, if applicable]

[Original Issue Discount Legend, if applicable]

[Canadian Securities Law Legend, if applicable]

 

No. [    ]

     

Principal Amount $[        ][, as

revised by the Schedule of Increases

and Decreases in Global Security

attached hereto]

      CUSIP NO 1 :
      ISIN 2 :

6.875% Senior Notes due 2022

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, promises to pay to CEDE & CO., or registered assigns, the principal sum of [        ] Dollars[, as revised by the Schedule of Increases and Decreases in Global Security attached hereto,] on April 15, 2022.

Interest Payment Dates: April 15 and October 15

Record Dates: April 1 and October 1

Additional provisions of this Security are set forth on the other side of this Security.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.
By:                                                                                              
Name:  
Title:  

 

 

1   to be inserted as appropriate 144A Note – 90400G AA9; Reg S Note – U9037B AA8
2   to be inserted as appropriate 144A Note – US90400GAA94; Reg S Note – USU9037BAA80

 

A-1-1


TRUSTEE’S CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICATION

This is one of the Securities described in the within-mentioned Indenture.

 

WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,

as Trustee

   
By:  

 

     
  Authorized Officer     Dated:  

 

 

A-1-2


[FORM OF REVERSE SIDE OF SECURITY]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.

6.875% Senior Notes due 2022

 

1. Interest

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (such corporation, and its successors and assigns under the Indenture hereinafter referred to, being herein called the “ Issuer ”), promises to pay interest on the principal amount of this Security at the rate per annum shown above.

The Issuer will pay interest semiannually on April 15 and October 15 of each year commencing October 15, 2017. Interest on the Securities will accrue from the most recent date to which interest has been paid on the Securities or, if no interest has been paid, from April 12, 2017. The Issuer shall pay interest on overdue principal, and on overdue premium (plus interest on such interest to the extent lawful), at the rate borne by the Securities to the extent lawful. Interest will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months. The Issuer shall pay Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments with respect to payments on the Securities in the circumstances set forth in Section 2.18 of the Indenture.

 

2. Method of Payment

By no later than 11:00 a.m. (New York City time) on the date on which any principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any Security is due and payable, the Issuer shall irrevocably deposit with the Trustee or the Paying Agent money sufficient to pay such principal, premium, if any, and/or interest. The Issuer will pay interest (except Defaulted Interest) to the Persons who are registered Holders of Securities at the close of business on the April 1 and October 1 next preceding the interest payment date even if Securities are cancelled, repurchased or redeemed after the record date and on or before the interest payment date. Holders must surrender Securities to a Paying Agent to collect principal payments. The Issuer will pay principal, premium, if any, and interest in money of the United States that at the time of payment is legal tender for payment of public and private debts. Payments in respect of Securities represented by a Global Security (including principal, premium, if any, and interest) will be made by the transfer of immediately available funds to the accounts specified by The Depository Trust Company or any successor depository. The Issuer will make all payments in respect of a Definitive Security (including principal, premium, if any, and interest) by mailing a check to the registered address of each Holder thereof.

 

3. Paying Agent and Registrar

Initially, Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee (the “ Trustee ”) will act as Trustee, Paying Agent and Registrar. The Issuer may appoint and change any Paying Agent, Registrar or co-registrar without notice to any Securityholder. The Parent Guarantor or any of its wholly-owned Restricted Subsidiaries organized in the United States may act as Paying Agent or Registrar.

 

A-1-3


4. Indenture

The Issuer issued the Securities under an Indenture dated as of April 12, 2017 (as it may be amended or supplemented from time to time in accordance with the terms thereof, the “ Indenture ”), among the Issuer, the Guarantors and the Trustee. The terms of the Securities include those stated in the Indenture. The Issuer is not be required to offer to exchange the Securities for notes registered under the Securities Act or otherwise register or qualify by prospectus the Securities for resale under the Securities Act. The Indenture will not be qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (15 U.S.C. §§ 77aaa-77bbbb) (as in effect on the date of the Indenture, the “ Act ”). Capitalized terms used herein and not defined herein have the meanings ascribed thereto in the Indenture. The Securities are subject to all terms and provisions of the Indenture, and Securityholders are referred to the Indenture for a statement of those terms. In the event of a conflict between the terms of this Security and the Indenture, the terms of the Indenture shall govern and control.

The Securities are senior obligations of the Issuer. The aggregate principal amount of Securities that may be authenticated and delivered under the Indenture is unlimited. This Security is one of the 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 referred to in the Indenture. The Securities include (i) $700,000,000 aggregate principal amount of the Issuer’s 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 issued under the Indenture on April 12, 2017 (herein called “ Initial Securities ”) and (ii) if and when issued, additional 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 of the Issuer that may be issued from time to time under the Indenture subsequent to April 12, 2017 (herein called “ Additional Securities ”) as provided in Section 2.1(a) of the Indenture. The Initial Securities and Additional Securities are treated as a single class of securities under the Indenture. The Indenture imposes certain limitations on the incurrence of indebtedness, the making of restricted payments, the sale of assets and subsidiary stock, the incurrence of certain liens, the entering into of affiliate transactions, the entering into of agreements that restrict distribution from certain restricted subsidiaries and the consummation of mergers and consolidations. The Indenture also imposes requirements with respect to the provision of financial information and the provision of guarantees of the Securities by certain subsidiaries.

To guarantee the due and punctual payment of the principal, premium, if any, and interest (including post-filing or post-petition interest) on the Securities and all other amounts payable by the Issuer under the Indenture and the Securities when and as the same shall be due and payable, whether at maturity, by acceleration or otherwise, according to the terms of the Securities and the Indenture, the Guarantors have unconditionally guaranteed (and future guarantors, together with the Guarantors, will unconditionally Guarantee), jointly and severally, such obligations on a senior basis pursuant to the terms of the Indenture.

 

5. Redemption

Except as set forth below or in Section 3.9( i ) or Section  5.9 of the Indenture, the Securities will not be redeemable at the option of the Issuer prior to April 15, 2019. On and after such date, the Securities will be redeemable, at the Issuer’s option, in whole or in part, at any time upon notice as provided in the Indenture, at the following redemption prices (expressed in percentages of principal amount), plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the applicable Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date

 

A-1-4


to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date), if redeemed during the 12-month period commencing on April 15 of the years set forth below:

 

Period

   Redemption Price  

2019

     103.438

2020

     101.719

2021 and thereafter

     100.000

In addition, at any time and from time to time on or prior to April 15, 2019 , upon notice as provided in the Indenture, the Issuer may redeem in the aggregate up to 35% of the original principal amount of the Securities (calculated after giving effect to any issuance of Additional Securities), but in an amount not greater than the Net Cash Proceeds of one or more Equity Offerings at a redemption price (expressed as a percentage of principal amount) of 106.875% of the principal amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date); provided , that:

(1)    at least 65% of the original principal amount of the Securities (calculated after giving effect to any issuance of Additional Securities) must remain outstanding after each such redemption; and

(2)    each such redemption occurs within 180 days of the date of closing of such Equity Offering.

The amount of Net Cash Proceeds from an Equity Offering being used to effect any redemption of the Securities pursuant to the immediately preceding paragraph and any redemption of the 2025 Notes shall not exceed the aggregate Net Cash Proceeds from such Equity Offering.

In addition, at any time prior to April 15, 2019, upon notice as provided in the Indenture, the Issuer may redeem the Securities, in whole or in part, at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus the Applicable Premium plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date).

Applicable Premium ” means, with respect to a Security on any Redemption Date, the greater of (i) 1.0% of the principal amount of such Security or (ii) the excess, if any, of (A) the present value at such time of (1) the redemption price of such Security on April 15, 2019 (such redemption price being described in the first paragraph of this paragraph 5 ) plus (2) all required interest payments (excluding accrued and unpaid interest to such Redemption Date) due on such Security through April 15, 2019, computed using a discount rate equal to the Treasury Rate with respect to such Redemption Date plus 50 basis points discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day calendar months), over (B) the principal amount of such Security. The Trustee shall have no duty to calculate or verify the calculation of the Applicable Premium.

Treasury Rate ” means, with respect to any Redemption Date, the yield to maturity at the time of computation of United States Treasury securities with a constant maturity (as compiled

 

A-1-5


and published in the most recent Federal Reserve Statistical Release H.15 (519) which has become publicly available at least two Business Days prior to the Redemption Date (or, if such Statistical Release is no longer published, any publicly available source of similar market data)) most nearly equal to the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2019; provided , however , that if the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2019 is not equal to the constant maturity of a United States Treasury security for which a weekly average yield is given, the Treasury Rate shall be obtained by linear interpolation (calculated to the nearest one-twelfth of a year) from the weekly average yields of United States Treasury securities for which such yields are given, except that if the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2019 is less than one year, the weekly average yield on actually traded United States Treasury securities adjusted to a constant maturity of one year shall be used.

The Issuer will (a) calculate the Treasury Rate as of a date no later than the second Business Day preceding the applicable Redemption Date and (b) prior to such Redemption Date file with the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate setting forth the Applicable Premium and the Treasury Rate and showing the calculation of each in reasonable detail.

The Securities are also subject to tax redemption at the Issuer’s option as set forth in Section 5.9 of the Indenture.

 

6. Repurchase Provisions

The Securities may be the subject of a Change of Control Offer and/or an Asset Disposition Offer, as further described in the Indenture. The Issuer shall not be required to make any mandatory redemptions or sinking fund payments with respect to the Securities.

 

7. Denominations; Transfer; Exchange

The Securities are in registered form without coupons in minimum denominations of principal amount of $2,000 and whole multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof. A Holder may transfer or exchange Securities in accordance with the Indenture. The Registrar may require a Holder, among other things, to furnish appropriate endorsements or transfer documents and to pay a sum sufficient to cover any taxes and fees required by law or permitted by the Indenture. The Issuer or the Registrar need not register the transfer of or exchange any Security (A) for a period (1) of 15 days before a selection of Securities to be redeemed or (2) beginning 15 days before an interest payment date and ending on such interest payment date or (B) selected for redemption, except the unredeemed portion of any Security being redeemed in part.

 

8. Persons Deemed Owners

The registered Holder of this Security shall be treated as the owner of it for all purposes.

 

9. Amendment, Supplement, Waiver

The Indenture, the Securities and the related Guarantees may be amended or supplemented as provided in the Indenture.

 

A-1-6


10. Defaults and Remedies

The Events of Default relating to the Securities are defined in Section 6.1 of the Indenture. Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default relating to the Securities, the rights and obligations of the Issuer, the Guarantors, the Trustee and the Holders shall be as set forth in the applicable provisions in the Indenture.

 

11. Authentication

This Security shall not be valid until an authorized officer of the Trustee (or an Authenticating Agent acting on its behalf) manually signs the certificate of authentication on the other side of this Security.

 

12. Abbreviations

Customary abbreviations may be used in the name of a Securityholder or an assignee, such as TEN COM (= tenants in common), TEN ENT (= tenants by the entirety), JT TEN (= joint tenants with rights of survivorship and not as tenants in common), CUST (= custodian) and U/G/M/A (= Uniform Gift to Minors Act).

 

13. CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN Numbers

The Issuer has caused CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, to be printed on the Securities and has directed the Trustee to use CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, in notices of redemption or purchase as a convenience to Securityholders. No representation is made as to the accuracy of such numbers either as printed on the Securities or as contained in any notice of redemption or purchase and reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers placed thereon.

 

14. Governing Law

This Security shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

The Issuer will furnish to any Securityholder upon written request and without charge to the Securityholder a copy of the Indenture. Requests may be made to:

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 North Sam Houston Parkway East, Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attention: Chief Financial Officer

 

A-1-7


ASSIGNMENT FORM

To assign this Security, fill in the form below:

I or we assign and transfer this Security to:

 

 

(Print or type assignee’s name, address and zip code)

 

 

(Insert assignee’s Social Security or Tax I.D. No.)

and irrevocably appoint                     agent to transfer this Security on the books of the Issuer. The agent may substitute another to act for him.

 

Date:       Your  
 

 

    Signature:  

 

 

Signature Guarantee:  

 

   

(Signature must be guaranteed)

 

 

Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Security.

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

The undersigned hereby certifies that it ☐ is / ☐ is not an Affiliate of the Issuer and that, to its knowledge, the proposed transferee ☐ is / ☐ is not an Affiliate of the Issuer.

In connection with any transfer or exchange of any of the Securities evidenced by this certificate occurring prior to the date that is one year (or 40 days in the case of any Regulation S Notes) after the later of the date of original issuance of such Securities and the last date, if any, on which such Securities were owned by the Issuer or any Affiliate of the Issuer, the undersigned confirms that such Securities are being:

CHECK ONE BOX BELOW:

 

(1)       acquired for the undersigned’s own account, without transfer; or
(2)       transferred to the Issuer; or
(3)       transferred pursuant to and in compliance with Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”); or

 

A-1-8


(4)       transferred pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act; or
(5)       transferred pursuant to and in compliance with Regulation S under the Securities Act; or
(6)       transferred to an institutional “accredited investor” (as defined in Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act), that has furnished to the Trustee a signed letter containing certain representations and agreements (the form of which letter appears as Section 2.8 of the Indenture); or
(7)       transferred pursuant to another available exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

Unless one of the boxes is checked, the Registrar will refuse to register any of the Securities evidenced by this certificate in the name of any person other than the registered Holder thereof; provided , however , that if box (5), (6) or (7) is checked, the Issuer may require, prior to registering any such transfer of the Securities, in its sole discretion, such legal opinions, certifications and other information as the Issuer may reasonably request to confirm that such transfer is being made pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act, such as the exemption provided by Rule 144 under such Act.

 

                                                                                                                             
    Signature
Signature Guarantee:    

 

(Signature must be guaranteed)

   

 

Signature

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program ), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

TO BE COMPLETED BY PURCHASER IF BOX (1) OR (3) ABOVE IS CHECKED.

The undersigned represents and warrants that it is purchasing this Security for its own account or an account with respect to which it exercises sole investment discretion and that it and any such account is a “qualified institutional buyer” within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act, and is aware that the sale to it is being made in reliance on Rule 144A and acknowledges that it has received such information regarding the Issuer as the undersigned has requested pursuant to Rule 144A or has determined not to request such information and that it is aware that the transferor is relying upon the undersigned’s foregoing representations in order to claim the exemption from registration provided by Rule 144A.

 

 

Dated:

 

A-1-9


[TO BE ATTACHED TO GLOBAL SECURITIES]

SCHEDULE OF INCREASES AND DECREASES IN GLOBAL SECURITY

The following increases or decreases in this Global Security have been made:

 

Date of

increase/

decrease

 

Amount of decrease

in Principal

Amount

of this Global

Security

 

Amount of increase

in Principal

Amount of this

Global Security

 

Principal Amount

of this Global

Security following

such decrease or

increase

 

Signature of

authorized

signatory of Trustee

or Securities

Custodian

       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       

 

A-1-10


OPTION OF HOLDER TO ELECT PURCHASE

If you elect to have this Security purchased by the Issuer pursuant to Section  3.5 or 3.9 of the Indenture, check either box:

 

☐      ☐

3.5      3.9

If you want to elect to have only part of this Security purchased by the Issuer pursuant to Section  3.5 or Section  3.9 of the Indenture, state the amount in principal amount (any remaining portion of such Security must be in minimum denominations of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof): $         and specify the denomination or denominations (which shall not be less than the minimum authorized denomination) of the Securities to be issued to the Holder for the portion of the within Security not being repurchased (in the absence of any such specification, one such Security will be issued for the portion not being repurchased): $        .

 

Date:                      Your Signature:                                                                                                                                                                                                     
    Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Security.

 

Signature Guarantee:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
   

(Signature must be guaranteed)

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

 

A-1-11


[Date]

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 N. Sam Houston Parkway E., Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attn: Chief Financial Officer

Wilmington Trust, National Association

15950 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 550

Dallas, Texas 75248

Attn: Ultra Resources, Inc. Notes Administrator

 

  Re: Ultra Resources, Inc. (the “Issuer”)

6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 (the “Securities”)

Ladies and Gentlemen:

In connection with our proposed sale of $[        ] aggregate principal amount of the Securities, we confirm that such sale has been effected pursuant to and in accordance with Regulation S under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities Act ”), and, accordingly, we represent that:

(a)    the offer of the Securities was not made to a person in the United States;

(b)    either (i) at the time the buy order was originated, the transferee was outside the United States or we and any person acting on our behalf reasonably believed that the transferee was outside the United States or (ii) the transaction was executed in, on or through the facilities of a designated off-shore securities market and neither we nor any person acting on our behalf knows that the transaction has been pre-arranged with a buyer in the United States;

(c)    no directed selling efforts have been made in the United States in contravention of the requirements of Rule 903(a)(2) or Rule 904(a)(2) of Regulation S, as applicable; and

(d)    the transaction is not part of a plan or scheme to evade the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

In addition, if the sale is made during a restricted period and the provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1) of Regulation S are applicable thereto, we confirm that such sale has been made in accordance with the applicable provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1), as the case may be.

We also hereby certify that we [are][are not] an Affiliate of the Issuer and, to our knowledge, the transferee of the Securities [is][is not] an Affiliate of the Issuer.

 

A-1-12


You and the Issuer are entitled to rely upon this letter and are irrevocably authorized to produce this letter or a copy hereof to any interested party in any administrative or legal proceedings or official inquiry with respect to the matters covered hereby. Terms used in this certificate have the meanings set forth in Regulation S.

 

Very truly yours,
[Name of Transferor]
By:  

 

  Authorized Signature

 

A-1-13


EXHIBIT A-2

[FORM OF FACE OF SECURITY]

[RULE 144A] [REGULATION S] GLOBAL SECURITY

[Restricted Securities Legend]

[Global Securities Legend, if applicable]

[Original Issue Discount Legend, if applicable]

[Canadian Securities Law Legend, if applicable]

 

No. [    ]    Principal Amount $[        ][, as revised by the Schedule of Increases and Decreases in Global Security attached hereto]
   CUSIP NO. 3
   ISIN 4 :

7.125% Senior Notes due 2025

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, promises to pay to CEDE & CO., or registered assigns, the principal sum of [        ] Dollars[, as revised by the Schedule of Increases and Decreases in Global Security attached hereto,] on April 15, 2025.

Interest Payment Dates: April 15 and October 15

Record Dates: April 1 and October 1

Additional provisions of this Security are set forth on the other side of this Security.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.
By:                                                                                              
Name:  
Title:  

 

 

3   to be inserted as appropriate 144A Note – 90400G AB7; Reg S Note – U9037B AB6
4   to be inserted as appropriate 144A Note – US90400GAB77; Reg S Note – USU9037BAB63

 

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TRUSTEE’S CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICATION

This is one of the Securities described in the within-mentioned Indenture.

 

WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION,

as Trustee

 
By:  

 

     
  Authorized Officer     Dated:  

 

       

 

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[FORM OF REVERSE SIDE OF SECURITY]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.

7.125% Senior Notes due 2025

 

1. Interest

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (such corporation, and its successors and assigns under the Indenture hereinafter referred to, being herein called the “ Issuer ”), promises to pay interest on the principal amount of this Security at the rate per annum shown above.

The Issuer will pay interest semiannually on April 15 and October 15 of each year commencing October 15, 2017. Interest on the Securities will accrue from the most recent date to which interest has been paid on the Securities or, if no interest has been paid, from April 12, 2017. The Issuer shall pay interest on overdue principal, and on overdue premium (plus interest on such interest to the extent lawful), at the rate borne by the Securities to the extent lawful. Interest will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of twelve 30-day months. The Issuer shall pay Additional Amounts or Reimbursement Payments with respect to payments on the Securities in the circumstances set forth in Section 2.18 of the Indenture.

 

2. Method of Payment

By no later than 11:00 a.m. (New York City time) on the date on which any principal of, premium, if any, or interest on any Security is due and payable, the Issuer shall irrevocably deposit with the Trustee or the Paying Agent money sufficient to pay such principal, premium, if any, and/or interest. The Issuer will pay interest (except Defaulted Interest) to the Persons who are registered Holders of Securities at the close of business on the April 1 and October 1 next preceding the interest payment date even if Securities are cancelled, repurchased or redeemed after the record date and on or before the interest payment date. Holders must surrender Securities to a Paying Agent to collect principal payments. The Issuer will pay principal, premium, if any, and interest in money of the United States that at the time of payment is legal tender for payment of public and private debts. Payments in respect of Securities represented by a Global Security (including principal, premium, if any, and interest) will be made by the transfer of immediately available funds to the accounts specified by The Depository Trust Company or any successor depository. The Issuer will make all payments in respect of a Definitive Security (including principal, premium, if any, and interest) by mailing a check to the registered address of each Holder thereof.

 

3. Paying Agent and Registrar

Initially, Wilmington Trust, National Association, as trustee (the “ Trustee ”) will act as Trustee, Paying Agent and Registrar. The Issuer may appoint and change any Paying Agent, Registrar or co-registrar without notice to any Securityholder. The Parent Guarantor or any of its wholly-owned Restricted Subsidiaries organized in the United States may act as Paying Agent or Registrar.

 

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4. Indenture

The Issuer issued the Securities under an Indenture dated as of April 12, 2017 (as it may be amended or supplemented from time to time in accordance with the terms thereof, the “ Indenture ”), among the Issuer, the Guarantors and the Trustee. The terms of the Securities include those stated in the Indenture. The Issuer is not be required to offer to exchange the Securities for notes registered under the Securities Act or otherwise register or qualify by prospectus the Securities for resale under the Securities Act. The Indenture will not be qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (15 U.S.C. §§ 77aaa-77bbbb) (as in effect on the date of the Indenture, the “ Act ”). Capitalized terms used herein and not defined herein have the meanings ascribed thereto in the Indenture. The Securities are subject to all terms and provisions of the Indenture, and Securityholders are referred to the Indenture for a statement of those terms. In the event of a conflict between the terms of this Security and the Indenture, the terms of the Indenture shall govern and control.

The Securities are senior obligations of the Issuer. The aggregate principal amount of Securities that may be authenticated and delivered under the Indenture is unlimited. This Security is one of the 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 referred to in the Indenture. The Securities include (i) $500,000,000 aggregate principal amount of the Issuer’s 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 issued under the Indenture on April 12, 2017 (herein called “ Initial Securities ”) and (ii) if and when issued, additional 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 of the Issuer that may be issued from time to time under the Indenture subsequent to April 12, 2017 (herein called “ Additional Securities ”) as provided in Section 2.1(a) of the Indenture. The Initial Securities and Additional Securities are treated as a single class of securities under the Indenture. The Indenture imposes certain limitations on the incurrence of indebtedness, the making of restricted payments, the sale of assets and subsidiary stock, the incurrence of certain liens, the entering into of affiliate transactions, the entering into of agreements that restrict distribution from certain restricted subsidiaries and the consummation of mergers and consolidations. The Indenture also imposes requirements with respect to the provision of financial information and the provision of guarantees of the Securities by certain subsidiaries.

To guarantee the due and punctual payment of the principal, premium, if any, and interest (including post-filing or post-petition interest) on the Securities and all other amounts payable by the Issuer under the Indenture and the Securities when and as the same shall be due and payable, whether at maturity, by acceleration or otherwise, according to the terms of the Securities and the Indenture, the Guarantors have unconditionally guaranteed (and future guarantors, together with the Guarantors, will unconditionally Guarantee), jointly and severally, such obligations on a senior basis pursuant to the terms of the Indenture.

 

5. Redemption

Except as set forth below or in Section 3.9(i) or Section  5.9 of the Indenture, the Securities will not be redeemable at the option of the Issuer prior to April 15, 2020. On and after such date, the Securities will be redeemable, at the Issuer’s option, in whole or in part, at any time upon notice as provided in the Indenture, at the following redemption prices (expressed in percentages of principal amount), plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the applicable Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date

 

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to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date), if redeemed during the 12-month period commencing on April 15 of the years set forth below:

 

Period

   Redemption Price  

2020

     105.344

2021

     103.563

2022

     101.781

2023 and thereafter

     100.000

In addition, at any time and from time to time on or prior to April 15, 2020, upon notice as provided in the Indenture, the Issuer may redeem in the aggregate up to 35% of the original principal amount of the Securities (calculated after giving effect to any issuance of Additional Securities), but in an amount not greater than the Net Cash Proceeds of one or more Equity Offerings at a redemption price (expressed as a percentage of principal amount) of 107.125% of the principal amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date); provided, that:

(1)    at least 65% of the original principal amount of the Securities (calculated after giving effect to any issuance of Additional Securities) must remain outstanding after each such redemption; and

(2)    each such redemption occurs within 180 days of the date of closing of such Equity Offering.

The amount of Net Cash Proceeds from an Equity Offering being used to effect any redemption of the Securities pursuant to the immediately preceding paragraph and any redemption of the 2022 Notes shall not exceed the aggregate Net Cash Proceeds from such Equity Offering.

In addition, at any time prior to April 15, 2020, upon notice as provided in the Indenture, the Issuer may redeem the Securities, in whole or in part, at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount thereof plus the Applicable Premium plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the Redemption Date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on the relevant interest payment date).

Applicable Premium ” means, with respect to a Security on any Redemption Date, the greater of (i) 1.0% of the principal amount of such Security or (ii) the excess, if any, of (A) the present value at such time of (1) the redemption price of such Security on April 15, 2020 (such redemption price being described in the first paragraph of this paragraph 5 ) plus (2) all required interest payments (excluding accrued and unpaid interest to such Redemption Date) due on such Security through April 15, 2020, computed using a discount rate equal to the Treasury Rate with respect to such Redemption Date plus 50 basis points discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day calendar months), over (B) the principal amount of such Security. The Trustee shall have no duty to calculate or verify the calculation of the Applicable Premium.

 

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Treasury Rate ” means, with respect to any Redemption Date, the yield to maturity at the time of computation of United States Treasury securities with a constant maturity (as compiled and published in the most recent Federal Reserve Statistical Release H.15 (519) which has become publicly available at least two Business Days prior to the Redemption Date (or, if such Statistical Release is no longer published, any publicly available source of similar market data)) most nearly equal to the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2020; provided , however , that if the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2020 is not equal to the constant maturity of a United States Treasury security for which a weekly average yield is given, the Treasury Rate shall be obtained by linear interpolation (calculated to the nearest one-twelfth of a year) from the weekly average yields of United States Treasury securities for which such yields are given, except that if the period from the Redemption Date to April 15, 2020 is less than one year, the weekly average yield on actually traded United States Treasury securities adjusted to a constant maturity of one year shall be used.

The Issuer will (a) calculate the Treasury Rate as of a date no later than the second Business Day preceding the applicable Redemption Date and (b) prior to such Redemption Date file with the Trustee an Officers’ Certificate setting forth the Applicable Premium and the Treasury Rate and showing the calculation of each in reasonable detail.

The Securities are also subject to tax redemption at the Issuer’s option as set forth in Section 5.9 of the Indenture.

 

6. Repurchase Provisions

The Securities may be the subject of a Change of Control Offer and/or an Asset Disposition Offer, as further described in the Indenture. The Issuer shall not be required to make any mandatory redemptions or sinking fund payments with respect to the Securities.

 

7. Denominations; Transfer; Exchange

The Securities are in registered form without coupons in minimum denominations of principal amount of $2,000 and whole multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof. A Holder may transfer or exchange Securities in accordance with the Indenture. The Registrar may require a Holder, among other things, to furnish appropriate endorsements or transfer documents and to pay a sum sufficient to cover any taxes and fees required by law or permitted by the Indenture.

The Issuer or the Registrar need not register the transfer of or exchange any Security (A) for a period (1) of 15 days before a selection of Securities to be redeemed or (2) beginning 15 days before an interest payment date and ending on such interest payment date or (B) selected for redemption, except the unredeemed portion of any Security being redeemed in part.

 

8. Persons Deemed Owners

The registered Holder of this Security shall be treated as the owner of it for all purposes.

 

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9. Amendment, Supplement, Waiver

The Indenture, the Securities and the related Guarantees may be amended or supplemented as provided in the Indenture.

 

10. Defaults and Remedies

The Events of Default relating to the Securities are defined in Section 6.1 of the Indenture. Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default relating to the Securities, the rights and obligations of the Issuer, the Guarantors, the Trustee and the Holders shall be as set forth in the applicable provisions in the Indenture.

 

11. Authentication

This Security shall not be valid until an authorized officer of the Trustee (or an Authenticating Agent acting on its behalf) manually signs the certificate of authentication on the other side of this Security.

 

12. Abbreviations

Customary abbreviations may be used in the name of a Securityholder or an assignee, such as TEN COM (= tenants in common), TEN ENT (= tenants by the entirety), JT TEN (= joint tenants with rights of survivorship and not as tenants in common), CUST (= custodian) and U/G/M/A (= Uniform Gift to Minors Act).

 

13. CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN Numbers

The Issuer has caused CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, to be printed on the Securities and has directed the Trustee to use CUSIP, Common Code and ISIN numbers, if applicable, in notices of redemption or purchase as a convenience to Securityholders. No representation is made as to the accuracy of such numbers either as printed on the Securities or as contained in any notice of redemption or purchase and reliance may be placed only on the other identification numbers placed thereon.

 

14. Governing Law

This Security shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

The Issuer will furnish to any Securityholder upon written request and without charge to the Securityholder a copy of the Indenture. Requests may be made to:

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 North Sam Houston Parkway East, Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attention: Chief Financial Officer

 

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ASSIGNMENT FORM

To assign this Security, fill in the form below:

I or we assign and transfer this Security to:

 

 

(Print or type assignee’s name, address and zip code)

 

 

(Insert assignee’s Social Security or Tax I.D. No.)

and irrevocably appoint                      agent to transfer this Security on the books of the Issuer. The agent may substitute another to act for him.

 

Date:       Your  
 

 

    Signature:  

 

 

Signature Guarantee:  

 

   

(Signature must be guaranteed)

 

 

Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Security.

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

 

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[TO BE ATTACHED TO GLOBAL SECURITIES]

SCHEDULE OF INCREASES AND DECREASES IN GLOBAL SECURITY

The following increases or decreases in this Global Security have been made:

 

Date of

increase/

decrease

 

Amount of decrease

in Principal Amount

of this Global

Security

 

Amount of increase

in Principal Amount

of this Global

Security

 

Principal Amount of

this Global Security

following such

decrease or increase

 

Signature of

authorized signatory

of Trustee or

Securities Custodian

       
       
       
       
       
       
       
       

 

A-2-9


OPTION OF HOLDER TO ELECT PURCHASE

If you elect to have this Security purchased by the Issuer pursuant to Section  3.5 or 3.9 of the Indenture, check either box:

 

☐      ☐

3.5      3.9

If you want to elect to have only part of this Security purchased by the Issuer pursuant to Section  3.5 or Section  3.9 of the Indenture, state the amount in principal amount (any remaining portion of such Security must be in minimum denominations of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof): $         and specify the denomination or denominations (which shall not be less than the minimum authorized denomination) of the Securities to be issued to the Holder for the portion of the within Security not being repurchased (in the absence of any such specification, one such Security will be issued for the portion not being repurchased): $        .

 

Date:                      Your Signature:                                                                                                                                                                                                     
    Sign exactly as your name appears on the other side of this Security.

 

Signature Guarantee:  

 

   

(Signature must be guaranteed)

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

The undersigned hereby certifies that it ☐ is / ☐ is not an Affiliate of the Issuer and that, to its knowledge, the proposed transferee ☐ is / ☐ is not an Affiliate of the Issuer.

In connection with any transfer or exchange of any of the Securities evidenced by this certificate occurring prior to the date that is one year (or 40 days in the case of any Regulation S Notes) after the later of the date of original issuance of such Securities and the last date, if any, on which such Securities were owned by the Issuer or any Affiliate of the Issuer, the undersigned confirms that such Securities are being:

CHECK ONE BOX BELOW:

 

(1)       acquired for the undersigned’s own account, without transfer; or
(2)       transferred to the Issuer; or
(3)       transferred pursuant to and in compliance with Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities Act ”); or
(4)       transferred pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act; or

 

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(5)      transferred pursuant to and in compliance with Regulation S under the Securities Act; or
(6)      transferred to an institutional “ accredited investor ” (as defined in Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Securities Act), that has furnished to the Trustee a signed letter containing certain representations and agreements (the form of which letter appears as Section  2.8 of the Indenture); or
(7)      transferred pursuant to another available exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

Unless one of the boxes is checked, the Registrar will refuse to register any of the Securities evidenced by this certificate in the name of any person other than the registered Holder thereof; provided , however , that if box (5), (6) or (7) is checked, the Issuer may require, prior to registering any such transfer of the Securities, in its sole discretion, such legal opinions, certifications and other information as the Issuer may reasonably request to confirm that such transfer is being made pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act, such as the exemption provided by Rule 144 under such Act.

 

   

 

    Signature
Signature Guarantee:    

 

   

 

(Signature must be guaranteed)     Signature

The signature(s) should be guaranteed by an eligible guarantor institution (banks, stockbrokers, savings and loan associations and credit unions with membership in an approved signature guarantee medallion program ), pursuant to S.E.C. Rule 17Ad-15.

TO BE COMPLETED BY PURCHASER IF BOX (1) OR (3) ABOVE IS CHECKED.

The undersigned represents and warrants that it is purchasing this Security for its own account or an account with respect to which it exercises sole investment discretion and that it and any such account is a “qualified institutional buyer” within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act, and is aware that the sale to it is being made in reliance on Rule 144A and acknowledges that it has received such information regarding the Issuer as the undersigned has requested pursuant to Rule 144A or has determined not to request such information and that it is aware that the transferor is relying upon the undersigned’s foregoing representations in order to claim the exemption from registration provided by Rule 144A.

 

                                                                              

Dated:

 

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[Date]                         

Ultra Resources, Inc.

400 N. Sam Houston Parkway E., Suite 1200

Houston, Texas 77060

Attn: Chief Financial Officer

Wilmington Trust, National Association

15950 N. Dallas Parkway, Suite 550

Dallas, Texas 75248

Attn: Ultra Resources, Inc. Notes Administrator

 

  Re: Ultra Resources, Inc. (the “Issuer”)

7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 (the “Securities”)

Ladies and Gentlemen:

In connection with our proposed sale of $[        ] aggregate principal amount of the Securities, we confirm that such sale has been effected pursuant to and in accordance with Regulation S under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Securities Act ”), and, accordingly, we represent that:

(a)    the offer of the Securities was not made to a person in the United States;

(b)    either (i) at the time the buy order was originated, the transferee was outside the United States or we and any person acting on our behalf reasonably believed that the transferee was outside the United States or (ii) the transaction was executed in, on or through the facilities of a designated off-shore securities market and neither we nor any person acting on our behalf knows that the transaction has been pre-arranged with a buyer in the United States;

(c)    no directed selling efforts have been made in the United States in contravention of the requirements of Rule 903(a)(2) or Rule 904(a)(2) of Regulation S, as applicable; and

(d)    the transaction is not part of a plan or scheme to evade the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

In addition, if the sale is made during a restricted period and the provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1) of Regulation S are applicable thereto, we confirm that such sale has been made in accordance with the applicable provisions of Rule 903(b)(2), Rule 903(b)(3) or Rule 904(b)(1), as the case may be.

We also hereby certify that we [are][are not] an Affiliate of the Issuer and, to our knowledge, the transferee of the Securities [is][is not] an Affiliate of the Issuer.

 

A-2-12


You and the Issuer are entitled to rely upon this letter and are irrevocably authorized to produce this letter or a copy hereof to any interested party in any administrative or legal proceedings or official inquiry with respect to the matters covered hereby. Terms used in this certificate have the meanings set forth in Regulation S.

 

Very truly yours,
[Name of Transferor]
By:  

 

  Authorized Signature

 

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EXHIBIT B

FORM OF INDENTURE SUPPLEMENT TO ADD SUBSIDIARY GUARANTORS

This [                    ] Supplemental Indenture, dated as of [            ], 20     (this “ Supplemental Indenture ” or “ Guarantee ”), is among [ name of future Subsidiary Guarantor ] (the “Guaranteeing Subsidiary ”), Ultra Resources, Inc. (together with its successors and assigns, the “ Issuer ”), Ultra Petroleum Corp. (the “ Parent Guarantor ” and together with the existing Subsidiary Guarantors under the Indenture referred to below, the “ Guarantors ”), and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as Trustee under the Indenture referred to below.

W I T N E S S E T H:

WHEREAS, the Issuer, the Guarantors and the Trustee have heretofore executed and delivered an Indenture, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented, waived or otherwise modified, the “ Indenture ”), providing for the issuance of an aggregate principal amount of $700.0 million of 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 and $500.0 million of 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 of the Issuer (the “ Securities ”);

WHEREAS, Section  3.11 of the Indenture provides that after the Issue Date the Issuer is required to cause (a) each Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of the Issuer (other than a Foreign Subsidiary) formed or acquired after the Issue Date and (b) any other Domestic Subsidiary that is not already a Subsidiary Guarantor that guarantees any Indebtedness of the Issuer or a Subsidiary Guarantor, in each case to execute and deliver to the Trustee a supplemental indenture pursuant to which such Subsidiary will unconditionally guarantee, on a joint and several basis with the other Subsidiary Guarantors, the full and prompt payment of the principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the Securities; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to Section  9.1 of the Indenture, the Issuer, the Parent Guarantor, the Guaranteeing Subsidiary and the Trustee are authorized to execute and deliver this Supplemental Indenture to amend or supplement the Indenture, without the consent of any Securityholder;

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, the Issuer, the Parent Guarantor, the Guaranteeing Subsidiary and the Trustee mutually covenant and agree for the equal and ratable benefit of the Holders as follows:

ARTICLE I

Definitions

SECTION 1.1.     Defined Terms . As used in this Supplemental Indenture, terms defined in the Indenture or in the preamble or recital hereto are used herein as therein defined. The words “herein,” “hereof” and “hereby” and other words of similar import used in this Supplemental Indenture refer to this Supplemental Indenture as a whole and not to any particular section hereof.

 

B-1


ARTICLE II

Agreement to Be Bound; Guarantee

SECTION 2.1.     Agreement to Be Bound . The Guaranteeing Subsidiary hereby becomes a party to the Indenture as a Subsidiary Guarantor and as such will have all of the rights and be subject to all of the obligations and agreements of a Subsidiary Guarantor under the Indenture. The Guaranteeing Subsidiary agrees to be bound by all of the provisions of the Indenture applicable to a Subsidiary Guarantor and to perform all of the obligations and agreements of a Subsidiary Guarantor under the Indenture.

SECTION 2.2.     Guarantee . The Guaranteeing Subsidiary agrees, on a joint and several basis with all the existing Guarantors, to fully, unconditionally and irrevocably guarantee to each Holder of the Securities and the Trustee the Obligations pursuant to Article X of the Indenture.

ARTICLE III

Miscellaneous

SECTION 3.1.     Notices . All notices and other communications to the Guaranteeing Subsidiary shall be given as provided in the Indenture to any Guarantor, at its address set forth therein.

SECTION 3.2.     Parties . Nothing expressed or mentioned herein is intended or shall be construed to give any Person, firm or corporation, other than the Holders and the Trustee, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Supplemental Indenture or the Indenture or any provision herein or therein contained.

SECTION 3.3.     Governing Law . This Supplemental Indenture shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

SECTION 3.4.     Severability Clause . In case any provision in this Supplemental Indenture shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby and such provision shall be ineffective only to the extent of such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability.

SECTION 3.5.     Ratification of Indenture; Supplemental Indentures Part of Indenture . Except as expressly amended hereby, the Indenture is in all respects ratified and confirmed and all the terms, conditions and provisions thereof shall remain in full force and effect. This Supplemental Indenture shall form a part of the Indenture for all purposes, and every Holder of Securities heretofore or hereafter authenticated and delivered shall be bound hereby. The Trustee makes no representation or warranty as to the validity or sufficiency of this Supplemental Indenture or with respect to the recitals contained herein, all of which recitals are made solely by the other parties hereto.

 

B-2


SECTION 3.6.  The Trustee . The Trustee shall not be responsible in any manner whatsoever for or in respect of the validity or sufficiency of this Supplemental Indenture or for or in respect of the recitals contained herein, all of which recitals are made solely by the Guaranteeing Subsidiary and the Issuer.

SECTION 3.7.  Counterparts . The parties hereto may sign one or more copies of this Supplemental Indenture in counterparts, all of which together shall constitute one and the same agreement. The exchange of copies of this Supplemental Indenture and of signature pages by facsimile or PDF transmission shall constitute effective execution and delivery of this instrument as to the parties hereto and may be used in lieu of the original instrument for all purposes. Signatures of the parties hereto transmitted by facsimile or PDF shall be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes

SECTION 3.8.  Headings . The headings of the Articles and the Sections in this Supplemental Indenture are for convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed to alter or affect the meaning or interpretation of any provisions hereof.

 

B-3


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Supplemental Indenture to be duly executed as of the date first above written.

 

[GUARANTEEING SUBSIDIARY],

as a Subsidiary Guarantor

By:                                                                                                    
  Name:
  Title:
  [Address]
WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, as Trustee
By:                                                                                                    
  Name:
  Title:
ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.
By:                                                                                                    
  Name:
  Title:
ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.
By:                                                                                                    
  Name:
  Title:

Exhibit 10.1

Execution Version

 

 

 

SENIOR SECURED TERM LOAN AGREEMENT

dated as of April 12, 2017,

among

ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.

and

UP ENERGY CORPORATION,

as Parent Guarantor,

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

as Borrower,

BARCLAYS BANK PLC,

as Administrative Agent,

and

The Lenders and Other Parties Party Hereto

 

 

GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA,

as Syndication Agent,

BANK OF MONTREAL,

as Documentation Agent

and

BARCLAYS BANK PLC, GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA and

BMO CAPITAL MARKETS CORP.

as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Bookrunners

 

 

 


TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

     Page  
ARTICLE I  
DEFINITIONS AND ACCOUNTING MATTERS  

Section 1.01

  

Terms Defined Above

     1  

Section 1.02

  

Certain Defined Terms

     1  

Section 1.03

  

Types of Loans and Borrowings

     36  

Section 1.04

  

Terms Generally; Rules of Construction

     36  

Section 1.05

  

Accounting Terms and Determinations; GAAP

     37  
ARTICLE II  
THE CREDITS  

Section 2.01

  

Commitments

     37  

Section 2.02

  

Loans and Borrowings

     37  

Section 2.03

  

Requests for Borrowings

     38  

Section 2.04

  

Interest Elections

     39  

Section 2.05

  

Funding of Borrowings

     40  

Section 2.06

  

Increase of Commitments

     40  
ARTICLE III  
PAYMENTS OF PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST; PREPAYMENTS; FEES  

Section 3.01

  

Repayment of Loans

     42  

Section 3.02

  

Interest

     43  

Section 3.03

  

Alternate Rate of Interest

     43  

Section 3.04

  

Prepayments

     44  

Section 3.05

  

Fees

     45  
ARTICLE IV  
PAYMENTS; PRO RATA TREATMENT; SHARING OF SET-OFFS  

Section 4.01

  

Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs

     45  

Section 4.02

  

Presumption of Payment by the Borrower

     46  

Section 4.03

  

Deductions by the Administrative Agent

     46  

Section 4.04

  

Collection of Proceeds of Production

     46  
ARTICLE V  
INCREASED COSTS; BREAK FUNDING PAYMENTS; TAXES; ILLEGALITY  

Section 5.01

  

Increased Costs

     47  

Section 5.02

  

Break Funding Payments

     48  

Section 5.03

  

Taxes

     48  

Section 5.04

  

Mitigation Obligations; Designation of Different Lending Office

     51  

Section 5.05

  

Replacement of Lenders

     52  

Section 5.06

  

Illegality

     52  
ARTICLE VI  
CONDITIONS PRECEDENT  

Section 6.01

  

Effective Date

     52  

 

i


ARTICLE VII  
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES  

Section 7.01

 

Organization; Powers

     55  

Section 7.02

 

Authority; Enforceability

     55  

Section 7.03

 

Approvals; No Conflicts

     56  

Section 7.04

 

Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change

     56  

Section 7.05

 

Litigation

     56  

Section 7.06

 

Environmental Matters

     57  

Section 7.07

 

Compliance with the Laws and Agreements; No Defaults

     58  

Section 7.08

 

Investment Company Act

     58  

Section 7.09

 

Taxes

     58  

Section 7.10

 

ERISA

     58  

Section 7.11

 

Disclosure; No Material Misstatements

     59  

Section 7.12

 

Insurance

     59  

Section 7.13

 

Restriction on Liens

     60  

Section 7.14

 

Subsidiaries

     60  

Section 7.15

 

Location of Business and Offices

     60  

Section 7.16

 

Properties; Titles, Etc

     60  

Section 7.17

 

Maintenance of Properties

     61  

Section 7.18

 

Gas Imbalances, Prepayments

     61  

Section 7.19

 

Marketing of Production

     61  

Section 7.20

 

Swap Agreements and Qualified ECP Counterparty

     62  

Section 7.21

 

Use of Loans

     62  

Section 7.22

 

Solvency

     62  

Section 7.23

 

Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions

     62  

Section 7.24

 

EEA Financial Institutions

     63  

Section 7.25

 

Senior Debt Status

     63  

Section 7.26

 

Security Instruments

     63  

Section 7.27

 

PATRIOT Act

     63  
ARTICLE VIII  
AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS  

Section 8.01

 

Financial Statements; Other Information

     63  

Section 8.02

 

Notices of Material Events

     66  

Section 8.03

 

Existence; Conduct of Business

     67  

Section 8.04

 

Payment of Obligations

     67  

Section 8.05

 

Performance of Obligations under Loan Documents

     67  

Section 8.06

 

Operation and Maintenance of Properties

     67  

Section 8.07

 

Insurance

     68  

Section 8.08

 

Books and Records; Inspection Rights

     68  

Section 8.09

 

Compliance with Laws

     68  

Section 8.10

 

Environmental Matters

     68  

Section 8.11

 

Further Assurances

     69  

Section 8.12

 

Reserve Reports

     70  

Section 8.13

 

Title Information

     71  

Section 8.14

 

Additional Collateral; Additional Guarantors

     71  

Section 8.15

 

Unrestricted Subsidiaries

     72  

Section 8.16

 

Commodity Exchange Act Keepwell Provisions

     72  

Section 8.17

 

ERISA Compliance

     73  

Section 8.18

 

Deposit Accounts; Commodities Accounts and Securities Accounts

     73  

Section 8.19

 

Maintenance of Ratings

     73  

Section 8.20

 

Post-Effective Date Deliverables

     73  

 

ii


ARTICLE IX  
NEGATIVE COVENANTS  

Section 9.01

 

Intentionally Omitted

     74  

Section 9.02

 

Debt

     74  

Section 9.03

 

Liens

     75  

Section 9.04

 

Limitation on Restricted Payments

     76  

Section 9.05

 

[Reserved]

     79  

Section 9.06

 

Nature of Business; International Operations

     79  

Section 9.07

 

[Reserved]

     79  

Section 9.08

 

ERISA Compliance

     80  

Section 9.09

 

Sale or Discount of Notes or Receivables

     80  

Section 9.10

 

Mergers, Etc

     80  

Section 9.11

 

Sale of Properties and Liquidation of Swap Agreements

     80  

Section 9.12

 

Transactions with Affiliates

     82  

Section 9.13

 

Subsidiaries

     82  

Section 9.14

 

Negative Pledge Agreements; Subsidiary Dividend Restrictions

     82  

Section 9.15

 

Designation and Conversion of Restricted and Unrestricted Subsidiaries

     83  

Section 9.16

 

Non-Qualified ECP Counterparties

     83  

Section 9.17

 

Amendments to Senior Debt Documents

     83  

Section 9.18

 

Swap Agreements

     84  
ARTICLE X  
EVENTS OF DEFAULT; REMEDIES  

Section 10.01

 

Events of Default

     85  

Section 10.02

 

Remedies

     87  
ARTICLE XI  
THE AGENTS  

Section 11.01

 

Appointment; Powers

     87  

Section 11.02

 

Duties and Obligations of Administrative Agent

     88  

Section 11.03

 

Action by Administrative Agent

     88  

Section 11.04

 

Reliance by Administrative Agent

     89  

Section 11.05

 

Sub-agents

     89  

Section 11.06

 

Resignation or Removal of Administrative Agent

     89  

Section 11.07

 

Agents as Lenders

     90  

Section 11.08

 

No Reliance

     90  

Section 11.09

 

Administrative Agent May File Proofs of Claim

     91  

Section 11.10

 

Authority of Administrative Agent to Release Collateral and Liens

     91  

Section 11.11

 

The Arrangers, the Syndication Agent and the Documentation Agent

     92  
ARTICLE XII  
MISCELLANEOUS  

Section 12.01

 

Notices

     92  

Section 12.02

 

Waivers; Amendments

     93  

Section 12.03

 

Expenses, Indemnity; Damage Waiver

     94  

Section 12.04

 

Successors and Assigns; No Third Party Beneficiaries

     96  

Section 12.05

 

Survival; Revival; Reinstatement

     100  

Section 12.06

 

Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness

     101  

Section 12.07

 

Severability

     101  

Section 12.08

 

Right of Setoff

     101  

Section 12.09

 

GOVERNING LAW; JURISDICTION; CONSENT TO SERVICE OF PROCESS

     102  

Section 12.10

 

Headings

     103  

Section 12.11

 

Confidentiality

     103  

 

iii


Section 12.12

 

Interest Rate Limitation

     104  

Section 12.13

 

EXCULPATION PROVISIONS

     104  

Section 12.14

 

[Reserved]

     105  

Section 12.15

 

[Reserved]

     105  

Section 12.16

 

[Reserved]

     105  

Section 12.17

 

USA Patriot Act Notice

     105  

Section 12.18

 

No Advisory or Fiduciary Responsibility

     105  

Section 12.19

 

Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of EEA Financial Institutions

     105  

Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules

  

Annex I

 

Commitments

  

Exhibit A

 

Form of Note

  

Exhibit B

 

Form of Borrowing Request

  

Exhibit C

 

Form of Interest Election Request

  

Exhibit D

 

Form of Compliance Certificate

  

Exhibit E

 

Security Instruments as of the Effective Date

  

Exhibit F

 

Form of Assignment and Assumption

  

Exhibit G-1

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Lenders; not partnerships)

  

Exhibit G-2

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Participants; not partnerships)

  

Exhibit G-3

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Participants; partnerships)

  

Exhibit G-4

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Lenders; partnerships)

  

Exhibit H

 

Form of Commitment Increase Certificate

  

Exhibit I

 

Form of Additional Lender Certificate

  

Schedule 7.04(c)

 

Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change

  

Schedule 7.05

 

Litigation

  

Schedule 7.06

 

Environmental Matters

  

Schedule 7.14

 

Subsidiaries and Unrestricted Subsidiaries

  

Schedule 7.18

 

Gas Imbalances; Take or Pay; Other Prepayments

  

Schedule 7.19

 

Marketing Agreements

  

Schedule 7.20

 

Swap Agreements

  

Schedule 9.02

 

Debt

  

Schedule 9.04

 

Investments

  

Schedule 12.01

 

Notices

  

 

iv


THIS SENIOR SECURED TERM LOAN AGREEMENT dated as of April 12, 2017, is among ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”); ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP., a corporation organized under the laws of the Yukon Territory of Canada (“ Ultra Petroleum ”); UP ENERGY CORPORATION, a Delaware corporation (“ UP Energy ” and, together with Ultra Petroleum, collectively the “ Parent Guarantor ”); each of the Lenders from time to time party hereto; and BARCLAYS BANK PLC, as administrative agent for the Lenders (in such capacity, together with its successors in such capacity, the “ Administrative Agent ”).

RECITALS

A. On April 29, 2016, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower and certain of their respective Subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, initiating cases under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the “ Bankruptcy Code ”), consolidated administratively under Case No. 16-32202 (the “ Chapter 11 Cases ”);

B. The Debtors filed the Plan of Reorganization (as defined herein) with the Bankruptcy Court on March 14, 2017 (the “ Plan of Reorganization ”) and on March 14, 2017 the Bankruptcy Court entered the Confirmation Order confirming the Plan of Reorganization, which Confirmation Order inter alia authorized and approved the Debtor’s entry into and performance under this Agreement;

C. The Borrower has requested that the Lenders provide certain term loans to and extensions of credit on behalf of the Borrower; and

D. The Lenders have indicated their willingness to lend subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement;

E. NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing recitals, of the representations, warranties, covenants and agreements contained herein, and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS AND ACCOUNTING MATTERS

Section 1.01 Terms Defined Above . As used in this Agreement, each term defined above has the meaning indicated above.

Section 1.02 Certain Defined Terms . As used in this Agreement, the following terms have the meanings specified below:

ABR ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Alternate Base Rate.

Account Control Agreement ” means a control agreement, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, which grants the Collateral Agent “control” as defined in the Uniform Commercial Code in effect in the applicable jurisdiction over any Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodities Account maintained by any Credit Party, in each case, among the Collateral Agent, the applicable Credit Party and the applicable financial institution at which such Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodities Account is maintained.


ACNTA ” means (without duplication), as of the date of determination, the remainder of:

(a) the sum of:

(i) discounted future net revenues from proved oil and gas reserves of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Borrower were year-end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative)) before any state or federal income taxes, as estimated in a reserve report prepared as of the end of the Borrower’s most recently completed fiscal year for which audited financial statements are available, as increased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(A) estimated proved oil and gas reserves acquired since such year end, which reserves were not reflected in such year-end reserve report, and

(B) estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to extensions, discoveries and other additions and upward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to exploration, development or exploitation, production or other activities, which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions (including the impact to proved oil and gas reserves and future net revenues from estimated development costs incurred and the accretion of discount since such year-end), and decreased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(C) estimated proved oil and gas reserves produced or disposed of since such year end to the extent such estimated discounted future net revenues were included in such year-end reserve report or such estimated reserves under clauses (A) or (B) above, and

(D) estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to downward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to changes in geological conditions or other factors which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions,

in the case of clauses (A) through (D) calculated on a pre-tax basis substantially in accordance with SEC guidelines (but utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available were year-end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative)); provided , however , that in the case of each of the determinations made pursuant to clauses (A) through (D), such increases and decreases shall be as estimated by the Borrower’s petroleum engineers;

(ii) the capitalized costs that are attributable to oil and gas properties of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries to which no proved oil and gas reserves are attributable, based on the Parent Guarantor’s books and records as of a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest available annual or quarterly financial statements;

(iii) the Net Working Capital of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries on a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements; and

(iv) the greater of

 

2


(A) the net book value of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements, and

(B) the appraised value, as estimated by independent appraisers, of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest audited financial statements; provided , that, if no such appraisal has been performed, the Borrower shall not be required to obtain such an appraisal and only clause (iv)(A) of this definition shall apply;

minus

(b) the sum of:

(i) minority interests;

(ii) any net gas balancing liabilities of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries reflected in the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly balance sheet (to the extent not deducted in calculating Net Working Capital of the Borrower in accordance with clause (a)(iii) above of this definition);

(iii) to the extent included in (a)(i) above, the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but (x) utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Borrower were year-end), attributable to reserves which are required to be delivered to third parties to fully satisfy the obligations of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to Volumetric Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto); and

(iv) the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines, attributable to reserves subject to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments which, based on the estimates of production and price assumptions included in determining the discounted future net revenues specified in (a)(i) above, would be necessary to fully satisfy the payment obligations of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto).

If the Borrower changes its method of accounting from the full cost method of accounting to the successful efforts or a similar method, ACNTA will continue to be calculated as if the Borrower were still using the full cost method of accounting.

Act ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  12.17 .

Additional Lender ” has the meaning given to such term in Section 2.06(a) .

Additional Lender Certificate ” has the meaning given to such term in Section 2.06(b)(xi) .

Additional Oil and Gas Assets ” means (a) Oil and Gas Properties, (b) gathering systems and other improvements, infrastructure, equipment and fixtures used in connection with the exploration, exploitation, development, or operation of Oil and Gas Properties or the production, treatment, handling, gathering, transportation, processing, and disposition of hydrocarbons and associated products, (c) Investments in joint ventures that own any assets described in clauses (a) or (b) to the extent permitted by

 

3


Section  9.04 , and (d) Equity Interests acquired from third parties in Persons that own any assets described in clauses (a) or (b) and that are Guarantors or become Guarantors as provided in Section  8.14 promptly following such acquisition.

Adjusted Eurodollar Rate ” means, with respect to any Eurodollar Borrowing for any Interest Period, an interest rate per annum equal to the Eurodollar Rate for such Interest Period multiplied by the Statutory Reserve Rate.

Administrative Questionnaire ” means an Administrative Questionnaire in a form supplied by the Administrative Agent.

Affected Loans ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  5.06 .

Affiliate ” means, with respect to a specified Person, another Person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, Controls or is Controlled by or is under common Control with the Person specified. The term “Affiliated” has a correlative meaning thereto.

Affiliated Lender ” means any Affiliate of the Borrower (other than the Parent Guarantor or the Restricted Subsidiaries).

Agents ” means, collectively, the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and, as the context requires, any syndication agents or documentation agents hereunder that may from time to time be designated by the Administrative Agent and the Borrower.

Agreement ” means this Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, as the same may from time to time be amended, modified, supplemented or restated.

All-In Yield ” means, as to any Debt, the yield thereof, whether in the form of interest rate, margin, original issue discount, upfront fees, an Adjusted Eurodollar Rate or Alternate Base Rate floor greater than the “floor” then in effect on the Loans; provided that, in determining the applicable interest rate margins (a) customary arrangement, structuring, commitment or other fees payable to the arrangers (or their Affiliates) shall be excluded, (b) original issue discount and upfront fees paid to the lenders thereunder shall be included (with original issue discount being equated to interest based on an assumed four-year life to maturity or, if shorter, the actual Weighted Average Life to Maturity) and (c) if a refinancing facility includes an interest rate floor greater than the applicable interest rate floor for the existing Loans, such differential between interest rate floors shall be equated to the applicable interest rate margin for purposes of determining whether an increase to the interest rate margin for the existing Loans shall be required, but only to the extent an increase in the interest rate floor for the Loans would cause an increase in the interest rate then in effect thereunder, and in such case the interest rate floor (but not the interest rate margin) applicable to the existing Loans may be increased to the extent necessary in respect of such differential between interest rate floors; provided further that each basis point increase to the interest rate floor of the Loans shall count as one basis point of increase in the interest rate margin to the Loans for purposes of the calculations under Section  3.01 .

Alternate Base Rate ” means, for any day, a rate per annum equal to the greatest of (a) the Prime Rate in effect on such day, (b) the Federal Funds Effective Rate in effect on such day plus  1 2 of 1% and (c) the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate for a one month Interest Period beginning on such day (or if such day is not a Business Day, the immediately preceding Business Day) plus 1.00%, provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate for any day shall be based on the rate appearing on the Reuters Screen LIBOR01 Page (or on any successor or substitute page of such service, or any successor to or substitute for such service, providing rate quotations comparable to those currently provided on such

 

4


page of such service, as determined by the Administrative Agent from time to time for purposes of providing quotations of interest rates applicable to dollar deposits in the London interbank market), at which dollar deposits of $5,000,000 with a one month maturity are offered at approximately 11:00 a.m., London time, on such day (or the immediately preceding Business Days if such day is not a Business Day). Any change in the Alternate Base Rate due to a change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate shall be effective from and including the effective date of such change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate, respectively.

Anti-Corruption Laws ” means all state or federal laws, rules, and regulations applicable to the Borrower or any of its Affiliates from time to time concerning or relating to money-laundering, bribery or corruption, including the FCPA.

Applicable Margin ” means, on any day, with respect to any Eurodollar Loan, 3.00% per annum and with respect to any ABR Loan, 2.00% per annum .

Applicable Percentage ” means, for each Lender, (a) immediately prior to the initial Borrowing on the Effective Date, the percentage of the aggregate amount of the Commitments of all Lenders represented by the amount of such Lender’s Commitment, and (b) thereafter, the percentage of the aggregate principal amount of all Loans then outstanding represented by the amount of such Lender’s Loan.

Approved Counterparty ” means any Lender or any Affiliate of a Lender and any other Person if such Person or its credit support provider has a long term senior unsecured debt rating of BBB+ (or its equivalent) or higher by S&P and Baa1 (or its equivalent) or higher by Moody’s.

Approved Fund ” means any Person (other than a natural person) that is engaged in making, purchasing, holding or investing in bank loans and similar extensions of credit in the ordinary course of its business and that is administered or managed by a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender or an entity or an Affiliate of an entity that administers or manages a Lender.

Approved Petroleum Engineers ” means Cawley, Gillespie & Associates, Inc., W.D. Von Gonten & Co., Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc., Ryder Scott Company Petroleum Consultants, L.P., Wright & Company, Inc. or any other independent petroleum engineers selected by Borrower and acceptable to the Administrative Agent.

Arranger ” means, collectively, Barclays Bank PLC, Goldman Sachs Bank USA and BMO Capital Markets Corp. in their capacities as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners hereunder.

ASC ” means the Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification, as in effect from time to time.

Asset Coverage Ratio ” means, as of any date of calculation, the ratio of (a) the PV-9 of the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries ( provided that, for purposes of calculating the Asset Coverage Ratio, the PV-9 attributable to non-producing Proved Reserves shall not exceed 35% of the aggregate PV-9) to (b) Consolidated First Lien Debt on such date.

Assignment and Assumption ” means an assignment and assumption entered into by a Lender and an assignee (with the consent of any party whose consent is required by Section 12.04(b) ), and accepted by the Administrative Agent, in the form of Exhibit F or any other form approved by the Administrative Agent.

 

5


Bail-In Action ” means the exercise of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by the applicable EEA Resolution Authority in respect of any liability of an EEA Financial Institution.

Bail-In Legislation ” means, with respect to any EEA Member Country implementing Article 55 of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union, the implementing law for such EEA Member Country from time to time which is described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule.

Bank Price Deck ” means the Revolving Administrative Agent’s forward curve for each of oil, natural gas and other Hydrocarbons, as applicable, furnished to the Borrower by the Revolving Administrative Agent from time to time in accordance with the terms of the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Bankruptcy Code ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Bankruptcy Court ” means the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division or any other court having jurisdiction over the Chapter 11 Cases from time to time.

Board ” means the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System of the United States of America or any successor Governmental Authority.

Borrower ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Borrowing ” means Loans of the same Type, made, converted or continued on the same date and, in the case of Eurodollar Loans, as to which a single Interest Period is in effect.

Borrowing Base ” has the meaning given to this term in the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof.

Borrowing Base Deficiency ” has the meaning given to this term in the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof.

Borrowing Base Period ” means any period other than an Investment Grade Period.

Borrowing Base Property ” means, at any time in question, any Oil and Gas Property to which Proved Reserves were attributed in the then most recent Reserve Report.

Borrowing Base Trigger Event ” means, the occurrence of at least two of the following three events: the public announcement that the Borrower’s Credit Rating is (a) Ba1 or lower from (or is unrated by) Moody’s, (b) BB+ or lower from (or is unrated by) S&P or (c) BB+ or lower from (or is unrated by) Fitch.

Borrowing Request ” means a request by the Borrower for a Borrowing in accordance with Section  2.03 .

Business Day ” means any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banks in New York City are authorized or required by law to remain closed; and if such day relates to a Borrowing or continuation of, a payment or prepayment of principal of or interest on, or a conversion of or into, or the Interest Period for, a Eurodollar Loan or a notice by the Borrower with respect to any such Borrowing or continuation, payment, prepayment, conversion or Interest Period, any day which is also a day on which banks are open for dealings in dollar deposits in the London interbank market.

 

6


Capital Leases ” means, in respect of any Person, all leases which shall have been, or should have been, in accordance with GAAP as in effect on the date hereof, recorded as capital leases on the balance sheet of the Person liable (whether contingent or otherwise) for the payment of rent thereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (i) the LGS Lease shall not constitute a Capital Lease and (ii) any lease (whether entered into before or after the Effective Date) that would have been classified as an operating lease in accordance with GAAP as in effect on the date hereof will be deemed not to be a Capital Lease.

Cash Equivalents ” means:

(a) direct obligations of the United States or any agency thereof, or obligations guaranteed by the United States or any agency thereof, in each case maturing within one year from the date of acquisition thereof;

(b) commercial paper maturing within one year from the date of acquisition thereof rated in the highest grade by S&P or Moody’s;

(c) demand deposits, and time deposits maturing within one year from the date of creation thereof, with, or issued by any Lender or any office located in the United States of any other bank or trust company which is organized under the laws of the United States or any state thereof, has capital, surplus and undivided profits aggregating at least $100,000,000 (as of the date of such bank or trust company’s most recent financial reports) and has a short term deposit rating of at least A2 or P2, as such rating is set forth from time to time, by S&P or Moody’s, respectively; and

(d) shares of any SEC registered 2a-7 money market fund that has net assets of at least $500,000,000 and the highest rating obtainable from either Moody’s or S&P.

CFTC Hedging Obligation ” means any Obligation in respect of any agreement, contract, confirmation or transaction that constitutes a “swap” within the meaning of section 1a(47) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Change in Control ” means

(a) any Person, entity or “group” (within the meaning of Section 13(d) or 14(d) of the Exchange Act), other than the Permitted Investors (or any intermediate companies owned directly or indirectly by the Permitted Investors), shall at any time have acquired direct or indirect beneficial ownership of voting power of the outstanding Equity Interests of Ultra Petroleum having more than the greater of (i) 50% of the ordinary voting power for the election of directors of Ultra Petroleum and (ii) the percentage of the ordinary voting power for the election of directors of Ultra Petroleum owned in the aggregate, directly or indirectly, beneficially, by the Permitted Investors; or

(b) at any time Continuing Directors shall not constitute at least a majority of the directors of Ultra Petroleum; or

(c) a “Change in Control” (as defined in the documentation for any Material Debt) shall have occurred and as a result thereof the maturity of such Material Debt is accelerated, the obligor on such Material Debt is obligated to offer to Redeem such Material Debt, or the obligee on such Material Debt shall otherwise have the right to require the obligor thereon to Redeem such Material Debt; or

(d) Ultra Petroleum shall at any time cease to have beneficial ownership, and the power to vote or direct the voting, of at least 100% of the outstanding Equity Interests in the Borrower.As used in this definition, “beneficial ownership” (which may be direct or indirect) has the meaning provided in Rules 13(d)-3 and 13(d)-5 under the Exchange Act.

 

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Change in Law ” means the occurrence, after the date of this Agreement, of any of the following: (a) the adoption or taking effect of any law, rule, regulation or treaty, (b) any change in any law, rule, regulation or treaty or in the administration, interpretation, implementation or application thereof by any Governmental Authority or (c) the making or issuance of any request, rule, guideline or directive (whether or not having the force of law) by any Governmental Authority; provided that notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, (x) the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and all requests, rules, guidelines or directives thereunder or issued in connection therewith or in implementation thereof and (y) all requests, rules, guidelines or directives promulgated by the Bank for International Settlements, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or any successor or similar authority) or the United States or foreign regulatory authorities, in each case pursuant to Basel III, shall in each case be deemed to be a “Change in Law”, regardless of the date enacted, adopted or issued.

Chapter 11 Cases ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Code ” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, and any successor statute.

Collateral ” means all Property which is subject to a Lien under one or more Security Instruments.

Collateral Agency Agreement ” means that certain Collateral Agency Agreement dated as of the Effective Date among the Collateral Agent, the Administrative Agent and the Revolving Administrative Agent, as the same may be amended, restated, amended and restated, supplemented or otherwise modified or replaced from time to time.

Collateral Agent ” means Bank of Montreal acting in its capacity as collateral agent for the Secured Parties and for the Secured Parties (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement), and any successor collateral agent appointed hereunder pursuant to the Collateral Agency Agreement.

Commitment ” means, with respect to any Lender, such Lender’s obligation to make Loans pursuant to Section  2.01 in the amount and percentage set forth opposite its name on Annex I or modified from time to time pursuant to assignments by or to such Lender pursuant to Section 12.04(b) .

Commitment Increase Certificate ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.06(b)(x) .

Commodities Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Commodity Agreements ” means, in respect of any Person, any forward contract, commodity swap agreement, commodity option agreement or other similar agreement or arrangement in respect of Hydrocarbons used, produced, processed or sold by such Person that are customary in the Oil and Gas Business and designed to protect such Person against fluctuation in Hydrocarbon prices.

Commodity Exchange Act ” means the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq .), as amended from time to time, and any successor statute, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, and the application or official interpretation of any thereof.

Company Materials ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

 

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Confirmation Order ” means the order of the Bankruptcy Court dated March 14, 2017 [Docket No. 1324] confirming the Plan of Reorganization, which order inter alia authorized and approved the Debtors’ entry into and performance under this Agreement.

Consolidated Interest Expense ” means, for any period, the total consolidated interest expense of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period net of gross interest income of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, in each case determined on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP plus (without duplication) to the extent not already included in such total consolidated interest expense:

(a) imputed interest on Debt attributable to Capital Leases and sale and leaseback transactions of Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period;

(b) commissions, discounts and other fees and charges owed by Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to letters of credit securing financial obligations and bankers’ acceptances for such period;

(c) amortization of debt issuance costs, debt discount or premium and other financing fees and expenses incurred by Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period;

(d) the interest portion of any deferred payment obligations of Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period; and

(e) all cash interest paid in connection with Debt permitted hereunder to the extent that such payments are not accounted for as interest expense pursuant to ASC 470-60 or another applicable codification.

Consolidated First Lien Debt ” means all Consolidated Net Debt that is secured by a Lien on any Collateral, other than Consolidated Net Debt in which the applicable Liens are expressly subordinated or junior to the Liens securing the Obligations.

Consolidated Net Debt ” means, at any date, the positive remainder (if any) of (a) Consolidated Total Debt minus (b) the unrestricted and unencumbered cash and Cash Equivalents of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries on such date; provided that cash and Cash Equivalents that would appear as “restricted” on a consolidated balance sheet solely because such cash or Cash Equivalents are subject to an Account Control Agreement shall be deemed to be unrestricted and unencumbered for purposes hereof.

Consolidated Net Income ” means with respect to the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for any period, the net income (or loss) of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries after allowances for taxes for such period determined on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP; provided that there shall be excluded from such net income (to the extent otherwise included therein) the following: (a) the net income of any Person in which the Borrower or any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary has an interest (which interest does not cause the net income of such other Person to be consolidated with the net income of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in accordance with GAAP), except to the extent of the amount of dividends or distributions actually paid in cash during such period by such other Person to the Borrower or to a Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be; (b) the net income (but not loss) during such period of any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary to the extent that the declaration or payment of dividends or similar distributions or transfers or loans by that Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary is not at the time permitted by operation of the terms of its charter or any agreement, instrument or Governmental Requirement applicable to such Consolidated

 

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Restricted Subsidiary or is otherwise restricted or prohibited, in each case determined in accordance with GAAP; (c) the net income (or loss) of any Person acquired in a pooling-of-interests transaction for any period prior to the date of such transaction; (d) any extraordinary gains or losses during such period; (e) any non-cash gains or losses or positive or negative adjustments under ASC 815 (and any statements replacing, modifying or superseding such statement) as the result of changes in the fair market value of derivatives; (f) any gains or losses attributable to writeups or writedowns of assets, including ceiling test writedowns, and (g) any non-cash compensation charge arising from any grant or vesting of stock, stock options or other equity-based awards.

Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio ” means, as of any date of calculation, the ratio of (a) Consolidated Net Debt as of such date to (b) EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending on such date.

Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries ” means any Restricted Subsidiaries that are Consolidated Subsidiaries.

Consolidated Subsidiaries ” means each Subsidiary of the Borrower (whether now existing or hereafter created or acquired) the financial statements of which shall be (or should have been) consolidated with the financial statements of the Borrower in accordance with GAAP.

Consolidated Total Debt ” means, at any date, the principal amount of all Debt (without duplication) of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (a) described in clauses (a), (b), (c) or (d) of the definition herein of “Debt”, other than Debt with respect to letters of credit to the extent such letters of credit have not been drawn, and (b) described in clause (g) of the definition herein of “Debt” to the extent such Debt is comprised of guaranty obligations in respect of Debt of others of the type described in clauses (a), (b), (c) or (d) of the definition herein of “Debt.”

Consolidated Unrestricted Subsidiaries ” means any Unrestricted Subsidiaries that are Consolidated Subsidiaries.

Continuing Director ” means, at any date, an individual (a) who is a director of Ultra Petroleum on the Effective Date, (b) who, as of the date of determination, has been a director of Ultra Petroleum for at least the twelve preceding months, (c) who has been nominated to be a director of the Borrower, directly or indirectly, by a Permitted Investor or Persons nominated by a Permitted Investor, (d) who is nominated, appointed or approved for consideration by shareholders for election by the board of directors of the Ultra Petroleum, or (e) who is appointed by directors so nominated, appointed or approved.

Control ” means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of a Person, whether through the ability to exercise voting power, by contract or otherwise. “ Controlling ” and “ Controlled ” have meanings correlative thereto.

Credit Parties ” means, collectively, the Borrower, Parent Guarantor and the other Guarantors, and each individually a “Credit Party”.

Credit Rating ” means, the corporate credit rating of the Borrower issued by S&P or Fitch or the corporate family rating of the Borrower issued by Moody’s, as applicable.

Debt ” means, for any Person:

(a) obligations of such Person for borrowed money or evidenced by bankers’ acceptances, debentures, notes, bonds or other similar instruments;

 

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(b) obligations of such Person (whether contingent or otherwise) in respect of letters of credit for which such Person is the applicant;

(c) obligations of such Person with respect to Disqualified Capital Stock;

(d) obligations of such Person under Capital Leases or Synthetic Leases;

(e) obligations of such Person to pay the deferred purchase price of Property;

(f) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of others secured by (or for which the holder of such Debt has an existing right, contingent or otherwise, to be secured by) a Lien on any Property of such Person, whether or not such Debt is assumed by such Person; provided , however , that in the case of Debt of the type described in this clause (f), the amount of such Debt shall be deemed to be the lesser of (1) such Person’s liability for such Debt and (2) the book value of such property;

(g) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of others guaranteed by such Person or in which such Person otherwise assures a creditor against loss of the Debt (howsoever such assurance shall be made, including by means of obligations to pay for goods or services even if such goods or services are not actually taken, received or utilized) to the extent of the lesser of the amount of such Debt and the maximum stated amount of such guarantee or assurance against loss;

(h) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of a partnership for which such Person is liable either by agreement, by operation of law or by a Governmental Requirement, but only to the extent of such liability; and

(i) obligations owing by a Person or any other Person guaranteeing such Person’s Debt under one or more Swap Agreements with the same counterparty that, at the time in question, have a net Swap Termination Value in favor of such counterparty ( i.e. , such Person or any other Person guaranteeing such Person’s Debt is “out of the money”) that exceeds the Threshold Amount;

provided , however , that “Debt” does not include (i) obligations with respect to surety, performance or appeal bonds and similar instruments, (ii) trade accounts and other similar accounts that are payable no later than 120 days after invoice or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP or (iii) obligations under the LGS Lease.

Debt Fund Affiliate ” means an Affiliated Lender that is a bona fide debt fund or an investment vehicle that is primarily engaged in making, purchasing, holding or otherwise investing in commercial loans, bonds and similar extensions of credit in the ordinary course of business and for which no personnel making investment decisions in respect of any equity fund which has a direct or indirect equity interest in the Parent Guarantor or the Borrower has the right to make investment decisions.

Debtors ” means, collectively, the Borrower and Parent Guarantor and certain of their Subsidiaries, each in their capacity as debtors and debtors-in-possession in the Chapter 11 Case.

Debtor Relief Laws ” means the Bankruptcy Code, and all other liquidation, conservatorship, bankruptcy, assignment for the benefit of creditors, moratorium, rearrangement, receivership, insolvency, reorganization, or similar debtor relief laws of the United States or other applicable jurisdictions from time to time in effect.

 

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Default ” means any event or condition which constitutes an Event of Default or which upon notice, lapse of time or both would, unless cured or waived, become an Event of Default.

Deposit Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Disqualified Capital Stock ” means any Equity Interest that, by its terms (or by the terms of any security into which it is convertible or for which it is exchangeable) or upon the happening of any event, matures or is mandatorily redeemable for any consideration other than other Equity Interests (which would not constitute Disqualified Capital Stock), pursuant to a sinking fund obligation or otherwise, or is convertible or exchangeable for Debt or redeemable for any consideration other than other Equity Interests (which would not constitute Disqualified Capital Stock) at the option of the holder thereof, in whole or in part (but if in part only with respect to such amount that meets the criteria set forth in this definition), on or prior to the date that is one year after the Maturity Date.

Dollar-Denominated Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as liabilities in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

dollars ” or “ $ ” refers to lawful money of the United States of America.

Domestic Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is organized under the laws of the United States of America or any state thereof or the District of Columbia, provided that a Subsidiary of a Foreign Subsidiary is not a Domestic Subsidiary.

E&P Subsidiary ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  9.11 .

EBITDAX ” means, for any period, Consolidated Net Income for such period plus the following expenses or charges to the extent deducted in calculating such Consolidated Net Income: (a) the sum of (i) Consolidated Interest Expense, (ii) Taxes imposed on or measured by income (however denominated) and franchise Taxes paid or accrued, (iii) depreciation, (iv) depletion, (v) amortization, (vi) exploration and abandonment expenses, (vii) transaction costs, expenses and charges with respect to the acquisition or disposition of Oil and Gas Properties, not to exceed $3,000,000 in any fiscal year, (viii) losses from sales or other dispositions of assets (other than Hydrocarbons produced in the ordinary course of business) and other extraordinary or non-recurring losses and (ix) all other noncash charges (excluding accruals for cash expenses made in the ordinary course of business) and (x) any fees, expenses or charges of third parties incurred through December 31, 2017 in connection with the implementation of fresh start accounting, the Chapter 11 Cases, the Plan of Reorganization, the transactions contemplated thereby and any other reorganization items (provided that (i) such fees, expenses or charges may, at the option of the Borrower, increase EBITDAX for such period whether or not such fees, expenses or charges were incurred in such period or were deducted in calculating Consolidated Net Income for such period and (ii) the Borrower may increase EBITDAX pursuant to this clause (x) no more than one time) minus (b) (i) gains from sales or other dispositions of assets (other than Hydrocarbons produced in the ordinary course of business) and other extraordinary or non-recurring gains and (ii) all noncash income (excluding accruals for cash expenses made in the ordinary course of business) added to Consolidated Net Income (including cancellation of indebtedness income to the extent included in Consolidated Net Income). For the purposes of calculating EBITDAX for any Rolling Period for any determination of the financial ratios contained in clause (a)  and clause (c)  of the definition of “Financial Covenants”, if at any time during such period the Borrower or any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary shall have made any Material Disposition or Material Acquisition, Consolidated Net Income and EBITDAX for such period shall be calculated after giving pro forma effect thereto as if such Material Disposition or Material Acquisition

 

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had occurred on the first day of such period; provided that the calculations of such pro forma adjustments are acceptable to the Administrative Agent in its reasonable discretion. For purposes of calculating EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending June 30, 2017, EBITDAX shall be an amount equal to the sum of (a) the product of (i) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending December 31, 2016 and (ii) 2, (b) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2017, and (c) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017.

EEA Financial Institution ” means (a) any credit institution or investment firm established in any EEA Member Country which is subject to the supervision of an EEA Resolution Authority, (b) any entity established in an EEA Member Country which is a parent of an institution described in clause (a) of this definition, or (c) any financial institution established in an EEA Member Country which is a subsidiary of an institution described in clauses (a) or (b) of this definition and is subject to consolidated supervision with its parent.

EEA Member Country ” means any of the member states of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

EEA Resolution Authority ” means any public administrative authority or any person entrusted with public administrative authority of any EEA Member Country (including any delegee) having responsibility for the resolution of any EEA Financial Institution.

Effective Date ” means the date on which the conditions specified in Section  6.01 are satisfied (or waived in accordance with Section  12.02 ).

Environmental Laws ” means any and all Governmental Requirements pertaining in any way to public health (regarding human exposure to Hazardous Materials), protection of, the environment, the preservation or reclamation of natural resources, or the management, Release or threatened Release of any Hazardous Materials, in effect in any and all jurisdictions in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary is conducting, or at any time has conducted, business, or where any Property of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary is located, including, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (“ OPA ”), as amended, the Clean Air Act, as amended, the Comprehensive Environmental, Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“ CERCLA ”), as amended, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, as amended, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (“ RCRA ”), as amended, the Safe Drinking Water Act, as amended, the Toxic Substances Control Act, as amended, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, as amended, the Hazardous Materials Transportation Law, as amended, and other environmental conservation or protection Governmental Requirements.

Environmental Permit ” means any permit, registration, license, approval, consent, exemption, variance, or other authorization required under or issued pursuant to applicable Environmental Laws.

Equity Interests ” means shares of capital stock, partnership interests, membership interests in a limited liability company, beneficial interests in a trust or other equity ownership interests in a Person, and any warrants, options or other rights entitling the holder thereof to purchase or acquire any such Equity Interest.

ERISA ” means the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and any successor statute.

ERISA Affiliate ” means each trade or business (whether or not incorporated) that together with Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary is a “single employer” within the meaning of section 4001(b)(1)

 

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of ERISA or subsections (b) or (c) of section 414 of the Code (or subsections (m) or (o) of section 414 of the Code with respect to a Plan that is subject to the minimum funding requirements of section 412 of the Code).

ERISA Event ” means (a) a reportable event, as defined in section 4043 of ERISA or the regulations issued thereunder with respect to a Plan (other than an event for which the 30-day notice period is waived under applicable regulations or otherwise); (b) a withdrawal by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or an ERISA Affiliate from a Plan subject to section 4063 of ERISA during a plan year in which it was a substantial employer (as defined in section 4001(a)(2) of ERISA) or a cessation of operations that is treated as such a withdrawal under section 4062(e) of ERISA; (c) a complete withdrawal, within the meaning of section 4203 of ERISA, or a or partial withdrawal, within the meaning of section 4205 of ERISA, by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or any ERISA Affiliate from a multiemployer plan (as defined in section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA); (d) the filing of a notice of intent to terminate, the treatment of a Plan amendment as termination under section 4041 or 4041A of ERISA or the commencement of proceedings by the PBGC to terminate a Plan; or (e) an event or condition which constitutes grounds under section 4042 of ERISA for termination of, or the appointment of a trustee to administer, any Plan.

EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule ” means the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule published by the Loan Market Association (or any successor person), as in effect from time to time.

Eurodollar ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate.

Eurodollar Rate ” means for any Interest Period as to any Eurodollar Loan, (i) the rate per annum determined by the Administrative Agent to be the offered rate which appears on the page of the Reuters Screen which displays the London interbank offered rate administered by ICE Benchmark Administration Limited (such page currently being the LIBOR01 page) (the “LIBO Rate”) for deposits (for delivery on the first day of such Interest Period) with a term equivalent to such Interest Period in Dollars, determined as of approximately 11:00 a.m. (London, England time), two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period, or (ii) in the event the rate referenced in the preceding clause (i) does not appear on such page or service or if such page or service shall cease to be available, the rate determined by the Administrative Agent to be the offered rate on such other page or other service which displays the LIBO Rate for deposits (for delivery on the first day of such Interest Period) with a term equivalent to such Interest Period in Dollars, determined as of approximately 11:00 a.m. (London, England time) two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period; provided that if LIBO Rates are quoted under either of the preceding clauses (i) or (ii), but there is no such quotation for the Interest Period elected, the LIBO Rate shall be equal to the Interpolated Rate; and provided , further , that if any such rate determined pursuant to the preceding clauses (i) or (ii) is less than one percent, the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate will be deemed to be one percent.

Event of Default ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  10.01 .

Excepted Liens ” means: (a) Liens for Taxes, assessments or other governmental charges or levies which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (b) Liens in connection with workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance or other social security, old age pension or public liability obligations which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (c) landlords’, operators’, vendors’, carriers’, warehousemen’s, repairmen’s, mechanics’, suppliers’, workers’,

 

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materialmen’s, construction or other like Liens arising in the ordinary course of business or incident to the exploration, development, operation and maintenance of Oil and Gas Properties, each of which is in respect of obligations that are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (d) Liens which arise in the ordinary course of business under operating agreements, joint venture agreements, oil and gas partnership agreements, oil and gas leases, farm-out agreements, division orders, contracts for the sale, transportation or exchange of oil and natural gas, unitization and pooling declarations and agreements, area of mutual interest agreements, overriding royalty agreements, marketing agreements, processing agreements, net profits agreements, development agreements, gas balancing or deferred production agreements, injection, repressuring and recycling agreements, salt water or other disposal agreements, seismic or other geophysical permits or agreements, and other agreements which are usual and customary in the Oil and Gas Business and are for claims which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP, provided that any such Lien referred to in this clause does not materially impair the use of any material Property covered by such Lien for the purposes for which such Property is held by the Borrower or any other Credit Party or materially impair the value of any material Property subject thereto; (e) banker’s liens, rights of set-off or similar rights and remedies arising in the ordinary course of business and burdening only deposit accounts or other funds maintained with a creditor depository institution, provided that no such deposit account is a dedicated cash collateral account; (f) easements, restrictions, servitudes, permits, conditions, covenants, exceptions, reservations, zoning and land use requirements and other title defects in any Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party, that in each case do not secure Debt and that in the aggregate do not materially impair the use of such Property for the purposes of which such Property is held by the Borrower or any other Credit Party or materially impair the value of such Property subject thereto; (g) Liens to secure performance of tenders, surety and appeal bonds, government contracts, performance and return of money bonds, bids, trade contracts, leases, statutory obligations, regulatory obligations, obligations in respect of workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance or other forms of government benefits or insurance and other obligations of a like nature incurred in the ordinary course of business; (h) Liens, titles and interests of lessors (including sub-lessors) of property leased by such lessors to the Borrower or any other Credit Party, restrictions and prohibitions on encumbrances and transferability with respect to such property and the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s interests therein imposed by such leases, and Liens and encumbrances encumbering such lessors’ titles and interests in such property and to which the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s leasehold interests may be subject or subordinate, in each case, whether or not evidenced by Uniform Commercial Code financing statement filings or other documents of record, provided that such Liens do not secure Debt of the Borrower or any other Credit Party and do not encumber Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party other than the Property that is the subject of such leases and items located thereon; (i) Liens, titles and interests of licensors of software and other intangible property licensed by such licensors to the Borrower or any other Credit Party, restrictions and prohibitions on encumbrances and transferability with respect to such property and the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s interests therein imposed by such licenses, and Liens and encumbrances encumbering such licensors’ titles and interests in such property and to which the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s license interests may be subject or subordinate, in each case, whether or not evidenced by Uniform Commercial Code financing statement filings or other documents of record, provided that such Liens do not secure Debt of the Borrower or any other Credit Party and do not encumber Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party other than the Property that is the subject of such licenses; (j) judgment and attachment Liens not giving rise to an Event of Default; and (k) Liens of issuers of commercial letters of credit or similar undertakings on the goods that are the subject of such letters of credit or undertakings. Provisions in the Loan Documents allowing Excepted Liens or other Permitted Liens on any item of Property shall be construed to allow such Excepted Liens and other Permitted Liens also to cover any improvements, fixtures or accessions to such Property and the proceeds of and insurance on such Property, improvements, fixtures or accessions. No intention to subordinate any Lien granted in favor of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders is to be hereby implied or expressed by the permitted existence of any Excepted Liens. The term “Excepted Liens” shall not include any Lien securing Debt for borrowed money.

 

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Exchange Act ” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

Excluded Account ” means (a) any Deposit Account, Commodity Account or Securities Account so long as the average daily maximum balance in each such account, individually, does not exceed $1,000,000 over any 30-day period and the aggregate daily maximum balance of all such Deposit Accounts, Commodity Accounts and Securities Accounts does not at any time exceed $10,000,000, (b) any Deposit Account that is a zero balance account or a deposit account for which the balance of such Deposit Account is transferred at the end of each date to a deposit account that is not an Excluded Account, (c) any other Deposit Accounts exclusively used for trust, payroll, payroll taxes and other employee wage and benefit payments to or for the benefit of any employees of the Credit Parties, (d) fiduciary accounts, (e) trust and suspense accounts of the Borrower and any Credit Party holding royalty obligations, (f) accounts constituting cash collateral accounts permitted under Section  9.03 and (g) the Professional Fee Escrow Account (as defined in the Plan of Reorganization).

Excluded Subsidiary ” means:

(a) any Restricted Subsidiary that is not a wholly-owned Subsidiary of the Borrower,

(b) (i) any Foreign Subsidiary and/or (ii) any Domestic Subsidiary that is a direct or indirect subsidiary of any Foreign Subsidiary, and

(c) any Unrestricted Subsidiary.

Excluded Swap Obligation ” means, with respect to the Borrower and the Guarantors individually determined, any CFTC Hedging Obligation if, and solely to the extent that, all or a portion of the guarantee of the Borrower or such Guarantor of, or the grant by the Borrower or such Guarantor of a security interest to secure, such CFTC Hedging Obligation (or any guarantee thereof) is or becomes illegal under the Commodity Exchange Act by virtue of the Borrower’s or such Guarantor’s failure for any reason to constitute an “eligible contract participant” (as defined in the Commodity Exchange Act) with respect to such CFTC Hedging Obligation at any time such guarantee or grant of a security interest becomes effective with respect to such CFTC Hedging Obligation.

Excluded Taxes ” means any of the following Taxes imposed on or with respect to a Recipient or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to a Recipient:

(a) Taxes imposed on or measured by net income (however denominated), franchise Taxes, and branch profits Taxes, in each case, (i) imposed as a result of such Recipient being organized under the laws of, or having its principal office or, in the case of any Lender, its applicable lending office located in, the jurisdiction imposing such Tax (or any political subdivision thereof) or (ii) that are Other Connection Taxes,

(b) in the case of a Lender, U.S. federal withholding Taxes imposed on amounts payable to or for the account of such Lender with respect to an applicable interest in a Loan or Commitment pursuant to a law in effect on the date on which (i) such Lender acquires such interest in the Loan or Commitment (other than pursuant to an assignment to such Lender that was requested by the Borrower under Section  5.05 ) or (ii) such Lender changes its lending office, except in each case to the extent that, pursuant to

 

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Section  5.03 , amounts with respect to such Taxes were payable either to such Lender’s assignor immediately before such Lender became a party hereto or to such Lender immediately before it changed its lending office,

(c) Taxes attributable to such Recipient’s failure or inability to comply with Section 5.03(g) , and

(d) any U.S. federal withholding Taxes imposed under FATCA.

Existing Senior Notes ” means the senior notes due 2022 and the senior notes due 2025, in each case issued by the Borrower on the Effective Date, in an initial aggregate principal amount of $1,200,000,000.

FATCA ” means Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code, as of the date of this Agreement (or any amended or successor version to the extent substantively comparable and not materially more onerous to comply with), any current or future regulations or official interpretations thereof and any agreements entered into pursuant to Section 1471(b)(1) of the Code or any fiscal or regulatory legislation, rules or practices adopted pursuant to any intergovernmental agreement entered into in connection with the implementation of such Sections of the Code.

Fair Market Value ” shall mean, with respect to any Transfer of Property or any noncash consideration or Property transferred or received by any Person, the fair market value of such consideration or other Property as determined by:

(a) any Financial Officer of the Borrower if such fair market value is greater than $5,000,000 but less than $20,000,000; and

(b) the board of directors of the Borrower as conclusively evidenced by a certified resolution delivered to the Administrative Agent if such fair market value is equal to or in excess of $20,000,000.

FCPA ” means the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.

Federal Funds Effective Rate ” means, for any day, the rate calculated by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York based on such day’s federal funds transactions by depository institutions (as determined in such manner as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shall set forth on its public website from time to time) and published on the next succeeding Business Day by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as the federal funds effective rate; provided , that if the Federal Funds Effective Rate for any day is less than one percent, the Federal Funds Effective Rate for such day will be deemed to be one percent.

Fee Letters ” means the Amended and Restated Fee Letter dated as of February 28, 2017 among the Borrower, Barclays Bank PLC, Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Bank of Montreal and BMO Capital Markets Corp., and any other fee letters that may hereafter be entered into between Administrative Agent and Borrower.

Financial Covenants ” means, collectively, or individually as the context may require, that:

(a) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the ratio of (i) the EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending on such date to (ii) the Consolidated Interest Expense of the Borrower for the Rolling Period ending on such date, shall not be less than 2.5 to 1.0;

 

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(b) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the ratio of consolidated current assets of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (including the unused amount of the Loan Limit (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement), but excluding non-cash assets under the equivalent of ASC 815 under GAAP) as of such date to consolidated current liabilities of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (excluding non-cash obligations under the equivalent of ASC 815 under GAAP and current maturities under this Agreement) as of such date shall not be less than 1.0 to 1.0;

(c) commencing with the last day of the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio (i) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter ending on or before December 31, 2017 shall not exceed 4.25 to 1.00 and (ii) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter thereafter shall not exceed 4.0 to 1.0; and

(d) at any time during an Investment Grade Period, as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the first fiscal quarter ending during such Investment Grade Period, the RBL Asset Coverage Ratio as of such date shall not be less than 1.50 to 1.00.

Financial Officer ” means, for any Person, the chief financial officer, principal accounting officer, treasurer, or controller of such Person or any other natural person principally responsible for the financial matters of such Person. Unless otherwise specified, all references herein to a Financial Officer mean a Financial Officer of the Borrower.

Fitch ” means Fitch Ratings, Inc. and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio ” means for any period, the ratio of (a) the EBITDAX for such period to (b) the Fixed Charges for such period. In the event that the Borrower or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries incurs, repays, repurchases, redeems, defeases or otherwise discharges any Debt (other than ordinary working capital borrowings unless, in connection with any such repayment, the commitments to lend associated with such borrowings are permanently reduced or canceled) subsequent to the commencement of the period for which the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio is being calculated and on or prior to the date on which the event for which the calculation of the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio is made (the “Calculation Date”), then the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio will be calculated giving pro forma effect to such incurrence, repayment, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other discharge of Debt, and the use of the proceeds therefrom, as if the same had occurred at the beginning of the applicable four-quarter reference period.

For purposes of calculating the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio:

(a) the EBITDAX attributable to discontinued operations, as determined in accordance with GAAP, and operations or businesses (and ownership interests therein) disposed of prior to the Calculation Date, will be excluded;

(b) the Fixed Charges attributable to discontinued operations, as determined in accordance with GAAP, and operations or businesses (and ownership interests therein) disposed of prior to the Calculation Date, will be excluded, but only to the extent that the obligations giving rise to such Fixed Charges will not be obligations of the Borrower or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries following the Calculation Date;

(c) any Person that is a Restricted Subsidiary of the Borrower on the Calculation Date will be deemed to have been a Restricted Subsidiary of the Borrower at all times during such Rolling Period;

 

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(d) any Person that is not a Restricted Subsidiary of the Borrower on the Calculation Date will be deemed not to have been a Restricted Subsidiary of the Borrower at any time during such Rolling Period;

(e) interest on a Capital Lease obligation shall be deemed to accrue at an interest rate reasonably determined by a responsible financial or accounting officer of the Borrower to be the rate of interest implicit in such Capital Lease obligation in accordance with GAAP; and

(f) interest on any Debt under any revolving credit facility computed on a pro forma basis shall be computed based upon (A) the average daily principal balance of such Debt during the applicable period or (B) if such facility was created after the end of the applicable period, the average daily principal balance of such Debt during the period from the date of creation of such facility to the date of determination, or, if lower, the maximum commitments under such revolving credit facility as of the applicable date of determination.

Fixed Charges ” means, with respect to the Borrower for any period, the sum, without duplication, of:

(a) the consolidated interest expense of the Borrower and its Restricted Subsidiaries for such period, whether paid or accrued, including, without limitation, amortization of debt issuance costs and original issue discount, non-cash interest payments, the interest component of any deferred payment obligations, the interest component of all payments associated with Capital Lease obligations, commissions, discounts and other fees and charges incurred in respect of letter of credit or bankers’ acceptance financings, and net of the effect of all payments made or received pursuant to hedging obligations in respect of interest rates; plus

(b) the consolidated interest expense of such Person and its Restricted Subsidiaries that was capitalized during such period; plus

(c) any interest expense on Debt of another Person that is guaranteed by such Person or one of its Restricted Subsidiaries or secured by a Lien on assets of such Person or one of its Restricted Subsidiaries, whether or not such guaranty or Lien is called upon; plus

(d) all dividends, whether paid or accrued and whether or not in cash, on any series of Disqualified Capital Stock of the Borrower or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries or Preferred Stock of any Restricted Subsidiary of the Borrower, in each case, other than dividends on Equity Interests payable solely in Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) or to the Parent Guarantor or a Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent Guarantor, in each case, determined on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any lease or other liability is reclassified as Debt or as a Capital Lease obligation due to a change in accounting principles after the Effective Date, the interest component of all payments associated with such lease or other liability shall be excluded from Fixed Charges.

Flood Insurance Regulations ” means (a) the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 as now or hereafter in effect or any successor statute thereto, (b) the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 as now or hereafter in effect or any successor statute thereto, (c) the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 (amending 42 USC § 4001, et seq .), as the same may be amended or recodified from time to time, (d) the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2004 and any regulations promulgated thereunder and (e) the Biggert-Waters Flood Reform Act of 2012, and any regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

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Foreign Lender ” means any Lender that is organized under the laws of a jurisdiction other than that in which the Borrower is located. For purposes of this definition, the United States of America, each State thereof and the District of Columbia shall be deemed to constitute a single jurisdiction.

Foreign Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is not a Domestic Subsidiary.

GAAP ” means generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America as in effect from time to time, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in Section  1.05 .

Governmental Authority ” means the government of the United States of America, any other nation or any political subdivision thereof, whether state or local, and any agency, authority, instrumentality, regulatory body, court, central bank or other entity exercising executive, legislative, judicial, taxing, regulatory or administrative powers or functions of or pertaining to government.

Governmental Requirement ” means any law, statute, code, ordinance, order, determination, rule, regulation, judgment, decree, injunction, franchise, permit, certificate, license, rules of common law, authorization or other directive or requirement, whether now or hereinafter in effect, of any Governmental Authority.

Guarantors ” means the Parent Guarantor and each other Restricted Subsidiary that guarantees the Obligations pursuant to Section 8.14(b) .

Guaranty and Collateral Agreement ” means the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement executed by the Borrower and the Guarantors on the Effective Date in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent pursuant to which (a) the Guarantors guaranty, on a joint and several basis, payment of the Obligations, and (b) the Borrower and the Guarantors grant security interests on the Borrower’s and the Guarantors’ personal property constituting “Collateral” as defined therein in favor of the Administrative Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties to secure the Obligations, as the same may be amended, modified, supplemented or restated from time to time.

Hazardous Material ” means any substance regulated or as to which liability might arise under any applicable Environmental Law due to its hazardous or toxic characteristics including: any chemical, compound, material, product, byproduct, substance or waste defined as or included in the definition or meaning of “hazardous substance,” “hazardous material,” “hazardous waste,” “solid waste,” “toxic waste,” “extremely hazardous substance,” “toxic substance,” “contaminant,” “pollutant,” or words of similar meaning or import found in any applicable Environmental Law; Hydrocarbons, petroleum products, petroleum substances, natural gas, oil, oil and gas waste, crude oil, and any components, fractions, or derivatives thereof; and radioactive materials, explosives, asbestos or asbestos containing materials, polychlorinated biphenyls, radon, infectious or medical wastes.

Highest Lawful Rate ” means, with respect to each Lender, the maximum nonusurious interest rate, if any, that at any time or from time to time may be contracted for, taken, reserved, charged or received on the Notes or on other Obligations under laws applicable to such Lender which are presently in effect or, to the extent allowed by law, under such applicable laws which may hereafter be in effect and which allow a higher maximum nonusurious interest rate than applicable laws allow as of the date hereof.

Hydrocarbons ” means oil, gas, casinghead gas, drip gasoline, natural gasoline, condensate, distillate, liquid hydrocarbons, gaseous hydrocarbons and all products refined or separated therefrom.

 

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Indemnified Taxes ” means (a) Taxes, other than Excluded Taxes, imposed on or with respect to any payment made by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower or any Guarantor under any Loan Document and (b) to the extent not otherwise described in (a), Other Taxes.

Indemnitee ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.03(b) .

Industry Competitor ” means (a) any Person (other than Borrower, any Guarantor or any of their Affiliates or Subsidiaries) that, directly or indirectly, is actively engaged as one of its principal businesses in lease acquisitions, exploration and production operations or development of oil and gas properties (including the drilling and completion of producing wells) and (b) any Person that is clearly identifiable, solely on the basis of such Person’s name, as an Affiliate of any such Person (other than any Affiliates of the Borrower); provided that any Person that would be an Industry Competitor hereunder shall not constitute an Industry Competitor if (x) such Person is a bank, financial institution, bona fide debt fund or investment vehicle that is engaged in, or that advises funds or other investment vehicles that are engaged in, making, purchasing, holding, or otherwise investing in commercial loans, bonds or similar extensions of credit or securities in the ordinary course of business and (y) no Industry Competitor or Affiliate described in the foregoing clauses (a) and (b) directly or indirectly, possesses the power to direct or cause the direction of the investment policies of such entity.

Industry Investment ” means Investments and expenditures made in the ordinary course of, and of a nature that is or shall have become customary in, the Oil and Gas Business as a means of actively engaging therein through agreements, transactions, interests or arrangements that permit one to share risks or costs, comply with regulatory requirements regarding local ownership or satisfy other objectives customarily achieved through the conduct of Oil and Gas Business jointly with third parties, including: (1) ownership interests in oil and gas properties or gathering, transportation, processing, electricity and power generation, or related systems; and (2) Investments and expenditures in the form of or pursuant to operating agreements, processing agreements, farm-in agreements, farm-out agreements, development agreements, area of mutual interest agreements, unitization agreements, pooling arrangements, joint bidding agreements, service contracts, joint venture agreements, partnership agreements (whether general or limited), and other similar agreements (including for limited liability companies) with third parties.

Initial Reserve Report ” means the report prepared as of December 31, 2016 by Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc. with respect to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Credit Parties to which Proved Reserves are attributed.

Interest Election Request ” means a request by the Borrower to convert or continue a Borrowing in accordance with Section  2.04 .

Interest Payment Date ” means with respect to any ABR Loan, the last day of each March, June, September and December and with respect to any Eurodollar Loan, the last day of the Interest Period applicable to the Borrowing of which such Loan is a part and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing with an Interest Period of more than three months’ duration, each day prior to the last day of such Interest Period that occurs at intervals of three months’ duration after the first day of such Interest Period.

Interest Period ” means with respect to any Eurodollar Borrowing, the period commencing on the date of such Borrowing and ending on the numerically corresponding day in the calendar month that is one, two, three or six months (or, with the consent of each Lender, nine or twelve months) thereafter, as the Borrower may elect; provided , that (a) if any Interest Period would end on a day other than a Business Day, such Interest Period shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day unless such next succeeding Business Day would fall in the next calendar month, in which case such Interest Period shall end on the next preceding Business Day and (b) any Interest Period pertaining to a Eurodollar Borrowing

 

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that commences on the last Business Day of a calendar month (or on a day for which there is no numerically corresponding day in the last calendar month of such Interest Period) shall end on the last Business Day of the last calendar month of such Interest Period. For purposes hereof, the date of a Borrowing initially shall be the date on which such Borrowing is made and thereafter shall be the effective date of the most recent conversion or continuation of such Borrowing.

Interim Redetermination ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof.

Interpolated Rate ” means, in relation to the LIBO Rate, the rate which results from interpolating on a linear basis between:

(a) the applicable LIBO Rate for the longest period (for which that LIBO Rate is available) which is less than the Interest Period of that Loan; and

(b) the applicable LIBO Rate for the shortest period (for which that LIBO Rate is available) which exceeds the Interest Period of that Loan,

each as of approximately 11:00 a.m. (London, England time) two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period of that Loan.

Investment ” means, for any Person:

(a) the acquisition (whether for cash, Property, services or securities or otherwise) of Equity Interests of any other Person or any agreement to make any such acquisition (including any “short sale” or any sale of any securities at a time when such securities are not owned by the Person entering into such short sale);

(b) the making of any deposit with, or advance, loan or capital contribution to, assumption of Debt of, purchase or other acquisition of any other Debt of or equity participation or equity interest in, or other extension of credit to, any other Person (including the purchase of Property from another Person subject to an understanding or agreement, contingent or otherwise, to resell such Property to such Person;

(c) the purchase or acquisition (in one or a series of transactions) of Property of another Person that constitutes a business unit both before and after such purchase or acquisition; or

(d) the entering into of any guarantee of, or other surety obligation (including the deposit of any Equity Interests to be sold) with respect to, Debt of any other Person;

provided that accounts receivable acquired in the ordinary course of business do not constitute Investments.

Investment Grade Period ” means, the period from (a) the first date on which (i) the Borrower has received at least two of the Required Ratings, (ii) all Liens on the Collateral have been released and (iii) the Borrower has elected that such Investment Grade Period shall commence until (b) a Borrowing Base Trigger Event.

LC Exposure ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof.

 

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Lenders ” means the Persons listed on Annex I , any Person that shall have become a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption, and any Person that shall have become a party hereto as an Additional Lender pursuant to Section  2.06, other than, in each case, any such Person that ceases to be a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption.

LGS Lease ” means the lease agreement pursuant to which Parent Guarantor or its Subsidiary leases the liquids gathering system used for the purposes of gathering, separating, collecting and delivery for sale or transport condensate and water, together with associated natural gas, produced from natural gas and oil wells located in the Pinedale field in Sublette County, Wyoming.

Lien ” means any interest in Property securing an obligation owed to, or a claim by, a Person other than the owner of the Property, whether such interest is based on the common law, statute or contract, and whether such obligation or claim is fixed or contingent, and including but not limited to the lien or security interest arising from a mortgage, pledge, security agreement, conditional sale or trust receipt or a lease, consignment or bailment for security purposes. For the purposes of this Agreement, the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall be deemed to be the owner of any Property which it has acquired or holds subject to a conditional sale agreement, or leases under a financing lease or other arrangement pursuant to which title to the Property has been retained by or vested in some other Person in a transaction intended to create a financing.

Liquidate ” means, with respect to any Swap Agreement, the sale, assignment, novation, unwind or early termination of all or any part of such Swap Agreement; provided that for purposes of this definition, a Swap Agreement shall not be deemed to have been Liquidated if, (a) such Swap Agreement is novated to an Approved Counterparty, with the Borrower or another Credit Party being the “remaining party” for purposes of such novation, or (b) upon its sale, assignment, novation, unwind or early termination, it is replaced, in a substantially contemporaneous transaction, with one or more Swap Agreements with prices, tenors and volumes not less favorable to the Credit Parties than those of such replaced Swap Agreements and without cash payments to the Borrower or any other Credit Party in connection therewith. The terms “Liquidated” and “Liquidation” have correlative meanings thereto.

Loan Documents ” means this Agreement, the Notes, the Fee Letters, and the Security Instruments.

Loans ” means the loans made by the Lenders to the Borrower pursuant to this Agreement.

Majority Lenders ” means, as of any date of determination, (a) prior to the Effective Date, Lenders having more than 50% of the Total Commitment and (b) thereafter, Lenders holding in the aggregate more than 50% of the aggregate principal amount of the Loans then outstanding.

Material Acquisition ” means any acquisition of Property or series of related acquisitions of Property (including by way of merger or consolidation) that involves the payment of consideration by the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in excess of the lesser of (a) $75,000,000 and (b) the greater of (i) five percent (5%) of the then-effective Borrowing Base and (ii) $50,000,000.

Material Adverse Effect ” means (i) after giving effect to the filing of the Chapter 11 Cases, the entry of the Confirmation Order and the confirmation and consummation of the Plan of Reorganization, (ii) excluding any matters publicly disclosed prior to the filing of the Chapter 11 Cases, any matters disclosed in any first day pleadings or declarations in connection with the Chapter 11 Cases and the events and conditions related and/or leading up to the Chapter 11 Cases and the effects thereof and (iii) excluding results from (A) general changes in hydrocarbon prices, (B) general changes in industry or economic conditions, and (C) general changes in political conditions, including any engagements of

 

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hostilities, acts of war or terrorist activities or changes imposed by a governmental authority, a material adverse change in, or material adverse effect on (a) the business, operations, Property or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Borrower and the Guarantors taken as a whole, (b) the ability of the Borrower or any Guarantor to perform its obligations under the Loan Documents, or (c) the rights and remedies of the Administrative Agent or any Lender under the Loan Documents.

Material Debt ” means Debt (other than the Obligations) of the Borrower or any other Credit Party with a principal amount in excess of the Threshold Amount.

Material Disposition ” means any disposition of Property or series of related dispositions of Properties that yields gross proceeds to the Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in excess of the lesser of (a) $75,000,000 and (b) the greater of (i) five percent (5%) of the then-effective Borrowing Base and (ii) $50,000,000.

Maturity Date ” means the seventh anniversary of the Effective Date, or, if such anniversary is not a Business Day, the Business Day immediately following such anniversary.

Moody’s ” means Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Mortgaged Property ” means, at any time, any real or immovable Property owned by the Borrower or any Guarantor which is subject to the Liens existing at such time under the terms of the Security Instruments.

Net Cash Proceeds ” means, (a) with respect to any issuance or incurrence of Debt, the cash proceeds received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary therefrom, net of attorneys’ fees, accountants’ fees, underwriters’ or placement agents’ fees, listing fees, discounts or commissions and brokerage, consultant and other fees and charges actually Incurred in connection with such issuance, and (b) with respect to any Transfer, the aggregate cash proceeds (including in respect of any insurance proceeds or condemnation awards) and the Fair Market Value of any Cash Equivalents received the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in respect of any such Transfer, net of (i) the direct costs relating to such Transfer, including, without limitation, legal, accounting and investment banking fees, and sales commissions, severance costs and any relocation expenses incurred as a result of such Transfer, (ii) taxes paid or payable as a result of such Transfer, in each case, after taking into account any available tax credits or deductions and any tax sharing arrangements, (iii) amounts required to be applied to the repayment of Debt secured by a Lien on the properties or assets that were the subject of such Transfer, or which must by its terms, or in order to obtain a necessary consent to such Transfer or by applicable law, be repaid out of the proceeds from such Transfer, (iv) payments of unassumed liabilities (not constituting Debt) relating to the assets sold at the time of, or within 30 days after the date of, such Transfer, and (v) any amounts to be set aside in any reserve established in accordance with GAAP or any amount placed in escrow, in either case for adjustment in respect of the sale price of such properties or assets, for indemnification obligations of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with such Transfer or for other liabilities associated with such Transfer and retained by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary until such time as such reserve is reversed or such escrow arrangement is terminated, in which case Net Cash Proceeds shall include only the amount of the reserve so reversed or the amount returned to the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary from such escrow arrangement, as the case may be.

Net Equity Proceeds ” means, with respect to any issuance or sale of Equity Interests, the cash proceeds of such issuance or sale, net of attorneys’ fees, accountants’ fees, underwriters’ or placement agents’ fees, listing fees, discounts or commissions and brokerage, consultant and other fees and charges actually Incurred in connection with such issuance or sale and net of taxes paid or payable as a result of such issuance or sale (after taking into account any available tax credit or deductions and any tax sharing arrangements).

 

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Net Working Capital ” means (a) all current assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, except current assets from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, less (b) all current liabilities of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, except current liabilities (i) associated with asset retirement obligations relating to Oil and Gas Properties, (ii) included in Debt and (iii) any current liabilities from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, in each case as set forth in the consolidated financial statements of the Borrower prepared in accordance with GAAP (excluding any adjustments made pursuant to FASB ASC 815).

Non-Debt Fund Affiliate ” means an Affiliated Lender that is not a Debt Fund Affiliate.

Notes ” means the promissory notes of the Borrower described in Section 2.02(d) and being substantially in the form of Exhibit A or such other form approved by the Administrative Agent, together with all amendments, modifications, replacements, extensions and rearrangements thereof.

NYMEX Pricing ” means, as of any date of determination with respect to any month (i) for crude oil, the closing settlement price for the Light, Sweet Crude Oil (WTI) futures contract for such month, and (ii) for natural gas, the closing settlement price for the Natural Gas (Henry Hub) futures contract for such month, in each case as published by New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) on its website currently located at www.nymex.com, or any successor thereto (as such price may be corrected or revised from time to time by the NYMEX in accordance with its rules and regulations).

Obligations ” means any and all amounts owing or to be owing (including all interest on any of the Loans, any interest accruing at any post-default rate and interest accruing after the filing of any petition in bankruptcy, or the commencement of any insolvency, reorganization or like proceeding, relating to the Borrower or any Guarantor (or which could accrue but for the operation of applicable bankruptcy or insolvency laws), whether or not a claim for post-filing or post-petition interest is allowed in such proceeding) by the Borrower or any Guarantor (whether direct or indirect (including those acquired by assumption), absolute or contingent, due or to become due, now existing or hereafter arising): to the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent or any Lender under any Loan Document; provided that solely with respect to any Guarantor that is not an “eligible contract participant” under the Commodity Exchange Act or any regulations promulgated thereunder, Excluded Swap Obligations of such Guarantor shall in any event be excluded from “Obligations” owing by such Guarantor.

OFAC ” means the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Oil and Gas Business ” means the business of acquiring, exploring, drilling, exploiting, developing, producing, operating, treating, storing, gathering, processing, and selling oil and gas and the products thereof, together with activities (including physical and financial hedging and swapping) that are ancillary thereto.

Oil and Gas Properties ” means rights, titles, interests and estates in and to oil and gas leases, oil, gas and mineral leases, or other liquid or gaseous hydrocarbon leases, mineral fee interests, overriding royalty and royalty interests, net profit interests and production payment interests, including any reserved or residual interests of whatever nature and including any interests acquired pursuant to unit agreements, pooling agreements and declarations of pooled units; provided , that, for the avoidance of doubt, “Oil and Gas Properties” shall exclude all easements and rights of way used or to be used in connection with any gathering system. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each reference to the term “Oil and Gas Properties” means any and all Oil and Gas Properties owned at the time in question by the Borrower and the other Credit Parties.

 

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Other Connection Taxes ” means, with respect to any Recipient, Taxes imposed as a result of a present or former connection between such Recipient and the jurisdiction imposing such Tax (other than connections arising from such Recipient having executed, delivered, become a party to, performed its obligations under, received payments under, received or perfected a security interest under, engaged in any other transaction pursuant to or enforced any Loan Document, or sold or assigned an interest in any Loan or Loan Document).

Other Taxes ” means all present or future stamp, court or documentary, intangible, recording, filing or similar Taxes that arise from any payment made under, from the execution, delivery, performance, enforcement or registration of, from the receipt or perfection of a security interest under, or otherwise with respect to, any Loan Document, except any such Taxes that are Other Connection Taxes imposed with respect to an assignment (other than an assignment made pursuant to Section  5.04 or Section  5.05 ).

Parent Guarantor ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Participant ” has the meaning set forth in Section 12.04(c) .

Participant Register ” has the meaning set forth in Section 12.04(c) .

PBGC ” means the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and any Person succeeding to any or all of its functions under ERISA.

Permitted Acquisition Debt ” means Debt (including Disqualified Capital Stock) of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Restricted Subsidiaries to the extent such Debt was Debt:

(a) of an acquired Person prior to the date on which such Person became a Restricted Subsidiary that was not incurred in contemplation of such acquisition; or

(b) of a Person that was merged, consolidated or amalgamated with or into the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary that was not incurred in contemplation of such merger, consolidation or amalgamation;

provided that on the date such Person became a Restricted Subsidiary or the date such Person was merged, consolidated and amalgamated with or into the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary, as applicable, after giving pro forma effect thereto,

(1) the Borrower would be permitted to incur at least $1.00 of additional Debt pursuant to the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio test described in Section  9.02 or

(2) the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio for the Borrower would be greater than the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio for the Borrower immediately prior to such transaction.

Permitted Business ” means any business that is the same as, or reasonably related, ancillary or complementary to, any of the businesses in which the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries are engaged on the Effective Date, and reasonable extensions thereof, in each case, as determined in good faith by the Borrower.

 

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Permitted Investments ” means:

(a) any Investment in Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(b) any Investment in cash and Cash Equivalents;

(c) any Investment by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in a Person, if as a result of such Investment:

(i) such Person becomes a Restricted Subsidiary; or

(ii) such Person is merged, consolidated or amalgamated with or into, or transfers or conveys substantially all of its assets to, or is liquidated into, the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(d) any Investment made as a result of the receipt of non-cash consideration from a Transfer permitted under Section  9.11 ;

(e) any Investment to the extent made in exchange for the issuance of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) of the Parent Guarantor;

(f) any Investments received (i) in compromise or resolution of, upon satisfaction of judgments with respect to, (A) obligations of trade creditors or customers that were Incurred in the ordinary course of business of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, including pursuant to any plan of reorganization or similar arrangement upon the bankruptcy or insolvency of any trade creditor or customer, or (B) litigation, arbitration or other disputes; or (ii) as a result of a foreclosure by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary with respect to any secured Investment in default;

(g) any Debt or Guaranty of Debt of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary permitted to be incurred by Section  9.02 ;

(h) any Investment existing on, or made pursuant to binding commitments existing on, the Effective Date, and any modifications, renewals or extensions that do not increase the amount of the Investment being modified, renewed or extended (as determined as of such date of modification, renewal or extension) unless the incremental increase in such Investment is otherwise permitted under this Agreement;

(i) Investments acquired after the Effective Date as a result of the acquisition by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of another Person, including by way of a merger, amalgamation or consolidation with or into the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in a transaction that is not prohibited by Section  9.10 after the Effective Date, to the extent that such Investments were not made in contemplation of such acquisition, merger, amalgamation or consolidation and were in existence on the date of such acquisition, merger, amalgamation or consolidation;

(j) Guaranties by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of operating leases (other than Capitalized Lease Obligations) or of other obligations that do not constitute Debt, in each case entered into by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in the ordinary course of business;

 

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(k) Investments in any Person to the extent such Investments consist of prepaid expenses, negotiable instruments held for collection and lease, utility and workers’ compensation, performance and other similar deposits made in the ordinary course of business by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary;

(l) Investments in Unrestricted Subsidiaries or any other Person in an aggregate amount (measured on the date each such Investment was made and without giving effect to subsequent changes in value), when taken together with all other Investments made pursuant to this clause (m) that are at the time outstanding not to exceed $100,000,000;

(m) loans or advances to employees, officers or directors in the ordinary course of business of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiaries, in each case only as permitted by applicable law, but in any event not to exceed $5,000,000 in the aggregate at any time outstanding;

(n) Investments in Industry Investments in an aggregate amount (measured on the date each such Investment was made and without giving effect to subsequent changes in value), when taken together with all other Investments made pursuant to this clause (n) that are at the time outstanding not to exceed $50,000,000; and

(o) other Investments that do not exceed $50,000,000 in the aggregate at any time.

In determining whether an Investment is a Permitted Investment, the Parent Guarantor may allocate all or any portion of any Investment and later reallocate all or any portion of any Investment to one or more of the above clauses (a) through (o) and any of the provisions of Section  9.04 .

Permitted Investor ” means any Person that, on the Closing Date, after giving effect to the Plan of Reorganization, is the beneficial owner, together with any of its Affiliates (but excluding any operating portfolio companies of the foregoing Persons), of Equity Interests representing 10% or more of the aggregate ordinary voting power represented by the issued and outstanding Equity Interests of the Borrower at such time.

Permitted Lien ” means any Lien permitted under Section  9.03 .

Permitted Refinancing Debt ” shall mean Debt (“ New Debt ”) incurred in exchange for, or proceeds of which are used to refinance, other Debt (“ Old Debt ”); provided , however , that:

(a) such New Debt is in an aggregate principal amount not in excess of the sum of:

(i) the aggregate principal amount then outstanding of the Old Debt (or, if such Old Debt provides for an amount less than the principal amount thereof to be due and payable upon a declaration of acceleration thereof, such lesser amount as of the date of determination), and

(ii) an amount necessary to pay any fees and expenses, including premiums, related to such exchange or refinancing;

(b) such New Debt has a stated maturity no earlier than the stated maturity of the Old Debt;

(c) such New Debt has a Weighted Average Life to Maturity at the time such New Debt is incurred that is equal to or greater than the Weighted Average Life to Maturity of the Old Debt at such time;

 

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(d) such New Debt is pari passu , with or subordinated to, in right of payment to the Obligations to at least the same extent, if any, as the Old Debt;

(e) to the extent such New Debt is permitted to be secured and such Old Debt was secured at the time of incurrence of such New Debt, the Liens securing such New Debt have a Lien priority equal or junior to the Liens securing the Old Debt; and

(f) if such Old Debt is the Revolving Obligations or debt that has refinanced the Revolving Obligations (collectively “ Revolver Debt ”; the documentation evidencing such debt, the “ Revolver Debt Documents ”), the New Debt is incurred pursuant to substantially the same terms and conditions as those existing under the Revolving Credit Agreement on the date hereof.

Person ” means any natural person, corporation, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, association, company, partnership, Governmental Authority or other entity.

Plan ” means any employee pension benefit plan, as defined in section 3(2) of ERISA (other than a multiemployer plan as defined in section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA), that is subject to Title IV of ERISA or section 412 of the Code and that is sponsored, maintained or contributed to by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary with respect to which any of them has or could reasonably expect to have any liability, including on account of an ERISA Affiliate.

Plan Effective Date ” means the “Effective Date” as defined in the Plan of Reorganization.

Plan of Reorganization ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Platform ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

Prime Rate ” means the rate of interest last quoted by The Wall Street Journal as the “Prime Rate” in the U.S. or, if The Wall Street Journal ceases to quote such rate, the highest per annum interest rate published by the Federal Reserve Board in Federal Reserve Statistical Release H.15 (519) (Selected Interest Rates) as the “bank prime loan” rate or, if such rate is no longer quoted therein, any similar rate quoted therein (as determined by the Administrative Agent) or any similar release by the Federal Reserve Board (as determined by the Administrative Agent).

Property ” means any interest in any kind of property or asset, whether real, personal or mixed, or tangible or intangible, including cash, securities, accounts and contract rights.

Proved Reserves ” means “Proved Reserves” as defined in the Definitions for Oil and Gas Reserves (as used in this paragraph, the “Definitions”) promulgated by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (or any generally recognized successor) as in effect at the time in question. “Proved Developed Producing Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as both “Developed” and “Producing” in the Definitions, “Proved Developed Nonproducing Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as both “Developed” and “Nonproducing” in the Definitions, and “Proved Undeveloped Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as “Undeveloped” in the Definitions.

Public Lender ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

Purchase Money Indebtedness ” means Debt, the proceeds of which are used to finance the acquisition, construction, or improvement of inventory, equipment or other Property in the ordinary course of business.

 

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PV-9 ” means, with respect to any Proved Reserves expected to be produced from any Borrowing Base Properties (or in connection with any proposed acquisition, Oil and Gas Properties that will be acquired by the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary), the net present value, discounted at 9% per annum , of the future net revenues expected to accrue to the Borrower’s and the Credit Parties’ collective interests in such reserves during the remaining expected economic lives of such reserves, calculated (a) during a Term Loan Exclusive Period, in accordance with NYMEX Pricing and (b) at any other time, in accordance with the Bank Price Deck, in each case, without giving effect to non-property related expenses such as general and administrative expenses, debt service, future income tax expenses and depreciation, depletion and amortization.

Qualified ECP Counterparty ” means, in respect of any CFTC Hedging Obligation, the Borrower and each Guarantor to the extent that such Person (a) has total assets exceeding $10,000,000 at the time any guaranty of obligations under such CFTC Hedging Obligation or any grant of a security interest to secure such CFTC Hedging Obligation becomes effective or (b) otherwise constitutes an “eligible contract participant” with respect to such Swap Agreement under the Commodity Exchange Act and can cause another Person to qualify as an “eligible contract participant” at such time by entering into a keepwell under Section 1a(18)(A)(v)(II) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Qualifying Equity Interests ” means Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary other than Disqualified Capital Stock.

RBL Asset Coverage Ratio ” means, as of any date, the ratio of (i) the PV-9 of the Credit Parties’ Oil and Gas Properties reflected in the most recently delivered Reserve Report to (ii) Consolidated Net Debt as of such date; provided that for purposes of calculating the RBL Asset Coverage Ratio, the PV-9 attributable to non-producing Proved Reserves shall not exceed 35% of the aggregate PV-9.

Recipient ” means (a) the Administrative Agent and (b) any Lender, as applicable.

Redemption ” means with respect to any Debt, the repurchase, redemption, prepayment, repayment, defeasance or any other acquisition or retirement for value (or the segregation of funds with respect to any of the foregoing) of such Debt. “Redeem” has the correlative meaning thereto.

Redetermination Date ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof.

Register ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.04(b)(iv) .

Regulation D ” means Regulation D of the Board, as the same may be amended, supplemented or replaced from time to time.

Related Parties ” means, with respect to any specified Person, such Person’s Affiliates and the respective directors, officers, employees, agents and advisors (including attorneys, accountants and experts) of such Person and such Person’s Affiliates.

Release ” means any depositing, spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, placing, emitting, discarding, abandoning, emptying, discharging, migrating, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing.

Remedial Work ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 8.10(a) .

 

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Required Ratings ” means the Borrower’s Credit Rating is (a) Baa3 with a stable or better outlook, or higher, from Moody’s, (b) BBB- with a stable or better outlook, or higher, from S&P or (c) BBB- with a stable or better outlook, or higher from Fitch.

Reserve Report ” means the Initial Reserve Report and each subsequent report, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to (a) the Administrative Agent during a Term Loan Exclusive Period and (b) at any other time, the administrative agent(s) under the Revolver Debt Documents in place at such time, setting forth, as of each of the following dates:

July 1, 2017 and each July 1 thereafter

January 1, 2018 and each January 1 thereafter

(or such other date in the event of an Interim Redetermination), the oil and gas reserves attributable to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties, together with a projection of the rate of production and future net income, taxes, operating expenses and capital expenditures with respect thereto as of such date, based upon the pricing assumptions consistent with (a) during a Term Loan Exclusive Period, the Administrative Agent’s lending requirements at the time and (b) at any other time, the administrative agent under the Revolver Debt Documents in place at such time.

Responsible Officer ” means, as to any Person, the Chief Executive Officer, the President, any Financial Officer or any Vice President of such Person. Unless otherwise specified, all references to a Responsible Officer herein mean a Responsible Officer of the Borrower.

Restricted Investment ” means any Investment other than a Permitted Investment.

Restricted Payment ” has the meaning given to such term in Section 9.04(a)(iv) .

Restricted Subsidiary ” means any Subsidiary of the Borrower that is not an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

Revolver Debt Documents ” has the meaning assigned to such term in clause (f) of the definition of “Permitted Refinancing Debt”

Revolving Administrative Agent ” means the administrative agent under the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Revolving Credit Agreement ” means that certain Credit Agreement dated as of the date hereof among the Borrower, the Revolving Administrative Agent, and the Revolving Lenders, as the same may be amended, restated, amended and restated, supplemented or otherwise modified, replaced or refinanced from time to time.

Revolving Credit Exposure ” means, with respect to any Revolving Lender at any time, the outstanding principal amount of such Revolving Lender’s Revolving Loans and its LC Exposure at such time.

Revolving Lenders ” means the lenders party to the Revolving Credit Agreement from time to time.

Revolving Loans ” means the loans made by the Revolving Lenders to the Borrower pursuant to the Revolving Credit Agreement.

 

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Revolving Loan Documents ” means “Loan Documents” as defined under the Revolving Credit Agreement

Revolving Obligations ” means the Revolving Loans and all other “Obligations” as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Rolling Period ” means for the end of any fiscal quarter, the period of four (4) consecutive fiscal quarters ending on the last day of such fiscal quarter.

S&P ” means Standard & Poor’s Ratings Group, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Sanction ” means any economic or financial sanction or trade embargo imposed, administered or enforced from time to time by the U.S. government, including those administered by OFAC, the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State.

Sanctioned Country ” means, at any time, a country, territory or region which is itself, or whose government is, the subject or target of any Sanctions (including Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria).

Sanctioned Person ” means, at any time, (a) any Person listed in any Sanctions-related list of designated Persons maintained by OFAC, the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State, (b) any Person operating, organized or resident in a Sanctioned Country or (c) any Person owned or controlled by any such Person or Persons described in the foregoing clauses (a) or (b).

SEC ” means the Securities and Exchange Commission or any successor Governmental Authority.

Secured Parties ” means, collectively, the Administrative Agent, the Lenders, and the Collateral Agent and “ Secured Party ” means any of them individually.

Securities Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Securities Act ” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

Security Instruments ” means the mortgages, deeds of trust, pledge agreements, security agreements, control agreements and other agreements, instruments, supplements or certificates described or referred to in Exhibit E , and any and all other agreements, instruments, supplements, consents or certificates (including the Collateral Agency Agreement and the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement) now or hereafter executed and delivered by the Borrower, any other Credit Party, or any other Person (other than Secured Swap Agreements or participation or similar agreements between any Lender and any other lender or creditor with respect to any Obligations pursuant to this Agreement) in order to guarantee or provide collateral security for the payment or performance of the Obligations, the Notes, or this Agreement, as such agreements may be amended, modified, supplemented or restated from time to time.

Senior Notes ” means (a) the Existing Senior Notes and (b) unsecured notes or bonds from time to time issued pursuant to one or more public or private capital markets financings (in each case, as modified, renewed, refunded, replaced in any manner or refinanced in whole or in part from time to time in compliance with this Agreement); provided that (i) such notes or bonds do not provide for any

 

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amortization of principal or any scheduled or mandatory prepayments, redemptions, repayments, or defeasance of principal on any date prior to 91 days after the Maturity Date (other than provisions requiring offers to repurchase in connection with asset sales or any change of control), (ii) such notes or bonds have a scheduled maturity date that is no earlier than 91 days after the Maturity Date, (iii) the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants and events of default pertaining to such notes or bonds are not materially more onerous, taken as a whole, than the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants and Events of Default contained in this Agreement and (iv) both immediately before and immediately after giving effect to the incurrence of any principal Debt under such notes or bonds, no Event of Default or Borrowing Base Deficiency exists or would exist after giving effect to any concurrent repayment of other Debt with the proceeds of such incurrence.

Senior Notes Debt ” means unsecured Debt in respect of Senior Notes, including the principal amounts owing thereunder and any associated obligations to pay interest, premiums, indemnifications, expenses, costs or other amounts.

Senior Notes Documents ” means each indenture or agreement providing for Senior Notes Debt, the Senior Notes, all guaranties of Senior Notes, and any other instruments or agreements made or delivered by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with such Senior Notes Debt in each case, as amended, restated, modified, supplemented, renewed or replaced in any manner (whether upon or after termination or otherwise) from time to time.

Specified Commodity Sale Contract ” means any contract for the sale of Hydrocarbons for a price to be calculated at the time of delivery based on the market or index price for a location other than the delivery point (as defined in such sale contract) of the Hydrocarbons sold pursuant to such sale contract (together with any related asset management agreement for the release of transportation capacity between such locations), which sale transaction is intended to be settled by physical delivery of such Hydrocarbons by the Borrower or any other Credit Party to a Person that is, on the date such contract is entered into, a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender, in each case even if such Person subsequently ceases to be a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender for any reason.

Statutory Reserve Rate ” means a fraction (expressed as a decimal), the numerator of which is the number one and the denominator of which is the number one minus the aggregate of the maximum reserve percentages (including any marginal, special, emergency or supplemental reserves) expressed as a decimal established by the Board to which the Administrative Agent is subject with respect to the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate, for eurocurrency funding (currently referred to as “Eurocurrency Liabilities” in Regulation D of the Board). Such reserve percentages shall include those imposed pursuant to such Regulation D. Eurodollar Loans shall be deemed to constitute eurocurrency funding and to be subject to such reserve requirements without benefit of or credit for proration, exemptions or offsets that may be available from time to time to any Lender under such Regulation D or any comparable regulation. The Statutory Reserve Rate shall be adjusted automatically on and as of the effective date of any change in any reserve percentage.

Subordinated Debt ” means (1) with respect to the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, any Debt of such Person which is by its terms, unsecured, or secured by a Lien that is junior to the Lien securing the Obligations or subordinated in right of payment to the Obligations and (2) with respect to any Guarantor, any Debt of such Guarantor which is by its terms subordinated in right of payment to the guaranty of such Guarantor under the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement.

subsidiary ” means, with respect to any Person (the “ parent ”) at any date, (a) any other Person the accounts of which would be consolidated with those of the parent in the parent’s consolidated financial statements if such financial statements were prepared in accordance with GAAP as of such date, or (b)

 

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any other Person of which Equity Interests representing more than 50% of the equity or more than 50% of the ordinary voting power (irrespective of whether or not at the time Equity Interests of any other class or classes of such Person shall have or might have voting power by reason of the happening of any contingency) are, as of such date, owned, Controlled or held by the parent or one or more subsidiaries of the parent or by the parent and one or more subsidiaries of the parent.

Subsidiary ” means, unless stated otherwise, any subsidiary of the Borrower.

Subsidiary Guarantor ” means any subsidiary of the Borrower that is a Guarantor.

Swap Agreement ” means (a) any agreement with respect to any swap, forward, future or derivative transaction or option or similar agreement, whether exchange traded, “over-the-counter” or otherwise, involving, or settled by reference to, one or more rates, currencies, commodities, equity or debt instruments or securities, or economic, financial or pricing indices or measures of economic, financial or pricing risk or value or any similar transaction or any combination of these transactions; provided that (i) no phantom stock or similar plan providing for payments only on account of services provided by current or former directors, officers, employees or consultants of the Borrower or the other Credit Parties shall be a Swap Agreement and (ii) no sale of a commodity for deferred shipment or delivery that is intended to be physically settled (other than a forward sale contract to the extent that it provides, at the time such contract (or a specified portion of such contract or a specified transaction under such contract) is entered into, for all in fixed prices; provided , that, the Borrower’s or any other Credit Party’s election for “first of month” pricing or other one month pricing pursuant to a forward sale contract for deliveries of Hydrocarbons for the immediately following calendar month shall be deemed not to be a contract for an all in fixed price for purposes of this definition) shall be a Swap Agreement pursuant to this clause (a), and (b) any Secured Lender Physical Contract. If multiple transactions are entered into under a master agreement, each transaction is a separate Swap Agreement.

Swap PV ” means, with respect to any Swap Agreement in respect of commodities, the net present value, discounted at 9% per annum , of the future receipts expected to be paid to the Borrower or the other Credit Parties under such Swap Agreement, calculated in accordance with the Bank Price Deck; provided that the “Swap PV” shall never be less than $0.00.

Swap Termination Value ” means, in respect of any one or more Swap Agreements, after taking into account the effect of any legally enforceable netting agreement relating to such Swap Agreements, (a) for any date on or after the date such Swap Agreements have been closed out and termination value(s) determined in accordance therewith, such termination value(s) and (b) for any date prior to the date referenced in clause (a), the amount(s) determined as the mark-to-market value(s) for such Swap Agreements, as determined by the counterparties to such Swap Agreements (including, without duplication, any unpaid amounts due on the date of calculation).

Synthetic Leases ” means, in respect of any Person, all leases which shall have been, or should have been, in accordance with GAAP, treated as operating leases on the financial statements of the Person liable (whether contingently or otherwise) for the payment of rent thereunder and which were properly treated as indebtedness for borrowed money for purposes of U.S. federal income taxes, if the lessee in respect thereof is obligated to either purchase for an amount in excess of, or pay upon early termination an amount in excess of, 80% of the residual value of the Property subject to such operating lease upon expiration or early termination of such lease.

Taxes ” means any and all present or future taxes, levies, imposts, duties, deductions, withholdings (including backup withholding), assessments, fees or other charges imposed by any Governmental Authority, including any interest, additions to tax or penalties applicable thereto.

 

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Term Loan Exclusive Period ” means a period during which the events described by the term “Termination Date” or similar term in any Revolver Debt Document have occurred.

Threshold Amount ” means the greater of (a) the lesser of (i) five percent (5%) of (x) during any Borrowing Base Period, the then effective Borrowing Base or (y) during any Investment Grade Period or any Term Loan Exclusive Period, ACNTA and (ii) $65,000,000 and (b) $50,000,000.

Total Commitment ” means the sum of the Commitments of the Lenders.

Transactions ” means, (a) with respect to the Borrower, the execution, delivery and performance by the Borrower of this Agreement, each other Loan Document to which it is a party, each Revolving Loan Document to which it is a party and each Senior Notes Document to which it is a party, the borrowing of Revolving Loans and the issuance of Letters of Credit under the Revolving Credit Agreement, the borrowing of Loans hereunder and the issuance of the Existing Senior Notes and the grant of Liens by the Borrower on Mortgaged Properties and other Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments and (b) with respect to each Guarantor, the execution, delivery and performance by such Guarantor of each Loan Document, Revolving Loan Document and Senior Notes Document to which it is a party, the guaranteeing of the Obligations by such Guarantor, the guaranteeing of the obligations under the Revolving Loan Documents and the Senior Notes Documents and the grant by such Guarantor of Liens on Mortgaged Properties and other Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments.

Transfer ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  9.11 .

Type ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether the rate of interest on such Loan, or on the Loans comprising such Borrowing, is determined by reference to the Alternate Base Rate or the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate.

Ultra Petroleum ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Uniform Commercial Code ” means the Uniform Commercial Code, as in effect from time to time, of the State of New York or of any other state the laws of which are required as a result thereof to be applied in connection with the attachment, perfection or priority of, or remedies with respect to, Administrative Agent’s or any Secured Party’s Lien on any Collateral.

Unproven Acreage ” means, at any time, all Oil and Gas Properties that had no Proved Reserves attributed thereto in the then most recent Reserve Report (including, for the avoidance of doubt, Oil and Gas Properties not evaluated in the most recent Reserve Report).

Unrestricted Parent Entity ” means any subsidiary of Parent Guarantor other than the Borrower.

Unrestricted Subsidiary ” means (a) any Subsidiary of the Borrower designated as such on Schedule 7.14 , (b) which the Borrower has designated in writing to the Administrative Agent to be an Unrestricted Subsidiary pursuant to Section  9.15 or (c) any subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

UP Energy ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 5.03(g)(iii) .

Volumetric Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as deferred revenue in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

 

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Weighted Average Life to Maturity ” means, when applied to any Debt at any date, the number of years obtained by dividing :

(a) the sum of the products obtained by multiplying (a) the amount of each then remaining installment, sinking fund, serial maturity or other required payments of principal, including payment at final maturity, in respect of the Debt, by (b) the number of years (calculated to the nearest one-twelfth) that will elapse between such date and the making of such payment; by

(b) the then outstanding principal amount of such Debt.

Wholly-Owned Subsidiary ” means (a) any Restricted Subsidiary of which all of the outstanding Equity Interests (other than any directors’ qualifying shares or shares that are required by the applicable laws and regulations of the jurisdiction of organization of such Subsidiary to be owned by the government of such jurisdiction or individual corporate citizens of such jurisdiction), on a fully-diluted basis, are owned by the Parent Guarantor and/ or one or more of the Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries or (b) any Restricted Subsidiary that is organized in a jurisdiction and is required by the applicable laws and regulations of such jurisdiction to be partially owned by the government of such jurisdiction or individual or corporate citizens of such jurisdiction, provided that the Parent Guarantor, directly or indirectly, owns the remaining Equity Interests in such Subsidiary and, by contract or otherwise, controls the management and business of such Subsidiary and derives economic benefits of ownership of such Subsidiary to substantially the same extent as if such Subsidiary were a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary.

Withholding Agent ” means the Borrower, any Guarantor or the Administrative Agent.

Write-Down and Conversion Powers ” means, with respect to any EEA Resolution Authority, the write-down and conversion powers of such EEA Resolution Authority from time to time under the Bail-In Legislation for the applicable EEA Member Country, which write-down and conversion powers are described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule.

Section 1.03 Types of Loans and Borrowings . For purposes of this Agreement, Loans and Borrowings, respectively, may be classified and referred to by Type ( e.g. , a “Eurodollar Loan” or a “Eurodollar Borrowing”).

Section 1.04 Terms Generally; Rules of Construction . The definitions of terms herein shall apply equally to the singular and plural forms of the terms defined. Whenever the context may require, any pronoun shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine and neuter forms. The words “include”, “includes” and “including” as used in this Agreement shall be deemed to be followed by the phrase “without limitation”. The word “or” is not exclusive. The word “shall” shall be construed to have the same meaning and effect as the word “will”. Unless the context requires otherwise (a) any definition of or reference to any agreement, instrument or other document herein shall be construed as referring to such agreement, instrument or other document as from time to time amended, supplemented or otherwise modified (subject to any restrictions on such amendments, supplements or modifications set forth in the Loan Documents), (b) any reference herein to any law shall be construed as referring to such law as amended, modified, codified or reenacted, in whole or in part, and in effect from time to time, (c) any reference herein to any Person shall be construed to include such Person’s successors and assigns (subject to the restrictions contained in the Loan Documents), (d) the words “herein”, “hereof” and “hereunder”, and words of similar import, shall be construed to refer to this Agreement in its entirety and not to any particular provision hereof, (e) with respect to the determination of any time period, the word “from” means “from and including” and the word “to” means “to and including”, (f) any reference herein to Articles, Sections, Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules shall be construed to refer to Articles and Sections of, and Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules to, this Agreement and (g) with respect to the requirement to

 

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deliver any certificate, an executed paper copy of such certificate shall accompany any other form of delivery permitted hereunder. No provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall be interpreted or construed against any Person solely because such Person or its legal representative drafted such provision.

Section 1.05 Accounting Terms and Determinations; GAAP . Unless otherwise specified herein, all accounting terms used herein shall be interpreted, all determinations with respect to accounting matters hereunder shall be made, and all financial statements and certificates and reports as to financial matters required to be furnished to the Administrative Agent or the Lenders hereunder shall be prepared, in accordance with GAAP, applied on a basis consistent with the financial statements referred to in Section 7.04(a) except for changes in which the Borrower’s independent certified public accountants concur and which are disclosed to the Administrative Agent as part of, or along with, the audited annual financial statements delivered to the Lenders pursuant to Section 8.01(a) ; provided that, unless the Borrower and the Majority Lenders shall otherwise agree in writing, no such change shall modify or affect the manner in which compliance with the covenants set forth in Article IX is computed such that all such computations shall be conducted utilizing financial information presented consistently with prior periods.

ARTICLE II

THE CREDITS

Section 2.01 Commitments . Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, each Lender agrees to make Loans to the Borrower on the Effective Date in an aggregate principal amount equal to such Lender’s Commitment. Loans may be repaid, in whole or in part, subject to the terms and conditions hereof. Loans are not revolving and amounts borrowed and repaid may not be thereafter reborrowed. Funding of any Loans shall be in dollars.

Section 2.02 Loans and Borrowings .

(a) Borrowings; Several Obligations . Each Loan shall be made as part of a Borrowing consisting of Loans made by the Lenders ratably in accordance with their respective Commitments. The failure of any Lender to make any Loan required to be made by it shall not relieve any other Lender of its obligations hereunder; provided that the Commitments are several and no Lender shall be responsible for any other Lender’s failure to make Loans as required.

(b) Types of Loans . Subject to Section  3.03 , each Borrowing shall be comprised entirely of ABR Loans or Eurodollar Loans as the Borrower may request in accordance herewith. Each Lender at its option may make any Eurodollar Loan by causing any domestic or foreign branch or Affiliate of such Lender to make such Loan; provided that any exercise of such option shall not affect the obligation of the Borrower to repay such Loan in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

(c) Minimum Amounts; Limitation on Number of Borrowings . Each Borrowing of ABR Loans shall be in an amount of not less than $1,000,000 and each Borrowing of Eurodollar Loans shall be in an amount of not less than $2,000,000 and in an integral multiple of $100,000 in excess thereof. Borrowings of more than one Type may be outstanding at the same time, provided that there shall not at any time be more than a total of ten Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Borrower shall not be entitled to request, or to elect to convert or continue, any Borrowing if the Interest Period requested with respect thereto would end after the Maturity Date.

 

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(d) Notes . Upon request of a Lender, the Loans made by such Lender shall be evidenced by a single promissory note of the Borrower in substantially the form of Exhibit A , and (i) in the case of any Lender party hereto as of the date of this Agreement, such Note shall be dated as of the date of this Agreement, (ii) in the case of any Lender that becomes a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption, such Note shall be dated as of the effective date of the Assignment and Assumption, or (iii) in the case of any Lender that becomes a party hereto in connection with an increase in the Total Commitment pursuant to Section 2.06(c) , as of the effective date of such increase, in each case, payable to such Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment as in effect on such date, and otherwise duly completed. In the event that any Lender’s Commitment increases or decreases for any reason (whether pursuant to Section  2.06 , Section 12.04(b) or otherwise), the Borrower shall, upon request of such Lender, deliver or cause to be delivered on the effective date of such increase or decrease, a new Note payable to such Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment after giving effect to such increase or decrease, and otherwise duly completed, against return to the Borrower of the Note so replaced. The date, amount, Type, interest rate and, if applicable, Interest Period of each Loan made by each Lender, and all payments made on account of the principal thereof, shall be recorded by such Lender on its books for its Note, and, prior to any transfer, may be endorsed by such Lender on a schedule attached to such Note or any continuation thereof or on any separate record maintained by such Lender. Failure to make any such notation or to attach a schedule shall not affect any Lender’s or the Borrower’s rights or obligations in respect of such Loans or affect the validity of such transfer by any Lender of its Note.

Section 2.03 Requests for Borrowings . To request a Borrowing, the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such request in writing in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, three Business Days before the date of the proposed Borrowing or, in the case of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, one Business Day before the date of the proposed Borrowing. Each such written Borrowing Request shall be irrevocable and shall be in substantially the form of Exhibit B and signed by the Borrower. Each such written Borrowing Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section  2.02 :

(a) the aggregate amount of the requested Borrowing;

(b) the date of such Borrowing, which shall be a Business Day;

(c) whether such Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurodollar Borrowing;

(d) in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, the initial Interest Period to be applicable thereto, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”;

(e) the amount of the then effective Borrowing Base, the amount of the then effective Total Commitment, the current total Revolving Credit Exposures (without regard to any requested “Borrowing” under the Revolving Credit Agreement) and the pro forma total Revolving Credit Exposures (after giving effect to any concurrent “Borrowing” under the Revolving Credit Agreement); and

(f) the location and number of the Borrower’s account to which funds are to be disbursed, which shall comply with the requirements of Section  2.05 .

If no election as to the Type of Borrowing is specified, then the requested Borrowing shall be an ABR Borrowing. If no Interest Period is specified with respect to any requested Eurodollar Borrowing, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration.

 

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Promptly following receipt of a Borrowing Request in accordance with this Section  2.03 , the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of the amount of such Lender’s Loan to be made as part of the requested Borrowing.

Section 2.04 Interest Elections .

(a) Conversion and Continuance . Each Borrowing initially shall be of the Type specified in the applicable Borrowing Request and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, shall have an initial Interest Period as specified in such Borrowing Request. Thereafter, the Borrower may elect to convert such Borrowing to a different Type or to continue such Borrowing and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, may elect Interest Periods therefor, all as provided in this Section  2.04 . The Borrower may elect different options with respect to different portions of the affected Borrowing, in which case each such portion shall be allocated ratably among the Lenders holding the Loans comprising such Borrowing, and the Loans comprising each such portion shall be considered a separate Borrowing.

(b) Interest Election Requests . To make an election pursuant to this Section  2.04 , the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such election in writing by the time that a Borrowing Request would be required under Section  2.03 if the Borrower were requesting a Borrowing of the Type resulting from such election to be made on the effective date of such election. Each such written Interest Election Request shall be irrevocable and shall be in substantially the form of Exhibit C and signed by the Borrower.

(c) Information in Interest Election Requests . Each written Interest Election Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section  2.02 :

(i) the Borrowing to which such Interest Election Request applies and, if different options are being elected with respect to different portions thereof, the portions thereof to be allocated to each resulting Borrowing (in which case the information to be specified pursuant to Section 2.04(c)(iii) and (iv)  shall be specified for each resulting Borrowing);

(ii) the effective date of the election made pursuant to such Interest Election Request, which shall be a Business Day;

(iii) whether the resulting Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurodollar Borrowing; and

(iv) if the resulting Borrowing is a Eurodollar Borrowing, the Interest Period to be applicable thereto after giving effect to such election, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”.

If any such Interest Election Request requests a Eurodollar Borrowing but does not specify an Interest Period, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration.

(d) Notice to Lenders by the Administrative Agent . Promptly following receipt of an Interest Election Request, the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of such Lender’s portion of each resulting Borrowing.

(e) Effect of Failure to Deliver Timely Interest Election Request and Events of Default on Interest Election . If the Borrower fails to deliver a timely Interest Election Request with respect to a Eurodollar Borrowing prior to the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto, then, unless such Borrowing is repaid as provided herein, at the end of such Interest Period such Borrowing shall be

 

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converted to an ABR Borrowing. Notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing: no outstanding Borrowing may be converted to or continued as a Eurodollar Borrowing (and any Interest Election Request that requests the conversion of any Borrowing to, or continuation of any Borrowing as, a Eurodollar Borrowing shall be ineffective) and unless repaid, each Eurodollar Borrowing shall be converted to an ABR Borrowing at the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto.

Section 2.05 Funding of Borrowings .

(a) Funding by Lenders . Each Lender shall make each Loan to be made by it hereunder on the proposed date thereof by wire transfer of immediately available funds by 1:00 p.m., New York City time, to the account of the Administrative Agent most recently designated by it for such purpose by notice to the Lenders. The Administrative Agent will make such Loans available to the Borrower by promptly crediting the amounts so received, in like funds, to an account of the Borrower maintained with a Lender and designated by the Borrower in the Borrowing Request on the Effective Date. Nothing herein shall be deemed to obligate any Lender to obtain the funds for its Loan in any particular place or manner or to constitute a representation by any Lender that it has obtained or will obtain the funds for its Loan in any particular place or manner.

(b) Presumption of Funding by the Lenders . Unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from a Lender prior to the Effective Date that such Lender will not make available to the Administrative Agent such Lender’s share of such Borrowing on the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent may assume that such Lender has made such share available on such date in accordance with Section 2.05(a) and may, in reliance upon such assumption, make available to the Borrower a corresponding amount. In such event, if a Lender has not in fact made its share of the applicable Borrowing available to the Administrative Agent, then the applicable Lender and the Borrower severally agree to pay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand such corresponding amount with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such amount is made available to the Borrower to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at in the case of such Lender, the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation or, in the case of the Borrower, the interest rate applicable to ABR Loans. If such Lender pays such amount to the Administrative Agent, then such amount shall constitute such Lender’s Loan included in such Borrowing. Any payment by the Borrower shall be without prejudice to any claim the Borrower may have against a Lender that shall have failed to make such payment to the Administrative Agent.

Section 2.06 Increase of Commitments .

(a) Subject to the conditions set forth in Section 2.06(b) , the Borrower may increase the Total Commitment then in effect by increasing the Commitment of a Lender or by causing a Person that is acceptable to the Administrative Agent that at such time is not a Lender to become a Lender (any such Person that is not at such time a Lender and becomes a Lender, an “ Additional Lender ”).

(b) Any increase in the Total Commitment shall be subject to the following additional conditions:

(i) such increase shall not be less than $25,000,000 unless the Administrative Agent otherwise consents;

(ii) no Default shall have occurred and be continuing on the effective date of such increase or would result therefrom;

 

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(iii) no Lender’s Commitment may be increased without the consent of such Lender;

(iv) The representations and warranties of the Borrower and the Guarantors set forth in this Agreement and in the other Loan Documents shall be true and correct in all material respects on and as of the date of such increase, except (x) to the extent any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, on and as of the date of such increase, such representations and warranties shall continue to be true and correct as of such specified earlier date, and (y) to the extent that any such representation and warranty is expressly qualified by materiality or by reference to Material Adverse Effect, such representation and warranty (as so qualified) shall continue to be true and correct in all respects;

(v) the maturity date of such increase shall be no earlier than the Maturity Date;

(vi) the Weighted Average Life to Maturity of such increase shall be no shorter than the remaining Weighted Average Life to Maturity of the existing Loans;

(vii) subject to the restrictions set forth in Sections 2.06(b)(v) and 2.06(b)(vi) , the amortization schedule for such increase shall be determined by the Borrower and Lenders and Additional Lenders participating in such increase;

(viii) except as otherwise required or permitted by this Section 2.06(b)(viii) , the increase shall be on the exact same terms and pursuant to the exact same documentation applicable to this Agreement (other than with respect to any arrangement, structuring, upfront or other fees or discounts payable in connection with such increase); provided , that, (x) subject to the following clause (y), the All-in Yield of such increase may exceed the All-in Yield applicable at such time under this Agreement by no greater than fifty (50) basis points and (y) in the event the All-in Yield of such increase exceeds the All-in Yield applicable at such time under this Agreement by greater than fifty (50) basis points, the All-in Yield applicable at such time under this Agreement shall be increased in an amount equal to such excess;

(ix) the Borrower is in pro forma compliance with the Financial Covenants (calculated in a manner reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent) whether or not a Term Loan Exclusive Period is in effect at such time and (x) during a Borrowing Base Period, no Borrowing Base Deficiency shall exist after giving effect to the increase ( provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, the Borrower may elect to redetermine the Borrowing Base in accordance with Section 2.07(b)(iii) of the Revolving Credit Agreement as in effect on the date hereof for purposes of satisfying the condition set forth in this Section 2.06(b)(ix) ) and (y) during an Investment Grade Period or during any Term Loan Exclusive Period, the Asset Coverage Ratio shall not be less than 2.0 to 1.0 after giving pro forma effect to the increase;

(x) if the Borrower elects to increase the Total Commitment by increasing the Commitment of a Lender, the Borrower and such Lender shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit H (a “ Commitment Increase Certificate ”); and

(xi) if the Borrower elects to increase the Total Commitment by causing an Additional Lender to become a party to this Agreement, then the Borrower and such Additional Lender shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit I (an “ Additional Lender Certificate ”), together with an Administrative Questionnaire and a processing and recordation fee of $3,500 ( provided that the Administrative Agent may, in its discretion, elect to waive

 

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such processing and recordation fee in connection with any such increase), and the Borrower shall (1) if requested by the Additional Lender, deliver a Note payable to such Additional Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment, and otherwise duly completed and (2) pay any applicable fees as may have been agreed to between the Borrower and the Additional Lender, and, to the extent applicable and agreed to by the Borrower, the Administrative Agent.

(c) the Borrower may seek Commitments, in its sole discretion, from either existing Lenders or, with the consent of the Administrative Agent (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed), from additional banks, financial institutions or other institutional lenders or investors who will become Lenders hereunder;

(d) subject to acceptance and recording thereof pursuant to Section 2.06(e) , from and after the effective date specified in the Commitment Increase Certificate or the Additional Lender Certificate (or if any Eurodollar Borrowings are outstanding, then the last day of the Interest Period in respect of such Eurodollar Borrowings, unless the Borrower has paid any compensation required by Section  5.02 ): (A) the amount of the Total Commitment shall be increased as set forth therein, and (B) in the case of an Additional Lender Certificate, any Additional Lender party thereto shall be a party to this Agreement and have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents.

(e) upon its receipt of a duly completed Commitment Increase Certificate or an Additional Lender Certificate, executed by the Borrower and the Lender or by the Borrower and the Additional Lender party thereto, as applicable, the Administrative Questionnaire referred to in Section 2.06(b)(xi) and the break-funding payments from the Borrower, if any, required by Section  5.02 , if applicable, the Administrative Agent shall accept such Commitment Increase Certificate or Additional Lender Certificate and record the information contained therein in the Register required to be maintained by the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 12.04(b)(iv) . No increase in the Total Commitment shall be effective for purposes of this Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this Section 2.06(e) .

(f) upon any increase in the Total Commitment pursuant to this Section  2.06 , (A) each Lender’s Commitment shall be automatically deemed amended to the extent necessary so that each such Lender’s Applicable Percentage equals the percentage of the Total Commitment represented by such Lender’s Commitment, in each case after giving effect to such increase, and (B)  Annex I to this Agreement shall be deemed amended to reflect the Commitment of each Lender (including any Additional Lender) as thereby increased, any changes in the Lenders’ Commitments pursuant to the foregoing clause (A), and any resulting changes in the Lenders’ Applicable Percentages.

ARTICLE III

PAYMENTS OF PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST; PREPAYMENTS; FEES

Section 3.01 Repayment of Loans . The Borrower hereby unconditionally promises to pay to the Administrative Agent, for the account of the Lenders, in equal quarterly installments, which shall be due and payable on last Business Day of each March, June, September and December, commencing June 30, 2019, an amount of 0.25% of aggregate principal amount of the Loans outstanding on the Effective Date (as adjusted from time to time pursuant to Section  3.04 ), with the outstanding principal balance of the Loans due and payable on the Maturity Date. All repayments pursuant to this Section  3.01 shall be subject to Section  5.02 , but shall otherwise be without premium or penalty.

 

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Section 3.02 Interest .

(a) ABR Loans . The Loans comprising each ABR Borrowing shall bear interest at the Alternate Base Rate plus the Applicable Margin for ABR Borrowings, but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(b) Eurodollar Loans . The Loans comprising each Eurodollar Borrowing shall bear interest at the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate for the Interest Period in effect for such Borrowing plus the Applicable Margin for Eurodollar Borrowings, but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(c) Post-Default Rate . Notwithstanding the foregoing, if (i) an Event of Default specified in Section 10.01(a) , 10.01(b) , 10.01(h) or 10.01(i) has occurred and is continuing, or (ii) the Majority Lenders so elect (or direct the Administrative Agent to so elect) in connection with the occurrence and continuance of any other Event of Default, then in each case all Loans outstanding shall bear interest, after as well as before judgment, at a rate per annum equal to two percent (2%) plus the rate otherwise applicable to such Loans (including the Applicable Margin applicable with respect to such Loans), but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(d) Interest Payment Dates . Accrued interest on each Loan shall be payable in arrears on each Interest Payment Date for such Loan and on the Maturity Date; provided that interest accrued pursuant to Section 3.02(c) shall be payable on demand. In the event of any repayment or prepayment of any Loan (other than an optional prepayment of an ABR Loan prior to the Maturity Date), accrued interest on the principal amount repaid or prepaid shall be payable on the date of such repayment or prepayment, and in the event of any conversion of any Eurodollar Loan prior to the end of the current Interest Period therefor, accrued interest on such Loan shall be payable on the effective date of such conversion.

(e) Interest Rate Computations . All interest hereunder shall be computed on the basis of a year of 360 days, unless such computation would exceed the Highest Lawful Rate, in which case interest shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), except that interest computed by reference to the Alternate Base Rate at times when the Alternate Base Rate is based on the Prime Rate shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), and in each case shall be payable for the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the last day). The applicable Alternate Base Rate, Adjusted Eurodollar Rate or Eurodollar Rate shall be determined by the Administrative Agent, and such determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and be binding upon the parties hereto.

Section 3.03 Alternate Rate of Interest . If prior to the commencement of any Interest Period for a Eurodollar Borrowing:

(a) the Administrative Agent determines (which determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error) that adequate and reasonable means do not exist for ascertaining the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate or the LIBO Rate for such Interest Period; or

(b) the Administrative Agent is advised by the Majority Lenders that the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate or LIBO Rate, as applicable, for such Interest Period will not adequately and fairly reflect the cost to such Lenders of making or maintaining their Loans included in such Borrowing for such Interest Period;

then the Administrative Agent shall give notice thereof to the Borrower and the Lenders by telephone or facsimile as promptly as practicable thereafter and, until the Administrative Agent notifies the Borrower and the Lenders that the circumstances giving rise to such notice no longer exist, any Interest Election Request that requests the conversion of any Borrowing to, or continuation of any Borrowing as, a Eurodollar Borrowing shall be ineffective, and if any Borrowing Request requests a Eurodollar Borrowing, such Borrowing shall be made as an ABR Borrowing.

 

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Section 3.04 Prepayments .

(a) Optional Prepayments . The Borrower shall have the right at any time and from time to time to prepay any Borrowing in whole or in part, subject to prior notice in accordance with Section 3.04(b) . Notwithstanding the foregoing, if, prior to the six-month anniversary of the Effective Date, the Borrower (i) prepays, refinances, substitutes or replaces all or any portion of the Loans with the incurrence by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of any debt financing having an applicable All-in Yield that is less than the effective All-in Yield of the Loans being repaid, refinanced, substituted or replaced or (ii) effects any amendment of this Agreement resulting in the Loans having an applicable All-in Yield that is less than the effective All-in Yield of the Loans immediately prior to such amendment, then each Lender shall be paid (1) in the case of clause (i), a prepayment premium equal to 1.0% of the aggregate principal amount of such Loans so repaid, refinanced, substituted or replaced and (2) in the case of clause (ii), a fee equal to 1.0% of the aggregate principal amount of the applicable Loans outstanding immediately prior to such amendment.

(b) Notice and Terms of Optional Prepayment . The Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent by telephone (confirmed by facsimile) of any optional prepayment hereunder (i) in the case of prepayment of a Eurodollar Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, three Business Days before the date of prepayment, or (ii) in the case of prepayment of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, one Business Day before the date of prepayment. Each such notice shall specify the prepayment date and the principal amount of each Borrowing or portion thereof to be prepaid. Promptly following receipt of any such notice relating to a Borrowing, the Administrative Agent shall advise the Lenders of the contents thereof. Each such partial prepayment of any Borrowing shall be in an amount that would be permitted in the case of an advance of a Borrowing of the same Type as provided in Section  2.02 . Each such prepayment of a Borrowing shall be applied ratably to the Loans included in the prepaid Borrowing and shall be accompanied by accrued interest to the extent required by Section  3.02 .

(c) Mandatory Prepayments .

(i) If, after giving effect to any reduction of the total Revolving Credit Exposure pursuant to Section 3.04(c) of the Revolving Credit Agreement as a result of a Borrowing Base Deficiency, (A) the total Revolving Credit Exposure has been reduced to zero and (B) such Borrowing Base Deficiency still exists, the Borrower shall, within five (5) days of such reduction of the total Revolving Credit Exposure to zero, prepay the Borrowings in an aggregate principal amount equal to the amount necessary to eliminate such Borrowing Base Deficiency in its entirety.

(ii) If, at any time during (A) an Investment Grade Period or (B) a Term Loan Exclusive Period, the Asset Coverage Ratio is less than 2.0 to 1.0, the Borrower shall make six equal monthly payments that collectively prepay the Borrowings in an amount sufficient such that after giving pro forma effect to such prepayments, the Asset Coverage Ratio is equal to or greater than 2.0 to 1.0.

(iii) During a Term Loan Exclusive Period, subject to the reinvestment rights set forth in Section 9.11(d) and Section 9.11(e)(iv) , no later than three (3) days following the receipt by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of Net Cash Proceeds in respect of any Transfer, the Borrower shall apply 100% of the Net Cash Proceeds received with respect thereto to prepay outstanding Loans and pay any accrued and unpaid interest then due on the amount of such principal then prepaid.

 

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(iv) Each prepayment of Borrowings pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be applied, first , ratably to any ABR Borrowings then outstanding, and, second , to any Eurodollar Borrowings then outstanding, and if more than one Eurodollar Borrowing is then outstanding, to each such Eurodollar Borrowing in order of priority beginning with the Eurodollar Borrowing with the least number of days remaining in the Interest Period applicable thereto and ending with the Eurodollar Borrowing with the most number of days remaining in the Interest Period applicable thereto.

(v) Each prepayment of Borrowings pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be applied ratably to the Loans included in the prepaid Borrowings. Prepayments pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be accompanied by accrued interest to the extent required by Section  3.02 .

(d) No Premium or Penalty . All prepayments permitted or required under this Section  3.04 shall include breakage expense, if any, required under Section  5.02 and shall be without premium or penalty.

Section 3.05 Fees .

(a) Upfront Fee . The Borrower agrees to pay a fee to each Lender payable on the Effective Date equal to 1% of the principal amount of such Lender’s Loans made on the Effective Date, such fee to be paid in cash on the Effective Date ( provided that the payment of such fee may be effected pursuant to customary netting arrangements), or if the Lender so elects by giving notice to the Administrative Agent at least one (1) Business Day prior to the Effective Date, as an original issue discount with respect to such Loans made by it.

(b) Administrative Agent Fees . The Borrower agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent, for its own account, fees payable in the amounts and at the times separately agreed upon between the Borrower and the Administrative Agent in the Fee Letters.

ARTICLE IV

PAYMENTS; PRO RATA TREATMENT; SHARING OF SET-OFFS

Section 4.01 Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs .

(a) Payments by the Borrower . The Borrower shall make each payment required to be made by it hereunder (whether of principal, interest or fees, or of amounts payable under Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 or otherwise) prior to 12:00 noon, New York City time, on the date when due, in immediately available funds, without defense, deduction, recoupment, set-off or counterclaim. Fees, once paid, shall be fully earned and shall not be refundable under any circumstances, absent manifest error. Any amounts received after such time on any date may, in the discretion of the Administrative Agent, be deemed to have been received on the next succeeding Business Day for purposes of calculating interest thereon. All such payments shall be made to the Administrative Agent at its offices specified in Section  12.01 , except that payments pursuant to Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 shall be made directly to the Persons entitled thereto. The Administrative Agent shall distribute any such payments received by it for the account of any other Person to the appropriate recipient promptly following receipt thereof. If any payment hereunder shall be due on a day that is not a Business Day, the date for payment shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day, and, in the case of any payment accruing interest, interest thereon shall be payable for the period of such extension. All payments hereunder shall be made in dollars.

 

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(b) Application of Insufficient Payments . If at any time insufficient funds are received by and available to the Administrative Agent to pay fully all amounts of principal, interest and fees then due hereunder, such funds shall be applied towards payment of interest and fees then due hereunder, ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of interest and fees then due to such parties ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of principal then due to such parties.

(c) Sharing of Payments by Lenders . If any Lender shall, by exercising any right of set-off or counterclaim or otherwise, obtain payment in respect of any principal of or interest on any of its Loans resulting in such Lender receiving payment of a greater proportion of the aggregate amount of its Loans and accrued interest thereon than the proportion received by any other Lender, then the Lender receiving such greater proportion shall purchase (for cash at face value) participations in the Loans of other Lenders to the extent necessary so that the benefit of all such payments shall be shared by the Lenders ratably in accordance with the aggregate amount of principal of and accrued interest on their respective Loans; provided that (i) if any such participations are purchased and all or any portion of the payment giving rise thereto is recovered, such participations shall be rescinded and the purchase price restored to the extent of such recovery, without interest, and (ii) the provisions of this Section 4.01(c) shall not be construed to apply to any payment made by the Borrower pursuant to and in accordance with the express terms of this Agreement or any payment obtained by a Lender as consideration for the assignment of or sale of a participation in any of its Loans to any assignee or participant, other than to the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary thereof (as to which the provisions of this Section 4.01(c) shall apply). The Borrower consents to the foregoing and agrees, to the extent it may effectively do so under applicable law, that any Lender acquiring a participation pursuant to the foregoing arrangements may exercise against the Borrower rights of setoff and counterclaim with respect to such participation as fully as if such Lender were a direct creditor of the Borrower in the amount of such participation.

Section 4.02 Presumption of Payment by the Borrower . Unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from the Borrower prior to the date on which any payment is due to the Administrative Agent for the account of the Lenders that the Borrower will not make such payment, the Administrative Agent may assume that the Borrower has made such payment on such date in accordance herewith and may, in reliance upon such assumption, distribute to the Lenders, as the case may be, the amount due. In such event, if the Borrower has not in fact made such payment, then each of the Lenders severally agrees to repay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand the amount so distributed to such Lender with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such amount is distributed to it to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation.

Section 4.03 Deductions by the Administrative Agent . If any Lender shall fail to make any payment required to be made by it pursuant to Section 2.05(b) or Section  4.02 , or otherwise hereunder, then the Administrative Agent may, in its sole discretion (notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof), (a) apply any amounts thereafter received by the Administrative Agent for the account of such Lender to satisfy such Lender’s obligations under such Sections until all such unsatisfied obligations are fully paid or (b) hold any such amounts in a segregated account as cash collateral for, and application to, any future funding obligations of such Lender hereunder, in the case of each of (i) and (ii) above, in any order as determined by the Administrative Agent in its discretion.

Section 4.04 Collection of Proceeds of Production . The Security Instruments contain an assignment by the Borrower and/or the Guarantors to and in favor of the Collateral Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties of all of the Borrower’s or each Guarantor’s interest in and to production and all proceeds attributable thereto which may be produced from or allocated to the Mortgaged Property. The

 

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Security Instruments further provide in general for the application of such proceeds to the satisfaction of the Obligations and other obligations described therein and secured thereby. Notwithstanding the assignment contained in such Security Instruments, unless an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders will neither notify the purchaser or purchasers of such production nor take any other action to cause such proceeds to be remitted to the Collateral Agent, the Administrative Agent or the Lenders, but the Lenders will instead permit such proceeds to be paid to the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and the Lenders hereby authorize the Administrative Agent or the Collateral Agent to take such actions as may be necessary to cause such proceeds to be paid to the Borrower and the other Credit Parties.

ARTICLE V

INCREASED COSTS; BREAK FUNDING PAYMENTS; TAXES; ILLEGALITY

Section 5.01 Increased Costs .

(a) Eurodollar Changes in Law . If any Change in Law shall:

(i) impose, modify or deem applicable any reserve, special deposit, compulsory loan, insurance charge or similar requirement against assets of, deposits with or for the account of, or credit extended by, any Lender (except any such reserve requirement reflected in the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate); or

(ii) subject the Administrative Agent or any Lender to any Taxes (other than (A) Indemnified Taxes, (B) Taxes described in clauses (b) through (d) of the definition of Excluded Taxes and (C) Other Connection Taxes) on its Loans, Loan principal, Commitments, or other obligations, or its deposits, reserves, other liabilities or capital attributable thereto; or

(iii) impose on any Lender or the London interbank market any other condition, cost or expense (other than Taxes) affecting this Agreement or Eurodollar Loans made by such Lender;

and the result of any of the foregoing shall be to increase the cost to such Lender of making, converting to, continuing or maintaining any Eurodollar Loan (or of maintaining its obligation to make any such Loan) or to reduce the amount of any sum received or receivable by such Lender in respect of any Eurodollar Loan (whether of principal, interest or otherwise), then the Borrower will pay to such Lender such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender for such additional costs incurred or reduction suffered.

(b) Capital Requirements . If any Lender determines that any Change in Law regarding capital or liquidity requirements has or would have the effect of reducing the rate of return on such Lender’s capital or liquidity or on the capital or liquidity of such Lender’s holding company, if any, as a consequence of this Agreement or the Loans made by such Lender to a level below that which such Lender or such Lender’s holding company could have achieved but for such Change in Law (taking into consideration such Lender’s policies and the policies of such Lender’s holding company with respect to capital adequacy and liquidity), then from time to time, upon receipt of a certificate described in the following subsection (c) the Borrower will pay to such Lender such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender or such Lender’s holding company for any such reduction suffered.

(c) Certificates . A certificate of a Lender setting forth the amount or amounts necessary to compensate such Lender or its holding company, as the case may be, as specified in Section 5.01(a) or (b)  shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender the amount shown as due on any such certificate within ten days after receipt thereof.

 

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(d) Effect of Failure or Delay in Requesting Compensation . Failure or delay on the part of any Lender to demand compensation pursuant to this Section  5.01 shall not constitute a waiver of such Lender’s right to demand such compensation; provided that the Borrower shall not be required to compensate a Lender pursuant to this Section  5.01 for any increased costs or reductions incurred more than six months prior to the date that such Lender, as the case may be, notifies the Borrower of the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions and of such Lender’s intention to claim compensation therefor; provided further that, if the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions is retroactive, then the six month period referred to above shall be extended to include the period of retroactive effect thereof.

Section 5.02 Break Funding Payments . In the event of (a) the payment of any principal of any Eurodollar Loan other than on the last day of an Interest Period applicable thereto (including as a result of an Event of Default), (b) the conversion of any Eurodollar Loan into an ABR Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto, (c) the failure to borrow, convert or continue any Eurodollar Loan on the date specified in any notice delivered pursuant hereto, or (d) the assignment of any Eurodollar Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto as a result of a request by the Borrower pursuant to Section  5.05 , then, in any such event, the Borrower shall compensate each Lender for the loss, cost and expense attributable to such event. In the case of a Eurodollar Loan, such loss, cost or expense to any Lender shall be deemed to be the excess, if any, of (x) the amount of interest which would have accrued on the principal amount of such Loan had such event not occurred, at the Adjusted Eurodollar Rate that would have been applicable to such Loan, for the period from the date of such event to the last day of the then current Interest Period therefor (or, in the case of a failure to borrow, convert or continue, for the period that would have been the Interest Period for such Loan), over (y) the amount of interest which would accrue on such principal amount for such period at the interest rate which such Lender would bid were it to bid, at the commencement of such period, for dollar deposits of a comparable amount and period from other banks in the eurodollar market.

A certificate of any Lender setting forth any amount or amounts that such Lender is entitled to receive pursuant to this Section  5.02 shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender the amount shown as due on any such certificate within thirty days after receipt thereof.

Section 5.03 Taxes .

(a) Defined Terms . For purposes of this Section 5.03, the term “applicable law” includes FATCA.

(b) Payments Free of Taxes . Any and all payments by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower or any Guarantor under any Loan Document shall be made free and clear of and without deduction for any Indemnified Taxes; provided that if an applicable Withholding Agent shall be required to deduct any Indemnified Taxes from such payments (as determined in the good faith of an applicable Withholding Agent), then (i) the sum payable shall be increased as necessary so that after making all required deductions (including deductions applicable to additional sums payable under this Section 5.03(b) ), the Administrative Agent, any Lender receives an amount equal to the sum it would have received had no such deductions been made, (ii) the Borrower or such Guarantor shall make such deductions and (iii) the Borrower or such Guarantor shall pay the full amount deducted to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law.

 

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(c) Payment of Other Taxes by the Borrower . The Borrower shall timely pay any Other Taxes to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law, or at the option of the Administrative Agent, timely reimburse it for the payment of, any Other Taxes that have been paid by the Administrative Agent.

(d) Indemnification by the Borrower . The Borrower shall indemnify each Recipient, within thirty days after demand therefor, for the full amount of any Indemnified Taxes paid or payable by such Recipient, or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to such Recipient, on or with respect to any payment by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower hereunder (including Indemnified Taxes imposed or asserted on or attributable to amounts payable under this Section  5.03 ) and any penalties, interest and reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Indemnified Taxes were correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate of the Administrative Agent, a Lender as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to the Borrower by a Lender (with a copy to the Administrative Agent) or by the Administrative Agent on its own behalf or on behalf of a Lender, shall be conclusive absent manifest error.

(e) Indemnification by the Lenders . Each Lender shall severally indemnify the Administrative Agent, within ten days after demand therefor, for (i) any Indemnified Taxes attributable to such Lender (but only to the extent that the Borrower has not already indemnified the Administrative Agent for such Indemnified Taxes and without limiting the obligation of the Borrower to do so), (ii) any Taxes attributable to such Lender’s failure to comply with the provisions of Section  12.04 relating to the maintenance of a Participant Register and (iii) any Excluded Taxes attributable to such Lender, in each case, that are payable or paid by the Administrative Agent in connection with any Loan Document, and any reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Taxes were correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to any Lender by the Administrative Agent shall be conclusive absent manifest error. Each Lender hereby authorizes the Administrative Agent to set off and apply any and all amounts at any time owing to such Lender under any Loan Document or otherwise payable by the Administrative Agent to the Lender from any other source against any amount due to the Administrative Agent under this paragraph (e).

(f) Evidence of Payments . As soon as practicable after any payment of Indemnified Taxes by the Borrower or a Guarantor to a Governmental Authority, the Borrower or Guarantor shall deliver to the Administrative Agent the original or a certified copy of a receipt issued by such Governmental Authority evidencing such payment, a copy of the return reporting such payment or other evidence of such payment reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(g) Status of Lenders .

(i) Any Lender that is entitled to an exemption from or reduction of withholding Tax under the law of the jurisdiction in which the Borrower is located, or any treaty to which such jurisdiction is a party, with respect to payments under this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, at the time or times reasonably requested by Borrower or the Administrative Agent, such properly completed and executed documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will permit such payments to be made without withholding or at a reduced rate. In addition, any Lender, if reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, shall deliver such other documentation prescribed by applicable law or reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will enable the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine whether or not such Lender is subject to backup withholding or information reporting requirements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the preceding two sentences, the completion,

 

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execution, and submission of such documentation (other than such documentation set forth in Section 5.03(g)(ii)(A) , (ii)(B) , or (ii)(D) below) shall not be required if in the Lender’s reasonable judgment such completion, execution or submission would subject such Lender to any material unreimbursed cost or expense or would materially prejudice the legal or commercial position of such Lender. For purposes of this Section 5.03(g) , the term “Lender” shall include the Administrative Agent.

(ii) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing:

(A) any Lender that is a U.S. Person shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent on or prior to the date on which such Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), executed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-9 certifying that such Lender is exempt from U.S. federal backup withholding tax;

(B) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), whichever of the following is applicable:

(1) in the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of an income tax treaty to which the United States is a party, duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, claiming eligibility for benefits of an income tax treaty to which the United States is a party,

(2) duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI,

(3) in the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of the exemption for portfolio interest under section 881(c) of the Code, (x) a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-1 to the effect that such Foreign Lender is not a “bank” within the meaning of section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, a “10 percent shareholder” of the Borrower within the meaning of section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code, or a “controlled foreign corporation” described in section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code (a “ U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate ”) and (y) duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable;

(4) to the extent a Foreign Lender is not the beneficial owner, executed originals of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8IMY, accompanied by Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI, Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-2 or Exhibit G-3 , Internal Revenue Service Form W-9, and/or other certification documents from each beneficial owner, as applicable; provided that if the Foreign Lender is a partnership and one or more direct or indirect partners of such Foreign Lender are claiming the portfolio interest exemption, such Foreign Lender may provide a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-4 on behalf of each such direct and indirect partner; or

(C) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), executed copies of any other form prescribed by applicable law as a basis for

 

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claiming exemption from or a reduction in U.S. Federal withholding Tax duly completed together with such supplementary documentation as may be prescribed by applicable law to permit the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine the withholding or deduction required to be made; and

(D) if a payment made to a Lender under any Loan Document would be subject to U.S. Federal withholding Tax imposed by FATCA if such Lender were to fail to comply with the applicable reporting requirements of FATCA (including those contained in Section 1471(b) or 1472(b) of the Code, as applicable), such Lender shall deliver to the Borrower and Administrative Agent, at the time or times prescribed by law and at such time or times reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, such documentation prescribed by applicable law (including as prescribed by Section 1471(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Code) and such additional documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as may be necessary for Borrower and the Administrative Agent to comply with its obligations under FATCA and to determine that such Lender has complied with such Lender’s obligations under FATCA or to determine the amount to deduct and withhold from such payment. Solely for purposes of this clause (D), “FATCA” shall include any amendments made to FATCA after the date of this Agreement.

Each Lender agrees that if any form or certification it previously delivered expires or becomes obsolete or inaccurate in any respect, it shall update such form or certification or promptly notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent in writing of its legal inability to do so.

(h) Treatment of Certain Refunds . If the Administrative Agent or a Lender determines, that it has received a refund of any Indemnified Taxes as to which it has been indemnified by the Borrower or with respect to which the Borrower has paid additional amounts pursuant to this Section  5.03 , it shall pay to the Borrower an amount equal to such refund (but only to the extent of indemnity payments made, or additional amounts paid, by the Borrower under this Section  5.03 with respect to the Indemnified Taxes giving rise to such refund), net of all out-of-pocket expenses of the Administrative Agent or such Lender and without interest (other than any interest paid by the relevant Governmental Authority with respect to such refund). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this paragraph (h), in no event will the indemnified party be required to pay any amount to the Borrower pursuant to this paragraph (h) to the extent such payment would place the indemnified party in a less favorable net after-Tax position than the indemnified party would have been in if the Tax subject to indemnification and giving rise to such refund had not been deducted, withheld or otherwise imposed and the indemnification payments or additional amounts with respect to such Tax had never been paid. This paragraph shall not be construed to require any indemnified party to make available its Tax returns (or any other information relating to its Taxes that it deems confidential) to the Borrower or any other Person.

(i) Survival . Each party’s obligations under this Section  5.03 shall survive the resignation or replacement of the Administrative Agent or any assignment of rights by, or the replacement of, a Lender, the termination of the Commitments and the repayment, satisfaction or discharge of all obligations under any Loan Document.

Section 5.04 Mitigation Obligations; Designation of Different Lending Office . If any Lender requests compensation under Section  5.01 , or if the Borrower is required to pay any additional amount to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section  5.03 , then such Lender shall (at the request of Borrower) use reasonable efforts to designate a different lending office for funding or booking its Loans hereunder or to assign its rights and obligations hereunder to another of its offices, branches or affiliates, if, in the judgment of such Lender, such designation or assignment would eliminate or reduce amounts payable pursuant to Section  5.01 or Section  5.03 , as the case may be, in the future and would not subject such Lender to any unreimbursed cost or expense and would not otherwise be disadvantageous to such Lender. The Borrower hereby agrees to pay all reasonable costs and expenses incurred by any Lender in connection with any such designation or assignment.

 

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Section 5.05 Replacement of Lenders . If (a) any Lender requests compensation under Section  5.01 , (b) the Borrower is required to pay any additional amount to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section  5.03 , and such Lender has not prevented such required payment by designating a different lending office in accordance with Section  5.04 , or (c) any Lender has given notice pursuant to Section  5.06 that it is unable to make or maintain Eurodollar Loans but Lenders constituting Majority Lenders have not given such notice, then the Borrower may, at its sole expense and effort, upon notice to such Lender and the Administrative Agent, require such Lender to assign and delegate, without recourse (in accordance with and subject to the restrictions contained in Section 12.04(b) ), all its interests, rights (other than its existing rights to payments pursuant to Section  5.01 or Section  5.03 ) and obligations under this Agreement to an assignee that shall assume such obligations (which assignee may be another Lender, if a Lender accepts such assignment); provided that (i) the Borrower shall have paid to the Administrative Agent the assignment fee specified in Section 12.04(b)(ii)(C) , (ii) if such assignee is not already a Lender, the Borrower shall have received the prior written consent of the Administrative Agent, which consent shall not unreasonably be withheld, (iii) such assigning Lender shall have received payment of an amount equal to the outstanding principal of its Loans, accrued interest thereon, accrued fees and all other amounts payable to it hereunder and under the other Loan Documents (including any amounts under Section  5.02 ), from the assignee (to the extent of such outstanding principal and accrued interest and fees) or the Borrower (in the case of all other amounts), (iv) in the case of any such assignment resulting from a claim for compensation under Section  5.01 or payments required to be made pursuant to Section  5.03 , such assignment will result in a reduction in such compensation or payments, and (v) such assignment does not conflict with applicable law. A Lender shall not be required to make any such assignment and delegation if, prior thereto, as a result of a waiver by such Lender or otherwise, the circumstances entitling the Borrower to require such assignment and delegation cease to apply.

Section 5.06 Illegality . Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, in the event that it becomes unlawful for any Lender or its applicable lending office to honor its obligation to make or maintain Eurodollar Loans either generally or having a particular Interest Period hereunder, then (a) such Lender shall promptly notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent thereof and such Lender’s obligation to make such Eurodollar Loans shall be suspended (the “ Affected Loans ”) until such time as such Lender may again make and maintain such Eurodollar Loans and (b) all Affected Loans which would otherwise be made by such Lender shall be made instead as ABR Loans (and, if such Lender so requests by notice to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, all Affected Loans of such Lender then outstanding shall be automatically converted into ABR Loans on the date specified by such Lender in such notice) and, to the extent that Affected Loans are so made as (or converted into) ABR Loans, all payments of principal which would otherwise be applied to such Lender’s Affected Loans shall be applied instead to its ABR Loans.

ARTICLE VI

CONDITIONS PRECEDENT

Section 6.01 Effective Date . The rights and obligations under this Agreement (including the obligations of the Lenders to make Loans hereunder) shall not become effective until the date on which

 

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each of the following conditions has been satisfied (or waived in accordance with Section  12.02 ) on April 12, 2017 (and, if not satisfied prior to such time, this Agreement shall be null and void and of no force and effect):

(a) The Administrative Agent, the Arrangers and the Lenders shall have received all commitment and agency fees and all other fees and amounts due and payable on or prior to the Effective Date, including, without duplication, (i) fees payable pursuant to Section 3.05(b) , (ii) fees payable pursuant to the Fee Letters and (iii) to the extent invoiced at least two Business Days prior to the Effective Date, reimbursement or payment of all out-of-pocket expenses required to be reimbursed or paid by the Borrower hereunder (including the fees and expenses of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, counsel to the Administrative Agent).

(b) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of the Secretary, Assistant Secretary or a Responsible Officer of the Borrower and each Guarantor setting forth (i) resolutions of the members, board of directors or other appropriate governing body with respect to the authorization of the Borrower or such Guarantor to execute and deliver the Loan Documents to which it is a party and to enter into the transactions contemplated in those documents, (ii) the officers of the Borrower or such Guarantor who are authorized to sign the Loan Documents to which the Borrower or such Guarantor is a party and who will, until replaced by another officer or officers duly authorized for that purpose, act as its representative for the purposes of signing documents and giving notices and other communications in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby, (iii) specimen signatures of such authorized officers, and (iv) the limited liability company agreement, the articles or certificate of incorporation and bylaws (or comparable organizational documents) of the Borrower and such Guarantor, certified as being true and complete. The Administrative Agent and the Lenders may conclusively rely on such certificate until the Administrative Agent receives notice in writing from the Borrower to the contrary.

(c) The Administrative Agent shall have received certificates of the appropriate State agencies with respect to the existence and good standing of the Borrower and each other Credit Party.

(d) On the Effective Date, the representations and warranties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties contained in Article VII shall be true and correct in all material respects (except in the case of any representation or warranty which expressly relates to a given date or period, such representation or warranty shall be true and correct in all material respects as of the respective date or for the respective period, as the case may be); provided , that to the extent that any representation or warranty is qualified by or subject to a “material adverse effect”, “material adverse change” or similar term or qualification, the same shall be true and correct in all respects.

(e) The Administrative Agent shall have received from each party hereto counterparts (in such number as may be requested by the Administrative Agent) of this Agreement signed on behalf of such party.

(f) The Administrative Agent shall have received a duly executed Note payable to each Lender that has requested a Note at least two days before the Effective Date in a principal amount equal to its Commitment dated as of the date hereof.

(g) The Administrative Agent shall have received from each party thereto duly executed counterparts (in such number as may be requested by the Administrative Agent) of the Security Instruments described on Exhibit E . Except as otherwise set forth in Section  8.20 , in connection with the execution and delivery of the Security Instruments, the Administrative Agent shall be reasonably satisfied that the Liens under the Security Instruments will, upon the recording of the Security Instruments, be first priority, perfected Liens (subject only to Permitted Liens) on all other Property purported to be pledged as Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments (including all of the Equity Interests in the Borrower and each Restricted Subsidiary that are owned by a Credit Party (and to the extent any such Equity Interests are certificated, the Borrower shall also have caused the applicable Credit Party to deliver to the Collateral Agent the original stock certificates evidencing such Equity Interests together with an appropriate undated stock power for each certificate duly executed in blank by the registered owner thereof).

 

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(h) The Administrative Agent shall have received an opinion of Kirkland and Ellis LLP, special New York counsel to the Borrower and the Guarantors, and local counsel in the Yukon Territory, in each case in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(i) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of insurance coverage of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties evidencing that the Borrower and the other Credit Parties are carrying insurance in accordance with Section  7.12 .

(j) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of a Responsible Officer of Borrower certifying that Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, on a consolidated basis after giving effect to the Transactions, are solvent.

(k) The Administrative Agent shall have received the Initial Reserve Report, which shall be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(l) The Administrative Agent shall have received appropriate Uniform Commercial Code search certificates reflecting no prior Liens encumbering the Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties for the State of Delaware and the State of Pennsylvania, as applicable, and any other jurisdiction reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent, other than those being released on or prior to the Effective Date or Permitted Liens.

(m) To the extent requested in writing by the Administrative Agent at least 8 Business Days prior to the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall have received, at least three (3) Business Days prior to the Effective Date, and be reasonably satisfied in form and substance with, all documentation and other information required by bank regulatory authorities under applicable “know-your-customer” and anti-money laundering rules and regulations, including but not restricted to the USA PATRIOT Act.

(n) As of the Effective Date, after giving effect to the Transactions (including the Borrowings hereunder), the amount of (i) cash and Cash Equivalents of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries on such date plus (ii) the amount by which the Total Commitments (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement) shall exceed the total Revolving Credit Exposure shall not be less than $300,000,000.

(o) The Confirmation Order shall be in full force and effect, not subject to any stay, nor shall it have been amended or modified in any manner adverse to the Lenders without the consent of the Majority Lenders.

(p) All conditions precedent to confirmation and to effectiveness of the Plan of Reorganization shall have been satisfied or waived to the reasonable satisfaction of the Administrative Agent, the Plan Effective Date shall have occurred or shall occur substantially contemporaneously with the Effective Date, and the substantial consummation (as defined in section 1101 of the Bankruptcy Code) of the Plan of Reorganization in accordance with its terms shall occur substantially contemporaneously with the Plan Effective Date.

 

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(q) Since the date of entry of the Disclosure Statement Order with respect to the Chapter 11 Cases, there shall not have occurred a Material Adverse Effect or any event or occurrence which could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(r) The Administrative Agent shall have received or shall have available on-line through the “Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval” system (or any successor system thereof) maintained by the SEC (or any succeeding governmental authority) (i) audited consolidated balance sheets and related statements of income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for the three most recently completed fiscal years ended at least 105 days before the Effective Date and (ii) unaudited consolidated balance sheets and related statements of income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for each subsequent fiscal quarter (other than the fourth fiscal quarter of any fiscal year) ended at least 55 days before the Effective Date (in each case, together with the corresponding comparative period from the prior fiscal year).

Without limiting the generality of the provisions of Section  11.04 , for purposes of determining compliance with the conditions specified in this Section  6.01 , each Lender that has signed this Agreement shall be deemed to have consented to, approved or accepted or to be satisfied with, each document or other matter required under this Section  6.01 to be consented to or approved by or acceptable to a Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from such Lender prior to the Effective Date specifying its objection thereto. All documents executed or submitted pursuant to this Section  6.01 by and on behalf of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall be in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and its counsel. The Administrative Agent shall notify the Borrower and the Lenders of the Effective Date, and such notice shall be conclusive and binding.

ARTICLE VII

REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

Parent Guarantor and the Borrower jointly and severally represent and warrant to the Lenders that:

Section 7.01 Organization; Powers . The Borrower and each other Credit Party is duly organized, validly existing and, to the extent applicable, in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, has all requisite power and authority, and has all material governmental licenses, authorizations, consents and approvals necessary, to own its assets and to carry on its business as now conducted, and is qualified to do business in, and is in good standing in, every jurisdiction where such qualification is required, except where failure to have such power, authority, licenses, authorizations, consents, approvals and qualifications could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 7.02 Authority; Enforceability . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Transactions are within the Borrower’s and each Guarantor’s corporate, limited liability company, or partnership powers and have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate, limited liability company or partnership action and, if required, action by any holders of its Equity Interests (including any action required to be taken by any class of directors, managers or supervisors, whether interested or disinterested, as applicable, of the Borrower or any other Person, in order to ensure the due authorization of the Transactions). Each Loan Document to which the Borrower and each Guarantor is a party has been duly executed and delivered by the Borrower and such Guarantor and constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Borrower and such Guarantor, as applicable, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and subject to general principles of equity, regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law.

 

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Section 7.03 Approvals; No Conflicts . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Transactions (a) do not require any consent or approval of, registration or filing with, or any other action by, any Governmental Authority or any other third Person (including holders of its Equity Interests or any class of directors, managers or supervisors, as applicable, whether interested or disinterested, of the Borrower or any other Person), nor is any such consent, approval, registration, filing or other action necessary for the validity or enforceability of any Loan Document or the consummation of the Transactions, except such as have been obtained or made and are in full force and effect, other than (i) the recording and filing of the Security Instruments as required by this Agreement, and (ii) those third party approvals or consents which, if not made or obtained, would not cause a Default or an Event of Default under any provision of this Agreement other than this Section  7.03 or could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, (b) will not violate any applicable law or regulation or the limited liability company agreements, charter, by-laws or other organizational documents of the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any order of any Governmental Authority, (c) will not violate or result in a default under any indenture or other agreement regarding Debt binding upon the Borrower or any other Credit Party or its Properties, or give rise to a right thereunder to require any payment to be made by the Borrower or Credit Party and (d) will not result in the creation or imposition of any Lien on any Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party (other than the Liens created by the Loan Documents).

Section 7.04 Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change .

(a) The Borrower has heretofore furnished to the Lenders Ultra Petroleum’s consolidated balance sheet and statements of income, stockholders equity and cash flows as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, reported on by Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants. Such financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position and results of operations and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries as of such dates and for such periods in accordance with GAAP, subject to year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes in the case of the unaudited quarterly financial statements.

(b) No Material Adverse Effect has occurred since the date of entry of the Disclosure Statement Order with respect to the Chapter 11 Cases.

(c) Except as listed on Schedule 7.04(c) , none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary has on the date hereof after giving effect to the Transactions, any material Debt (including Disqualified Capital Stock) or any material off-balance sheet liabilities or partnership liabilities that would be required by GAAP to be reflected or noted in audited financial statements, material liabilities for past due taxes, or any unusual forward or long-term commitments or unrealized or anticipated losses from any such unfavorable commitments, except as referred to or reflected or provided for in the financial statements referred to in Section 7.04(a) and the other written information provided by Borrower to Administrative Agent and the Lenders prior to the date hereof.

Section 7.05 Litigation . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization and except as set forth on Schedule 7.05 , there are no actions, suits, investigations or proceedings by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority pending against or, to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, threatened against or affecting the Borrower or any other Credit Party (i) not fully covered by insurance (except for normal deductibles), that could reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect or (ii) that are non-frivolous and challenge the validity or enforceability of any Loan Document.

 

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Section 7.06 Environmental Matters . Except for matters set forth on Schedule 7.06 or that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect:

(a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and each of their respective Properties and operations thereon are, and within all applicable statute of limitation periods have been, in compliance with all applicable Environmental Laws;

(b) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries have obtained all Environmental Permits required for their respective operations and each of their Properties, with all such Environmental Permits being currently in full force and effect, and none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the Subsidiaries has received any written notice or otherwise has knowledge that any such existing Environmental Permit will be revoked or that any application for any new Environmental Permit or renewal of any existing Environmental Permit will be denied;

(c) there are no claims, demands, suits, orders, inquiries, or proceedings concerning any violation of, or any liability (including as a potentially responsible party) under, any applicable Environmental Laws that is pending or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened against Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary or any of their respective Properties or as a result of any operations at such Properties;

(d) none of the Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary contain or have contained any: underground storage tanks; asbestos-containing materials; landfills or dumps; hazardous waste management units as defined pursuant to RCRA or any comparable state law; or sites on or nominated for the National Priority List promulgated pursuant to CERCLA or any state remedial priority list promulgated or published pursuant to any comparable state law, in each case that would reasonably be expected to result in liability under Environmental Law;

(e) there has been no Release or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened Release, of Hazardous Materials at, on, under or from Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties, there are no investigations, remediations, abatements, removals, or monitorings of Hazardous Materials required under applicable Environmental Laws at such Properties and, to the knowledge of the Borrower, none of such Properties are adversely affected by any Release or threatened Release of a Hazardous Material originating or emanating from any other real property;

(f) none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary has received any written notice asserting an alleged liability or obligation under any applicable Environmental Laws with respect to the investigation, remediation, abatement, removal, or monitoring of any Hazardous Materials at, under, or Released or threatened to be Released from any real properties offsite Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties and, to the Borrower’s knowledge, there are no conditions or circumstances that could reasonably be expected to result in the receipt of such written notice;

(g) there has been no exposure of any Person or Property to any Hazardous Materials as a result of or in connection with the operations and businesses of any of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or the Subsidiaries’ Properties that could reasonably be expected to form the basis for a claim for damages or compensation; and

(h) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have made available to the Administrative Agent complete and correct copies of all material environmental site assessment reports, and studies on

 

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environmental matters (including matters relating to any alleged non-compliance with or liability under Environmental Laws) that have been prepared within the last three (3) years and are in Parent Guarantor’s or the Borrower’s possession and relating to Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties or operations thereon.

Section 7.07 Compliance with the Laws and Agreements; No Defaults .

(a) After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries is in compliance with all Governmental Requirements applicable to it or its Property and all agreements and other instruments binding upon it or its Property, except where failure to comply could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, and possesses all licenses, permits, franchises, exemptions, approvals and other governmental authorizations necessary for the ownership of its Property and the conduct of its business, except where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) Neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is in default nor has any Change in Control or similar event or circumstance occurred that, but for the expiration of any applicable grace period or the giving of notice, or both, would constitute a default under, or would require the Borrower or any other Credit Party to Redeem or make any offer to Redeem under, any indenture, note, credit agreement or similar instrument pursuant to which any Material Debt is outstanding or by which the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any of their Properties is bound.

(c) No Default has occurred and is continuing.

Section 7.08 Investment Company Act . Neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is required to register as an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an entity required to register as “investment company,” within the meaning of, or subject to regulation under, the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

Section 7.09 Taxes . Each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries has timely filed or caused to be filed all federal income Tax returns and reports, and all other material Tax returns and reports, required to have been filed and has paid or caused to be paid all Taxes required to have been paid by it (in each case, for the avoidance of doubt and to the extent applicable, after giving effect to the Confirmation Order and Plan of Reorganization), except (a) Taxes that are being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and for which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary, as applicable, has set aside on its books adequate reserves in accordance with GAAP or (b) to the extent that the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries in respect of Taxes and other governmental charges are, in the reasonable opinion of the Borrower, adequate. No Tax Lien (other than an Excepted Lien) has been filed and, to the knowledge of the Borrower, no claim is being asserted with respect to any such Tax or other such governmental charge.

Section 7.10 ERISA . Except for such matters that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect:

(a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiaries and each ERISA Affiliate is in material compliance with ERISA and, where applicable, the Code regarding each Plan.

(b) Each Plan is, and has been, established and maintained in substantial compliance with its terms, ERISA and, where applicable, the Code.

 

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(c) No act, omission or transaction has occurred which could result in the imposition on Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary (whether directly or indirectly) of either a civil penalty assessed pursuant to subsections (i) or (l) of section 502 of ERISA or a tax imposed pursuant to section 4975 of the Code or breach of fiduciary duty liability damages under section 409 of ERISA.

(d) Full payment when due has been made of all amounts which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiaries or any ERISA Affiliate is required under the terms of each Plan or applicable law to have paid as contributions to such Plan as of the date hereof.

(e) None of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Subsidiary, or any ERISA Affiliate sponsors, maintains, or contributes to an employee welfare benefit plan, as defined in section 3(1) of ERISA that provides benefits to retirees or former employees of such entities, with respect to which its sponsorship of, maintenance of or contribution to may not be terminated by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or an ERISA Affiliate, as the case may be, in its sole discretion at any time without any material liability to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary other than for benefits due as of, or claims incurred prior to, the effective date of such termination, except where such a termination is not allowed under applicable law (including, but not limited to, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985).

Section 7.11 Disclosure; No Material Misstatements . The certificates, written statements and reports, and other written information, taken as a whole, furnished by or on behalf of the Borrower or any Guarantor to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders in connection with the negotiation of any Loan Document or included therein or delivered pursuant thereto, do not contain any material misstatement of fact or omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were or are made, not misleading as of the date such information is dated or certified; provided that (a) to the extent any such certificate, statement, report, or information was based upon or constitutes a forecast or projection, the Borrower represents only that it acted in good faith and utilized reasonable assumptions and due care in the preparation of such certificate, statement, report, or information (it being recognized by the Lenders, however, that projections as to future events are not to be viewed as facts and that results during the period(s) covered by such projections may differ from the projected results and that such differences may be material and that the Borrower makes no representation that such projections will be realized) and (b) as to statements, information and reports supplied by third parties, the Borrower represents only that it is not aware of any material misstatement or omission therein. There are no statements or conclusions in any Reserve Report which are based upon or include material misleading information or fail to take into account known material information regarding the matters reported therein, it being understood that projections concerning volumes attributable to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and production and cost estimates contained in each Reserve Report are necessarily based upon professional opinions, estimates and projections and that the Borrower and the other Credit Parties do not warrant that such opinions, estimates and projections will ultimately prove to have been accurate.

Section 7.12 Insurance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have, and have caused the Restricted Subsidiaries to have, (a) all insurance policies sufficient for the compliance by each of them with all material Governmental Requirements and all material agreements and (b) insurance coverage in such amounts and against such risks as are usually insured against by companies similarly situated and engaged in the same or a similar business for the assets and operations of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries (it being understood and agreed that the Borrower and its Subsidiaries may self-insure to the extent and in a manner customary for companies engaged in the same or similar business of similar size and financial condition). The Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and the Lenders have been named as additional insureds in respect of such liability insurance policies and the Collateral Agent has been named as a loss payee with respect to such property loss insurance covering Collateral.

 

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Section 7.13 Restriction on Liens . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is a party to any material agreement or arrangement, or subject to any order, judgment, writ or decree, that restricts its ability to grant Liens to the Administrative Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties on or in respect of their Properties to secure the Debt under the Loan Documents, or restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from paying dividends or making any other distributions in respect of its Equity Interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, or restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from making loans or advances to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, or which requires the consent of other Persons in connection therewith, except, in each case, for such encumbrances or restrictions permitted under Section  9.14 .

Section 7.14 Subsidiaries . Except as set forth on Schedule 7.14 or as disclosed in writing to the Administrative Agent from time to time (which shall promptly furnish a copy to the Lenders), which shall upon disclosure be deemed a supplement to Schedule 7.14 , neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party has any subsidiaries (other than subsidiaries of Unrestricted Subsidiaries). Neither Parent Guarantor nor the Borrower has any Foreign Subsidiaries. Schedule 7.14 identifies, as of the Effective Date, each subsidiary listed thereon as either a Restricted Subsidiary, Unrestricted Subsidiary or Unrestricted Parent Entity, and each Restricted Subsidiary on such schedule is wholly-owned by the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary. As of the Effective Date, Schedule 7.14 sets forth each Person (other than a subsidiary) in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary owns Equity Interests and the percentage of all Equity Interests in such Person owned by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 7.15 Location of Business and Offices . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Borrower’s jurisdiction of organization is Delaware, the name of the Borrower as listed in the public records of its jurisdiction of organization is Ultra Resources, Inc., and the organizational identification number of the Borrower in its jurisdiction of organization is 6357887 (or, in each case, as set forth in a notice delivered to the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 8.01( i ) in accordance with Section  12.01 ). The Borrower’s chief executive offices are located at the address specified in Section  12.01 (or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01( i ) and Section 12.01(c) ). Each Guarantor’s jurisdiction of organization, name as listed in the public records of its jurisdiction of organization, organizational identification number in its jurisdiction of organization, and the location of its chief executive office is stated on Schedule 7.14 (or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01( i ) ). Each Unrestricted Subsidiary’s (other than each Unrestricted Subsidiary that is a subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary) jurisdiction of organization and name as listed in the public records of its jurisdiction of organization is stated on Schedule 7.14 (or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01( i ) ).

Section 7.16 Properties; Titles, Etc . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization:

(a) Each of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties has good and defensible title to substantially all of its Borrowing Base Properties evaluated in the most recently delivered Reserve Report and good title to all of its material personal Properties, in each case, free and clear of all Liens except Permitted Liens. The Borrower or the other Credit Parties specified as the owner owns in all material respects the net interests in production attributable to their Oil and Gas Properties as reflected in the most recently delivered Reserve Report, and the ownership of such Properties does not in any material respect obligate such Person to bear the costs and expenses relating to the maintenance, development and

 

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operations of each such Property in an amount in excess of the working interest of each Property set forth in the most recently delivered Reserve Report that is not offset by a corresponding proportionate increase in its net revenue interest in such Property or the revenues therefrom.

(b) Except as could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, (i) all material leases and agreements necessary for the conduct of the business of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and (ii) all oil and gas leases of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties are, in each case, valid and subsisting and in full force and effect, and there exists no default or event or circumstance which with the giving of notice or the passage of time or both would give rise to a default under any such lease or leases referred to in the foregoing clauses (i) and (ii).

(c) The rights and Properties presently owned, leased or licensed by the Borrower and the other Credit Parties, including all easements and rights of way, include all rights and Properties necessary to permit the Borrower and the other Credit Parties to conduct their business in all material respects in the same manner as their business has been conducted prior to the date hereof.

(d) All of the Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties which are reasonably necessary for the operation of their businesses are in good working condition and are maintained in accordance with prudent business standards.

(e) The Borrower and each other Credit Party owns, or is licensed to use, all trademarks, tradenames, copyrights, patents and other intellectual Property material to its business (including databases, geological data, geophysical data, engineering data, seismic data, maps, interpretations and other technical data), and the use thereof by the Borrower and such other Credit Party does not infringe upon the rights of any other Person, except for any such infringements that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 7.17 Maintenance of Properties . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, except for such acts or failures to act as could not be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties have been maintained, operated and developed in a good and workmanlike manner and in conformity with all applicable Governmental Requirements and in conformity with the provisions of all leases, subleases or other contracts comprising a part of the Borrowing Base Properties and other contracts and agreements forming a part of the Borrowing Base Properties.

Section 7.18 Gas Imbalances, Prepayments . Except as set forth on Schedule 7.18 or on the most recent certificate delivered pursuant to Section 8.12(c) , on a net basis there are no gas imbalances, take or pay or other prepayments which would require Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the other Credit Parties to deliver Hydrocarbons produced from their Oil and Gas Properties at some future time, without then or thereafter receiving full payment therefor, exceeding 5.0% of the aggregate annual production of gas from the Oil and Gas Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties during the most recent calendar year (on an mcf basis).

Section 7.19 Marketing of Production . Except for contracts listed and in effect on the date hereof on Schedule 7.19 , or hereafter either disclosed in writing to the Administrative Agent or included in the most recently delivered Reserve Report, no material agreements exist, which are not cancelable on 90 days’ notice or less without penalty or detriment, for the sale of the Borrower’s and the other Credit Parties’ Hydrocarbon production (including calls on or other rights to purchase, production, whether or not the same are currently being exercised) that pertain to the sale of production at a fixed price and have a maturity or expiry date of longer than six (6) months from the date hereof.

 

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Section 7.20 Swap Agreements and Qualified ECP Counterparty . Schedule 7.20 , as of the date hereof, and after the date hereof, each report required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.01(e) , as of the date of (or as of the date(s) otherwise set forth in) such report, sets forth, a true and complete list of all Swap Agreements of the Borrower and each other Credit Party, the material terms thereof (including the type, term, effective date, maturity date and notional amounts or volumes), the estimated net mark-to-market value thereof, all credit support agreements relating thereto other than Loan Documents (including any margin required or supplied) and the counterparty to each such agreement. The Borrower is a Qualified ECP Counterparty.

Section 7.21 Use of Loans . The proceeds of the Loans shall be used (a) for general corporate purposes of the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor and its Subsidiaries; (b) to fund repayment of claims under the Chapter 11 Case; and (c) to finance the acquisition and development of Oil and Gas Properties. Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries are not engaged principally, or as one of its or their important activities, in the business of extending credit for the purpose, whether immediate, incidental or ultimate, of buying or carrying margin stock (within the meaning of Regulation T, U or X of the Board). No part of the proceeds of any Loan will be used for any purpose which violates the provisions of Regulations T, U or X of the Board. The Borrower will not request any Borrowing, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not use, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall procure that their Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents shall not use, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available, the proceeds of any Borrowing to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or any other Person (a) in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment or giving of money, or anything else of value, to any Person in violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws, (b) for the purpose of funding, financing or facilitating any activities, business or transaction of or with any Sanctioned Person, or in any Sanctioned Country, or (c) in any manner that would knowingly or negligently result in the violation of any Sanctions applicable to any party hereto (whether as underwriter, advisor, investor, lender, hedge provider, facility or security agent or otherwise).

Section 7.22 Solvency . On the Effective Date, after giving effect to the Confirmation Order, the Plan of Reorganization and the transactions contemplated hereby and each Borrowing made hereunder, (a) the aggregate assets (after giving effect to amounts that could reasonably be expected to be received by reason of indemnity, offset, insurance or any similar arrangement), at a fair valuation, of the Borrower and the Guarantors, taken as a whole, exceed the aggregate Debt of the Borrower and the Guarantors on a consolidated basis, (b) each of the Borrower and the Guarantors has not incurred and does not intend to incur, and does not believe that it has incurred, Debt beyond its ability to pay such Debt (after taking into account the timing and amounts of cash it reasonably expects could be received and the amounts that it reasonably expects could be payable on or in respect of its liabilities, and giving effect to amounts that that could reasonably be expected to be received by reason of indemnity, offset, insurance or any similar arrangement) as such Debt becomes absolute and matures, and (c) each of the Borrower and the Guarantors does not have (and does not have reason to believe that it will have thereafter) unreasonably small capital for the conduct of its business.

Section 7.23 Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have implemented and maintain in effect such policies and procedures, if any, as they reasonably deem appropriate, in light of their business and international activities (if any), to ensure compliance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions, and Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and their respective officers and employees and, to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower, their respective directors and agents, are in compliance with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions in all material respects. None of (a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries or any of their respective directors, officers or employees, or (b) to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, any agent of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary that will act in

 

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any capacity in connection with or benefit from the credit facility established hereby, is a Sanctioned Person. No Borrowing, use of proceeds or other transaction contemplated by this Agreement will violate any Anti-Corruption Law or applicable Sanctions.

Section 7.24 EEA Financial Institutions . No Credit Party is an EEA Financial Institution.

Section 7.25 Senior Debt Status . The Obligations constitute “Senior Debt”, “Designated Senior Debt” or any similar designation under and as defined in any agreement governing any senior subordinated or subordinated Debt and the subordination provisions set forth in each such agreement are legally valid and enforceable against the parties thereto.

Section 7.26 Security Instruments . The Security Instruments are (or, in the case of Security Instruments executed after the Effective Date, will be) effective to create in favor of the Administrative Agent, for the benefit of the Credit Parties, a legal, valid and enforceable security interest in the Mortgaged Property and Collateral and proceeds thereof.

Section 7.27 PATRIOT Act . On the Effective Date, each Credit Party is in compliance in all material respects with the material provisions of the PATRIOT Act.

ARTICLE VIII

AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or been terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder and all other amounts payable under the Loan Documents shall have been paid in full, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

Section 8.01 Financial Statements; Other Information . The Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender:

(a) Annual Financial Statements .

(i) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Borrower, its unaudited consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its Consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied.

(ii) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of Parent Guarantor, its audited consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the previous fiscal year, all reported on by independent public accountants of recognized national standing (without a “going concern” or like qualification or exception and without any qualification or exception as to the scope of such audit) to the effect that such consolidated financial statements present fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of Parent Guarantor and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied.

 

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(b) Quarterly Financial Statements .

(i) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 60 days after the end of each of the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year of the Borrower commencing with the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017, its consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such fiscal quarter and the then elapsed portion of the fiscal year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the corresponding period or periods of (or, in the case of the balance sheet, as of the end of) the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its Consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied, subject to normal year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes.

(ii) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 60 days after the end of each of the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year of Parent Guarantor commencing with the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017, its consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such fiscal quarter and the then elapsed portion of the fiscal year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the corresponding period or periods of (or, in the case of the balance sheet, as of the end of) the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of Parent Guarantor and its consolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied, subject to normal year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes.

(c) Certificate of Financial Officer — Compliance . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) or Section 8.01(b) , a compliance certificate of a Financial Officer in substantially the form of Exhibit D hereto (i) certifying as to whether a Default then exists and, if a Default then exists, specifying the details thereof and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto, (ii) setting forth reasonably detailed calculations demonstrating compliance with the Financial Covenants and (iii) stating whether any change in GAAP or in the application thereof that is applicable to the Borrower has occurred since December 31, 2016 and, if any such change has occurred, specifying the effect of such change on the financial statements accompanying such certificate.

(d) Annual Budget . Within sixty (60) days of the end of each fiscal year of the Borrower (the first such period being the sixty (60) day period after the end of fiscal year 2017), an annual operating budget for the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries for the immediately succeeding fiscal year (beginning with the annual operating budget for fiscal year 2018), including the projected monthly production of Hydrocarbons by the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries and the assumptions used in calculating such projections, the projected capital expenditures to be incurred by the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries, and such other information as may be reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent.

(e) Certificate of Financial Officer - Swap Agreements . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) and Section 8.01(b) , a certificate of a Financial Officer, in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, setting forth as of a recent date, a true and complete list of all Swap Agreements of the Borrower and each other Credit Party, the material terms thereof (including the type, term, effective date, and maturity date) and notional amounts or volumes set forth for each month during the term of such Swap Agreement), the estimated net mark-to-market value therefor, any new credit support agreements relating thereto (other than Loan Documents) not listed on Schedule 7.20 , any margin required or supplied under any credit support document, and the counterparty to each such agreement.

 

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(f) Certificate of Financial Officer - Consolidating Information . If, at any time, all of the Consolidated Subsidiaries of the Borrower are not Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, then concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) or Section 8.01(b) , a certificate of a Financial Officer setting forth consolidating spreadsheets that show all Consolidated Unrestricted Subsidiaries and the eliminating entries, in such form as would be presentable to the auditors of the Borrower.

(g) Certificate of Insurer - Insurance Coverage . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) , one or more certificates of insurance coverage from Parent Guarantor’s insurance broker or insurers with respect to the insurance required by Section  8.07 , in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, and, if requested by the Administrative Agent, copies of the applicable policies.

(h) SEC and Other Filings; Reports to Shareholders . For so long as any Credit Party is a publicly traded company, then promptly after the same become publicly available, copies of all periodic and other reports, proxy statements and other materials filed by such Credit Party with the SEC, or with any national securities exchange, or distributed by such Credit Party to its shareholders generally, as the case may be.

(i) Information Regarding Borrower and Guarantors . Promptly, but in any event within ten (10) Business Days after the occurrence thereof, written notice of any change in (i) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s corporate name, (ii) the jurisdiction in which the Borrower or any Guarantor is incorporated, formed, or otherwise organized, (iii) the location of the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s chief executive office, (iv) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s identity or corporate, limited liability or partnership structure, or (v) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s organizational identification number in such jurisdiction of organization or federal taxpayer identification number.

(j) Production Report and Lease Operating Statements . Concurrently with any delivery of a Reserve Report under Section  8.12 , (i) a report setting forth, for each calendar month during the then current fiscal year to date, the volume of production and sales attributable to production (and the prices at which such sales were made and the revenues derived from such sales) for each such calendar month from the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors, and (ii) a report setting forth, for each calendar quarter during the then current fiscal year to date, the related ad valorem, severance and production taxes and lease operating expenses attributable to such production and incurred for each such calendar quarter.

(k) Notices of Certain Changes . Promptly, but in any event within ten (10) Business Days after the execution thereof, copies of any material amendment, modification or supplement to the certificate of formation, limited liability company agreement, articles of incorporation, by-laws, any preferred stock designation or any other organic document of the Borrower or any other Credit Party.

(l) Other Requested Information . Promptly following any reasonable request therefor, such other information regarding the operations, business affairs and financial condition of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (including any Plan and any reports or other information required to be filed with the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor and/or the PBGC with respect thereto under the Code or under ERISA), or compliance with the terms of this Agreement or any other Loan Document, as the Administrative Agent may reasonably request.

Documents required to be delivered pursuant to Section 8.01(a) , (b) or (h) (to the extent any such documents are included in materials otherwise filed with the SEC) may be delivered electronically and if so delivered, shall be deemed to have been delivered on the date (i) on which Parent Guarantor or the

 

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Borrower posts such documents, or provides a link thereto on Parent Guarantor’s or the Borrower’s public website; or (ii) on which such documents are posted on the Borrower’s behalf on an Internet or intranet website, if any, to which each Lender and the Administrative Agent have access (whether a commercial, third-party website or whether sponsored by the Administrative Agent).

The Administrative Agent may make available to the Lenders materials and/or information provided by or on behalf of Parent Guarantor and/or the Borrower hereunder (collectively, “ Company Materials ”) by posting the Company Materials on SyndTrak or another similar electronic system (the “ Platform ”). Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby acknowledge that certain of the Lenders may from time to time elect to be “public-side” Lenders ( i.e. , Lenders that do not wish to receive material non-public information with respect to the Borrower or its securities) (each, a “ Public Lender ”) and the Borrower hereby agrees that (w) all Company Materials that are to be made available to Public Lenders shall be clearly and conspicuously marked “PUBLIC” which, at a minimum, shall mean that the word “PUBLIC” shall appear prominently on the first page thereof; (x) by marking Company Materials “PUBLIC,” Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall be deemed to have authorized the Administrative Agent and the Lenders to treat such Company Materials as either publicly available information or not material information (although it may be sensitive and proprietary) with respect to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their respective securities for purposes of United States Federal and state securities laws; (y) all Company Materials marked “PUBLIC” are permitted to be made available through a portion of the Platform designated “Public Investor”; and (z) the Administrative Agent shall be entitled to treat Company Materials that are not marked “PUBLIC” as being suitable only for posting on a portion of the Platform not designated “Public Investor.”

Section 8.02 Notices of Material Events . In addition to the notices required under Section  8.01 and Section 8.10(b) , the Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender prompt (and in any event within five (5) Business Days of a Responsible Officer becoming aware thereof) written notice of the following:

(a) the occurrence of any Default;

(b) the filing or commencement of, or the threat in writing of, any action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority against or affecting the Borrower or any other Credit Party not previously disclosed in writing to the Lenders that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, or the occurrence of any adverse development in any such action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration that is reasonably expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect;

(c) the filing or commencement of, or the threat in writing of, any action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority that (i) constitutes a material adverse claim against, or asserts a material cloud upon the Borrower’s or any other Credit Party’s title to, any material Mortgaged Property or other Collateral pledged pursuant to the Security Instruments or (ii) otherwise attacks the validity or (other than by asserting a Permitted Lien) the priority of the Administrative Agent’s Liens in any material Mortgaged Property or other Collateral pledged pursuant to the Security Instruments, or of the Security Instruments under which such Mortgaged Property or other Collateral is mortgaged or pledged; and

(d) the occurrence of any ERISA Event that results in, or could reasonably be expected to result in, a Material Adverse Effect.

 

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Each notice delivered under this Section  8.02 shall be accompanied by a statement of a Responsible Officer setting forth the details of the event or development requiring such notice and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto.

Section 8.03 Existence; Conduct of Business . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve, renew and keep in full force and effect (a) its legal existence and (b) the rights, licenses, permits, privileges and franchises material to the conduct of its business and maintain, if necessary, its qualification to do business in each other jurisdiction in which its Oil and Gas Properties are located or the ownership of its Properties requires such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; provided that the foregoing shall not prohibit any merger, consolidation, liquidation or dissolution permitted under Section  9.10 . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to maintain its legal existence in Delaware, another State within the United States of America or the District of Columbia.

Section 8.04 Payment of Obligations . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, pay its obligations, including Tax liabilities of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and all of its Restricted Subsidiaries before the same shall become delinquent or in default, except where (a) the validity or amount thereof is being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary has set aside on its books adequate reserves with respect thereto in accordance with GAAP or (b) the failure to make payment pending such contest could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect or result in the seizure or levy of any material Property of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 8.05 Performance of Obligations under Loan Documents . The Borrower will pay the Loans in accordance with the terms hereof, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, do and perform every act and discharge all of the obligations to be performed and discharged by them under the Loan Documents.

Section 8.06 Operation and Maintenance of Properties . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower, at their own expense, will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to:

(a) operate its Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties or cause such Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties to be operated in a careful and efficient manner in accordance with the practices of the industry and in compliance with all applicable contracts and agreements and in compliance with all Governmental Requirements, including applicable proration requirements and Environmental Laws, and all applicable laws, rules and regulations of every other Governmental Authority from time to time constituted to regulate the development and operation of its Oil and Gas Properties and the production and sale of Hydrocarbons and other minerals therefrom, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) keep and maintain all Property material to the conduct of its business in good working order and condition, ordinary wear and tear excepted, and preserve, maintain and keep in good repair, working order and efficiency (ordinary wear and tear and depletion excepted) all of its Oil and Gas Properties, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(c) promptly pay and discharge, or make reasonable and customary efforts to cause to be paid and discharged, all delay rentals, royalties, expenses and indebtedness accruing under the leases

 

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or other agreements affecting or pertaining to its Oil and Gas Properties and do all other things necessary to keep unimpaired its rights with respect thereto and prevent any forfeiture thereof or default thereunder, except where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(d) promptly perform or make reasonable and customary efforts to cause to be performed, in accordance with customary industry standards, the obligations required by the assignments, deeds, leases, sub-leases, contracts and agreements affecting its interests in its Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(e) To the extent the Borrower or another Credit Party is not the operator of any Property, the Borrower shall use reasonable efforts to cause the operator to comply with this Section  8.06 , but failure of the operator so to comply will not constitute a Default or an Event of Default hereunder.

Section 8.07 Insurance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, maintain, with financially sound and reputable insurance companies, insurance in such amounts and against such risks as are customarily maintained by companies engaged in the same or similar businesses operating in the same or similar locations (it being understood and agreed that the Borrower and its Subsidiaries may self-insure to the extent and in a manner customary for companies engaged in the same or similar business of similar size and financial condition). The Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and the Lenders shall be named as additional insureds in respect of such liability insurance policies, and the Collateral Agent shall be named as a loss payee with respect to property loss insurance covering Collateral and such policies shall provide that the Administrative Agent shall receive not less than 30 days’ prior notice of cancellation or non-renewal (or, if less, the maximum advance notice that the applicable carrier will agree to provide).

Section 8.08 Books and Records; Inspection Rights . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, keep proper books of record and account in which full, true and correct entries in conformity with GAAP are made of all dealings and transactions in relation to its business and activities (to the extent required by GAAP). Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, permit any representatives designated by the Administrative Agent, upon reasonable prior notice, to visit and inspect its Properties, to examine and make extracts from its books and records, and to discuss its affairs, finances and condition with its officers and independent accountants, all at such reasonable times and as reasonably requested, and at the sole expense of Borrower not to exceed two times in any calendar year (unless an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing).

Section 8.09 Compliance with Laws . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, comply with all laws, rules, regulations and orders of any Governmental Authority applicable to it or its Property, except where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will maintain in effect and enforce such policies and procedures, if any, as it reasonably deems appropriate, in light of its businesses and international activities (if any), to ensure compliance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, their Subsidiaries and each of their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions.

Section 8.10 Environmental Matters .

(a) Each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will at its sole expense: (i) comply, and cause its Properties and operations and each Subsidiary and each Subsidiary’s Properties and operations to comply, with all applicable Environmental Laws, to the extent the breach thereof could be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (ii) not Release or threaten to Release, and cause

 

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each Subsidiary not to Release or threaten to Release, any Hazardous Material on, under, about or from any of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties or any other property offsite the Property to the extent caused by Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any of their Subsidiaries’ operations except in compliance with applicable Environmental Laws, to the extent such Release or threatened Release could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (iii) timely obtain or file, and cause each Subsidiary to timely obtain or file, all Environmental Permits, if any, required under applicable Environmental Laws to be obtained or filed in connection with the operation or use of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties, to the extent such failure to obtain or file could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (iv) promptly commence and diligently prosecute to completion, and cause each Subsidiary to promptly commence and diligently prosecute to completion, any assessment, evaluation, investigation, monitoring, containment, cleanup, removal, repair, restoration, remediation or other remedial obligations (collectively, the “ Remedial Work ”) in the event any Remedial Work is required under applicable Environmental Laws because of or in connection with the actual or suspected past, present or future Release or threatened Release of any Hazardous Material on, under, about or from any of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties, to the extent failure to do so could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (v) conduct, and cause its Subsidiaries to conduct, their respective operations and businesses in a manner that will not expose any Property or Person to Hazardous Materials that could reasonably be expected to cause Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries to owe damages or compensation that could reasonably be expected to cause a Material Adverse Effect; and (vi) establish and implement, and shall cause each Subsidiary to establish and implement, such procedures as may be necessary to continuously determine and assure that Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s and their Subsidiaries’ obligations under this Section 8.10(a) are timely and fully satisfied, to the extent failure to do so could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) If Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary receives written notice of any action or, investigation or inquiry by any Governmental Authority or any threatened demand or lawsuit by any Person against Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries or their Properties, in each case in connection with any Environmental Laws, the Borrower will within fifteen days after any Responsible Officer obtains actual knowledge thereof give written notice of the same to Administrative Agent if the Borrower could reasonably anticipate that such action will result in liability (whether individually or in the aggregate) in excess of $20,000,000, not fully covered by insurance, subject to normal deductibles.

(c) In connection with any acquisition by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of any Oil and Gas Property, other than an acquisition of additional interests in Oil and Gas Properties in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary previously held an interest, to the extent Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary obtains or is provided with same, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, promptly following Parent Guarantor, the Borrower’s or such Restricted Subsidiary’s obtaining or being provided with the same, deliver to the Administrative Agent such final and non-privileged material environmental reports of such Oil and Gas Properties as are reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent.

Section 8.11 Further Assurances .

(a) Each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower at its sole expense will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, promptly execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent all such other documents, agreements and instruments reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent to comply with, cure any defects or accomplish the conditions precedent, covenants and agreements of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, in the Loan Documents,

 

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including the Notes, or to further evidence and more fully describe the collateral intended as security for the Obligations, or to correct any omissions in this Agreement or the Security Instruments, or to state more fully the obligations secured therein, or to perfect, protect or preserve any Liens created pursuant to this Agreement or any of the Security Instruments or the priority thereof, or to make any recordings, file any notices or obtain any consents that may be reasonably necessary or appropriate in connection therewith.

(b) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby authorize the Administrative Agent to file one or more financing or continuation statements, and amendments thereto, describing all or any part of the Collateral without the signature of the Borrower or any Guarantor where permitted by law. A carbon, photographic or other reproduction of the Security Instruments or any financing statement covering the Collateral or any part thereof shall be sufficient as a financing statement where permitted by law.

Section 8.12 Reserve Reports .

(a) In addition to the Initial Reserve Report which has been delivered on or prior to the Effective Date, on or before each date set out in the right column of the following table, the Borrower shall furnish to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a Reserve Report evaluating the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors as of the date set out in the same line in the left column of such table:

 

As-of Date

  

Delivery Date

July 1, 2017 and each July 1 thereafter

   the next following September 1

January 1, 2018 and each Januaery 1 thereafter.

   the next following March 1

(b) The Reserve Reports as of January 1 of each year shall be prepared by one or more Approved Petroleum Engineers, and the Reserve Reports as of July 1 of each year shall be prepared either by Approved Petroleum Engineers or, at the Borrower’s option, by the internal reserve engineering staff of the Borrower in accordance with the procedures used in the immediately preceding January 1 Reserve Report.

(c) In the event of an Interim Redetermination, the Borrower shall furnish to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a Reserve Report prepared either by Approved Petroleum Engineers or by Borrower’s internal reserve engineering staff, in each case in accordance with the procedures used in the immediately preceding January 1 Reserve Report. For any Interim Redetermination requested by the Revolving Administrative Agent or the Borrower pursuant to Section 2.07(b) of the Revolving Credit Agreement, the Borrower shall provide such Reserve Report with an “as of” date as required by the Administrative Agent as soon as possible, but in any event no later than thirty (30) days following the receipt of such request.

(d) With the delivery of each Reserve Report (other than the Initial Reserve Report), the Borrower shall provide to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a certificate from a Responsible Officer on behalf of the Borrower certifying that in all material respects that (i) except as set forth on an exhibit to the certificate, on a net basis there are no gas imbalances, take or pay or other prepayments in excess of the volume specified in Section  7.18 with respect to its Oil and Gas Properties evaluated in such Reserve Report which would require the Borrower or any Guarantor to deliver Hydrocarbons either generally or produced from such Oil and Gas Properties at some future time without then or thereafter receiving full payment therefor, (ii) none of their Borrowing Base Properties have been sold since the date of the last Borrowing Base determination except as set forth on an exhibit to the certificate, which certificate shall list all such Borrowing Base Properties sold and (iii) attached thereto is a schedule of the

 

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Borrowing Base Properties evaluated by such Reserve Report that are Mortgaged Properties which demonstrates the percentage of the total value of the Borrowing Base Properties that the value of such Mortgaged Properties represents in compliance with Section 8.14(a) .

Section 8.13 Title Information . On or before the delivery to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders of each Reserve Report required by Section 8.12(a) , the Borrower will use commercially reasonable efforts to deliver title information in form and substance acceptable to the Administrative Agent covering enough of the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report that were not included in the immediately preceding Reserve Report, so that the Administrative Agent shall have received, together with title information previously delivered to the Administrative Agent, satisfactory title information on at least 80% of the total PV-9 of the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report.

Section 8.14 Additional Collateral; Additional Guarantors .

(a) In connection with each redetermination of the Borrowing Base following the Effective Date, the Borrower shall review the Reserve Report and the list of current Mortgaged Properties (as described in Section 8.12(c) ) to ascertain whether the Mortgaged Properties represent at least 85% of the total PV-9 of the Proved Reserves of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production. In the event that the Mortgaged Properties do not satisfy the foregoing requirements, then the Borrower shall, and shall cause the Restricted Subsidiaries to, promptly grant, and, subject to Section 8.20(b) , within thirty (30) days (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion) after delivery of the certificate required under Section 8.12(d) , to the Administrative Agent, as security for the Obligations, Security Instruments covering additional Borrowing Base Properties not already subject to a Lien of the Security Instruments such that after giving effect thereto, the Mortgaged Properties will comply with such requirements. All such Liens will be created and perfected by and in accordance with the provisions of deeds of trust, security agreements and financing statements or other Security Instruments, all in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and in sufficient executed (and acknowledged where necessary or appropriate) counterparts for recording purposes.

(b) The Borrower shall promptly cause each Domestic Subsidiary (other than an Excluded Subsidiary) to guarantee the Obligations pursuant to the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement. In connection with any such guaranty, the Borrower shall, or shall cause such Subsidiary to, promptly, but in any event no later than 15 Business Days after the formation or acquisition (or other similar event) of such Subsidiary to, (i) execute and deliver a supplement to the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, executed by such Subsidiary, (ii) pledge all of the Equity Interests of such Subsidiary that are owned by the Borrower or any Guarantor (and deliver the original stock certificates, if any, evidencing the Equity Interests of such Subsidiary, together with an appropriate undated stock power for each certificate duly executed in blank by the registered owner thereof), (iii) grant Liens in favor of the Collateral Agent on all Property of such Subsidiary (other than Property excluded from the grant of such Liens pursuant to the terms of the Security Instruments) and (iv) execute and deliver such other additional closing documents, certificates and legal opinions as shall reasonably be requested by the Administrative Agent. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the following Restricted Subsidiaries shall not be required to guarantee the Obligations or execute and deliver the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement (or a supplement to such document): (A) any Restricted Subsidiary that is prohibited or restricted by applicable law, rule or regulation or by any contractual obligation existing on the Effective Date (or, if later, the date it becomes a Restricted Subsidiary) from guaranteeing the Obligations or which would require governmental (including regulatory) consent, approval, license or authorization to provide a guarantee unless such consent, approval, license or authorization has been received and for only so long as such restriction is

 

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outstanding, (B) any Foreign Subsidiary and (C) any Domestic Subsidiary of a Foreign Subsidiary that is a controlled foreign corporation within the meaning of section 957 of the Code (“ CFC ”) or any Domestic Subsidiary with no material assets other than Equity Interests (or Equity Interests and Debt) of one or more Foreign Subsidiaries that are CFCs; provided that the Borrower may (in its sole discretion) cause any Domestic Subsidiary, or if reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent, any Foreign Subsidiary (including any consolidated Affiliate in which the Borrower and its Subsidiaries own no Equity Interest), to become a Guarantor and to execute and deliver the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement (or a supplement to such document). Domestic Subsidiaries may be excluded from the requirements of this Section 8.14(b) if the Administrative Agent reasonably determines that the cost, burden, difficulty or consequence of providing such a guarantee outweighs the benefit to the Lenders afforded thereby.

(c) Notwithstanding any provision in any of the Loan Documents to the contrary, in no event is any Building (as defined in the applicable Flood Insurance Regulations) or Manufactured (Mobile) Home (as defined in the applicable Flood Insurance Regulations) owned by the Borrower or any other Credit Party required to be included in the Mortgaged Property and no Building or Manufactured (Mobile) Home shall be encumbered by any Security Instrument; provided , that (A) the Borrower’s and the other Credit Parties’ interests in all lands and Hydrocarbons situated under any such Building or Manufactured (Mobile) Home shall not be excluded from the Mortgaged Property and shall be encumbered by all applicable Security Instruments and (B) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not, and shall not permit any Restricted Subsidiaries to, permit to exist any Lien on any Building or Manufactured (Mobile) Home except Excepted Liens.

Section 8.15 Unrestricted Subsidiaries . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower:

(a) will cause the management, business and affairs of each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Restricted Subsidiaries and the Unrestricted Parent Entities to be conducted in such a manner (including, without limitation, by keeping separate books of account, furnishing separate financial statements of Unrestricted Subsidiaries and any Unrestricted Parent Entities to creditors and potential creditors thereof and by not permitting Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the respective Restricted Subsidiaries to be commingled) so that each Unrestricted Subsidiary and Unrestricted Parent Entity that is a corporation will be treated as a corporate entity separate and distinct from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries.

(b) will not, and will not permit any of the Restricted Subsidiaries to, incur, assume, guarantee or be or become liable for any Debt of any of the Unrestricted Subsidiaries or Unrestricted Parent Entities.

(c) will not permit any Unrestricted Subsidiary or Unrestricted Parent Entity to hold any Equity Interest in, or any Debt of, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 8.16 Commodity Exchange Act Keepwell Provisions . The Borrower hereby absolutely, unconditionally and irrevocably undertakes to provide to each Credit Party (other than the Borrower) such funds or other support as may be needed from time to time by such Credit Party in order for such Credit Party to honor its Obligations with respect to any Swap Agreements or CFTC Hedging Obligations for which it is liable, whether such Swap Agreements or CFTC Hedging Obligations are entered into directly by such Credit Party or are guaranteed under the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement ( provided , however , that the Borrower shall only be liable under this Section  8.16 for the maximum amount of such liability that can be hereby incurred without rendering its obligations under this Section  8.16 , or otherwise under this Agreement or any Loan Document, voidable under applicable law relating to fraudulent conveyance or fraudulent transfer, and not for any greater amount). The obligations of the

 

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Borrower under this Section  8.16 shall remain in full force and effect until this Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms. Borrower intends that this Section  8.16 constitute a “keepwell, support, or other agreement” for the benefit of each other Credit Party for all purposes of Section 1a(18)(A)(v)(II) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Section 8.17 ERISA Compliance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will promptly furnish and will cause the Subsidiaries and any ERISA Affiliate to promptly furnish to the Administrative Agent after written request therefor by the Administrative Agent, copies of each annual and other report with respect to each Plan or any trust created thereunder, and promptly upon becoming aware of the occurrence of any “prohibited transaction,” as described in section 406 of ERISA or in section 4975 of the Code for which no exemption exists or is available by statute, regulation, administrative exemption, or otherwise, in connection with any Plan or any trust created thereunder and that is reasonably expected to result in liability to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary that is expected to have Material Adverse Effect, a written notice signed by the President or the principal Financial Officer, the Subsidiary or the ERISA Affiliate, as the case may be, specifying the nature thereof, what action Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiary or the ERISA Affiliate is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto, and, when known, any action taken or proposed by the Internal Revenue Service or the Department of Labor with respect thereto.

Section 8.18 Deposit Accounts; Commodities Accounts and Securities Accounts . Subject to Section 8.20(a) , the Borrower and each Guarantor will cause each of their respective Deposit Accounts, Commodities Accounts or Securities Accounts (in each case, other than Excluded Accounts) to, within 30 days (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion) following the opening of any such account, at all times be subject to an Account Control Agreement in accordance with and to the extent required by the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement.

Section 8.19 Maintenance of Ratings . The Parent Guarantor will use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain Credit Ratings in effect from S&P and Moody’s.

Section 8.20 Post-Effective Date Deliverables .

(a) Account Control Agreements . Notwithstanding the requirements set forth in Section  8.18 , with respect to each Deposit Account, Commodities Account and Securities Account of the Credit Parties in existence on the Effective Date (other than, in each case, Excluded Accounts), on or prior to the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), the Borrower and each Guarantor shall deliver to the Administrative Agent duly executed Account Control Agreements in accordance with and to the extent required by the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement.

(b) Mortgages in respect of Oil and Gas Properties . To the extent not delivered on the Effective Date, the Borrower shall deliver to the Administrative Agent mortgages and other Security Instruments sufficient to create first priority, perfected Liens (subject only to Permitted Liens) (i) on or prior to the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), on at least 50% of the total PV-9 of the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by the most recently delivered Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production and (ii) on or prior to the date that is ninety (90) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), on at least 85% of the total PV-9 of the Proved Reserves of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by the most recently delivered Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production.

 

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ARTICLE IX

NEGATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder and all other amounts payable under the Loan Documents have been paid in full, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

Section 9.01 Intentionally Omitted .

Section 9.02 Debt . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, incur, create, assume or suffer to exist any Debt, except:

(a) the Notes or other Obligations arising under the Loan Documents and Revolving Obligations and any Permitted Refinancing Debt thereof.

(b) Debt under Capital Leases or that constitutes Purchase Money Indebtedness; provided that the sum of the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(b) at any one time outstanding shall not exceed $75,000,000 in the aggregate.

(c) intercompany Debt owing by the Borrower or any Guarantor to the Borrower or any Guarantor.

(d) Debt constituting a guaranty by Borrower or any other Credit Party of other Debt permitted to be incurred under this Section  9.02 .

(e) Senior Notes and related Senior Notes Debt; provided that, solely with respect to Senior Notes and related Senior Notes Debt (other than the Existing Senior Notes) issued after the Effective Date, at the time such Senior Notes are issued, the Borrower is in pro forma compliance with the Financial Covenants whether or not a Term Loan Exclusive Period is in effect at such time; provided further that during an Investment Grade Period, at the time any such Senior Notes are issued after the Effective Date, after giving effect to the incurrence of such Senior Notes Debt, the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for the most recent Rolling Period for which internal financial statements are available immediately preceding the date on which such additional Debt is incurred would have been at least 2.0 to 1.0, determined on a pro forma basis (including a pro forma application of the net proceeds therefrom), as if the additional Debt had been incurred at the beginning of such Rolling Period, at the time any such Senior Notes or related Senior Notes Debt are issued.

(f) Debt that represents an extension, refinancing, or renewal of any of the Senior Notes Debt or Debt issued pursuant to Section 9.02(i) ; provided that, (i) the principal amount of such Debt is not increased (other than by the costs, fees, premiums and expenses and by accrued and unpaid interest paid in connection with any such extension, refinancing or renewal) except in compliance with the preceding clause (e), (ii) such extension, refinancing or renewal does not result in any principal amount owing in respect of Senior Notes Debt becoming due earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date, and (iii) if the Senior Notes Debt that is refinanced, renewed, or extended was subordinated in right of payment to the Obligations, then the terms and conditions of the refinancing, renewal, or extension Debt must include subordination terms and conditions that are at least as favorable to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders as those that were applicable to the refinanced, renewed, or extended Debt.

 

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(g) other Debt so long as the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(g) at any one time outstanding does not exceed $75,000,000 in the aggregate.

(h) Debt arising under the Revolving Loan Documents;

(i) Debt under Swap Agreements permitted pursuant to Section  9.18 ;

(j) Debt issued in satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Notes under the Approved Plan, including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment (capitalized terms used in this Section 9.02(j) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Plan of Reorganization as in effect on March 14, 2017) so long as the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(j) at any one time outstanding does not exceed $300,000,000 in the aggregate;

(k) Permitted Acquisition Debt so long as the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(k) at any one time outstanding does not exceed $100,000,000.

Section 9.03 Liens . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or permit to exist any Lien on any of its Properties (now owned or hereafter acquired), except:

(a) Liens securing the Obligations.

(b) Excepted Liens.

(c) Liens securing Capital Leases and Purchase Money Indebtedness permitted by Section 9.02(b) but only on the Property under lease or the Property purchased, constructed or improved with such Purchase Money Indebtedness.

(d) Liens securing Debt permitted by Section 9.02(g) but only on Property not constituting Borrowing Base Properties or Collateral.

(e) Liens securing the Revolving Obligations.

(f) Liens on cash deposits securing obligations under Swap Agreements; provided that the amount of such cash deposits shall not exceed $25,000,000 in the aggregate at any time.

(g) Liens on cash, surety, performance or appeal bonds and similar instruments securing satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Notes under the Approved Plan, including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment; provided that any reference to “Claims” in this Section 9.03(g) shall only apply to such Claims to the extent that they do not constitute funded debt (capitalized terms used in this Section 9.03(g) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Plan of Reorganization as in effect on March 14, 2017).

 

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Section 9.04 Limitation on Restricted Payments .

(a) The Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not, and shall not permit any Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly:

(i) declare or pay any dividend or make any other payment or distribution on account of the Parent Guarantor’s, Borrower’s or any Restricted Subsidiaries’ Equity Interests (including, without limitation, any payment by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with any merger or consolidation involving the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary other than (A) dividends or distributions payable in Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) of the Parent Guarantor, (B) dividends or distributions by UP Energy, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary, so long as, in the case of any dividend or distribution payable on or in respect of any Equity Interests issued by a Restricted Subsidiary that is not a Wholly-Owned Subsidiary, the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the Restricted Subsidiary holding such Equity Interests receives at least its pro rata share of such dividend or distribution and (C) payments made in respect of any stock appreciation rights or similar benefits plans;

(ii) purchase, redeem or otherwise acquire or retire for value (including, without limitation, in connection with any merger or consolidation involving the Parent Guarantor or the Borrower) any Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor or the Borrower;

(iii) make any principal payment on or with respect to, or purchase, redeem, defease or otherwise acquire or retire for value any Subordinated Debt of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (excluding (a) any intercompany Debt between or among the Parent Guarantor and any of its Restricted Subsidiaries, (b) the purchase, redemption, defeasance, repurchase or other acquisition of Subordinated Debt of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary purchased, redeemed, defeased or otherwise acquired in anticipation of satisfying a sinking fund obligation, principal installment or final maturity, in each case due within one year after the date of purchase, repurchase, redemption, defeasance or acquisition, and (c) any payment of principal at the stated maturity thereof); or

(iv) make any Restricted Investment (all such payments and other actions set forth in clauses (i) through (iii) above (other than any exception thereto) being collectively referred to as “ Restricted Payments ”), unless, at the time of and immediately after giving effect to such Restricted Payment:

(A) no Default or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing or would occur as a consequence of such Restricted Payment;

(B) the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio is less than 3.25:1.00 for the most recently ended Rolling Period for which internal financial statements are available immediately preceding the date for which such Restricted Payment is being made determined on a pro forma basis after giving effect to such Restricted Payment; and

(C) such Restricted Payment, together with the aggregate amount of all other Restricted Payments made by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiary since the Effective Date is less than the sum, without duplication, of:

(1) 50% of the Consolidated Net Income for the period (taken as one accounting period) from the first day of the fiscal quarter during which the Effective Date occurs to the end of the most recently ended fiscal quarter of the Borrower for which internal financial statements are available at the time of such Restricted Payment (or, if such Consolidated Net Income for such period is a deficit, less 100% of such deficit); plus

 

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(2) 100% of the aggregate net cash proceeds and the Fair Market Value of (I) marketable securities (other than marketable securities of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary), (II) Equity Interests of a Person (other than the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary) engaged primarily in a Permitted Business and (III) other assets used or useful in a Permitted Business, in each case, received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary since the Effective Date (x) as a contribution to its common equity capital or from the issue or sale of Qualifying Equity Interests, (y) from the issue or sale of convertible or exchangeable Disqualified Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor or convertible or exchangeable debt securities of the Parent Guarantor, in each case that have been converted into or exchanged for Qualifying Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor (in the case of clauses (x) or (y), other than net cash proceeds received from an issuance or sale of Qualifying Equity Interests, convertible or exchangeable Disqualified Capital Stock or debt securities to a Restricted Subsidiary or to an employee stock ownership plan or similar trust to the extent such issuance or sale to such employee stock ownership plan or similar trust is financed by loans from or guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (unless such loans have been repaid with cash on or prior to the date of determination)) or (z) upon the exercise of any options, warrants or rights to purchase Qualifying Equity Interests; plus

(3) the amount by which Debt of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or its Restricted Subsidiaries which is convertible or exchangeable for Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) is reduced on the Parent Guarantor’s consolidated balance sheet upon the conversion or exchange (other than Debt held by the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary) subsequent to the Effective Date of such Debt (less the amount of any cash, or the Fair Market Value of any other property, distributed by the Parent Guarantor upon such conversion or exchange); plus

(4) the amounts received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, with respect to any Restricted Investments made by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in any Person after the Effective Date resulting from:

(I) repurchases or redemptions of, or returns of capital on, such Restricted Investments by such Person, proceeds realized upon the sale of such Restricted Investment to an unaffiliated purchaser, repayments of loans or advances or other transfers of assets (including by way of dividend or distribution) by such Person to the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (other than for reimbursement of tax payments); or

(II) the redesignation of Unrestricted Subsidiaries as Restricted Subsidiaries or the merger or consolidation of an Unrestricted Subsidiary with and into the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary;

which amount in the case of Section 9.04(a)(iv)(C)(4)(I) is an the amount equal to the lesser of (A) the initial amount of such Restricted Investment and (B) the cash amount (less any expenses incurred in connection with such transaction) received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (other than for reimbursement of tax payments), provided , however , that no amount will be included under Section 9.04(a)(iv)(C)(4)(I) to the extent it is already included in Consolidated Net Income.

(b) Section 9.04(a) shall not prohibit any Restricted Payments under this Section 9.04(b) , provided that at the time of, and after giving effect to, any such Restricted Payment, no Event of

 

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Default (or in the case of Section 9.04(b)(iv) , Default) shall have occurred and be continuing or would occur as a consequence thereof:

(i) any Restricted Payment made or paid within 60 days after the date of declaration or giving of a redemption notice, as the case may be, thereof, if at such date of declaration or notice, such Restricted Payment would have complied with the provisions of this Agreement (and such payment shall be deemed to be paid on the date of declaration or notice for purposes of any calculation required by this covenant);

(ii) the making of any Restricted Payment in exchange for, or out of or with the Net Equity Proceeds of the substantially concurrent sale (other than to the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary) of, Qualifying Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor or from the substantially concurrent contribution of common equity capital to the Parent Guarantor (with a sale or contribution being deemed substantially concurrent if such Restricted Payment occurs not more than 120 days after such sale or contribution);

(iii) the repurchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Subordinated Debt of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary Guarantor with the Net Cash Proceeds from a substantially concurrent incurrence of, or exchange for, Permitted Refinancing Debt (with an incurrence of Permitted Refinancing Debt being deemed substantially concurrent if such repurchase, redemption, defeasance, acquisition or retirement occurs not more than 120 days after such incurrence);

(iv) so long as no Default has occurred and is continuing, any Restricted Payment to any existing or former directors, employees, management or consultants or advisors of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary or their assigns, estates or heirs, in each case in connection with equity incentive plans, under stock option plans or stock purchase agreements or other agreements to compensate such persons approved by the board of directors of the Parent Guarantor; provided that the Equity Interests with respect to which such Restricted Payments are made were received for services related to, or for the benefit of, the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiaries; and provided , further , that Restricted Payments pursuant to this clause will not exceed $2,000,000 in the aggregate during any calendar year (with any unused amounts in any calendar year being carried over to successive calendar years and added to such amount subject to a maximum of $5,000,000 in any calendar year); plus , to the extent not previously applied or included, (A) the Net Equity Proceeds received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary from sales of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) to directors, employees, management or consultants or advisors of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary that occur after the Effective Date (to the extent such Net Equity Proceeds have not otherwise been applied to the payment of Restricted Payments pursuant to Section 9.04(a)(C)(2) ) and (B) the net cash proceeds of key man life insurance policies received by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary after the Effective Date; provided that the Parent Guarantor may elect to apply all or any portion of the aggregate increase contemplated by clauses (A) and (B) above in any calendar year; and provided , further , that cancellation of Debt owing to the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary from any existing or former directors, employees, management or consultants or advisors of the the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with the repurchase of Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary will not be deemed to constitute a Restricted Payment for purposes of this covenant or any other provision of this Agreement;

(v) the purchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Equity Interests deemed to occur upon the exercise or conversion of stock options, warrants, rights to acquire Equity Interests or other convertible securities, to the extent such Equity Interests represent a portion of the exercise or conversion price thereof;

 

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(vi) the purchase, redemption, defeasance or other acquisition or retirement for value of Equity Interests of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary held by any current or former officers, directors, employees, management or consultants or advisors of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with the exercise or vesting of any equity compensation (including, without limitation, stock options, restricted stock and phantom stock) in order to satisfy any tax withholding obligation with respect to such exercise or vesting;

(vii) the declaration and payment of regularly scheduled or accrued dividends to holders of any class or series of Disqualified Capital Stock of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary issued on or after the Effective Date in accordance with the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio test described in Section  9.02 , to the extent such dividends are included in the definition of “Fixed Charges”;

(viii) payments of cash, dividends, distributions, advances or other Restricted Payments by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary to allow the payment of cash in lieu of the issuance of fractional shares (or to allow for the purchase by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Restricted Subsidiary of fractional shares) upon the exercise, conversion or exchange of any stock options, warrants, other rights to purchase Equity Interests or other convertible or exchangeable securities ( provided that any such payment is not for the purpose of evading the limitations of this covenant); and

(ix) other Restricted Payments, so long as the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio is no greater than 2.50:1.00 determined on a pro forma basis for the most recently ended Rolling Period for which internal financial statements are available immediately preceding the date for which such Restricted Payment is being made.

(c) For purposes of determining compliance with this “Restricted Payments” covenant, in the event that a Restricted Payment meets the criteria of more than one of the categories of Restricted Payments described in Section  9.04 , the Borrower will be permitted to divide or classify (or later divide, classify or reclassify in whole or in part in its sole discretion) such Restricted Payment in any manner that complies with this covenant.

(d) The amount of all Restricted Payments (other than cash) will be the Fair Market Value on the date of the Restricted Payment of the asset(s) or securities proposed to be transferred or issued by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, pursuant to the Restricted Payment.

Section 9.05 [Reserved] .

Section 9.06 Nature of Business; International Operations . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, allow any material change to be made in the character of its business as a company engaged in the Oil and Gas Business. From and after the date hereof, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries will not acquire or commit to acquire any Oil and Gas Properties not located within the geographical boundaries of the United States of America and the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries will not form or acquire any Foreign Subsidiaries. Parent Guarantor shall not directly own any interest in any Oil and Gas Property. Any Oil and Gas Properties of the Credit Parties will at all times be owned by the Borrower or one or more Restricted Subsidiaries.

Section 9.07 [Reserved] .

 

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Section 9.08 ERISA Compliance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Subsidiary to, at any time:

(a) engage in, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to engage in, any transaction in connection with which the Borrower or a Subsidiary could be subjected to either a civil penalty assessed pursuant to subsections (i) or (l) of section 502 of ERISA or a tax imposed by section 4975 of the Code, except where such penalty or tax could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) fail to make, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to fail to make, full payment when due of all amounts which, under the provisions of any Plan, agreement relating thereto or applicable law, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or any ERISA Affiliate is required to pay as contributions thereto, except where such failure could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(c) contribute to or assume an obligation to contribute to, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to contribute to or assume an obligation to contribute to, any employee welfare benefit plan, as defined in section 3(1) of ERISA that provides benefits to retirees or former employees of such entities that may not be terminated by such entities in their sole discretion at any time without any liability other than for benefits due as of, or claims incurred prior to, the effective date of such termination, except where such contribution or assumption of an obligation could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 9.09 Sale or Discount of Notes or Receivables . Except for the sale of defaulted notes or accounts receivable not made in connection with any financing transaction, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, sell (with or without recourse or discount) any of its notes receivable or accounts receivable to any Person other than the Borrower or any Guarantor. The settlement or compromise of joint interest billings or of accounts receivable and other receivables in connection with the collection or compromise thereof will not constitute a sale for the purposes of the preceding sentence.

Section 9.10 Mergers, Etc . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, merge into or with or consolidate with any other Person, or permit any other Person to merge into or consolidate with it, or sell, transfer, lease or otherwise dispose of (whether in one transaction or in a series of transactions) all or substantially all of its Property to any other Person (whether now owned or hereafter acquired) (any such transaction, a “ consolidation ”), or liquidate or dissolve; provided that, so long as no Event of Default has occurred and is then continuing, any Restricted Subsidiary may be liquidated or may participate in a merger or consolidation with the Borrower or Parent Guarantor ( provided that the Borrower or Parent Guarantor shall be the survivor) or any other Restricted Subsidiary or another Person who becomes a Restricted Subsidiary concurrent with such merger or consolidation.

Section 9.11 Sale of Properties and Liquidation of Swap Agreements . As used herein, “ Transfer ” means to sell, assign, farm-out, convey or otherwise transfer Property or to Liquidate any Swap Agreement in respect of commodities, provided that Transfer does not include the grant or creation of a Lien. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, Transfer (1) any Oil and Gas Property or any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, (2) any commodity Swap Agreement or (3) any Equity Interest in any Restricted Subsidiary that owns any Oil and Gas Property, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, or any commodity Swap Agreement (in this Section  9.11 , an “ E&P Subsidiary ”), except for:

(a) the sale of Hydrocarbons in the ordinary course of business;

 

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(b) farmouts of undeveloped acreage and assignments in connection with such farmouts;

(c) Transfers among Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries provided that the provisions of Section  8.14 are complied with to the extent applicable;

(d) the sale or transfer of Unproven Acreage or of any Equity Interests in any E&P Subsidiary (other than an E&P Subsidiary that owns any Borrowing Base Properties, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, or any commodity Swap Agreement included in the most recent determination of the Borrowing Base), provided that, prior to and after giving effect to such sale or transfer, (i) the Borrower is in compliance with Section  9.18 , (ii) if a Borrowing Base Deficiency exists prior to such sale or transfer, 100% of the Net Cash Proceeds of such sale or transfer are applied to prepay the Loans up to an amount sufficient to cure such Borrowing Base Deficiency and (iii) no Default or Event of Default exists at such time; provided that if any such Transfer pursuant to this Section 9.11(d) occurs during a Term Loan Exclusive Period, the Net Cash Proceeds from all such Transfers pursuant to this Section 9.11(d) in excess of $20,000,000 shall be applied pursuant to Section 3.04(c)(iii) ; provided that within 365 days from the date of such Transfer, such excess Net Cash Proceeds from such Transfer may be applied by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary, to the extent such Person so elects to:

(A) to reinvest in Additional Oil and Gas Assets; provided that in the case of Net Cash Proceeds from a Transfer of Collateral such Additional Oil and Gas Assets shall constitute Collateral; or

(B) enter into a bona fide binding contract with a Person other than an Affiliate of the Borrower to apply the Net Cash Proceeds pursuant to clause (A) immediately above, provided that such binding contract shall be treated as a permitted application of the Net Cash Proceeds from the date of such contract until the earlier of:

(1) the date on which such reinvestment is consummated, and

(2) the 90th day following the expiration of the 365-day period referred to in this Section 9.11(d) ;

(e) Transfers of Borrowing Base Properties, of commodity Swap Agreements, and of Equity Interests in any E&P Subsidiary that owns any Borrowing Base Properties, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom or any commodity Swap Agreement included in the most recent determination of the Borrowing Base, provided that:

(i) the consideration received in respect of such Transfer shall be cash, the assumption of liabilities (including indemnification obligations) related to the Borrowing Base Properties Transferred, new Oil and Gas Properties (and related Additional Oil and Gas Assets) and new commodity Swap Agreements acquired, or Investments permitted under Section  9.04 ;

(ii) the consideration received in respect of such Transfer shall be equal to or greater than the fair market value of the Borrowing Base Properties, commodity Swap Agreements and Equity Interests in E&P Subsidiaries that are Transferred (as reasonably determined by the Borrower and, if requested by the Administrative Agent, the Borrower shall deliver a certificate of the Borrower certifying to that effect);

 

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(iii) if any such Transfer is of an E&P Subsidiary, such Transfer shall include all the Equity Interests of such E&P Subsidiary owned by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries; and

(iv) if any such Transfer occurs during a Term Loan Exclusive Period, the Net Cash Proceeds from such Transfer shall be applied pursuant to Section 3.04(c)(iii) ; provided that within 365 days from the date of such Transfer, Net Cash Proceeds from such Transfer may be applied by the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary, to the extent such Person so elects to:

(A) to reinvest in Additional Oil and Gas Assets; or

(B) enter into a bona fide binding contract with a Person other than an Affiliate of the Borrower to apply the Net Cash Proceeds pursuant to Section 9.11(e)(iv)(A) , provided that such binding contract shall be treated as a permitted application of the Net Cash Proceeds from the date of such contract until the earlier of

(1) the date on which such reinvestment is consummated, and

(2) the 90th day following the expiration of the 365-day period referred to in this Section 9.11(e)(iv) ; and

Section 9.12 Transactions with Affiliates . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, enter into any transaction, with any Affiliate (other than Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries) unless such transaction is upon terms that are no less favorable to it than those that could reasonably be expected to be obtained in a comparable arm’s length transaction with a Person not an Affiliate or that are otherwise fair to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary from a financial point of view. The restrictions set forth in this Section  9.12 shall not apply to (a) executing, delivering, and performing obligations under the Loan Documents, the Revolving Loan Documents and the Senior Notes Documents; (b) compensation to, and the terms of employment contracts with, individuals who are officers, managers and directors of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, provided such compensation or contract is approved by Ultra Petroleum’s board of directors, (c) the issuance of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) by Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, (d) transactions permitted under Section  9.04 or otherwise expressly permitted under this Agreement and (e) transactions contemplated by the Plan of Reorganization.

Section 9.13 Subsidiaries . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create or acquire any additional Restricted Subsidiary or redesignate an Unrestricted Subsidiary as a Restricted Subsidiary unless the Borrower gives written notice to the Administrative Agent of such creation or acquisition and complies with Section 8.14(b) . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, sell, assign or otherwise dispose of any Equity Interests in the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary except (a) to the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary or (b) in compliance with Section  9.11 . None of the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary will have any Foreign Subsidiaries. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not permit any Equity Interests of any Restricted Subsidiary to be directly owned by any Person other than the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary. UP Energy will not directly own any subsidiary other than the Borrower and any Unrestricted Parent Entity.

Section 9.14 Negative Pledge Agreements; Subsidiary Dividend Restrictions . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or suffer to exist any contract, agreement or understanding (other than (i) this Agreement and the

 

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Security Instruments, (ii) agreements with respect to Debt secured by Liens permitted by Section 9.03(c) or Section 9.03(d) but then only with respect to the Property that is financed by such Debt, and (iii) documents creating Liens which are described in clause (d), (f), (h) or (i) of the definition of “Excepted Liens”, but then only with respect to the Property that is the subject of the applicable lease, document or license described in such clause (d), (f), (h) or (i)) that in any way prohibits or restricts the granting, conveying, creation or imposition of the Liens on any of its Property in favor of the Collateral Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties that are created pursuant to the Security Instruments to secure the Obligations. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or suffer to exist any contract, agreement or understanding (other than the Loan Documents, the Revolving Loan Documents and the Senior Notes Documents) that restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from paying dividends or making any other distributions in respect of its Equity Interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any other Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 9.15 Designation and Conversion of Restricted and Unrestricted Subsidiaries .

(a) Any Person that becomes a Subsidiary of the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary shall be a Restricted Subsidiary unless such Person (i) is designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary on Schedule 7.14 , as of the date hereof, (ii) is designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary after the date hereof in compliance with Section 9.15(b) , or (iii) is a subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

(b) The Borrower may designate by written notification thereof to the Administrative Agent, any Restricted Subsidiary, including a newly formed or newly acquired Subsidiary, as an Unrestricted Subsidiary if (i) prior, and after giving effect, to such designation, neither a Default nor a Borrowing Base Deficiency would exist and (ii) such designation is deemed to be an Investment in an Unrestricted Subsidiary in an amount equal to the fair market value as of the date of such designation of the Borrower’s direct and indirect ownership interest in such Subsidiary and such Investment would be permitted to be made under Section  9.04 . Except as provided in this Section 9.15(b) , no Restricted Subsidiary may be redesignated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

(c) The Borrower may designate any Unrestricted Subsidiary to be a Restricted Subsidiary if after giving effect to such designation, (i) the representations and warranties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties contained in each of the Loan Documents are true and correct in all material respects on and as of such date as if made on and as of the date of such redesignation except to the extent (A) any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, on and as of the date of such redesignation, such representations and warranties shall continue to be true and correct as of such specified earlier date and (B) to the extent that any such representation and warranty is expressly qualified by materiality or by reference to Material Adverse Effect, such representation and warranty (as so qualified) shall be true and correct in all respects on and as of the date of such redesignation, (ii) no Event of Default would exist and (iii) the Borrower complies with the requirements of Section  8.14 , Section  8.15 and Section  9.13 . Upon any such designation, an amount equal to the lesser of the fair market value of the Borrower’s direct and indirect ownership interest in such Subsidiary or the amount of the Borrower’s cash investment previously made in such Subsidiary shall be deemed no longer outstanding for purposes of the limitation on Investments under Section  9.04 .

Section 9.16 Non-Qualified ECP Counterparties . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not permit any Guarantor that is not a Qualified ECP Counterparty to own, at any time, any Borrowing Base Properties. The Borrower shall not permit any Guarantor that is not a Qualified ECP Counterparty to own, at any time, any Equity Interests in any Restricted Subsidiaries.

Section 9.17 Amendments to Senior Debt Documents . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, amend, modify, waive or otherwise change,

 

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consent or agree to any amendment, modification, waiver or other change to any of the terms of the Senior Notes Documents if (a) the effect thereof would be to shorten the maturity of the Senior Notes Debt to a date earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date or to provide a right to require Redemption of any Senior Notes Debt earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date, (b) the effect thereof would be to increase the principal amount of such Senior Notes Debt (other than in connection with an additional incurrence of Senior Notes Debt that is permitted under Section 9.02(e) or a refinancing permitted under Section 9.02(f) ), or (c) such action adds or amends any financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or events of default to cause the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or events of default to be materially more onerous, taken as a whole and as determined by the board of directors of Parent Guarantor, than those in this Agreement without this Agreement being contemporaneously amended to add similar provisions.

Section 9.18 Swap Agreements .

(a) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, enter into or maintain any Swap Agreements with any Person other than:

(i) Swap Agreements with an Approved Counterparty not for speculative purposes in respect of commodities fixing a price for a term of not more than sixty months and the notional volumes for which (when aggregated with other commodity Swap Agreements then in effect other than put or floor options as to which an upfront premium has been paid or basis differential swaps on volumes already hedged pursuant to other Swap Agreements) do not exceed, as of the date such Swap Agreement is executed, eighty-five percent (85%) of the reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil and Gas Properties for each month during the sixty-month period during which such Swap Agreement is in effect for each of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, calculated separately, provided that the Borrower (A) shall have the option to update the reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil and Gas Properties between the delivery of Reserve Reports hereunder (which updates shall be provided to the Administrative Agent in writing and shall be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent) and (B) shall, without causing a breach of this Section  9.18 , have the option to enter into commodity Swap Agreements with respect to (x) such updated projected production and (y) reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil and Gas Properties not then owned by the Borrower or such Subsidiary but which are subject to a binding purchase agreement for which the Borrower or such Subsidiary is scheduled to acquire such Oil and Gas Properties within the applicable period, provided that, if such purchase agreement does not close for any reason on the date required thereunder, including any binding extensions thereof, within thirty (30) days of such required closing date, the Borrower shall unwind or otherwise terminate the Swap Agreements entered into with respect to production that was to be acquired thereunder, and

(ii) Swap Agreements with an Approved Counterparty not for speculative purposes in respect of interest rates, the notional amounts of which (when aggregated with all other Swap Agreements of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries then in effect) do not exceed eighty-five percent (85%) of the then outstanding principal amount of the Borrower’s Debt for borrowed money. In no event shall any Swap Agreement, other than a master Swap Agreement pursuant to which the Borrower executes only put or floor options as to which an upfront premium has been paid and subject to the limitations set forth in Section 9.03(f) , contain any requirement, agreement or covenant for the Borrower or any Subsidiary to post collateral or margin to secure their obligations under such Swap Agreement other than the benefit of the Security Instruments as contemplated herein.

(b) If, after the end of any calendar month, the Borrower determines that the aggregate notional volume of all Swap Agreements in respect of commodities for such calendar month exceeded 100% of actual production of Hydrocarbons in such calendar month, then the Borrower shall (i)

 

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promptly notify the Administrative Agent of such determination, and (ii) if requested by the Administrative Agent (or if otherwise necessary to ensure compliance with Section 9.18(a)(i) ), within 30 days after such request, terminate, create off-setting positions or otherwise unwind or monetize existing Swap Agreements such that, at such time, future volumes under commodity Swap Agreements and future Deemed Transportation Volumes will not exceed 100% of reasonably anticipated projected production for the then-current and any succeeding calendar months.

(c) For all purposes of determining the aggregate volumes of Swap Agreements under this Section  9.18 there shall be no double counting for transactions and agreements in respect of the same volumes that hedge different risks, including without limitation:

(i) for price swaps and basis swaps in respect of the same volumes, such as financial basis swaps between Marcellus and Henry Hub and financial price swaps of floating Henry Hub for a fixed price,

(ii) for financial price swaps and Specified Commodity Sale Contracts that functionally operate as basis swaps in respect of the same volumes,

(iii) for basis swaps that hedge different components of basis risk, such as a Specified Commodity Sale Contract that hedges basis risk between Marcellus and Texas Eastern’s East Louisiana zone and a financial basis hedge that hedges basis risk between Texas Eastern’s East Louisiana zone and Henry Hub.

ARTICLE X

EVENTS OF DEFAULT; REMEDIES

Section 10.01 Events of Default . One or more of the following events shall constitute an “Event of Default”:

(a) the Borrower shall fail to pay any principal of any Loan when and as the same shall become due and payable, whether at the due date thereof or at a date fixed for prepayment thereof, by acceleration or otherwise.

(b) the Borrower shall fail to pay any interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount (other than an amount referred to in Section 10.01(a) ) payable under any Loan Document, when and as the same shall become due and payable, and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of five (5) Business Days.

(c) any representation or warranty made or deemed made by or on behalf of the Borrower or any other Credit Party in or in connection with any Loan Document or any amendment or modification of any Loan Document or waiver under such Loan Document, or in any report, certificate, financial statement or other document furnished pursuant to or in connection with any Loan Document or any amendment or modification thereof or waiver thereunder, shall prove to have been incorrect in any material respect when made or deemed made.

(d) the Borrower shall fail to give notice of any Default as required under Section 8.02(a) , or the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in Section 8.01(c) , (i) or (j), Section 8.02(b) or (c), Section 8.03(a) , Section  8.14 , Section  8.18 , Section  8.20 or Article IX .

 

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(e) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in this Agreement (other than those specified in Section 10.01(a) , Section 10.01(b) or Section 10.01(d) ) or any other Loan Document, and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of thirty (30) days after the earlier to occur of (i) a Responsible Officer of the Borrower or any other Credit Party having knowledge of such default, or (ii) receipt of notice thereof by the Borrower from the Administrative Agent.

(f) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to make any payment of principal or interest on any Material Debt, when and as the same shall become due and payable, and such failure to pay shall extend beyond any applicable period of grace.

(g) any event or condition occurs that results in any Material Debt becoming due prior to its scheduled maturity or that enables or permits (with or without the giving of notice, the lapse of time or both) the holder or holders of such Material Debt or any trustee or agent on its or their behalf to cause such Material Debt to become due, or to require the Redemption thereof or any offer to Redeem to be made in respect thereof, prior to its scheduled maturity.

(h) an involuntary proceeding shall be commenced or an involuntary petition shall be filed seeking liquidation, reorganization or other relief in respect of the Borrower or any other Credit Party or its debts, or of a substantial part of its assets, under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect or the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any other Credit Party or for a substantial part of its assets, and, in any such case, such proceeding or petition shall continue undismissed for sixty (60) days or an order or decree approving or ordering any of the foregoing shall be entered.

(i) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall voluntarily commence any proceeding or file any petition seeking liquidation, reorganization or other relief under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect, consent to the institution of, or fail to contest in a timely and appropriate manner, any proceeding or petition described in Section 10.01(h) , apply for or consent to the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any other Credit Party or for a substantial part of its assets, file an answer admitting the material allegations of a petition filed against it in any such proceeding, make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors, or take any action for the purpose of effecting any of the foregoing.

(j) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall become unable, admit in writing its inability or fail generally to pay its debts as they become due.

(k) one or more judgments for the payment of money in an aggregate amount in excess of the Threshold Amount (to the extent not covered by independent third party insurance as to which the insurer, which is not subject to an insolvency proceeding, does not dispute coverage) shall be rendered against the Borrower, any other Credit Party or any combination thereof and the same shall not be either discharged, vacated or stayed within thirty days after becoming a final judgment.

(l) the Loan Documents after delivery thereof shall for any reason, except to the extent permitted by the terms thereof, cease to be in full force and effect and valid, binding and enforceable in accordance with their terms against the Borrower or any other Credit Party party thereto, or shall be repudiated by any of them, or cease to create valid and perfected Liens of the priority required thereby on the Collateral purported to be covered thereby, except to the extent permitted by the terms of this Agreement or the Security Instruments, or the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any of their Affiliates shall so state in writing.

 

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(m) a Change in Control shall occur.

Section 10.02 Remedies .

(a) In the case of an Event of Default other than one described in Section 10.01(h) or Section 10.01(i) , at any time thereafter during the continuance of such Event of Default, the Administrative Agent may, and at the request of the Majority Lenders, shall, by notice to the Borrower, take either or both of the following actions, at the same or different times: (i) terminate the Commitments, and thereupon the Commitments shall terminate immediately, and (ii) declare the Notes and the Loans then outstanding to be due and payable in whole (or in part, in which case any principal not so declared to be due and payable may thereafter be declared to be due and payable), and thereupon the principal of the Loans so declared to be due and payable, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and other obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantors accrued hereunder and under the Notes and the other Loan Documents, shall become due and payable immediately, without presentment, demand, protest, notice of intent to accelerate, notice of acceleration or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower and each Guarantor; and in case of an Event of Default described in Section 10.01(h) or Section 10.01(i) , the Commitments shall automatically terminate and the Notes and the principal of the Loans then outstanding, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and the other obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantors accrued hereunder and under the Notes and the other Loan Documents, shall automatically become due and payable, without presentment, demand, protest, notice of intent to accelerate, notice of acceleration or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower and each Guarantor.

(b) In the case of the occurrence of an Event of Default, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders will have all other rights and remedies available at law and equity.

(c) All proceeds realized from the liquidation or other disposition of Collateral or otherwise received after maturity of the Notes, whether by acceleration or otherwise, shall be applied:

(i) first , to payment or reimbursement of that portion of the Obligations constituting fees, expenses and indemnities payable to the Administrative Agent in its capacity as such;

(ii) second , pro rata to payment or reimbursement of that portion of the Obligations constituting fees, expenses and indemnities payable to the Lenders;

(iii) third , pro rata to payment of accrued interest on the Loans;

(iv) fourth , pro rata to payment of principal outstanding on the Loans;

(v) fifth , pro rata to any other Obligations;

(vi) sixth , any excess, after all of the Obligations shall have been indefeasibly paid in full in cash, shall be paid to the Borrower or as otherwise required by any Governmental Requirement.

ARTICLE XI

THE AGENTS

Section 11.01 Appointment; Powers . Each of the Lenders hereby irrevocably appoints the Administrative Agent as its agent to act on its behalf as the administrative agent hereunder and under the other Loan Documents and authorizes the Administrative Agent to take such actions on its behalf and to exercise such powers as are delegated to the Administrative Agent by the terms hereof and the other Loan Documents, together with such actions and powers as are reasonably incidental thereto.

 

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Section 11.02 Duties and Obligations of Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall not have any duties or obligations except those expressly set forth in the Loan Documents. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing: (a) the Administrative Agent shall not be subject to any fiduciary or other implied duties, regardless of whether a Default has occurred and is continuing (the use of the term “agent” herein and in the other Loan Documents with reference to the Administrative Agent is not intended to connote any fiduciary or other implied (or express) obligations arising under agency doctrine of any applicable law; rather, such term is used as a matter of market custom, and is intended to create or reflect only an administrative relationship between independent contracting parties), (b) the Administrative Agent shall have no duty to take any discretionary action or exercise any discretionary powers, except as provided in Section  11.03 , and (c) except as expressly set forth herein, the Administrative Agent shall not have any duty to disclose, and shall not be liable for the failure to disclose, any information relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Subsidiaries that is communicated to or obtained by the bank serving as Administrative Agent or any of its Affiliates in any capacity. The Administrative Agent shall be deemed not to have knowledge of any Default unless and until written notice thereof is given to the Administrative Agent by the Borrower or a Lender, and shall not be responsible for or have any duty to ascertain or inquire into: (i) any statement, warranty or representation made in or in connection with this Agreement or any other Loan Document, (ii) the contents of any certificate, report or other document delivered hereunder or under any other Loan Document or in connection herewith or therewith, (iii) the performance or observance of any of the covenants, agreements or other terms or conditions set forth herein or in any other Loan Document, (iv) the validity, enforceability, effectiveness or genuineness of this Agreement, any other Loan Document or any other agreement, instrument or document, (v) the satisfaction of any condition set forth in Article VI or elsewhere herein, other than to confirm receipt of items expressly required to be delivered to the Administrative Agent or as to those conditions precedent expressly required to be to the Administrative Agent’s satisfaction, (vi) the existence, value, perfection or priority of any collateral security or the financial or other condition of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Subsidiaries or any other obligor or guarantor, or (vii) any failure by the Borrower or any other Person (other than itself) to perform any of its obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document or the performance or observance of any covenants, agreements or other terms or conditions set forth herein or therein. For purposes of determining compliance with the conditions specified in Article VI , each Lender shall be deemed to have consented to, approved or accepted or to be satisfied with, each document or other matter required thereunder to be consented to or approved by or acceptable or satisfactory to a Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received written notice from such Lender prior to the proposed closing date specifying its objection thereto.

Section 11.03 Action by Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall have no duty to take any discretionary action or exercise any discretionary powers, except discretionary rights and powers expressly contemplated hereby or by the other Loan Documents that the Administrative Agent is required to exercise in writing as directed by the Majority Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ) and in all cases the Administrative Agent shall be fully justified in failing or refusing to act hereunder or under any other Loan Documents unless it shall (a) receive written instructions from the Majority Lenders or the Lenders, as applicable, (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ) specifying the action to be taken and (b) be indemnified to its satisfaction by the Lenders against any and all liability and expenses which may be incurred by it by reason of taking or continuing to take any such action. The instructions as aforesaid and any action taken or failure to act pursuant thereto by the Administrative Agent shall be binding on all of the Lenders. If a Default has occurred and is continuing, then the Administrative Agent shall take such action with respect

 

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to such Default as shall be directed by the requisite Lenders in the written instructions (with indemnities) described in this Section  11.03 , provided that, unless and until the Administrative Agent shall have received such directions, the Administrative Agent may (but shall not be obligated to) take such action, or refrain from taking such action, with respect to such Default as it shall deem advisable in the best interests of the Lenders. In no event, however, shall the Administrative Agent be required to take any action that, in its opinion or the opinion of its counsel, exposes the Administrative Agent to personal liability or which is contrary to this Agreement, the Loan Documents or applicable law, including for the avoidance of doubt any action that may be in violation of the automatic stay under any bankruptcy or insolvency law. If a Default has occurred and is continuing, no syndication agents or documentation agent shall have any obligation to perform any act in respect thereof. The Administrative Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it with the consent or at the request of the Majority Lenders or the Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ), and otherwise the Administrative Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it hereunder or under any other Loan Document or under any other document or instrument referred to or provided for herein or therein or in connection herewith or therewith INCLUDING ITS OWN ORDINARY NEGLIGENCE, except for its own gross negligence or willful misconduct as determined in a final, non-appealable judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Section 11.04 Reliance by Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall be entitled to rely upon, and shall not incur any liability for relying upon, any notice, request, certificate, consent, statement, instrument, document or other writing (including any electronic message, Internet or intranet website posting or other distribution) believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed, sent or otherwise authenticated by the proper Person. The Administrative Agent also may rely upon any statement made to it orally or by telephone and believed by it to be made by the proper Person, and shall not incur any liability for relying thereon. In determining compliance with any condition hereunder to the making of a Loan that by its terms must be fulfilled to the satisfaction of a Lender, the Administrative Agent may presume that such condition is satisfactory to such Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice to the contrary from such Lender prior to the making of such Loan. The Administrative Agent may consult with legal counsel (who may be counsel for the Borrower), independent accountants and other experts selected by it, and shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it in accordance with the advice of any such counsel, accountants or experts. The Administrative Agent may deem and treat the payee of any Note as the holder thereof for all purposes hereof unless and until a written notice of the assignment or transfer thereof permitted hereunder shall have been filed with the Administrative Agent.

Section 11.05 Sub-agents . The Administrative Agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers by or through any one or more sub-agents appointed by the Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers through their respective Related Parties. The exculpatory provisions of the preceding Sections of this Article XI shall apply to any such sub-agent and to the Related Parties of the Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent, and shall apply to their respective activities in connection with the syndication of the credit facilities provided for herein as well as activities as Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent shall not be responsible for the negligence or misconduct of any sub-agents except to the extent that a court of competent jurisdiction determines in a final and nonappealable judgment that the Administrative Agent acted with gross negligence or willful misconduct in the selection of such sub-agents.

Section 11.06 Resignation or Removal of Administrative Agent . Subject to the appointment and acceptance of a successor Administrative Agent as provided in this Section  11.06 , the Administrative Agent may resign at any time by notifying the Lenders and the Borrower. Upon any such resignation or removal, the Majority Lenders shall have the right, in consultation with the Borrower, to appoint a

 

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successor. If no successor shall have been so appointed by the Majority Lenders and shall have accepted such appointment within 30 days after the retiring Administrative Agent gives notice of its resignation or removal of the retiring Administrative Agent, then the retiring Administrative Agent may, on behalf of the Lenders, appoint a successor Administrative Agent which shall be a bank with an office in New York, New York, or an Affiliate of any such bank. Upon the acceptance of its appointment as Administrative Agent hereunder by a successor, such successor shall succeed to and become vested with all the rights, powers, privileges and duties of the retiring Administrative Agent, and the retiring Administrative Agent shall be discharged from its duties and obligations hereunder and under the other Loan Documents. The fees payable by the Borrower to a successor Administrative Agent shall be the same as those payable to its predecessor unless otherwise agreed between the Borrower and such successor. After the Administrative Agent’s resignation hereunder, the provisions of this Article XI and Section  12.03 shall continue in effect for the benefit of such retiring Administrative Agent, its sub-agents and their respective Related Parties in respect of any actions taken or omitted to be taken by any of them while it was acting as Administrative Agent.

Section 11.07 Agents as Lenders . Each bank serving as an Agent hereunder shall have the same rights and powers in its capacity as a Lender as any other Lender and may exercise the same as though it were not an Agent, and such bank and its Affiliates may accept deposits from, lend money to, own securities of, act as the financial advisor or in any other advisory capacity for and generally engage in any kind of business with Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary of the Borrower or other Affiliate thereof as if it were not an Agent hereunder and without any duty to account therefor to the Lenders.

Section 11.08 No Reliance . (a) Each Lender acknowledges that it has, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it has deemed appropriate, made its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Agreement and each other Loan Document to which it is a party. Each Lender also acknowledges that it will, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it shall from time to time deem appropriate, continue to make its own decisions in taking or not taking action under or based upon this Agreement, any other Loan Document, any related agreement or any document furnished hereunder or thereunder. The Agents shall not be required to keep themselves informed as to the performance or observance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Subsidiaries of this Agreement, the Loan Documents or any other document referred to or provided for herein or to inspect the Properties or books of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the Borrower’s Subsidiaries. Except for notices, reports and other documents and information expressly required to be furnished to the Lenders by the Administrative Agent hereunder, no Agent or the Arrangers shall have any duty or responsibility to provide any Lender with any credit or other information concerning the affairs, financial condition or business of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower (or any of their Affiliates) which may come into the possession of such Agent or any of its Affiliates. In this regard, each Lender acknowledges that Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting in this transaction as special counsel to the Administrative Agent only, except to the extent otherwise expressly stated in any legal opinion or any Loan Document. Each other party hereto will consult with its own legal counsel to the extent that it deems necessary in connection with the Loan Documents and the matters contemplated therein.

(b) The Lenders acknowledge that the Administrative Agent is acting solely in administrative capacities with respect to the structuring of this Agreement and has no duties, responsibilities or liabilities under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents other than their administrative duties, responsibilities and liabilities specifically as set forth in the Loan Documents and, if applicable, in its capacity as Lenders hereunder. In structuring, arranging or syndicating this Agreement, each Lender acknowledges that the Administrative Agent may be a lender hereunder and under other

 

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loans or other securities and waives any existing or future conflicts of interest associated with the their role in such other debt instruments. If in its administration of this facility or any other debt instrument, the Administrative Agent determines (or is given written notice by any Lender) that a conflict exists, then it shall eliminate such conflict within 90 days or resign pursuant to Section  11.06 and shall have no liability for action taken or not taken while such conflict existed.

Section 11.09 Administrative Agent May File Proofs of Claim . In case of the pendency of any receivership, insolvency, liquidation, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment, composition or other judicial proceeding relative to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Restricted Subsidiaries, the Administrative Agent (irrespective of whether the principal of any Loan shall then be due and payable as herein expressed or by declaration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Administrative Agent shall have made any demand on the Borrower) shall be entitled and empowered (but not obligated), by intervention in such proceeding or otherwise:

(a) to file and prove a claim for the whole amount of the principal and interest owing and unpaid in respect of the Loans and all other Obligations that are owing and unpaid and to file such other documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Lenders and the Administrative Agent (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Lenders and the Administrative Agent and their respective agents and counsel and all other amounts due the Lenders and the Administrative Agent under Section  12.03 ) allowed in such judicial proceeding; and

(b) to collect and receive any monies or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims and to distribute the same.

Any custodian, receiver, assignee, trustee, liquidator, sequestrator or other similar official in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each Lender to make such payments to the Administrative Agent and, in the event that the Administrative Agent shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Lenders, to pay to the Administrative Agent any amount due for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Administrative Agent and its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Administrative Agent under Section  12.03 .

Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to authorize the Administrative Agent to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of any Lender any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Obligations or the rights of any Lender or to authorize the Administrative Agent to vote in respect of the claim of any Lender in any such proceeding.

Section 11.10 Authority of Administrative Agent to Release Collateral and Liens .

(a) Each Lender hereby authorizes the Administrative Agent to take the following actions and the Administrative Agent hereby agrees to take such actions at the request of the Borrower:

(i) to release any Lien on any property granted to or held by the Collateral Agent under any Loan Document (x) upon termination of all Commitments and payment in full of all Obligations (other than contingent indemnification obligations) owing to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders under the Loan Documents, (y) that is, or is to be, sold, released or otherwise disposed of as permitted pursuant to the terms of the Loan Documents, or (z) if approved, authorized or ratified in writing by the Majority Lenders (or, if approval, authorization or ratification by all Lenders is required under Section 12.02(b) , then by all Lenders);

 

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(ii) to subordinate (or release) any Lien on any Property granted to or held by the Administrative Agent under any Loan Document to any Lien on such Property that is permitted by Section 9.03(c) ;

(iii) to release any Guarantor from its obligations under the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement and the other Loan Documents if such Person ceases to be a Restricted Subsidiary as a result of a transaction permitted under the Loan Documents; and

(iv) to execute and deliver to the Borrower, at the Borrower’s sole cost and expense, any and all releases of Liens, termination statements, assignments or other documents necessary or useful to accomplish or evidence the foregoing.

(b) Upon the request of the Administrative Agent at any time, the Majority Lenders will confirm in writing the Administrative Agent’s authority to release particular types or items of Collateral pursuant to this Section  11.10 .

(c) Except as otherwise provided in Section  12.08 with respect to rights of setoff, and notwithstanding any other provision contained in any of the Loan Documents to the contrary, no Person other than the Administrative Agent has any right to realize upon any of the Collateral individually, to enforce any Liens on Collateral, or to enforce the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, and all powers, rights and remedies under the Security Instruments may be exercised solely by Administrative Agent on behalf of the Persons secured or otherwise benefitted thereby.

(d) By accepting the benefit of the Liens granted pursuant to the Security Instruments, each Person secured by such Liens that is not a party hereto agrees to the terms of this Section  11.10 .

Section 11.11 The Arrangers, the Syndication Agent and the Documentation Agent . The Arrangers and any other arranger, syndication agent or documentation agent hereafter appointed shall have no duties, responsibilities or liabilities under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents other than their duties, responsibilities and liabilities in their capacity as Lenders hereunder.

ARTICLE XII

MISCELLANEOUS

Section 12.01 Notices .

(a) Except in the case of notices and other communications expressly permitted to be given by telephone (and subject to Section 12.01(b) ), all notices and other communications provided for herein shall be in writing and shall be delivered by hand or overnight courier service, mailed by certified or registered mail or sent by facsimile, to it at its address set forth on Schedule 12.01 , and if to any Lender other than Barclays Bank PLC, to it at its address (or facsimile number) set forth in its Administrative Questionnaire.

(b) Notices and other communications to the Lenders hereunder may be delivered or furnished by electronic communications (including e-mail and Internet or intranet websites) pursuant to procedures approved by the Administrative Agent; provided that the foregoing shall not apply to notices pursuant to Article II , III , IV or V , unless otherwise agreed by the Administrative Agent and the applicable Lender, if any, in writing. The Administrative Agent or the Borrower may, in its discretion, agree to accept notices and other communications to it hereunder by electronic communications pursuant to procedures approved by it, provided that approval of such procedures may be limited to particular notices or communications.

 

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(c) Any party hereto may change its address or facsimile number for notices and other communications hereunder by notice to the other parties hereto. All notices and other communications given to any party hereto in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement shall be deemed to have been given on the date of receipt.

(d) The Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall be entitled to rely and act upon any notices (including telephonic notices) purportedly given by or on behalf of the Borrower even if (i) such notices were not made in a manner specified herein, were incomplete or were not preceded or followed by any other form of notice specified herein or (ii) the terms thereof, as understood by the recipient, varied from any confirmation thereof. All telephonic notices to and telephonic communications with the Administrative Agent may be recorded by the Administrative Agent, and each of the parties hereby consents to such recording.

Section 12.02 Waivers; Amendments .

(a) No failure on the part of the Administrative Agent or any Lender to exercise and no delay in exercising, and no course of dealing with respect to, any right, power or privilege, or any abandonment or discontinuance of steps to enforce such right, power or privilege, under any of the Loan Documents shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right, power or privilege under any of the Loan Documents preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, power or privilege. The rights and remedies of the Administrative Agent, any other Agent and the Lenders hereunder and under the other Loan Documents are cumulative and are not exclusive of any rights or remedies that they would otherwise have. No waiver of any provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document or consent to any departure by the Borrower therefrom shall in any event be effective unless the same shall be permitted by Section 12.02(b) , and then such waiver or consent shall be effective only in the specific instance and for the purpose for which given. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the making of a Loan shall not be construed as a waiver of any Default, regardless of whether the Administrative Agent, any other Agent, or any Lender may have had notice or knowledge of such Default at the time.

(b) Neither this Agreement nor any provision hereof nor any Security Instrument nor any provision thereof may be waived, amended or modified except pursuant to an agreement or agreements in writing entered into by the Borrower and the Majority Lenders or by the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with the consent of the Majority Lenders; provided that no such agreement shall (i) increase the Commitment of any Lender without the written consent of such Lender, (ii) reduce the principal amount of any Loan or reduce the rate of interest thereon, or reduce any fees payable hereunder, or reduce any other Obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document, without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby, (iii) postpone the scheduled date of payment or prepayment of the principal amount of any Loan, or any interest thereon, or any fees payable hereunder, or any other Obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document, or reduce the amount of, waive or excuse any such payment, or postpone or extend the Maturity Date or the Maturity Date without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby, (iv) change Section 4.01(b) , Section 4.01(c) , the definition of “Applicable Percentage” or any other term or condition hereof in a manner that would alter the pro rata sharing of payments required thereby, without the written consent of each Lender, (v) waive or amend Section 3.04(c) , Section  6.01 or Section 10.02(c) , without the written consent of each Lender, (vi) release any Guarantor (except as set forth in the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement or in this Agreement), release all or substantially all of the Collateral (other than as provided in Section  11.10 ), or (vii) change any of the provisions of this Section 12.02(b) or the definition of “Majority Lenders” or any other

 

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provision hereof specifying the number or percentage of Lenders required to waive, amend or modify any rights hereunder or under any other Loan Documents or make any determination or grant any consent hereunder or any other Loan Documents, without the written consent of each Lender; provided further that no such agreement shall amend, modify or otherwise affect the rights or duties of the Administrative Agent, any other Agent hereunder or under any other Loan Document without the prior written consent of the Administrative Agent, such other Agent, as the case may be. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (1) any supplement to Schedule 7.14 shall be effective simply by delivering to the Administrative Agent a supplemental schedule clearly marked as such and, upon receipt, the Administrative Agent will promptly deliver a copy thereof to the Lenders, (2) the Borrower and the Administrative Agent may amend this Agreement or any other Loan Document without the consent of the Lenders in order to correct, amend or cure any ambiguity, inconsistency or defect or correct any typographical error or other manifest error in any Loan Document or to modify or add financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or Events of Default to cause such financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or Events of Default to be more onerous to the Borrower than those contained in this Agreement (prior to giving effect to such amendment) in connection with any amendment, modification or other change to the Senior Notes Documents pursuant Section 9.17(c) , and (3) the Administrative Agent and the Borrower may, without the consent of any Lender, enter into any amendment, modification or waiver of this Agreement or any other Loan Document or enter into any agreement or instrument to add additional Guarantors as contemplated in Section 8.14(b) or to effect the granting, perfection, protection, expansion or enhancement of any security interest in any Collateral or Property to become Collateral to secure the Obligations for the benefit of the Lenders or as required by any Governmental Requirement to give effect to, protect or otherwise enhance the rights or benefits of any Lender under the Loan Documents.

Section 12.03 Expenses, Indemnity; Damage Waiver .

(a) The Borrower shall pay (i) all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Administrative Agent and its Affiliates (including the reasonable fees, charges and disbursements of counsel and other outside consultants for the Administrative Agent, the reasonable travel, photocopy, mailing, courier, telephone and other similar expenses, and the cost of environmental assessments and audits and surveys and appraisals) in connection with the syndication of the credit facilities provided for herein, the preparation, negotiation, execution, delivery and administration (both before and after the execution hereof and including advice of counsel to the Administrative Agent as to the rights and duties of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders with respect thereto) of this Agreement and the other Loan Documents and any amendments, modifications or waivers of or consents related to the provisions hereof or thereof (whether or not the transactions contemplated hereby or thereby shall be consummated), (ii) all costs, expenses, Taxes, assessments and other charges incurred by the Administrative Agent (or any sub-agent thereof) in connection with any filing, registration, recording or perfection of any security interest contemplated by this Agreement or any Security Instrument or any other document referred to therein, and (iii) all out-of-pocket expenses incurred by any Agent or, during the continuance of any Event of Default, by any Lender in connection with the enforcement or protection of its rights under this Agreement or any other Loan Document, including its rights under this Section  12.03 , or in connection with the Loans made hereunder, and including all such out-of-pocket expenses incurred during any workout, restructuring or negotiations in respect of such Loans.

(b) THE BORROWER SHALL INDEMNIFY EACH AGENT (AND ANY SUB-AGENT THEREOF), THE ARRANGERS, AND EACH LENDER, AND EACH RELATED PARTY OF ANY OF THE FOREGOING PERSONS (EACH SUCH PERSON BEING CALLED AN INDEMNITEE ) AGAINST, AND DEFEND AND HOLD EACH INDEMNITEE HARMLESS FROM, ANY AND ALL LOSSES, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, PENALTIES, LIABILITIES AND RELATED EXPENSES, INCLUDING THE REASONABLE FEES, CHARGES AND DISBURSEMENTS OF ANY COUNSEL FOR ANY INDEMNITEE,

 

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INCURRED BY OR ASSERTED AGAINST ANY INDEMNITEE ARISING OUT OF, IN CONNECTION WITH, OR AS A RESULT OF (i) THE EXECUTION OR DELIVERY OF THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT OR ANY AGREEMENT OR INSTRUMENT CONTEMPLATED HEREBY OR THEREBY, (ii) THE PERFORMANCE BY THE PARTIES HERETO OR THE PARTIES TO ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OBLIGATIONS HEREUNDER OR THEREUNDER OR THE CONSUMMATION OF THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY OR BY ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT, (iii) THE FAILURE OF THE BORROWER OR ANY RESTRICTED SUBSIDIARY TO COMPLY WITH THE TERMS OF ANY LOAN DOCUMENT, INCLUDING THIS AGREEMENT, OR WITH ANY GOVERNMENTAL REQUIREMENT, (iv) ANY INACCURACY OF ANY REPRESENTATION OR ANY BREACH OF ANY WARRANTY OR COVENANT OF THE BORROWER OR ANY GUARANTOR SET FORTH IN ANY OF THE LOAN DOCUMENTS OR ANY INSTRUMENTS, DOCUMENTS OR CERTIFICATIONS DELIVERED IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, (v) ANY LOAN OR THE USE OF THE PROCEEDS THEREFROM, OR ANY OTHER ASPECT OF THE LOAN DOCUMENTS, (vi) THE OPERATIONS OF THE BUSINESS OF THE BORROWER AND THE BORROWER’S SUBSIDIARIES BY SUCH PERSON, (vii) ANY ASSERTION THAT THE LENDERS WERE NOT ENTITLED TO RECEIVE THE PROCEEDS RECEIVED PURSUANT TO THE SECURITY INSTRUMENTS, (viii) ANY ENVIRONMENTAL LAW APPLICABLE TO THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OR ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES OR OPERATIONS, INCLUDING, THE PRESENCE, GENERATION, STORAGE, RELEASE, THREATENED RELEASE, USE, TRANSPORT, DISPOSAL, ARRANGEMENT OF DISPOSAL OR TREATMENT OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR AT ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES, (ix) THE BREACH OR NON-COMPLIANCE BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY WITH ANY ENVIRONMENTAL LAW APPLICABLE TO THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY, (x) THE PAST OWNERSHIP BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OF ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES OR PAST ACTIVITY ON ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES WHICH, THOUGH LAWFUL AND FULLY PERMISSIBLE AT THE TIME, COULD RESULT IN PRESENT LIABILITY, (xi) THE PRESENCE, USE, RELEASE, STORAGE, TREATMENT, DISPOSAL, GENERATION, THREATENED RELEASE, TRANSPORT, ARRANGEMENT FOR TRANSPORT OR ARRANGEMENT FOR DISPOSAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR AT ANY OF THE PROPERTIES OWNED OR OPERATED BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OR ANY ACTUAL OR ALLEGED PRESENCE OR RELEASE OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR FROM ANY PROPERTY OWNED OR OPERATED BY THE BORROWER OR ANY OF THE BORROWER’S SUBSIDIARIES, (xii) ANY ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITY RELATED IN ANY WAY TO THE BORROWER OR ANY OF THE BORROWER’S SUBSIDIARIES, OR ANY OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH OR SAFETY CONDITION IN CONNECTION WITH THE LOAN DOCUMENTS, OR (xiii) ANY ACTUAL OR PROSPECTIVE CLAIM, LITIGATION, INVESTIGATION OR PROCEEDING RELATING TO ANY OF THE FOREGOING, AND REGARDLESS OF WHETHER ANY INDEMNITEE IS A PARTY THERETO OR WHETHER BROUGHT BY THE BORROWER, ANY GUARANTOR OR ANY OTHER PARTY, AND SUCH INDEMNITY SHALL EXTEND TO EACH INDEMNITEE NOTWITHSTANDING THE SOLE OR CONCURRENT NEGLIGENCE OF EVERY KIND OR CHARACTER WHATSOEVER, WHETHER ACTIVE OR PASSIVE, WHETHER AN AFFIRMATIVE ACT OR AN OMISSION, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL TYPES OF NEGLIGENT CONDUCT IDENTIFIED IN THE RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF TORTS OF ONE OR MORE OF THE INDEMNITEES OR BY REASON OF STRICT LIABILITY IMPOSED WITHOUT FAULT ON ANY ONE OR MORE OF THE INDEMNITEES; PROVIDED THAT SUCH INDEMNITY SHALL NOT, AS TO ANY INDEMNITEE, BE AVAILABLE TO THE EXTENT THAT SUCH LOSSES, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, LIABILITIES OR RELATED EXPENSES ARE DETERMINED BY A COURT OF

 

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COMPETENT JURISDICTION BY FINAL AND NONAPPEALABLE JUDGMENT TO HAVE RESULTED FROM THE BAD FAITH, GROSS NEGLIGENCE OR WILLFUL MISCONDUCT OF ANY INDEMNITEE.

(c) To the extent that the Borrower fails to pay any amount required to be paid by it to any Agent (or any sub-agent thereof), the Arrangers under Section 12.03(a) or (b)  or any Related Party of the foregoing, each Lender severally agrees to pay to such Agent (or any such sub-agent), the Arrangers, as the case may be, such Lender’s Applicable Percentage (determined as of the time that the applicable unreimbursed expense or indemnity payment is sought) of such unpaid amount (including any such unpaid amount in respect of a claim asserted by such Lender); provided that the unreimbursed expense or indemnified loss, claim, damage, liability or related expense, as the case may be, was incurred by or asserted against such Agent (or any sub-agent thereof), the Arrangers in its capacity as such.

(d) All amounts due under this Section  12.03 shall be payable not later than thirty (30) days after written demand therefor.

(e) Each party’s obligations under this Section  12.03 shall survive the termination of the Loan Documents and payment of the obligations hereunder.

Section 12.04 Successors and Assigns; No Third Party Beneficiaries .

(a) The provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby, except that the Borrower may not assign or otherwise transfer any of its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of Administrative Agent and each Lender and no Lender may assign or otherwise transfer its rights or obligations hereunder except in accordance with this Section  12.04 . Nothing in this Agreement, expressed or implied, shall be construed to confer upon any Person (other than the parties hereto, their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby, Participants (to the extent provided in Section 12.04(c) ) and, to the extent expressly contemplated hereby, the Related Parties of each of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders) any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or by reason of this Agreement, and except for the foregoing Persons there are no third party beneficiaries to this Agreement.

(b) (i) Subject to the conditions set forth in Section 12.04(b)(ii) , any Lender may assign to one or more assignees all or a portion of its rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of its Commitment and the Loans at the time owing to it) with the prior written consent (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed) of:

(A) the Borrower; provided that (i) no consent of the Borrower shall be required if such assignment is to a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender, an Approved Fund or if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing and (ii) if the Borrower has not responded within ten (10) Business Days after the delivery of any such request for a consent, such consent shall be deemed to have been given; and

(B) the Administrative Agent; provided that no consent of the Administrative Agent shall be required for an assignment to an assignee that is a Lender immediately prior to giving effect to such assignment.

 

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(ii) Assignments shall be subject to the following additional conditions:

(A) except in the case of an assignment to a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender or an assignment of the entire remaining amount of the assigning Lender’s Commitment or Loans, the amount of the Commitment or Loans of the assigning Lender subject to each such assignment (determined as of the date the Assignment and Assumption with respect to such assignment is delivered to the Administrative Agent) shall not be less than $1,000,000 unless each of the Borrower and the Administrative Agent otherwise consent; provided that no such consent of the Borrower shall be required if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing;

(B) each partial assignment shall be made as an assignment of a proportionate part of all the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement;

(C) the parties to each assignment shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent an Assignment and Assumption, together with a processing and recordation fee of $3,500; provided that the Administrative Agent may, in its sole discretion, elect to waive such processing and recordation fee in the case of any assignment;

(D) the assignee, if it shall not be a Lender, shall deliver to the Administrative Agent an Administrative Questionnaire; and

(E) no such assignment shall be made to a natural person, an Industry Competitor, or the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Affiliates or Subsidiaries.

(iii) Subject to Section 12.04(b)(iv) and the acceptance and recording thereof by the Administrative Agent, from and after the effective date specified in each Assignment and Assumption the assignee thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement, and the assigning Lender thereunder shall, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, be released from its obligations under this Agreement (and, in the case of an Assignment and Assumption covering all of the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement, such Lender shall cease to be a party hereto) but shall continue to be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 with respect to facts and circumstances occurring prior to the Effective Date of such assignment. Any assignment or transfer by a Lender of rights or obligations under this Agreement that does not comply with this Section  12.04 shall be treated for purposes of this Agreement as a sale by such Lender of a participation in such rights and obligations in accordance with Section 12.04(c) .

(iv) The Administrative Agent, acting for this purpose as a non-fiduciary agent of the Borrower, shall maintain at one of its offices a copy of each Assignment and Assumption delivered to it and a register for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders, and the Commitment of, and principal amount of the Loans owing to, each Lender pursuant to the terms hereof from time to time (the “ Register ”). The entries in the Register shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders may treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register pursuant to the terms hereof as a Lender hereunder for all purposes of this Agreement, notwithstanding notice to the contrary. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Borrower and any Lender, at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice. In connection with any changes to the Register, if necessary, the Administrative Agent will reflect the revisions on Annex I and forward a copy of such revised Annex I to the Borrower and each Lender. This Section 12.04(b)(iv) shall be construed so that all Loans are at all times maintained in “registered form” within the meaning of sections 163(f), 871(h)(2) and 881(c)(2) of the Code and any related Treasury Regulations (or any other relevant or successor provisions of the Code or such Treasury Regulations).

 

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(v) Upon its receipt of a duly completed Assignment and Assumption executed by an assigning Lender and an assignee, the assignee’s completed Administrative Questionnaire (unless the assignee shall already be a Lender hereunder), the processing and recordation fee referred to in Section 12.04(b) and any written consent to such assignment required by Section 12.04(b) , the Administrative Agent shall accept such Assignment and Assumption and record the information contained therein in the Register. No assignment shall be effective for purposes of this Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this Section 12.04(b) .

(c) Any Lender may, without the consent of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, sell participations to one or more banks or other entities (a “ Participant ”) in all or a portion of such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of its Commitment and the Loans owing to it); provided that:

(i) such Lender’s obligations under this Agreement shall remain unchanged, such Lender shall remain solely responsible to the other parties hereto for the performance of such obligations, the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, and the other Lenders shall continue to deal solely and directly with such Lender in connection with such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement;

(ii) such Participant must first agree to comply with Section  12.11 ;

(iii) no such participation may be sold to a natural Person or an Industry Competitor; and

(iv) any agreement or instrument pursuant to which a Lender sells such a participation shall provide that such Lender retains the sole right to enforce this Agreement and to approve any amendment, modification or waiver of any provision of this Agreement, except that such agreement or instrument may provide that such Lender will not, without the consent of the Participant, agree to any amendment, modification or waiver described in the first proviso to Section 12.02(b) that affects such Participant.

Each such Participant shall be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.01 , 5.02 and 5.03 and shall be subject to the requirements of and limitations in Sections 5.01 , 5.02 , 5.03 and 5.05 (it being understood that the documentation required under Section 5.03(g) shall be delivered to the participating Lender, i.e. , the Lender selling such participation) to the same extent as if such Participant were a Lender and had acquired its interest by assignment pursuant to paragraph (b) of this Section; provided that such Participant shall not be entitled at any time to receive any greater payment under Sections 5.01 or 5.03 , with respect to any participation, than its participating Lender would have been entitled to receive at such time, except to the extent such entitlement to receive a greater payment results from a Change in Law that occurs after the Participant acquired the applicable participation. A Participant that would be a Foreign Lender if it were a Lender shall not be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.03 unless the Borrower is notified of the participation sold to such Participant and such Participant complies with Section  5.03 as though it were a Lender. Each Lender that sells a participation agrees, at the Borrower’s request and expense, to use reasonable efforts to cooperate with the Borrower to effectuate the provisions of Section  5.05 with respect to any Participant. To the extent permitted by law, each Participant also shall be entitled to the benefits of Section  12.08 as though it were a Lender; provided that such Participant agrees to be subject to Section 4.01(c) as though it were a Lender. Each Lender that sells a participation shall, acting solely for this purpose as a non-fiduciary agent of the Borrower, maintain a register on which it enters the name and address of each Participant and the principal amounts (and stated interest) of each Participant’s interest in the Loans or other obligations under the Loan Documents (the “ Participant Register ”); provided that no Lender shall have any obligation to disclose all or any portion of the

 

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Participant Register (including the identity of any Participant or any information relating to a Participant’s interest in any Commitments, Loans or its other obligations under any Loan Document) to any Person except to the extent that such disclosure is necessary to establish that such Commitment, Loan, or other obligation is in registered form under Section 5f.103-1(c) of the United States Treasury Regulations. The entries in the Participant Register shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and such Lender shall treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Participant Register as the owner of such participation for all purposes of this Agreement notwithstanding any notice to the contrary. For the avoidance of doubt, the Administrative Agent (in its capacity as Administrative Agent) shall have no responsibility for maintaining a Participant Register.

(d) Any Lender may at any time pledge or assign a security interest in all or any portion of its rights under this Agreement to secure obligations of such Lender, including any pledge or assignment to secure obligations to a Federal Reserve Bank or other central bank having jurisdiction over such Lender, and this Section  12.04 shall not apply to any such pledge or assignment of a security interest; provided that no such pledge or assignment of a security interest shall release a Lender from any of its obligations hereunder or substitute any such pledgee or assignee for such Lender as a party hereto.

(e) Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, any Lender may, at any time, assign all or a portion of its Loans to an Affiliated Lender, subject to the following limitations:

(i) In connection with an assignment to a Non-Debt Fund Affiliate, (A) the Non-Debt Fund Affiliate shall have identified itself in writing as an Affiliated Lender to the assigning Lender and the Administrative Agent prior to the execution of such assignment and (B) the Non-Debt Fund Affiliate shall be deemed to have represented and warranted to the assigning Lender and the Administrative Agent that the requirements set forth in this clause (e)(i) and clause (iv) below, shall have been satisfied upon consummation of the applicable assignment;

(ii) Non-Debt Fund Affiliates will not (A) have the right to receive information, reports or other materials provided solely to Lenders by the Administrative Agent or any other Lender, except to the extent made available to the Borrower, and except that such Affiliate Lenders shall have the right to require delivery to it of notices of borrowings, prepayments and other administrative notices in respect of its Loans required to be delivered to Lenders pursuant to Article II (B) attend or participate in meetings attended solely by the Lenders and the Administrative Agent, or (C) access any electronic site (except that if notices of borrowings, prepayments and other administrative notices in respect of its Loans required to be delivered to Lenders pursuant to Article II are made available through a portion of the Platform designated “Affiliate Lender”, they may have access solely to such portion of the Platform designated “Affiliate Lender”) established for the Lenders or confidential communications from counsel to or financial advisors of the Administrative Agent or the Lenders;

(iii) (A) for purposes of any consent to any amendment, waiver or modification of, or any action under, and for the purpose of any direction to the Administrative Agent or any Lender to undertake any action (or refrain from taking any action) under, this Agreement or any other Loan Document, each Non-Debt Fund Affiliate will be deemed to have consented in the same proportion as the Lenders that are not Non-Debt Fund Affiliates consented to such matter, unless such matter adversely affects such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate more than other Lenders in any material respect, (B) for purposes of voting on any plan of reorganization or plan of liquidation pursuant to any Debtor Relief Laws, each Non-Debt Fund Affiliate hereby agrees (x) not to vote on such of reorganization or plan of liquidation, (y) if such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate does vote on such of reorganization or plan of liquidation notwithstanding the restriction in the foregoing clause (x), such vote will be deemed not to be in good faith and shall be “designated” pursuant to Section 1126(e) of the Bankruptcy Code (or any similar provision in any other Debtor Relief Laws), and such vote shall not be counted in determining whether

 

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the applicable class has accepted or rejected such of reorganization or plan of liquidation in accordance with Section 1126(c) of the Bankruptcy Code (or any similar provision in any other Debtor Relief Laws) and (z) not to contest any request by any party for a determination by the bankruptcy court (or other applicable court of competent jurisdiction) effectuating the foregoing clause (y), in each case under this clause (iii)(B) unless such of reorganization or plan of liquidation adversely affects such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate more than other Lenders in any material respect, and (C) each Non-Debt Fund Affiliate hereby (solely in its capacity as a Lender) irrevocably appoints the Administrative Agent (such appointment being coupled with an interest) as such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate’s attorney-in-fact, with full authority in the place and stead of such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate and in the name of such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate (solely in respect of Loans therein and not in respect of any other claim or status such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate may otherwise have), from time to time in the Administrative Agent’s discretion to take any action and to execute any instrument that the Administrative Agent may deem reasonably necessary or appropriate to carry out the provisions of this clause (iii), including to ensure that any vote of such Non-Debt Fund Affiliate on any of reorganization or plan of liquidation is withdrawn or otherwise not counted;

(iv) the aggregate principal amount of Loans held at any one time by Non-Debt Fund Affiliates may not exceed 25% of the aggregate outstanding principal amount of Loans;

(v) the Affiliated Lender will not be entitled to bring actions against the Administrative Agent, in its role as such, or receive advice of counsel or other advisors to the Administrative Agent or any other Lenders or challenge the attorney client privilege of their respective counsel; and

(vi) the portion of any Loans held by Non-Debt Fund Affiliates in the aggregate in excess of 49.9% of the amount of Loans and Commitments required to be held by Lenders in order for such Lenders to constitute “Majority Lenders” shall be disregarded in determining Majority Lenders at any time.

Each Affiliated Lender that is a Lender hereunder agrees to comply with the terms of this paragraph (e) (notwithstanding that it may be granted access to any electronic site established for the Lenders by the Administrative Agent), and agrees that in any subsequent assignment of all or any portion of its Loans it shall identify itself in writing to the assignee as an Affiliated Lender prior to the execution of such assignment.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section  12.04 , no transfer or assignment of the interests or obligations of any Lender or any grant of participations therein shall be permitted if such transfer, assignment or grant would require any Credit Party to file a registration statement with the SEC or to qualify the Loans under the “Blue Sky” laws of any state.

Section 12.05 Survival; Revival; Reinstatement .

(a) All covenants, agreements, representations and warranties made by Parent Guarantor and the Borrower herein and in the certificates or other instruments delivered in connection with or pursuant to this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall be considered to have been relied upon by the other parties hereto and shall survive the execution and delivery of this Agreement and the making of any Loans, regardless of any investigation made by any such other party or on its behalf and notwithstanding that the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or any Lender may have had notice or knowledge of any Default or incorrect representation or warranty at the time any credit is extended hereunder, and shall continue in full force and effect as long as the principal of or any accrued interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount payable under this Agreement is outstanding and unpaid and so long as the Commitments have not expired or terminated. The provisions of Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 ,

 

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Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 and Article XI shall survive and remain in full force and effect regardless of the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, the repayment of the Loans, the expiration or termination of the Commitments or the termination of this Agreement, any other Loan Document or any provision hereof or thereof.

(b) To the extent that any payments on the Obligations or proceeds of any Collateral are subsequently invalidated, declared to be fraudulent or preferential, set aside or required to be repaid to a trustee, debtor in possession, receiver or other Person under any bankruptcy law, common law or equitable cause, then to such extent, the Obligations so satisfied shall be revived and continue as if such payment or proceeds had not been received and the Administrative Agent’s and the Lenders’ Liens, security interests, rights, powers and remedies under this Agreement and each Loan Document shall continue in full force and effect. In such event, each Loan Document shall be automatically reinstated and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall take such action as may be reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent and the Lenders to effect such reinstatement.

Section 12.06 Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness .

(a) This Agreement may be executed in counterparts (and by different parties hereto on different counterparts), each of which shall constitute an original, but all of which when taken together shall constitute a single contract.

(b) This Agreement, the other Loan Documents and any separate letter agreements with respect to fees payable to the Administrative Agent constitute the entire contract among the parties relating to the subject matter hereof and thereof and supersede any and all previous agreements and understandings, oral or written, relating to the subject matter hereof and thereof. THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS REPRESENT THE FINAL AGREEMENT AMONG THE PARTIES HERETO AND THERETO AND MAY NOT BE CONTRADICTED BY EVIDENCE OF PRIOR, CONTEMPORANEOUS OR SUBSEQUENT ORAL AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES. THERE ARE NO UNWRITTEN ORAL AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE PARTIES.

(c) Except as provided in Section  6.01 , this Agreement shall become effective when it shall have been executed by the Administrative Agent and when the Administrative Agent shall have received counterparts hereof which, when taken together, bear the signatures of each of the other parties hereto, and thereafter shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Agreement by facsimile, as an attachment to an email or other similar electronic means shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Agreement.

Section 12.07 Severability . Any provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any jurisdiction shall, as to such jurisdiction, be ineffective to the extent of such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability without affecting the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions hereof or thereof; and the invalidity of a particular provision in a particular jurisdiction shall not invalidate such provision in any other jurisdiction.

Section 12.08 Right of Setoff . If an Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, each Lender and each of its Affiliates is hereby authorized at any time and from time to time, to the fullest extent permitted by law, to set off and apply any and all deposits (general or special, time or demand, provisional or final, in whatever currency) at any time held and other obligations (in whatever currency, and of whatsoever kind, including obligations under Swap Agreements) at any time owing by such Lender or Affiliate to or for the credit or the account of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted

 

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Subsidiary against any of and all the obligations of Parent Guarantor the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary owed to such Lender or its Affiliates now or hereafter existing under this Agreement or any other Loan Document, irrespective of whether or not such Lender shall have made any demand under this Agreement or any other Loan Document and although such obligations may be unmatured or are owed to a branch, office or Affiliate of such Lender different from the branch, office or Affiliate holding such deposit or obligated on such indebtedness. The rights of each Lender and its Affiliates under this Section  12.08 are in addition to other rights and remedies (including other rights of setoff) which such Lender or its Affiliates may have. Each Lender agrees to notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent promptly after any such setoff and application; provided that the failure to give such notice shall not affect the validity of such setoff and application.

Section 12.09 GOVERNING LAW; JURISDICTION; CONSENT TO SERVICE OF PROCESS .

(a) THIS AGREEMENT AND THE NOTES SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT THAT UNITED STATES FEDERAL LAW PERMITS ANY LENDER TO CONTRACT FOR, CHARGE, RECEIVE, RESERVE OR TAKE INTEREST AT THE RATE ALLOWED BY THE LAWS OF THE STATE WHERE SUCH LENDER IS LOCATED.

(b) ANY LEGAL ACTION OR PROCEEDING WITH RESPECT TO THE LOAN DOCUMENTS MAY BE BROUGHT IN THE COURTS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SITTING IN NEW YORK COUNTY, OR OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, AND, BY EXECUTION AND DELIVERY OF THIS AGREEMENT, EACH PARTY HEREBY ACCEPTS FOR ITSELF AND (TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW) IN RESPECT OF ITS PROPERTY, GENERALLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY, THE JURISDICTION OF THE AFORESAID COURTS. EACH PARTY HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ANY OBJECTION, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY OBJECTION TO THE LAYING OF VENUE OR BASED ON THE GROUNDS OF FORUM NON CONVENIENS , WHICH IT MAY NOW OR HEREAFTER HAVE TO THE BRINGING OF ANY SUCH ACTION OR PROCEEDING IN SUCH RESPECTIVE JURISDICTIONS. THIS SUBMISSION TO JURISDICTION IS NON-EXCLUSIVE AND DOES NOT PRECLUDE A PARTY FROM BRINGING SUIT AGAINST ANOTHER PARTY IN ANY COURT OTHERWISE HAVING JURISDICTION.

(c) EACH PARTY IRREVOCABLY CONSENTS TO THE SERVICE OF PROCESS OF ANY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED COURTS IN ANY SUCH ACTION OR PROCEEDING BY THE MAILING OF COPIES THEREOF BY REGISTERED OR CERTIFIED MAIL, POSTAGE PREPAID, TO IT AT THE ADDRESS SPECIFIED IN SECTION 12.01 OR SUCH OTHER ADDRESS AS IS SPECIFIED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12.01 (OR ITS ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION), SUCH SERVICE TO BECOME EFFECTIVE THIRTY (30) DAYS AFTER SUCH MAILING (OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS IS PROVIDED BY APPLICABLE LAW). NOTHING HEREIN SHALL AFFECT THE RIGHT OF A PARTY OR ANY HOLDER OF A NOTE TO SERVE PROCESS IN ANY OTHER MANNER PERMITTED BY LAW OR TO COMMENCE LEGAL PROCEEDINGS OR OTHERWISE PROCEED AGAINST ANOTHER PARTY IN ANY OTHER JURISDICTION.

(d) EACH PARTY (i) HEREBY IRREVOCABLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL ACTION OR PROCEEDING RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT AND FOR ANY COUNTERCLAIM THEREIN; (ii) IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT NOT PROHIBITED BY LAW, ANY RIGHT IT MAY HAVE TO CLAIM

 

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OR RECOVER IN ANY SUCH LITIGATION ANY SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES OTHER THAN, OR IN ADDITION TO, ACTUAL DAMAGES; PROVIDED THAT, THE FOREGOING WAIVER SHALL NOT LIMIT THE INDEMNITY OBLIGATIONS OF THE BORROWER UNDER SECTION 12.03 TO THE EXTENT ANY SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARE INCLUDED IN A THIRD PARTY CLAIM IN CONNECTION WITH WHICH AN INDEMNITEE IS ENTITLED TO INDEMNIFICATION BY THE BORROWER UNDER SECTION 12.03; AND (iii) CERTIFIES THAT NO PARTY HERETO NOR ANY REPRESENTATIVE OR AGENT OF COUNSEL FOR ANY PARTY HERETO HAS REPRESENTED, EXPRESSLY OR OTHERWISE, OR IMPLIED THAT SUCH PARTY WOULD NOT, IN THE EVENT OF LITIGATION, SEEK TO ENFORCE THE FOREGOING WAIVERS, AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IT HAS BEEN INDUCED TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT, THE LOAN DOCUMENTS AND THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY AND THEREBY BY, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE MUTUAL WAIVERS AND CERTIFICATIONS CONTAINED IN THIS SECTION 12.09.

Section 12.10 Headings . Article and Section headings and the Table of Contents used herein are for convenience of reference only, are not part of this Agreement and shall not affect the construction of, or be taken into consideration in interpreting, this Agreement.

Section 12.11 Confidentiality . Each of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders agrees to maintain the confidentiality of the Information (as defined below), except that Information may be disclosed (a) to its and its Affiliates’ directors, officers, employees and agents, including accountants, legal counsel and other advisors (it being understood that the Persons to whom such disclosure is made will be informed of the confidential nature of such Information and instructed to keep such Information confidential), (b) to the extent requested by any regulatory authority having jurisdiction over the disclosing party, (c) to the extent required by applicable laws or regulations or by any subpoena or similar legal process, (d) to any other party to this Agreement or any other Loan Document, (e) in connection with the exercise of any remedies hereunder or under any other Loan Document or any suit, action or proceeding relating to this Agreement or any other Loan Document or the enforcement of rights hereunder or thereunder, (f) subject to an agreement for the express benefit of the Borrower containing provisions substantially the same as those of this Section  12.11 , to any assignee of or Participant in, or any prospective assignee of or Participant in, any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement or to any actual or prospective counterparty (or its advisors) to any Swap Agreement relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its obligations, (g) with the consent of the Borrower or (h) to the extent such Information becomes publicly available other than as a result of a breach of this Section  12.11 or becomes available to the Administrative Agent or any Lender on a nonconfidential basis from a source (other than any Credit Party) not known by them to be subject to confidentiality restrictions. For the purposes of this Section  12.11 , “ Information ” means all information received from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary and their businesses, other than any such information that is available to the Administrative Agent or any Lender on a nonconfidential basis prior to disclosure by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary; provided that, in the case of information received from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary after the date hereof, such information is clearly identified at the time of delivery as confidential. Any Person required to maintain the confidentiality of Information as provided in this Section  12.11 shall be considered to have complied with its obligation to do so if such Person has exercised the same degree of care to maintain the confidentiality of such Information as such Person would accord to its own confidential information. In addition, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders may disclose the existence of this Agreement and information about this Agreement to rating agencies, market data collectors, similar service providers to the lending industry and service providers to the Agents and the Lenders in connection with the administration of this Agreement, the other Loan Documents, and the Commitments.

 

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Section 12.12 Interest Rate Limitation . It is the intention of the parties hereto that each Lender shall conform strictly to usury laws applicable to it. Accordingly, if the transactions contemplated hereby would be usurious as to any Lender under laws applicable to it (including the laws of the United States of America or any state or other jurisdiction whose laws may be mandatorily applicable to such Lender notwithstanding the other provisions of this Agreement), then, in that event, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any of the Loan Documents or any agreement entered into in connection with or as security for the Notes, it is agreed as follows: (a) the aggregate of all consideration which constitutes interest under law applicable to any Lender that is contracted for, taken, reserved, charged or received by such Lender under any of the Loan Documents or agreements or otherwise in connection with the Notes shall under no circumstances exceed the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law, and any excess shall be canceled automatically and if theretofore paid shall be credited by such Lender on the principal amount of the Obligations (or, to the extent that the principal amount of the Obligations shall have been or would thereby be paid in full, refunded by such Lender to the Borrower); and (b) in the event that the maturity of the Notes is accelerated by reason of an election of the holder thereof resulting from any Event of Default under this Agreement or otherwise, or in the event of any required or permitted prepayment, then such consideration that constitutes interest under law applicable to any Lender may never include more than the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law, and excess interest, if any, provided for in this Agreement or otherwise shall be canceled automatically by such Lender as of the date of such acceleration or prepayment and, if theretofore paid, shall be credited by such Lender on the principal amount of the Obligations (or, to the extent that the principal amount of the Obligations shall have been or would thereby be paid in full, refunded by such Lender to the Borrower). All sums paid or agreed to be paid to any Lender for the use, forbearance or detention of sums due hereunder shall, to the extent permitted by law applicable to such Lender, be amortized, prorated, allocated and spread throughout the stated term of the Loans until payment in full so that the rate or amount of interest on account of any Loans hereunder does not exceed the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law. If at any time and from time to time the amount of interest payable to any Lender on any date shall be computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender pursuant to this Section  12.12 and in respect of any subsequent interest computation period the amount of interest otherwise payable to such Lender would be less than the amount of interest payable to such Lender computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender, then the amount of interest payable to such Lender in respect of such subsequent interest computation period shall continue to be computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender until the total amount of interest payable to such Lender shall equal the total amount of interest which would have been payable to such Lender if the total amount of interest had been computed without giving effect to this Section  12.12 .

Section 12.13 EXCULPATION PROVISIONS . EACH OF THE PARTIES HERETO SPECIFICALLY AGREES THAT IT HAS A DUTY TO READ THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS AND AGREES THAT IT IS CHARGED WITH NOTICE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; THAT IT HAS IN FACT READ THIS AGREEMENT AND IS FULLY INFORMED AND HAS FULL NOTICE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE TERMS, CONDITIONS AND EFFECTS OF THIS AGREEMENT; THAT IT HAS BEEN REPRESENTED BY INDEPENDENT LEGAL COUNSEL OF ITS CHOICE THROUGHOUT THE NEGOTIATIONS PRECEDING ITS EXECUTION OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; AND HAS RECEIVED THE ADVICE OF ITS ATTORNEY IN ENTERING INTO THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; AND THAT IT RECOGNIZES THAT CERTAIN OF THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS RESULT IN ONE PARTY ASSUMING THE LIABILITY INHERENT IN SOME ASPECTS OF THE TRANSACTION AND RELIEVING THE OTHER PARTY OF ITS RESPONSIBILITY FOR SUCH LIABILITY. EACH PARTY HERETO AGREES AND COVENANTS THAT IT WILL NOT CONTEST THE VALIDITY OR ENFORCEABILITY OF ANY EXCULPATORY PROVISION OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS ON THE BASIS THAT THE PARTY HAD NO NOTICE OR KNOWLEDGE OF SUCH PROVISION OR THAT THE PROVISION IS NOT “CONSPICUOUS.”

 

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Section 12.14 [Reserved] .

Section 12.15 [Reserved] .

Section 12.16 [Reserved] .

Section 12.17 USA Patriot Act Notice . Each Agent and each Lender hereby notifies Parent Guarantor and the Borrower that pursuant to the requirements of the USA Patriot Act (Title III of Pub. L. 107-56 (signed into law October 26, 2001)) (the “ Act ”), it is required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies the Borrower and each Guarantor, which information includes the name and address of the Borrower and each Guarantor and other information that will allow it to identify the Borrower and each Guarantor in accordance with the Act.

Section 12.18 No Advisory or Fiduciary Responsibility . In connection with all aspects of each transaction contemplated hereby (including in connection with any amendment, waiver or other modification hereof or of any other Loan Document), each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower acknowledges and agrees, and acknowledges its Subsidiaries’ understanding, that: (a) (i) no fiduciary, advisory or (except as expressly provided in Section  12.04 ) agency relationship between Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its Subsidiaries and the Administrative Agent or any Lender is intended to be or has been created in respect of the transactions contemplated hereby or by the other Loan Documents, irrespective of whether the Administrative Agent or any Lender has advised or is advising Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary on other matters; (ii) the arranging and other services regarding this Agreement provided by the Administrative Agent and the Lenders are arm’s-length commercial transactions between Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and their Subsidiaries, on the one hand, and the Administrative Agent and the Lenders, on the other hand; (iii) each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower has consulted its own legal, accounting, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent that it has deemed appropriate; and (iv) each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower is capable of evaluating, and understands and accepts, the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated hereby and by the other Loan Documents; and (b) (i) the Administrative Agent and the Lenders each is and has been acting solely as a principal and, except as expressly agreed in writing by the relevant parties, has not been, is not, and will not be acting as an advisor, agent or fiduciary for Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of their Subsidiaries, or any other Person; (ii) neither the Administrative Agent nor the Lenders has any obligation to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of their Subsidiaries with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby except those obligations expressly set forth herein and in the other Loan Documents; and (iii) the Administrative Agent and the Lenders and their respective Affiliates may be engaged, for their own accounts or the accounts of customers, in a broad range of transactions that involve interests that differ from those of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and their Subsidiaries, and neither the Administrative Agent nor the Lenders has any obligation to disclose any of such interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries. To the fullest extent permitted by Law, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby waives and releases any claims that it may have against the Administrative Agent and the Lenders with respect to any breach or alleged breach of agency (except as expressly set forth in Section  12.04 ) or fiduciary duty in connection with any aspect of any transaction contemplated hereby.

Section 12.19 Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of EEA Financial Institutions . Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Loan Document or in any other agreement, arrangement or understanding among any such parties, each party hereto acknowledges that any liability of any EEA Financial Institution arising under any Loan Document, to the extent such liability is unsecured, may be

 

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subject to the Write-Down and Conversion Powers of an EEA Resolution Authority and agrees and consents to, and acknowledges and agrees to be bound by:

(a) the application of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by an EEA Resolution Authority to any such liabilities arising hereunder which may be payable to it by any party hereto that is an EEA Financial Institution; and

(b) the effects of any Bail-In Action on any such liability, including, if applicable:

(i) a reduction in full or in part or cancellation of any such liability;

(ii) a conversion of all, or a portion of, such liability into shares or other instruments of ownership in such EEA Financial Institution, its parent undertaking, or a bridge institution that may be issued to it or otherwise conferred on it, and that such shares or other instruments of ownership will be accepted by it in lieu of any rights with respect to any such liability under this Agreement or any other Loan Document; or

(iii) the variation of the terms of such liability in connection with the exercise of the Write-Down and Conversion Powers of any EEA Resolution Authority.

The provisions of this Section  12.19 are intended to comply with, and shall be interpreted in light of, Article 55 of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union.

[SIGNATURES BEGIN NEXT PAGE]

 

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The parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be duly executed as of the day and year first above written.

 

BORROWER:    

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC. ,

a Delaware limited liability company

    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

PARENT GUARANTOR:    

ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP. ,

a Delaware corporation

    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

PARENT GUARANTOR:    

UP ENERGY CORPORATION ,

a Delaware corporation

    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

 

Signature Page

Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement


BARCLAYS BANK PLC , as Administrative Agent and a Lender

By:  

/s/ Kevin Crealese

Name:   Kevin Crealese
Title:   Managing Director

 

Signature Page

Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement


ANNEX I

Commitments

 

Lender

   Commitment      Percentage  
Barclays Bank PLC    $ 600,000,000.00        100
  

 

 

    

 

 

 

Total

   $ 600,000,000.00        100
  

 

 

    

 

 

 


Execution Version

EXHIBIT A

FORM OF NOTE

 

$[            ]                , 201[  ]

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”) hereby promises to pay to [                    ] (the “ Lender ”), at the office of Barclays Bank PLC (the “ Administrative Agent ”), located at 745 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10019, the principal sum of [        ] Dollars ($[        ]) (or such lesser amount as shall equal the aggregate unpaid principal amount of the Loans made by the Lender to the Borrower under the Agreement, as hereinafter defined), in lawful money of the United States of America and in immediately available funds, on the dates and in the principal amounts provided in the Agreement, and to pay interest on the unpaid principal amount of each such Loan, at such office, in like money and funds, for the period commencing on the date of such Loan until such Loan shall be paid in full, at the rates per annum and on the dates provided in the Agreement.

The date, amount, Type, interest rate, Interest Period and maturity of each Loan made by the Lender to the Borrower, and each payment made on account of the principal thereof, shall be recorded by the Lender on its books and, prior to any transfer of this Note, may be endorsed by the Lender on the schedules attached hereto or any continuation thereof or on any separate record maintained by the Lender. Failure to make any such notation or to attach a schedule shall not affect any Lender’s or the Borrower’s rights or obligations in respect of such Loans or affect the validity of such transfer by any Lender of this Note.

This Note is one of the Notes referred to in the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, the Administrative Agent, and the lenders and other parties signatory thereto (including the Lender), and evidences Loans made by the Lender thereunder (such Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement as the same may be amended, supplemented or restated from time to time, the “ Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used in this Note have the respective meanings assigned to them in the Agreement.

This Note is issued pursuant to, and is subject to the terms and conditions set forth in, the Agreement and is entitled to the benefits provided for in the Agreement and the other Loan Documents. The Agreement provides for the acceleration of the maturity of this Note upon the occurrence of certain events, for prepayments of Loans upon the terms and conditions specified therein and other provisions relevant to this Note. The Agreement contains requirements for the transfer of this Note and the registration of such transfer.

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank]

 

Exhibit A

-1-


THIS NOTE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                               
Name:                                                                                               
Title:                                                                                               

 

Exhibit A

-2-


EXHIBIT B

FORM OF BORROWING REQUEST

[            ], 20[    ]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), pursuant to Section  2.03 of the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), hereby requests a Borrowing as follows:

(i)    Aggregate amount of the requested Borrowing is $[        ];

(ii)    Date of such Borrowing is [            ], 20[    ];

(iii)    Requested Borrowing is to be [an ABR Borrowing] [a Eurodollar Borrowing];

(iv)    In the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, the initial Interest Period applicable thereto is [                    ];

(v)    Amount of Borrowing Base in effect on the date hereof is $[        ];

(vi)    Amount of the Total Commitment in effect on the date hereof is $[        ];

(vii)    Total Revolving Credit Exposures on the date hereof before giving effect to any requested Borrowing under, and as defined in, the Revolving Credit Agreement is $[        ];

(viii)    Pro forma total Revolving Credit Exposures (giving effect to any concurrent Borrowing under, and as defined in, the Revolving Credit Agreement) is $[        ]; and

(ix)    Location and number of the Borrower’s account to which funds are to be disbursed, which shall comply with the requirements of Section  2.05 of the Agreement, is as follows:

[                                         ]

[                                         ]

[                                         ]

[                                         ]

[                                         ]

 

Exhibit B

-1-


The undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that he/she is the [                    ] of the Borrower, and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. The undersigned further certifies, represents and warrants on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that the Borrower is entitled to receive the requested Borrowing under the terms and conditions of the Agreement.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                               
Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit B

-2-


EXHIBIT C

FORM OF INTEREST ELECTION REQUEST

[            ], 20[    ]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), pursuant to Section  2.04 of the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), hereby makes an Interest Election Request as follows:

(i) The Borrowing to which this Interest Election Request applies, and if different options are being elected with respect to different portions thereof, the portions thereof to be allocated to each resulting Borrowing (in which case the information specified pursuant to (iii) and (iv) below shall be specified for each resulting Borrowing) is [                    ];

(ii) The effective date of the election made pursuant to this Interest Election Request is [            ], 20[    ];[and]

(iii) The resulting Borrowing is to be [an ABR Borrowing] [a Eurodollar Borrowing][; and]

[ If the resulting Borrowing is a Eurodollar Borrowing, add the following: ]

[(iv) The Interest Period applicable to the resulting Borrowing after giving effect to such election is [                    ]].

The undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that he/she is the [                    ] of the Borrower, and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. The undersigned further certifies, represents and warrants on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that the Borrower is entitled to receive the requested continuation or conversion under the terms and conditions of the Agreement.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                              
Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit C


EXHIBIT D

FORM OF COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

The undersigned hereby certifies that he/she is the [                    ] of ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. With reference to the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto being the “ Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become a party thereto, and the other parties thereto, the undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) as follows (each capitalized term used herein having the same meaning given to it in the Agreement unless otherwise specified):

(a) There exists no Default or Event of Default [or specify Default and describe any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto].

(b) Attached hereto are detailed computations showing that the Borrower is [is not] in compliance with the Financial Covenants as of the end of the [fiscal quarter][fiscal year] ending [                    ].

(c) No change in GAAP or in the application thereof has occurred since December 31, 2016 that affects the financial statements accompanying this certificate [except                                  ].

EXECUTED AND DELIVERED this [    ] day of [                    ].

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                              
Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit D


EXHIBIT E

SECURITY INSTRUMENTS

Unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used in this Exhibit E has the meaning assigned to such term in that certain Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the lenders which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto.

That certain Collateral Agency Agreement, dated as of the Effective Date, among the Administrative Agent, the Revolving Administrative Agent, the additional agents and additional trustees from time to time party thereto, the several grantors from time to time party thereto and the Collateral Agent.

That certain Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, dated as of the Effective Date, among the Credit Parties and the Collateral Agent.

Financing Statements in respect of the foregoing.

 

Exhibit E


EXHIBIT F

FORM OF ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

This Assignment and Assumption (this “ Assignment and Assumption ”) is dated as of the Effective Date set forth below and is entered into by and between [ Insert name of Assignor ] (the “ Assignor ”) and [ Insert name of Assignee ] (the “ Assignee ”). Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement identified below (as amended, the “ Agreement ”), receipt of a copy of which is hereby acknowledged by the Assignee. The Standard Terms and Conditions set forth in Annex 1 attached hereto are hereby agreed to and incorporated herein by reference and made a part of this Assignment and Assumption as if set forth herein in full.

For an agreed consideration, the Assignor hereby irrevocably sells and assigns to the Assignee, and the Assignee hereby irrevocably purchases and assumes from the Assignor, subject to and in accordance with the Standard Terms and Conditions and the Agreement, as of the Effective Date inserted by the Administrative Agent as contemplated below (i) all of the Assignor’s rights and obligations in its capacity as a Lender under the Agreement and any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto to the extent related to the amount and percentage interest identified below of all of such outstanding rights and obligations of the Assignor under the respective facilities identified below (including any letters of credit and guarantees included in such facilities) and (ii) to the extent permitted to be assigned under applicable law, all claims, suits, causes of action and any other right of the Assignor (in its capacity as a Lender) against any Person, whether known or unknown, arising under or in connection with the Agreement, any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto or the loan transactions governed thereby or in any way based on or related to any of the foregoing, including contract claims, tort claims, malpractice claims, statutory claims and all other claims at law or in equity related to the rights and obligations sold and assigned pursuant to clause (i) above (the rights and obligations sold and assigned pursuant to clauses (i) and (ii) above being referred to herein collectively as the “ Assigned Interest ”). Such sale and assignment is without recourse to the Assignor and, except as expressly provided in this Assignment and Assumption, without representation or warranty by the Assignor.

 

1.

  

Assignor:

                                                                

2.

  

Assignee:

                                                                
      [and is an Affiliate/Approved Fund of [ identify Lender ] 1 ]

3.

  

Borrower:

   Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”)

4.

  

Administrative Agent:

   Barclays Bank PLC, as the Administrative Agent under the Agreement

 

1   Select as applicable.

 

Exhibit F

-1-


5.

  

Agreement:

   Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, the Lenders parties thereto, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, and the other parties thereto

6.

  

Assigned Interest:

  

 

Commitment

Assigned

   Aggregate Amount of
Commitment/Loans
for all Lenders
     Amount of
Commitment/Loans
Assigned
     Percentage Assigned
of
Commitment/Loans 2
 
   $                   $                         
   $                   $                         
   $                   $                         

Effective Date:               , 20      [TO BE INSERTED BY ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT AND WHICH SHALL BE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF RECORDATION OF TRANSFER IN THE REGISTER THEREFOR.]

The terms set forth in this Assignment and Assumption are hereby agreed to:

 

ASSIGNOR
[NAME OF ASSIGNOR]
By:                                                                                                
Title:  
ASSIGNEE
[NAME OF ASSIGNEE]
By:  

 

Title:  

 

 

2   Set forth, to at least 9 decimals, as a percentage of the Commitment/Loans of all Lenders thereunder.

 

Exhibit F

-2-


[Consented to and] 3 Accepted:

BARCLAYS BANK PLC, as

  Administrative Agent

By                                                                                        
Title:  
[Consented to:] 4

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

 

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

 

3   To be added only if the consent of the Administrative Agent is required by the terms of the Agreement.
4   To be added only if the consent of the Borrower and/or other parties (e.g. Issuing Bank) is required by the terms of the Agreement.

 

Exhibit F

-3-


ANNEX 1

[                      ] 5

STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR

ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

1. Representations and Warranties .

1.1     Assignor . The Assignor (a) represents and warrants that (i) it is the legal and beneficial owner of the Assigned Interest, (ii) the Assigned Interest is free and clear of any lien, encumbrance or other adverse claim and (iii) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby; and (b) assumes no responsibility with respect to (i) any statements, warranties or representations made in or in connection with the Agreement or any other Loan Document, (ii) the execution, legality, validity, enforceability, genuineness, sufficiency or value of the Loan Documents or any collateral thereunder, (iii) the financial condition of the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person obligated in respect of any Loan Document or (iv) the performance or observance by the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person of any of their respective obligations under any Loan Document.

1.2. Assignee . The Assignee (a) represents and warrants that (i) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby and to become a Lender under the Agreement, (ii) it satisfies the requirements, if any, specified in the Agreement that are required to be satisfied by it in order to acquire the Assigned Interest and become a Lender, (iii) from and after the Effective Date, it shall be bound by the provisions of the Agreement as a Lender thereunder and, to the extent of the Assigned Interest, shall have the obligations of a Lender thereunder, (iv) it has received a copy of the Agreement, together with copies of the most recent financial statements delivered pursuant to Section  8.01 thereof, as applicable, and such other documents and information as it has deemed appropriate to make its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Assignment and Assumption and to purchase the Assigned Interest on the basis of which it has made such analysis and decision independently and without reliance on the Administrative Agent or any other Lender, and (v) if it is a Foreign Lender, attached to the Assignment and Assumption is any documentation required to be delivered by it pursuant to the terms of the Agreement, duly completed and executed by the Assignee; and (b) agrees that (i) it will, independently and without reliance on the Administrative Agent, the Assignor or any other Lender, and based on such documents and information as it shall deem appropriate at the time, continue to make its own credit decisions in taking or not taking action under the Loan Documents, and (ii) it will perform in accordance with their terms all of the obligations which by the terms of the Loan Documents are required to be performed by it as a Lender.

2.     Payments . From and after the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent shall make all payments in respect of the Assigned Interest (including payments of principal, interest, fees and other amounts) to the Assignor for amounts which have accrued to but excluding the Effective Date and to the Assignee for amounts which have accrued from and after the Effective Date.

 

 

5   Describe Agreement at option of Administrative Agent.

 

Exhibit F

-4-


3. General Provisions . This Assignment and Assumption shall be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of, the parties hereto and the other parties to the Agreement and their respective successors and assigns. This Assignment and Assumption may be executed in any number of counterparts, which together shall constitute one instrument. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Assignment and Assumption by facsimile shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Assignment and Assumption. This Assignment and Assumption shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

 

Exhibit F

-5-


EXHIBIT G-1

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN LENDERS; NOT

PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By:  
Name:  
Title:  
Date:               , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-1


EXHIBIT G-2

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN PARTICIPANTS;

NOT PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Participants That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code, and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender in writing, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By:
Name:
Title:
Date:               , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-2


EXHIBIT G-3

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN PARTICIPANTS; PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Participants That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such participation, (iii) with respect such participation, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a loan agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By:
Name:
Title:
Date:               , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-3


EXHIBIT G-4

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN LENDERS; PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)), (iii) with respect to the extension of credit pursuant to this Agreement or any other Loan Document, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a loan agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments. Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By:
Name:
Title:
Date:               , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-4


EXHIBIT H

FORM OF COMMITMENT INCREASE CERTIFICATE

[            ], 20[    ]

 

To: Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), the Parent Guarantor, the Administrative Agent and certain Lenders and other agents have heretofore entered into a Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning given to such terms in the Credit Agreement.

This Commitment Increase Certificate is being delivered pursuant to Section 2.06(b) of the Agreement.

Please be advised that the undersigned Lender has agreed (a) to increase its Commitment under the Agreement effective [            ], 20[    ] (the “ Increase Effective Date ”) from $[        ] to $[        ] and (b) that it shall continue to be a party in all respects to the Agreement and the other Loan Documents.

With reference to Section 2.06(d) of the Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that [Check Applicable Box]:

 

  There are, or if the Increase Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be no Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Increase Effective Date.

 

  There are, or if the Increase Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Increase Effective Date and the Borrower will pay any compensation required by Section  5.02 of the Agreement on the Increase Effective Date.

With reference to Section 2.06(b)(ix) of the Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that (a) it is in pro forma compliance with the Financial Covenants (calculated in a manner reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent) and (b) [after giving effect to the increase in the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists] 6 [after giving pro forma effect to the increase in the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, the Asset Coverage Ratio is not less than 2.0 to 1.0] 7 .

 

 

6   NTD : Use during a Borrowing Base Period.
7   NTD : Use during an Investment Grade Period or any Term Loan Exclusive Period.

 

Exhibit H

-1-


Very truly yours,
ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                              
Name:                                                                                              
Title:                                                                                              

 

Exhibit H

-2-


Accepted and Agreed:
BARCLAYS BANK PLC,
as Administrative Agent
By:                                                                                         
Name:                                                                                         
Title:                                                                                         
Accepted and Agreed:
[Name of Increasing Lender]
By:                                                                                         
Name:                                                                                         
Title:                                                                                         

 

Exhibit H

-3-


EXHIBIT I

FORM OF ADDITIONAL LENDER CERTIFICATE

[            ], 20[    ]

 

To: Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), Ultra Petroleum Corp., UP Energy Corporation, the Administrative Agent and certain Lenders and other agents have heretofore entered into a Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning given to such terms in the Agreement.

This Additional Lender Certificate is being delivered pursuant to Section 2.06(b) of the Agreement.

Please be advised that the undersigned Additional Lender has agreed (a) to become a Lender under the Agreement effective [            ], 20[    ] (the “ Additional Lender Effective Date ”) with a Commitment of $[        ] and (b) that it shall be a party in all respects to the Agreement and the other Loan Documents.

This Additional Lender Certificate is being delivered to the Administrative Agent together with (i) if the Additional Lender is a Foreign Lender, any documentation required to be delivered by such Additional Lender pursuant to Section 5.03(g) of the Agreement, duly completed and executed by the Additional Lender, and (ii) an Administrative Questionnaire in the form supplied by the Administrative Agent, duly completed by the Additional Lender. [The [ Borrower/Additional Lender ] shall pay the processing and recordation fee payable to the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 2.06(b)(xi) of the Agreement.] 8

With reference to Section 2.06(d) of the Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that [Check Applicable Box]:

 

  There are, or if the Additional Lender Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be no Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Additional Lender Effective Date.

 

  There are, or if the Additional Lender Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Additional Lender Effective Date and the Borrower will pay any compensation required by Section  5.02 of the Agreement on the Additional Lender Effective Date.

With reference to Section 2.06(b)(ix) of the Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that (a) it is in pro forma compliance with the Financial Covenants (calculated in a manner reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent) and (b) [after giving effect to the increase in

 

8  

Include, if applicable.

 

Exhibit I

-1-


the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists] 9 [after giving pro forma effect to the increase in the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, the Asset Coverage Ratio is not less than 2.0 to 1.0] 10 .

 

 

9   NTD : Use during a Borrowing Base Period.
10   NTD : Use during an Investment Grade Period or any Term Loan Exclusive Period.

 

Exhibit I

-2-


Very truly yours,
ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,
a Delaware corporation
By:                                                                                              
Name:                                                                                              
Title:                                                                                              

 

Accepted and Agreed:
BARCLAYS BANK PLC,
As Administrative Agent
By:                                                                                        
Name:                                                                                        
Title:                                                                                        
Accepted and Agreed:
[Name of Additional Lender]
By:                                                                                        
Name:                                                                                        
Title:                                                                                        

 

Exhibit I

-3-

Exhibit 10.2

 

 

 

CREDIT AGREEMENT

dated as of April 12, 2017,

among

ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP.

and

UP ENERGY CORPORATION,

as Parent Guarantor

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

as Borrower,

BANK OF MONTREAL,

as Administrative Agent,

and

The Lenders and Other Parties Party Hereto

 

 

BARCLAYS BANK PLC,

as Syndication Agent

GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA,

as Documentation Agent

and

BMO CAPITAL MARKETS CORP.,

BARCLAYS BANK PLC and GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA

as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Bookrunners

 

 

 


TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

         Page  
ARTICLE I  
DEFINITIONS AND ACCOUNTING MATTERS  

Section 1.01

 

Terms Defined Above

     1  

Section 1.02

 

Certain Defined Terms

     1  

Section 1.03

 

Types of Loans and Borrowings

     34  

Section 1.04

 

Terms Generally; Rules of Construction

     34  

Section 1.05

 

Accounting Terms and Determinations; GAAP

     34  
ARTICLE II  
THE CREDITS  

Section 2.01

 

Commitments

     35  

Section 2.02

 

Loans and Borrowings

     35  

Section 2.03

 

Requests for Borrowings

     36  

Section 2.04

 

Interest Elections

     36  

Section 2.05

 

Funding of Borrowings

     38  

Section 2.06

 

Increase, Reduction and Termination of Total Commitment

     38  

Section 2.07

 

Borrowing Base

     41  

Section 2.08

 

Letters of Credit

     44  
ARTICLE III  
PAYMENTS OF PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST; PREPAYMENTS; FEES  

Section 3.01

 

Repayment of Loans

     48  

Section 3.02

 

Interest

     49  

Section 3.03

 

Alternate Rate of Interest

     49  

Section 3.04

 

Prepayments

     50  

Section 3.05

 

Fees

     51  
ARTICLE IV  
PAYMENTS; PRO RATA TREATMENT; SHARING OF SET-OFFS  

Section 4.01

 

Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs

     52  

Section 4.02

 

Presumption of Payment by the Borrower

     53  

Section 4.03

 

Deductions by the Administrative Agent

     53  

Section 4.04

 

Collection of Proceeds of Production

     54  

Section 4.05

 

Defaulting Lenders

     54  
ARTICLE V  
INCREASED COSTS; BREAK FUNDING PAYMENTS; TAXES; ILLEGALITY  

Section 5.01

 

Increased Costs

     56  

Section 5.02

 

Break Funding Payments

     57  

Section 5.03

 

Taxes

     58  

Section 5.04

 

Mitigation Obligations; Designation of Different Lending Office

     61  

Section 5.05

 

Replacement of Lenders

     61  

Section 5.06

 

Illegality

     62  
ARTICLE VI  
CONDITIONS PRECEDENT  

Section 6.01

 

Effective Date

     62  

Section 6.02

 

Each Credit Event

     65  

Section 6.03

 

Additional Conditions to Letters of Credit

     65  

 

i


ARTICLE VII  
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES  

Section 7.01

 

Organization; Powers

     66  

Section 7.02

 

Authority; Enforceability

     66  

Section 7.03

 

Approvals; No Conflicts

     66  

Section 7.04

 

Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change

     66  

Section 7.05

 

Litigation

     67  

Section 7.06

 

Environmental Matters

     67  

Section 7.07

 

Compliance with the Laws and Agreements; No Defaults

     68  

Section 7.08

 

Investment Company Act

     68  

Section 7.09

 

Taxes

     68  

Section 7.10

 

ERISA

     69  

Section 7.11

 

Disclosure; No Material Misstatements

     69  

Section 7.12

 

Insurance

     70  

Section 7.13

 

Restriction on Liens

     70  

Section 7.14

 

Subsidiaries

     70  

Section 7.15

 

Location of Business and Offices

     70  

Section 7.16

 

Properties; Titles, Etc

     71  

Section 7.17

 

Maintenance of Properties

     71  

Section 7.18

 

Gas Imbalances, Prepayments

     72  

Section 7.19

 

Marketing of Production

     72  

Section 7.20

 

Swap Agreements and Qualified ECP Counterparty

     72  

Section 7.21

 

Use of Loans and Letters of Credit

     72  

Section 7.22

 

Solvency

     72  

Section 7.23

 

Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions

     73  

Section 7.24

 

EEA Financial Institutions

     73  

Section 7.25

 

Senior Debt Status

     73  

Section 7.26

 

Security Instruments

     73  

Section 7.27

 

PATRIOT Act

     73  
ARTICLE VIII  
AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS  

Section 8.01

 

Financial Statements; Other Information

     73  

Section 8.02

 

Notices of Material Events

     77  

Section 8.03

 

Existence; Conduct of Business

     77  

Section 8.04

 

Payment of Obligations

     77  

Section 8.05

 

Performance of Obligations under Loan Documents

     78  

Section 8.06

 

Operation and Maintenance of Properties

     78  

Section 8.07

 

Insurance

     78  

Section 8.08

 

Books and Records; Inspection Rights

     79  

Section 8.09

 

Compliance with Laws

     79  

Section 8.10

 

Environmental Matters

     79  

Section 8.11

 

Further Assurances

     80  

Section 8.12

 

Reserve Reports

     80  

Section 8.13

 

Title Information

     81  

Section 8.14

 

Additional Collateral; Additional Guarantors

     81  

Section 8.15

 

Unrestricted Subsidiaries

     83  

Section 8.16

 

Commodity Exchange Act Keepwell Provisions

     83  

 

ii


Section 8.17

 

ERISA Compliance

     83  

Section 8.18

 

Deposit Accounts; Commodities Accounts and Securities Accounts

     84  

Section 8.19

 

Post-Effective Date Deliverables

     84  
ARTICLE IX  
NEGATIVE COVENANTS  

Section 9.01

 

Financial Covenants

     84  

Section 9.02

 

Debt

     85  

Section 9.03

 

Liens

     86  

Section 9.04

 

Restricted Payments and Payments in Respect of Certain Debt

     87  

Section 9.05

 

Investments, Loans and Advances

     87  

Section 9.06

 

Nature of Business; International Operations

     88  

Section 9.07

 

[Reserved]

     88  

Section 9.08

 

ERISA Compliance

     88  

Section 9.09

 

Sale or Discount of Notes or Receivables

     89  

Section 9.10

 

Mergers, Etc

     89  

Section 9.11

 

Sale of Properties and Liquidation of Swap Agreements

     89  

Section 9.12

 

Transactions with Affiliates

     90  

Section 9.13

 

Subsidiaries

     91  

Section 9.14

 

Negative Pledge Agreements; Subsidiary Dividend Restrictions

     91  

Section 9.15

 

Designation and Conversion of Restricted and Unrestricted Subsidiaries

     91  

Section 9.16

 

Non-Qualified ECP Counterparties

     92  

Section 9.17

 

Amendments to Senior Debt Documents

     92  

Section 9.18

 

Swap Agreements

     92  
ARTICLE X  
EVENTS OF DEFAULT; REMEDIES  

Section 10.01

 

Events of Default

     94  

Section 10.02

 

Remedies

     95  
ARTICLE XI  
THE AGENTS  

Section 11.01

 

Appointment; Powers

     96  

Section 11.02

 

Duties and Obligations of Administrative Agent

     96  

Section 11.03

 

Action by Administrative Agent

     97  

Section 11.04

 

Reliance by Administrative Agent

     98  

Section 11.05

 

Sub-agents

     98  

Section 11.06

 

Resignation or Removal of Administrative Agent

     98  

Section 11.07

 

Agents as Lenders

     99  

Section 11.08

 

No Reliance

     99  

Section 11.09

 

Administrative Agent May File Proofs of Claim

     100  

Section 11.10

 

Authority of Administrative Agent to Release Collateral and Liens

     100  

Section 11.11

 

The Arrangers, the Syndication Agent and the Documentation Agent

     101  
ARTICLE XII  
MISCELLANEOUS  

Section 12.01

 

Notices

     101  

Section 12.02

 

Waivers; Amendments

     102  

Section 12.03

 

Expenses, Indemnity; Damage Waiver

     103  

Section 12.04

 

Successors and Assigns; No Third Party Beneficiaries

     106  

Section 12.05

 

Survival; Revival; Reinstatement

     109  

Section 12.06

 

Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness

     109  

 

iii


Section 12.07

 

Severability

     110  

Section 12.08

 

Right of Setoff

     110  

Section 12.09

 

GOVERNING LAW; JURISDICTION; CONSENT TO SERVICE OF PROCESS

     110  

Section 12.10

 

Headings

     111  

Section 12.11

 

Confidentiality

     111  

Section 12.12

 

Interest Rate Limitation

     112  

Section 12.13

 

EXCULPATION PROVISIONS

     113  

Section 12.14

 

Collateral Matters; Swap Agreements; Treasury Management Agreements

     113  

Section 12.15

 

[Reserved]

     113  

Section 12.16

 

[Reserved]

     113  

Section 12.17

 

USA Patriot Act Notice

     113  

Section 12.18

 

No Advisory or Fiduciary Responsibility

     114  

Section 12.19

 

Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of EEA Financial Institutions

     114  

Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules

 

Annex I

 

Commitments

Exhibit A

 

Form of Note

Exhibit B

 

Form of Borrowing Request

Exhibit C

 

Form of Interest Election Request

Exhibit D

 

Form of Compliance Certificate

Exhibit E

 

Security Instruments as of the Effective Date

Exhibit F

 

Form of Assignment and Assumption

Exhibit G-1

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Lenders; not partnerships)

Exhibit G-2

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Participants; not partnerships)

Exhibit G-3

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Participants; partnerships)

Exhibit G-4

 

Form of U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate (Foreign Lenders; partnerships)

Exhibit H

 

Form of Commitment Increase Certificate

Exhibit I

 

Form of Additional Lender Certificate

Schedule 1.02

 

LC Issuance Limit

Schedule 7.04(c)

 

Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change

Schedule 7.05

 

Litigation

Schedule 7.06

 

Environmental Matters

Schedule 7.14

 

Subsidiaries and Unrestricted Subsidiaries

Schedule 7.18

 

Gas Imbalances; Take or Pay; Other Prepayments

Schedule 7.19

 

Marketing Agreements

Schedule 7.20

 

Swap Agreements

Schedule 9.02

 

Debt

Schedule 9.04

 

Investments

Schedule 12.01

 

Notices

 

 

iv


THIS CREDIT AGREEMENT dated as of April 12, 2017, is among ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”); ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP., a corporation organized under the laws of the Yukon Territory of Canada (“ Ultra Petroleum ”); UP ENERGY CORPORATION, a Delaware corporation (“ UP Energy ” and, together with Ultra Petroleum, collectively the “ Parent Guarantor ”); each of the Lenders from time to time party hereto; and BANK OF MONTREAL, as administrative agent for the Lenders (in such capacity, together with its successors in such capacity, the “ Administrative Agent ”).

RECITALS

A. On April 29, 2016, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower and certain of their respective Subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions with the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, initiating cases under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (the “ Bankruptcy Code ”), consolidated administratively under Case No. 16-32202 (the “ Chapter 11 Cases ”);

B. The Debtors filed the Plan of Reorganization (as defined herein) with the Bankruptcy Court on March 14, 2017 (the “ Plan of Reorganization ”) and on March 14, 2017 the Bankruptcy Court entered the Confirmation Order confirming the Plan of Reorganization, which Confirmation Order inter alia authorized and approved the Debtor’s entry into and performance under this Agreement;

C. The Borrower has requested that the Lenders provide certain revolving loans to and extensions of credit on behalf of the Borrower and that the Issuing Bank provide Letters of Credit; and

D. The Lenders have indicated their willingness to lend and to participate in Letters of Credit and the Issuing Bank has indicated its willingness to issue Letters of Credit, in each case subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement;

E. NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing recitals, of the representations, warranties, covenants and agreements contained herein, and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS AND ACCOUNTING MATTERS

Section 1.01 Terms Defined Above . As used in this Agreement, each term defined above has the meaning indicated above.

Section 1.02 Certain Defined Terms . As used in this Agreement, the following terms have the meanings specified below:

ABR ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Alternate Base Rate.

Account Control Agreement ” means a control agreement, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, which grants the Collateral Agent “control” as defined in the Uniform Commercial Code in effect in the applicable jurisdiction over any Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodities Account maintained by any Credit Party, in each case, among the Collateral Agent, the applicable Credit Party and the applicable financial institution at which such Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodities Account is maintained.


ACNTA ” means (without duplication), as of the date of determination, the remainder of:

(a) the sum of:

(i) discounted future net revenues from proved oil and gas reserves of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Borrower were year-end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative)) before any state or federal income taxes, as estimated in a reserve report prepared as of the end of the Borrower’s most recently completed fiscal year for which audited financial statements are available, as increased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(A) estimated proved oil and gas reserves acquired since such year end, which reserves were not reflected in such year-end reserve report, and

(B) estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to extensions, discoveries and other additions and upward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to exploration, development or exploitation, production or other activities, which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions (including the impact to proved oil and gas reserves and future net revenues from estimated development costs incurred and the accretion of discount since such year-end), and decreased by, as of the date of determination, the estimated discounted future net revenues from

(C) estimated proved oil and gas reserves produced or disposed of since such year end to the extent such estimated discounted future net revenues were included in such year-end reserve report or such estimated reserves under clauses (A) or (B) above, and

(D) estimated proved oil and gas reserves attributable to downward revisions of estimates of proved oil and gas reserves since such year-end due to changes in geological conditions or other factors which would, in accordance with standard industry practice, cause such revisions,

in the case of clauses (A) through (D) calculated on a pre-tax basis substantially in accordance with SEC guidelines (but utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available were year-end and giving effect to applicable Commodity Agreements in place as of the date of determination (whether positive or negative)); provided , however , that in the case of each of the determinations made pursuant to clauses (A) through (D), such increases and decreases shall be as estimated by the Borrower’s petroleum engineers;

(ii) the capitalized costs that are attributable to oil and gas properties of the Parent Guarantor and its Restricted Subsidiaries to which no proved oil and gas reserves are attributable, based on the Parent Guarantor’s books and records as of a date no earlier than the date of the Parent Guarantor’s latest available annual or quarterly financial statements;

(iii) the Net Working Capital of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries on a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements; and

(iv) the greater of

 

2


(A) the net book value of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly financial statements, and

(B) the appraised value, as estimated by independent appraisers, of other tangible assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, as of a date no earlier than the date of the Borrower’s latest audited financial statements; provided , that, if no such appraisal has been performed, the Borrower shall not be required to obtain such an appraisal and only clause (iv)(A) of this definition shall apply;

minus

(b) the sum of:

(i) minority interests;

(ii) any net gas balancing liabilities of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries reflected in the Borrower’s latest annual or quarterly balance sheet (to the extent not deducted in calculating Net Working Capital of the Borrower in accordance with clause (a)(iii) above of this definition);

(iii) to the extent included in (a)(i) above, the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines (but (x) utilizing prices and costs calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines as if the end of the most recent fiscal quarter preceding the date of determination for which such information is available to the Borrower were year-end), attributable to reserves which are required to be delivered to third parties to fully satisfy the obligations of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to Volumetric Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto); and

(iv) the discounted future net revenues, calculated in accordance with SEC guidelines, attributable to reserves subject to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments which, based on the estimates of production and price assumptions included in determining the discounted future net revenues specified in (a)(i) above, would be necessary to fully satisfy the payment obligations of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to Dollar-Denominated Production Payments (determined, if applicable, using the schedules specified with respect thereto).

If the Borrower changes its method of accounting from the full cost method of accounting to the successful efforts or a similar method, ACNTA will continue to be calculated as if the Borrower were still using the full cost method of accounting.

Act ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  12.17 .

Additional Interim Redetermination Event ” means (a) any Transfer of any Borrowing Base Property by the Borrower or any other Credit Party to any Person other than the Borrower or another Credit Party or (b) any Liquidation of any commodity Swap Agreement by the Borrower or any other Credit Party if, upon (and after giving effect to) any such event, the sum of (i) the PV-9 of all Borrowing Base Properties Transferred by the Borrower or any other Credit Party to any Person other than the Borrower or another Credit Party since the most recent redetermination of the Borrowing Base plus (ii) the Swap PV of all commodity Swap Agreements Liquidated since the most recent redetermination of the Borrowing Base exceeds 5% of the then effective Borrowing Base.

 

3


Additional Lender ” has the meaning given to such term in Section 2.06(c)(i) .

Additional Lender Certificate ” has the meaning given to such term in Section 2.06(c)(ii)(J) .

Additional Oil and Gas Assets ” means (a) Oil and Gas Properties, (b) gathering systems and other improvements, infrastructure, equipment and fixtures used in connection with the exploration, exploitation, development, or operation of Oil and Gas Properties or the production, treatment, handling, gathering, transportation, processing, and disposition of hydrocarbons and associated products, (c) Investments in joint ventures that own any assets described in clauses (a) or (b) to the extent permitted by Section 9.05(c) , and (d) Equity Interests acquired from third parties in Persons that own any assets described in clauses (a) or (b) and that are Guarantors or become Guarantors as provided in Section  8.14 promptly following such acquisition.

Adjusted LIBO Rate ” means, with respect to any Eurodollar Borrowing for any Interest Period, an interest rate per annum equal to the LIBO Rate for such Interest Period multiplied by the Statutory Reserve Rate.

Administrative Questionnaire ” means an Administrative Questionnaire in a form supplied by the Administrative Agent.

Affected Loans ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  5.06 .

Affiliate ” means, with respect to a specified Person, another Person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, Controls or is Controlled by or is under common Control with the Person specified. The term “Affiliated” has a correlative meaning thereto.

Agents ” means, collectively, the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and, as the context requires, any syndication agents or documentation agents hereunder that may from time to time be designated by the Administrative Agent and the Borrower.

Agreement ” means this Credit Agreement, as the same may from time to time be amended, modified, supplemented or restated.

Alternate Base Rate ” means, for any day, a rate per annum equal to the greatest of (a) the Prime Rate in effect on such day, (b) the Federal Funds Effective Rate in effect on such day plus  1 2 of 1% and (c) the Adjusted LIBO Rate for a one month Interest Period beginning on such day (or if such day is not a Business Day, the immediately preceding Business Day) plus 1.00%, provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, the Adjusted LIBO Rate for any day shall be based on the rate appearing on the Reuters Screen LIBOR01 Page (or on any successor or substitute page of such service, or any successor to or substitute for such service, providing rate quotations comparable to those currently provided on such page of such service, as determined by the Administrative Agent from time to time for purposes of providing quotations of interest rates applicable to dollar deposits in the London interbank market), at which dollar deposits of $5,000,000 with a one month maturity are offered at approximately 11:00 a.m., London time, on such day (or the immediately preceding Business Days if such day is not a Business Day). Any change in the Alternate Base Rate due to a change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted LIBO Rate shall be effective from and including the effective date of such change in the Prime Rate, the Federal Funds Effective Rate or the Adjusted LIBO Rate, respectively.

Anti-Corruption Laws ” means all state or federal laws, rules, and regulations applicable to the Borrower or any of its Affiliates from time to time concerning or relating to money-laundering, bribery or corruption, including the FCPA.

 

4


Applicable Margin ” means, for any day, with respect to any ABR Loan or Eurodollar Loan, or with respect to the Commitment Fee Rate, as the case may be, during a Borrowing Base Period, the rate per annum set forth in the Borrowing Base Utilization Grid below based upon the Borrowing Base Utilization Percentage then in effect:

 

Borrowing Base Utilization Grid

Borrowing Base Utilization Percentage

   <25%   

> 25%

<50%

  

> 50%

<75%

  

> 75%

<90%

   > 90%

Eurodollar Loans

   2.50%    2.75%    3.00%    3.25%    3.50%

ABR Loans

   1.50%    1.75%    2.00%    2.25%    2.50%

Commitment Fee Rate

   0.50%    0.50%    0.50%    0.50%    0.50%

Each change in the Applicable Margin shall apply during the period commencing on the effective date of such change and ending on the date immediately preceding the effective date of the next such change, provided , however , that if the Borrower fails to timely deliver a Reserve Report pursuant to Section 8.12(a) , then if such default remains uncured for 30 days, the “Applicable Margin” means, for any day thereafter that such default remains uncured, the rate per annum set forth on the grid when the Borrowing Base Utilization Percentage is at its highest level.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, for any day during an Investment Grade Period, “Applicable Margin” shall mean, with respect to any undrawn and drawn amounts, as the case may be, the rate per annum set forth in the grid below based upon (a) the higher of the Credit Ratings assigned to the Borrower by Moody’s or S&P in effect on such day if the lower rating is no lower than the immediately next lower rating and (b) the higher Credit Rating in between the higher rating and the lower rating otherwise:

 

Credit Rating

   Undrawn Amounts     Drawn Amounts  

> BBB+/Baa1

     0.15     1.125

BBB/Baa2

     0.20     1.250

BBB-/Baa3

     0.25     1.500

< BB+/Ba1

     0.30     1.750

Applicable Percentage ” means, with respect to any Lender, the percentage obtained by dividing (a) such Lender’s Commitment at such time by (b) the amount of the Total Commitment at such time; provided that at any time when the Total Commitment shall have been terminated, each Lender’s Applicable Percentage shall be the percentage obtained by dividing (i) such Lender’s Revolving Credit Exposure at such time by (ii) the aggregate total Revolving Credit Exposures of all Lenders at such time.

Approved Counterparty ” means any Lender or any Affiliate of a Lender and any other Person if such Person or its credit support provider has a long term senior unsecured debt rating of BBB+ (or its equivalent) or higher by S&P and Baa1 (or its equivalent) or higher by Moody’s.

Approved Fund ” means any Person (other than a natural person) that is engaged in making, purchasing, holding or investing in bank loans and similar extensions of credit in the ordinary course of its business and that is administered or managed by a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender or an entity or an Affiliate of an entity that administers or manages a Lender.

Approved Petroleum Engineers ” means Cawley, Gillespie & Associates, Inc., W.D. Von Gonten & Co., Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc., Ryder Scott Company Petroleum Consultants, L.P., Wright & Company, Inc. or any other independent petroleum engineers selected by Borrower and acceptable to the Administrative Agent.

 

5


Arranger ” means, collectively, BMO Capital Markets Corp., Barclays Bank PLC and Goldman Sachs Bank USA in their capacities as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners hereunder.

ASC ” means the Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification, as in effect from time to time.

Asset Coverage Ratio ” means, as of any date, the ratio of (i) the PV-9 of the Credit Parties’ Oil and Gas Properties reflected in the most recently delivered Reserve Report to (ii) Consolidated Net Debt as of such date; provided that for purposes of calculating the Asset Coverage Ratio, the PV-9 attributable to non-producing Proved Reserves shall not exceed 35% of the aggregate PV-9.

Assignment and Assumption ” means an assignment and assumption entered into by a Lender and an assignee (with the consent of any party whose consent is required by Section 12.04(b) ), and accepted by the Administrative Agent, in the form of Exhibit F or any other form approved by the Administrative Agent.

Availability ” means, as of any date, the remainder of (a) the Loan Limit, minus (b) the total Revolving Credit Exposures of all Lenders.

Availability Period ” means the period from and including the Effective Date to but excluding the Termination Date.

Bail-In Action ” means the exercise of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by the applicable EEA Resolution Authority in respect of any liability of an EEA Financial Institution.

Bail-In Legislation ” means, with respect to any EEA Member Country implementing Article 55 of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union, the implementing law for such EEA Member Country from time to time which is described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule.

Bank Price Deck ” means the Administrative Agent’s most recent internal price deck on a forward curve basis for each of oil, natural gas and other Hydrocarbons, as applicable, furnished to the Borrower by the Administrative Agent from time to time in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

Bankruptcy Code ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Bankruptcy Court ” means the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division or any other court having jurisdiction over the Chapter 11 Cases from time to time.

Board ” means the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System of the United States of America or any successor Governmental Authority.

Borrower ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Borrowing ” means Loans of the same Type, made, converted or continued on the same date and, in the case of Eurodollar Loans, as to which a single Interest Period is in effect.

Borrowing Base ” means at any time an amount equal to the amount determined in accordance with Section  2.07 , as the same may be adjusted from time to time pursuant to Section  9.11 . As of the Effective Date, the Borrowing Base shall be $1,200,000,000.

 

6


Borrowing Base Deficiency ” occurs, if at any time Total Exposure exceeds the Borrowing Base. The amount of any Borrowing Base Deficiency at the time in question is the amount (if any) by which the Total Exposure exceeds the Borrowing Base then in effect.

Borrowing Base Period ” shall mean any period other than an Investment Grade Period.

Borrowing Base Property ” means, at any time in question, any Oil and Gas Property to which Proved Reserves were attributed in the then most recent Reserve Report.

Borrowing Base Trigger Event ” means, the occurrence of at least two of the following three events: the public announcement that the Borrower’s Credit Rating is (a) Ba1 or lower from (or is unrated by) Moody’s, (b) BB+ or lower from (or is unrated by) S&P or (c) BB+ or lower from (or is unrated by) Fitch.

Borrowing Base Utilization Percentage ” means, as of any day, the fraction expressed as a percentage, the numerator of which is the Revolving Credit Exposure of the Lenders on such day, and the denominator of which is (x) the Borrowing Base in effect on such day minus (y) the Term Loan Exposure on such day.

Borrowing Base Value ” means, with respect to any Oil and Gas Property or any Swap Agreement in respect of commodities, the value attributed thereto by the Administrative Agent for the purpose of determining the Borrowing Base.

Borrowing Request ” means a request by the Borrower for a Borrowing in accordance with Section  2.03 .

Business Day ” means any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or other day on which commercial banks in New York City are authorized or required by law to remain closed; and if such day relates to a Borrowing or continuation of, a payment or prepayment of principal of or interest on, or a conversion of or into, or the Interest Period for, a Eurodollar Loan or a notice by the Borrower with respect to any such Borrowing or continuation, payment, prepayment, conversion or Interest Period, any day which is also a day on which banks are open for dealings in dollar deposits in the London interbank market.

Capital Leases ” means, in respect of any Person, all leases which shall have been, or should have been, in accordance with GAAP as in effect on the date hereof, recorded as capital leases on the balance sheet of the Person liable (whether contingent or otherwise) for the payment of rent thereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (i) the LGS Lease shall not constitute a Capital Lease and (ii) any lease (whether entered into before or after the Effective Date) that would have been classified as an operating lease in accordance with GAAP as in effect on the date hereof will be deemed not to be a Capital Lease.

Cash Collateral ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section 2.08(j)(ii) .

Cash Collateralize ” means to pledge and deposit with or deliver to the Administrative Agent (as a first priority, perfected security interest), for the benefit of the Issuing Bank and the Lenders, cash or Cash Equivalents, at a location and pursuant to documentation in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent. “ Cash Collateralized ” and “ Cash Collateralization ” have correlative meanings.

 

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Cash Equivalents ” means:

(a) direct obligations of the United States or any agency thereof, or obligations guaranteed by the United States or any agency thereof, in each case maturing within one year from the date of acquisition thereof.

(b) commercial paper maturing within one year from the date of acquisition thereof rated in the highest grade by S&P or Moody’s.

(c) demand deposits, and time deposits maturing within one year from the date of creation thereof, with, or issued by any Lender or any office located in the United States of any other bank or trust company which is organized under the laws of the United States or any state thereof, has capital, surplus and undivided profits aggregating at least $100,000,000 (as of the date of such bank or trust company’s most recent financial reports) and has a short term deposit rating of at least A2 or P2, as such rating is set forth from time to time, by S&P or Moody’s, respectively; and

(d) shares of any SEC registered 2a-7 money market fund that has net assets of at least $500,000,000 and the highest rating obtainable from either Moody’s or S&P.

CFTC Hedging Obligation ” means any Obligation in respect of any agreement, contract, confirmation or transaction that constitutes a “swap” within the meaning of section 1a(47) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Change in Control ” means

(a) any Person, entity or “group” (within the meaning of Section 13(d) or 14(d) of the Exchange Act), other than the Permitted Investors (or any intermediate companies owned directly or indirectly by the Permitted Investors), shall at any time have acquired direct or indirect beneficial ownership of voting power of the outstanding Equity Interests of Ultra Petroleum having more than the greater of (i) 50% of the ordinary voting power for the election of directors of Ultra Petroleum and (ii) the percentage of the ordinary voting power for the election of directors of Ultra Petroleum owned in the aggregate, directly or indirectly, beneficially, by the Permitted Investors; or

(b) at any time Continuing Directors shall not constitute at least a majority of the directors of Ultra Petroleum; or

(c) a “Change in Control” (as defined in the documentation for any Material Debt) shall have occurred and as a result thereof the maturity of such Material Debt is accelerated, the obligor on such Material Debt is obligated to offer to Redeem such Material Debt, or the obligee on such Material Debt shall otherwise have the right to require the obligor thereon to Redeem such Material Debt; or

(d) Ultra Petroleum shall at any time cease to have beneficial ownership, and the power to vote or direct the voting, of at least 100% of the outstanding Equity Interests in the Borrower.

As used in this definition, “beneficial ownership” (which may be direct or indirect) has the meaning provided in Rules 13(d)-3 and 13(d)-5 under the Exchange Act.

Change in Law ” means the occurrence, after the date of this Agreement, of any of the following: (a) the adoption or taking effect of any law, rule, regulation or treaty, (b) any change in any law, rule, regulation or treaty or in the administration, interpretation, implementation or application thereof by any Governmental Authority or (c) the making or issuance of any request, rule, guideline or directive (whether or not having the force of law) by any Governmental Authority; provided that notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, (x) the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and

 

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all requests, rules, guidelines or directives thereunder or issued in connection therewith or in implementation thereof and (y) all requests, rules, guidelines or directives promulgated by the Bank for International Settlements, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (or any successor or similar authority) or the United States or foreign regulatory authorities, in each case pursuant to Basel III, shall in each case be deemed to be a “Change in Law”, regardless of the date enacted, adopted or issued.

Chapter 11 Cases ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Code ” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, and any successor statute.

Collateral ” means all Property which is subject to a Lien under one or more Security Instruments.

Collateral Account ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section 2.08(j)(ii) .

Collateral Agency Agreement ” means that certain Collateral Agency Agreement dated as of the Effective Date among the Collateral Agent, the Administrative Agent and the Term Loan Administrative Agent, as the same may be amended, restated, amended and restated, supplemented or otherwise modified or replaced from time to time.

Collateral Agent ” means Bank of Montreal acting in its capacity as collateral agent for the Secured Parties and for the Secured Parties (as defined in the Term Loan Agreement), and any successor collateral agent appointed hereunder pursuant to the Collateral Agency Agreement.

Commitment ” means, (a) with respect to each Lender that is a Lender on the Effective Date, the amount set forth opposite such Lender’s name on Annex I as such Lender’s “Commitment” and (b) in the case of any Lender that becomes a Lender after the Effective Date, the amount specified as such Lender’s “Commitment” in the Assignment and Assumption pursuant to which such Lender assumed a portion of the Total Commitment, in each case as the same may be changed from time to time pursuant to the terms of this Agreement. The aggregate amount of the Commitments as of the Effective Date is $400,000,000.

Commitment Fee Rate ” has the meaning set forth in the definition of “Applicable Margin”.

Commitment Increase Certificate ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.06(c)(ii)(F) .

Commodities Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Commodity Agreements ” means, in respect of any Person, any forward contract, commodity swap agreement, commodity option agreement or other similar agreement or arrangement in respect of Hydrocarbons used, produced, processed or sold by such Person that are customary in the Oil and Gas Business and designed to protect such Person against fluctuation in Hydrocarbon prices.

Commodity Exchange Act ” means the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq .), as amended from time to time, and any successor statute, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, and the application or official interpretation of any thereof.

Company Materials ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

 

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Confirmation Order ” means the order of the Bankruptcy Court dated March 14, 2017 [Docket No. 1324] confirming the Plan of Reorganization, which order inter alia authorized and approved the Debtors’ entry into and performance under this Agreement.

Consolidated Interest Expense ” means, for any period, the total consolidated interest expense of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period net of gross interest income of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, in each case determined on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP plus (without duplication) to the extent not already included in such total consolidated interest expense:

(a) imputed interest on Debt attributable to Capital Leases and sale and leaseback transactions of Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period;

(b) commissions, discounts and other fees and charges owed by Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries with respect to letters of credit securing financial obligations and bankers’ acceptances for such period;

(c) amortization of debt issuance costs, debt discount or premium and other financing fees and expenses incurred by Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period;

(d) the interest portion of any deferred payment obligations of Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries for such period; and

(e) all cash interest paid in connection with Debt permitted hereunder to the extent that such payments are not accounted for as interest expense pursuant to ASC 470-60 or another applicable codification.

Consolidated Net Debt ” means, at any date, the positive remainder (if any) of (a) Consolidated Total Debt minus (b) the unrestricted and unencumbered cash and Cash Equivalents of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries on such date; provided that cash and Cash Equivalents that would appear as “restricted” on a consolidated balance sheet solely because such cash or Cash Equivalents are subject to an Account Control Agreement shall be deemed to be unrestricted and unencumbered for purposes hereof.

Consolidated Net Income ” means with respect to the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for any period, the net income (or loss) of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries after allowances for taxes for such period determined on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP; provided that there shall be excluded from such net income (to the extent otherwise included therein) the following: (a) the net income of any Person in which the Borrower or any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary has an interest (which interest does not cause the net income of such other Person to be consolidated with the net income of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in accordance with GAAP), except to the extent of the amount of dividends or distributions actually paid in cash during such period by such other Person to the Borrower or to a Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be; (b) the net income (but not loss) during such period of any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary to the extent that the declaration or payment of dividends or similar distributions or transfers or loans by that Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary is not at the time permitted by operation of the terms of its charter or any agreement, instrument or Governmental Requirement applicable to such Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary or is otherwise restricted or prohibited, in each case determined in accordance with GAAP; (c) the net income (or loss) of any Person acquired in a pooling-of-interests transaction for any period prior to the date of such transaction; (d) any extraordinary gains or losses during such period; (e) any non-cash gains or losses or positive or negative adjustments under ASC 815 (and any statements

 

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replacing, modifying or superseding such statement) as the result of changes in the fair market value of derivatives; (f) any gains or losses attributable to writeups or writedowns of assets, including ceiling test writedowns, and (g) any non-cash compensation charge arising from any grant or vesting of stock, stock options or other equity-based awards.

Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio ” means, as of any date of calculation, the ratio of (a) Consolidated Net Debt as of such date to (b) EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending on such date.

Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries ” means any Restricted Subsidiaries that are Consolidated Subsidiaries.

Consolidated Subsidiaries ” means each Subsidiary of the Borrower (whether now existing or hereafter created or acquired) the financial statements of which shall be (or should have been) consolidated with the financial statements of the Borrower in accordance with GAAP.

Consolidated Total Debt ” means, at any date, the principal amount of all Debt (without duplication) of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (a) described in clauses (a), (b), (c) or (d) of the definition herein of “Debt”, other than Debt with respect to letters of credit to the extent such letters of credit have not been drawn, and (b) described in clause (g) of the definition herein of “Debt” to the extent such Debt is comprised of guaranty obligations in respect of Debt of others of the type described in clauses (a), (b), (c) or (d) of the definition herein of “Debt.”

Consolidated Unrestricted Subsidiaries ” means any Unrestricted Subsidiaries that are Consolidated Subsidiaries.

Continuing Director ” means, at any date, an individual (a) who is a director of Ultra Petroleum on the Effective Date, (b) who, as of the date of determination, has been a director of Ultra Petroleum for at least the twelve preceding months, (c) who has been nominated to be a director of the Borrower, directly or indirectly, by a Permitted Investor or Persons nominated by a Permitted Investor, (d) who is nominated, appointed or approved for consideration by shareholders for election by the board of directors of the Ultra Petroleum, or (e) who is appointed by directors so nominated, appointed or approved.

Control ” means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of a Person, whether through the ability to exercise voting power, by contract or otherwise. “ Controlling ” and “ Controlled ” have meanings correlative thereto.

Credit Parties ” means, collectively, the Borrower, Parent Guarantor and the other Guarantors, and each individually a “Credit Party”.

Credit Rating ” means, the corporate credit rating of the Borrower issued by S&P or Fitch or the corporate family rating of the Borrower issued by Moody’s, as applicable.

Debt ” means, for any Person:

(a) obligations of such Person for borrowed money or evidenced by bankers’ acceptances, debentures, notes, bonds or other similar instruments;

(b) obligations of such Person (whether contingent or otherwise) in respect of letters of credit for which such Person is the applicant;

(c) obligations of such Person with respect to Disqualified Capital Stock;

 

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(d) obligations of such Person under Capital Leases or Synthetic Leases;

(e) obligations of such Person to pay the deferred purchase price of Property;

(f) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of others secured by (or for which the holder of such Debt has an existing right, contingent or otherwise, to be secured by) a Lien on any Property of such Person, whether or not such Debt is assumed by such Person; provided , however , that in the case of Debt of the type described in this clause (f), the amount of such Debt shall be deemed to be the lesser of (1) such Person’s liability for such Debt and (2) the book value of such property;

(g) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of others guaranteed by such Person or in which such Person otherwise assures a creditor against loss of the Debt (howsoever such assurance shall be made, including by means of obligations to pay for goods or services even if such goods or services are not actually taken, received or utilized) to the extent of the lesser of the amount of such Debt and the maximum stated amount of such guarantee or assurance against loss;

(h) Debt (as defined in the other clauses of this definition) of a partnership for which such Person is liable either by agreement, by operation of law or by a Governmental Requirement, but only to the extent of such liability; and

(i) obligations owing by a Person or any other Person guaranteeing such Person’s Debt under one or more Swap Agreements with the same counterparty that, at the time in question, have a net Swap Termination Value in favor of such counterparty ( i.e. , such Person or any other Person guaranteeing such Person’s Debt is “out of the money”) that exceeds the Threshold Amount;

provided , however , that “Debt” does not include (i) obligations with respect to surety, performance or appeal bonds and similar instruments, (ii) trade accounts and other similar accounts that are payable no later than 120 days after invoice or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP or (iii) obligations under the LGS Lease.

Debtors ” means, collectively, the Borrower and Parent Guarantor and certain of their Subsidiaries, each in their capacity as debtors and debtors-in-possession in the Chapter 11 Cases.

Default ” means any event or condition which constitutes an Event of Default or which upon notice, lapse of time or both would, unless cured or waived, become an Event of Default.

Defaulting Lender ” means, subject to Section 4.05(b) , any Lender that (a) has failed to (i) fund all or any portion of its Loans within two Business Days of the date such Loans were required to be funded hereunder, or (ii) pay to the Administrative Agent, any Issuing Bank or any other Lender any other amount required to be paid by it hereunder (including in respect of its participation in Letters of Credit) within two Business Days of the date when due, (b) has notified the Borrower, the Administrative Agent or any Issuing Bank in writing that it does not intend to comply with its funding obligations hereunder, or has made a public statement to that effect, (c) has failed, within three Business Days after written request by the Administrative Agent or the Borrower, to confirm in writing to the Administrative Agent and the Borrower that it will comply with its prospective funding obligations hereunder ( provided that such Lender shall cease to be a Defaulting Lender pursuant to this clause (c) upon receipt of such written confirmation by the Administrative Agent and the Borrower), or (d) has, or has a direct or indirect parent company that has, (i) become the subject of a proceeding under any bankruptcy or insolvency law, (ii) had appointed for it a receiver, custodian, conservator, trustee, administrator, assignee for the benefit of creditors or similar Person charged with reorganization or liquidation of its business or assets,

 

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including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other state or federal regulatory authority acting in such a capacity or (iii) become the subject of a Bail-In Action; provided that a Lender shall not be a Defaulting Lender solely by virtue of the ownership or acquisition of any equity interest in that Lender or any direct or indirect parent company thereof by a Governmental Authority so long as such ownership interest does not result in or provide such Lender with immunity from the jurisdiction of courts within the United States or from the enforcement of judgments or writs of attachment on its assets or permit such Lender (or such Governmental Authority) to reject, repudiate, disavow or disaffirm any contracts or agreements made with such Lender. Any determination by the Administrative Agent that a Lender is a Defaulting Lender under any one or more of clauses (a) through (d) above shall be conclusive and binding absent manifest error, and such Lender shall be deemed to be a Defaulting Lender (subject to Section 4.05(b) ) upon delivery of written notice of such determination to the Borrower, each Issuing Bank and each Lender.

Deposit Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Disqualified Capital Stock ” means any Equity Interest that, by its terms (or by the terms of any security into which it is convertible or for which it is exchangeable) or upon the happening of any event, matures or is mandatorily redeemable for any consideration other than other Equity Interests (which would not constitute Disqualified Capital Stock), pursuant to a sinking fund obligation or otherwise, or is convertible or exchangeable for Debt or redeemable for any consideration other than other Equity Interests (which would not constitute Disqualified Capital Stock) at the option of the holder thereof, in whole or in part (but if in part only with respect to such amount that meets the criteria set forth in this definition), on or prior to the date that is one year after the Maturity Date.

Dollar-Denominated Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as liabilities in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

dollars ” or “ $ ” refers to lawful money of the United States of America.

Domestic Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is organized under the laws of the United States of America or any state thereof or the District of Columbia, provided that a Subsidiary of a Foreign Subsidiary is not a Domestic Subsidiary.

E&P Subsidiary ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  9.11 .

EBITDAX ” means, for any period, Consolidated Net Income for such period plus the following expenses or charges to the extent deducted in calculating such Consolidated Net Income: (a) the sum of (i) Consolidated Interest Expense, (ii) Taxes imposed on or measured by income (however denominated) and franchise Taxes paid or accrued, (iii) depreciation, (iv) depletion, (v) amortization, (vi) exploration and abandonment expenses, (vii) transaction costs, expenses and charges with respect to the acquisition or disposition of Oil and Gas Properties, not to exceed $3,000,000 in any fiscal year, (viii) losses from sales or other dispositions of assets (other than Hydrocarbons produced in the ordinary course of business) and other extraordinary or non-recurring losses and (ix) all other noncash charges (excluding accruals for cash expenses made in the ordinary course of business) and (x) any fees, expenses or charges of third parties incurred through December 31, 2017 in connection with the implementation of fresh start accounting, the Chapter 11 Cases, the Plan of Reorganization, the transactions contemplated thereby and any other reorganization items (provided that (i) such fees, expenses or charges may, at the option of the Borrower, increase EBITDAX for such period whether or not such fees, expenses or charges were incurred in such period or were deducted in calculating Consolidated Net Income for such period and (ii) the Borrower

 

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may increase EBITDAX pursuant to this clause (x) no more than one time), (b) (i) gains from sales or other dispositions of assets (other than Hydrocarbons produced in the ordinary course of business) and other extraordinary or non-recurring gains and (ii) all noncash income (excluding accruals for cash expenses made in the ordinary course of business) added to Consolidated Net Income (including cancellation of indebtedness income to the extent included in Consolidated Net Income). For the purposes of calculating EBITDAX for any Rolling Period for any determination of the financial ratios contained in Section 9.01(a) and Section 9.01(c) , if at any time during such period the Borrower or any Consolidated Restricted Subsidiary shall have made any Material Disposition or Material Acquisition, Consolidated Net Income and EBITDAX for such period shall be calculated after giving pro forma effect thereto as if such Material Disposition or Material Acquisition had occurred on the first day of such period; provided that the calculations of such pro forma adjustments are acceptable to the Administrative Agent in its reasonable discretion. For purposes of calculating EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending June 30, 2017, EBITDAX shall be an amount equal to the sum of (a) the product of (i) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending December 31, 2016 and (ii) 2, (b) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2017, and (c) EBITDAX for the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017.

EEA Financial Institution ” means (a) any credit institution or investment firm established in any EEA Member Country which is subject to the supervision of an EEA Resolution Authority, (b) any entity established in an EEA Member Country which is a parent of an institution described in clause (a) of this definition, or (c) any financial institution established in an EEA Member Country which is a subsidiary of an institution described in clauses (a) or (b) of this definition and is subject to consolidated supervision with its parent.

EEA Member Country ” means any of the member states of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

EEA Resolution Authority ” means any public administrative authority or any person entrusted with public administrative authority of any EEA Member Country (including any delegee) having responsibility for the resolution of any EEA Financial Institution.

Effective Date ” means the date on which the conditions specified in Section  6.01 are satisfied (or waived in accordance with Section  12.02 ).

Engineering Reports ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(c)(i) .

Environmental Laws ” means any and all Governmental Requirements pertaining in any way to public health (regarding human exposure to Hazardous Materials), protection of the environment, the preservation or reclamation of natural resources, or the management, Release or threatened Release of any Hazardous Materials, in effect in any and all jurisdictions in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary is conducting, or at any time has conducted, business, or where any Property of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary is located, including, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (“ OPA ”), as amended, the Clean Air Act, as amended, the Comprehensive Environmental, Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“ CERCLA ”), as amended, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, as amended, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (“ RCRA ”), as amended, the Safe Drinking Water Act, as amended, the Toxic Substances Control Act, as amended, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, as amended, the Hazardous Materials Transportation Law, as amended, and other environmental conservation or protection Governmental Requirements.

Environmental Permit ” means any permit, registration, license, approval, consent, exemption, variance, or other authorization required under or issued pursuant to applicable Environmental Laws.

 

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Equity Interests ” means shares of capital stock, partnership interests, membership interests in a limited liability company, beneficial interests in a trust or other equity ownership interests in a Person, and any warrants, options or other rights entitling the holder thereof to purchase or acquire any such Equity Interest.

ERISA ” means the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and any successor statute.

ERISA Affiliate ” means each trade or business (whether or not incorporated) that together with Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary is a “single employer” within the meaning of section 4001(b)(1) of ERISA or subsections (b) or (c) of section 414 of the Code (or subsections (m) or (o) of section 414 of the Code with respect to a Plan that is subject to the minimum funding requirements of section 412 of the Code).

ERISA Event ” means (a) a reportable event, as defined in section 4043 of ERISA or the regulations issued thereunder with respect to a Plan (other than an event for which the 30-day notice period is waived under applicable regulations or otherwise); (b) a withdrawal by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or an ERISA Affiliate from a Plan subject to section 4063 of ERISA during a plan year in which it was a substantial employer (as defined in section 4001(a)(2) of ERISA) or a cessation of operations that is treated as such a withdrawal under section 4062(e) of ERISA; (c) a complete withdrawal, within the meaning of section 4203 of ERISA, or a or partial withdrawal, within the meaning of section 4205 of ERISA, by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or any ERISA Affiliate from a multiemployer plan (as defined in section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA); (d) the filing of a notice of intent to terminate, the treatment of a Plan amendment as termination under section 4041 or 4041A of ERISA or the commencement of proceedings by the PBGC to terminate a Plan; or (e) an event or condition which constitutes grounds under section 4042 of ERISA for termination of, or the appointment of a trustee to administer, any Plan.

EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule ” means the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule published by the Loan Market Association (or any successor person), as in effect from time to time.

Eurodollar ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether such Loan, or the Loans comprising such Borrowing, are bearing interest at a rate determined by reference to the Adjusted LIBO Rate.

Event of Default ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  10.01 .

Excepted Liens ” means: (a) Liens for Taxes, assessments or other governmental charges or levies which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (b) Liens in connection with workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance or other social security, old age pension or public liability obligations which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (c) landlords’, operators’, vendors’, carriers’, warehousemen’s, repairmen’s, mechanics’, suppliers’, workers’, materialmen’s, construction or other like Liens arising in the ordinary course of business or incident to the exploration, development, operation and maintenance of Oil and Gas Properties, each of which is in respect of obligations that are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP; (d) Liens which arise in the ordinary course of business under operating agreements, joint venture agreements, oil and gas partnership agreements, oil and gas leases, farm-out agreements, division orders, contracts for the sale, transportation or exchange of oil and natural gas, unitization and pooling declarations and agreements,

 

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area of mutual interest agreements, overriding royalty agreements, marketing agreements, processing agreements, net profits agreements, development agreements, gas balancing or deferred production agreements, injection, repressuring and recycling agreements, salt water or other disposal agreements, seismic or other geophysical permits or agreements, and other agreements which are usual and customary in the Oil and Gas Business and are for claims which are not delinquent or which are being contested in good faith by appropriate action and for which adequate reserves have been maintained in accordance with GAAP, provided that any such Lien referred to in this clause does not materially impair the use of any material Property covered by such Lien for the purposes for which such Property is held by the Borrower or any other Credit Party or materially impair the value of any material Property subject thereto; (e) banker’s liens, rights of set-off or similar rights and remedies arising in the ordinary course of business and burdening only deposit accounts or other funds maintained with a creditor depository institution, provided that no such deposit account is a dedicated cash collateral account; (f) easements, restrictions, servitudes, permits, conditions, covenants, exceptions, reservations, zoning and land use requirements and other title defects in any Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party, that in each case do not secure Debt and that in the aggregate do not materially impair the use of such Property for the purposes of which such Property is held by the Borrower or any other Credit Party or materially impair the value of such Property subject thereto; (g) Liens to secure performance of tenders, surety and appeal bonds, government contracts, performance and return of money bonds, bids, trade contracts, leases, statutory obligations, regulatory obligations, obligations in respect of workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance or other forms of government benefits or insurance and other obligations of a like nature incurred in the ordinary course of business; (h) Liens, titles and interests of lessors (including sub-lessors) of property leased by such lessors to the Borrower or any other Credit Party, restrictions and prohibitions on encumbrances and transferability with respect to such property and the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s interests therein imposed by such leases, and Liens and encumbrances encumbering such lessors’ titles and interests in such property and to which the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s leasehold interests may be subject or subordinate, in each case, whether or not evidenced by Uniform Commercial Code financing statement filings or other documents of record, provided that such Liens do not secure Debt of the Borrower or any other Credit Party and do not encumber Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party other than the Property that is the subject of such leases and items located thereon; (i) Liens, titles and interests of licensors of software and other intangible property licensed by such licensors to the Borrower or any other Credit Party, restrictions and prohibitions on encumbrances and transferability with respect to such property and the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s interests therein imposed by such licenses, and Liens and encumbrances encumbering such licensors’ titles and interests in such property and to which the Borrower’s or such other Credit Party’s license interests may be subject or subordinate, in each case, whether or not evidenced by Uniform Commercial Code financing statement filings or other documents of record, provided that such Liens do not secure Debt of the Borrower or any other Credit Party and do not encumber Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party other than the Property that is the subject of such licenses; (j) judgment and attachment Liens not giving rise to an Event of Default; and (k) Liens of issuers of commercial letters of credit or similar undertakings on the goods that are the subject of such letters of credit or undertakings. Provisions in the Loan Documents allowing Excepted Liens or other Permitted Liens on any item of Property shall be construed to allow such Excepted Liens and other Permitted Liens also to cover any improvements, fixtures or accessions to such Property and the proceeds of and insurance on such Property, improvements, fixtures or accessions. No intention to subordinate any Lien granted in favor of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders is to be hereby implied or expressed by the permitted existence of any Excepted Liens. The term “Excepted Liens” shall not include any Lien securing Debt for borrowed money.

Excess Cash Threshold ” means $100,000,000.

 

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Exchange Act ” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

Excluded Account ” means (a) any Deposit Account, Commodity Account or Securities Account so long as the average daily maximum balance in each such account, individually, does not exceed $1,000,000 over any 30-day period and the aggregate daily maximum balance of all such Deposit Accounts, Commodity Accounts and Securities Accounts does not at any time exceed $10,000,000, (b) any Deposit Account that is a zero balance account or a deposit account for which the balance of such Deposit Account is transferred at the end of each date to a deposit account that is not an Excluded Account, (c) any other Deposit Accounts exclusively used for trust, payroll, payroll taxes and other employee wage and benefit payments to or for the benefit of any employees of the Credit Parties, (d) fiduciary accounts, (e) trust and suspense accounts of the Borrower and any Credit Party holding royalty obligations, (f) accounts constituting cash collateral accounts permitted under Section  9.03 and (g) the Professional Fee Escrow Account (as defined in the Plan of Reorganization).

Excluded Cash ” means (a) any cash or cash equivalents of the Credit Parties in an Excluded Account (other than an account that is an Excluded Account pursuant to clause (a) of the definition thereof), (b) cash collateral held by the Administrative Agent pursuant to this Agreement or the other Loan Documents, (c) cash of the Credit Parties constituting purchase price deposits held in escrow by an unaffiliated third party pursuant to a binding and enforceable purchase and sale agreement with an unaffiliated third party containing customary provisions regarding the payment and refunding of such deposits, (d) any cash or Cash Equivalents set aside and for which any Credit Party has issued checks or has initiated wires or ACH transfers (or will issue checks or initiate wires or ACH transfers within five (5) business days) to make a Restricted Payment permitted Section 9.04(a) , and (e) any cash or Cash Equivalents set aside and for which any Credit Party has issued checks or has initiated wires or ACH transfers (or will issue checks or initiate wires or ACH transfers within five (5) business days) to make payments in respect of accounts payable incurred in the ordinary course of business for services already rendered.

Excluded Subsidiary ” means:

(a) any Restricted Subsidiary that is not a wholly-owned Subsidiary of the Borrower,

(b) (i) any Foreign Subsidiary and/or (ii) any Domestic Subsidiary that is a direct or indirect subsidiary of any Foreign Subsidiary, and

(c) any Unrestricted Subsidiary.

Excluded Swap Obligation ” means, with respect to the Borrower and the Guarantors individually determined, any CFTC Hedging Obligation if, and solely to the extent that, all or a portion of the guarantee of the Borrower or such Guarantor of, or the grant by the Borrower or such Guarantor of a security interest to secure, such CFTC Hedging Obligation (or any guarantee thereof) is or becomes illegal under the Commodity Exchange Act by virtue of the Borrower’s or such Guarantor’s failure for any reason to constitute an “eligible contract participant” (as defined in the Commodity Exchange Act) with respect to such CFTC Hedging Obligation at any time such guarantee or grant of a security interest becomes effective with respect to such CFTC Hedging Obligation.

 

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Excluded Taxes ” means any of the following Taxes imposed on or with respect to a Recipient or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to a Recipient:

(a) Taxes imposed on or measured by net income (however denominated), franchise Taxes, and branch profits Taxes, in each case, (i) imposed as a result of such Recipient being organized under the laws of, or having its principal office or, in the case of any Lender, its applicable lending office located in, the jurisdiction imposing such Tax (or any political subdivision thereof) or (ii) that are Other Connection Taxes,

(b) in the case of a Lender, U.S. federal withholding Taxes imposed on amounts payable to or for the account of such Lender with respect to an applicable interest in a Loan or Commitment pursuant to a law in effect on the date on which (i) such Lender acquires such interest in the Loan or Commitment (other than pursuant to an assignment to such Lender that was requested by the Borrower under Section  5.05 ) or (ii) such Lender changes its lending office, except in each case to the extent that, pursuant to Section  5.03 , amounts with respect to such Taxes were payable either to such Lender’s assignor immediately before such Lender became a party hereto or to such Lender immediately before it changed its lending office,

(c) Taxes attributable to such Recipient’s failure or inability to comply with Section 5.03(g) , and

(d) any U.S. federal withholding Taxes imposed under FATCA.

Existing Senior Notes ” means the senior notes due 2022 and the senior notes due 2025, in each case issued by the Borrower on the Effective Date, in an initial aggregate principal amount of $1,200,000,000.

FATCA ” means Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code, as of the date of this Agreement (or any amended or successor version to the extent substantively comparable and not materially more onerous to comply with), any current or future regulations or official interpretations thereof and any agreements entered into pursuant to Section 1471(b)(1) of the Code or any fiscal or regulatory legislation, rules or practices adopted pursuant to any intergovernmental agreement entered into in connection with the implementation of such Sections of the Code.

FCPA ” means the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended.

Federal Funds Effective Rate ” means, for any day, the weighted average of the rates on overnight Federal funds transactions with members of the Federal Reserve System arranged by Federal funds brokers, as published on the next succeeding Business Day by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, or, if such rate is not so published for any day that is a Business Day, the average of the quotations for such day for such transactions received by the Administrative Agent from three Federal funds brokers of recognized standing selected by it; provided that if such rate shall be less than zero, such rate shall be deemed to be zero for purposes of this Agreement.

Fee Letters ” means the Amended and Restated Fee Letter dated as of February 28, 2017 among the Borrower, Barclays Bank PLC, Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Bank of Montreal and BMO Capital Markets Corp., and any other fee letters that may hereafter be entered into between Administrative Agent and Borrower.

Financial Officer ” means, for any Person, the chief financial officer, principal accounting officer, treasurer, or controller of such Person or any other natural person principally responsible for the financial matters of such Person. Unless otherwise specified, all references herein to a Financial Officer mean a Financial Officer of the Borrower.

 

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Fitch ” means Fitch Ratings, Inc. and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Flood Insurance Regulations ” means (a) the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 as now or hereafter in effect or any successor statute thereto, (b) the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 as now or hereafter in effect or any successor statute thereto, (c) the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 (amending 42 USC § 4001, et seq .), as the same may be amended or recodified from time to time, (d) the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2004 and any regulations promulgated thereunder and (e) the Biggert-Waters Flood Reform Act of 2012, and any regulations promulgated thereunder.

Foreign Lender ” means any Lender that is organized under the laws of a jurisdiction other than that in which the Borrower is located. For purposes of this definition, the United States of America, each State thereof and the District of Columbia shall be deemed to constitute a single jurisdiction.

Foreign Subsidiary ” means any Restricted Subsidiary that is not a Domestic Subsidiary.

Fronting Exposure ” means, at any time there is a Defaulting Lender, with respect to any Issuing Bank, such Defaulting Lender’s Applicable Percentage of the outstanding Obligations with respect to Letters of Credit issued by such Issuing Bank other than such Obligations as to which such Defaulting Lender’s participation obligation has been reallocated to other Lenders or Cash Collateralized in accordance with the terms hereof.

GAAP ” means generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America as in effect from time to time, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in Section  1.05 .

Governmental Authority ” means the government of the United States of America, any other nation or any political subdivision thereof, whether state or local, and any agency, authority, instrumentality, regulatory body, court, central bank or other entity exercising executive, legislative, judicial, taxing, regulatory or administrative powers or functions of or pertaining to government.

Governmental Requirement ” means any law, statute, code, ordinance, order, determination, rule, regulation, judgment, decree, injunction, franchise, permit, certificate, license, rules of common law, authorization or other directive or requirement, whether now or hereinafter in effect, of any Governmental Authority.

Guarantors ” means the Parent Guarantor and each other Restricted Subsidiary that guarantees the Obligations pursuant to Section 8.14(b) .

Guaranty and Collateral Agreement ” means the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement executed by the Borrower and the Guarantors on the Effective Date in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent pursuant to which (a) the Guarantors guaranty, on a joint and several basis, payment of the Obligations, and (b) the Borrower and the Guarantors grant security interests on the Borrower’s and the Guarantors’ personal property constituting “Collateral” as defined therein in favor of the Administrative Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties to secure the Obligations, as the same may be amended, modified, supplemented or restated from time to time.

Hazardous Material ” means any substance regulated or as to which liability might arise under any applicable Environmental Law due to its hazardous or toxic characteristics including: any chemical, compound, material, product, byproduct, substance or waste defined as or included in the definition or meaning of “hazardous substance,” “hazardous material,” “hazardous waste,” “solid waste,” “toxic waste,” “extremely hazardous substance,” “toxic substance,” “contaminant,” “pollutant,” or words of

 

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similar meaning or import found in any applicable Environmental Law; Hydrocarbons, petroleum products, petroleum substances, natural gas, oil, oil and gas waste, crude oil, and any components, fractions, or derivatives thereof; and radioactive materials, explosives, asbestos or asbestos containing materials, polychlorinated biphenyls, radon, infectious or medical wastes.

Highest Lawful Rate ” means, with respect to each Lender, the maximum nonusurious interest rate, if any, that at any time or from time to time may be contracted for, taken, reserved, charged or received on the Notes or on other Obligations under laws applicable to such Lender which are presently in effect or, to the extent allowed by law, under such applicable laws which may hereafter be in effect and which allow a higher maximum nonusurious interest rate than applicable laws allow as of the date hereof.

Hydrocarbons ” means oil, gas, casinghead gas, drip gasoline, natural gasoline, condensate, distillate, liquid hydrocarbons, gaseous hydrocarbons and all products refined or separated therefrom.

Indemnified Taxes ” means (a) Taxes, other than Excluded Taxes, imposed on or with respect to any payment made by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower or any Guarantor under any Loan Document and (b) to the extent not otherwise described in (a), Other Taxes.

Indemnitee ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.03(b) .

Industry Competitor ” means (a) any Person (other than Borrower, any Guarantor or any of their Affiliates or Subsidiaries) that, directly or indirectly, is actively engaged as one of its principal businesses in lease acquisitions, exploration and production operations or development of oil and gas properties (including the drilling and completion of producing wells) and (b) any Person that is clearly identifiable, solely on the basis of such Person’s name, as an Affiliate of any such Person (other than any Affiliates of the Borrower); provided that any Person that would be an Industry Competitor hereunder shall not constitute an Industry Competitor if (x) such Person is a bank, financial institution, bona fide debt fund or investment vehicle that is engaged in, or that advises funds or other investment vehicles that are engaged in, making, purchasing, holding, or otherwise investing in commercial loans, bonds or similar extensions of credit or securities in the ordinary course of business and (y) no Industry Competitor or Affiliate described in the foregoing clauses (a) and (b) directly or indirectly, possesses the power to direct or cause the direction of the investment policies of such entity.

Industry Investment ” means Investments and expenditures made in the ordinary course of, and of a nature that is or shall have become customary in, the Oil and Gas Business as a means of actively engaging therein through agreements, transactions, interests or arrangements that permit one to share risks or costs, comply with regulatory requirements regarding local ownership or satisfy other objectives customarily achieved through the conduct of Oil and Gas Business jointly with third parties, including: (1) ownership interests in oil and gas properties or gathering, transportation, processing, electricity and power generation, or related systems; and (2) Investments and expenditures in the form of or pursuant to operating agreements, processing agreements, farm-in agreements, farm-out agreements, development agreements, area of mutual interest agreements, unitization agreements, pooling arrangements, joint bidding agreements, service contracts, joint venture agreements, partnership agreements (whether general or limited), and other similar agreements (including for limited liability companies) with third parties.

Initial Reserve Report ” means the report prepared as of December 31, 2016 by Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc. with respect to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Credit Parties to which Proved Reserves are attributed.

Interest Election Request ” means a request by the Borrower to convert or continue a Borrowing in accordance with Section  2.04 .

 

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Interest Payment Date ” means with respect to any ABR Loan, the last day of each March, June, September and December and with respect to any Eurodollar Loan, the last day of the Interest Period applicable to the Borrowing of which such Loan is a part and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing with an Interest Period of more than three months’ duration, each day prior to the last day of such Interest Period that occurs at intervals of three months’ duration after the first day of such Interest Period.

Interest Period ” means with respect to any Eurodollar Borrowing, the period commencing on the date of such Borrowing and ending on the numerically corresponding day in the calendar month that is one, two, three or six months (or, with the consent of each Lender, nine or twelve months) thereafter, as the Borrower may elect; provided , that (a) if any Interest Period would end on a day other than a Business Day, such Interest Period shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day unless such next succeeding Business Day would fall in the next calendar month, in which case such Interest Period shall end on the next preceding Business Day and (b) any Interest Period pertaining to a Eurodollar Borrowing that commences on the last Business Day of a calendar month (or on a day for which there is no numerically corresponding day in the last calendar month of such Interest Period) shall end on the last Business Day of the last calendar month of such Interest Period. For purposes hereof, the date of a Borrowing initially shall be the date on which such Borrowing is made and thereafter shall be the effective date of the most recent conversion or continuation of such Borrowing.

Interim Redetermination ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(b) .

Interim Redetermination Date ” means the date on which a Borrowing Base that has been redetermined pursuant to an Interim Redetermination becomes effective as provided in Section 2.07(d) .

Investment ” means, for any Person:

(a) the acquisition (whether for cash, Property, services or securities or otherwise) of Equity Interests of any other Person or any agreement to make any such acquisition (including any “short sale” or any sale of any securities at a time when such securities are not owned by the Person entering into such short sale);

(b) the making of any deposit with, or advance, loan or capital contribution to, assumption of Debt of, purchase or other acquisition of any other Debt of or equity participation or equity interest in, or other extension of credit to, any other Person (including the purchase of Property from another Person subject to an understanding or agreement, contingent or otherwise, to resell such Property to such Person;

(c) the purchase or acquisition (in one or a series of transactions) of Property of another Person that constitutes a business unit both before and after such purchase or acquisition; or

(d) the entering into of any guarantee of, or other surety obligation (including the deposit of any Equity Interests to be sold) with respect to, Debt of any other Person;

provided that accounts receivable acquired in the ordinary course of business do not constitute Investments.

Investment Grade Period ” means, the period from (a) the first date on which (i) the Borrower has received at least two of the Required Ratings, (ii) all Liens on the Collateral have been released and (iii) the Borrower has elected that such Investment Grade Period shall commence until (b) a Borrowing Base Trigger Event.

 

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Issuing Bank ” means BMO Harris Bank N.A. in its capacity as the issuer of Letters of Credit, and its successors in such capacity as provided in Section 2.08(i) . Any Issuing Bank (other than BMO Harris Bank N.A.) may, in its discretion, arrange for one or more Letters of Credit to be issued by Affiliates of such Issuing Bank, in which case the term “Issuing Bank” shall include any such Affiliate with respect to Letters of Credit issued by such Affiliate. In the event there is more than one Issuing Bank hereunder at any time, references herein and in the other Loan Documents to the “Issuing Bank” shall be deemed to refer to the Issuing Bank in respect of the applicable Letter of Credit, or to all Issuing Banks, as the context requires.

LC Commitment ” at any time means $50,000,000.

LC Disbursement ” means a payment made by the Issuing Bank pursuant to a Letter of Credit.

LC Exposure ” means, at any time, the sum of the aggregate Undrawn Amount of all outstanding Letters of Credit at such time plus the aggregate amount of all LC Disbursements that have not yet been reimbursed by or on behalf of the Borrower at such time. The LC Exposure of any Lender at any time shall be its Applicable Percentage of the total LC Exposure at such time.

LC Issuance Limit ” means, with respect to each Issuing Bank, the amount set forth on Schedule 1.02 opposite such Issuing Bank’s name.

Lender Treasury Management Agreement ” means a Treasury Management Agreement between the Borrower or any other Credit Party, on the one hand, and any counterparty that is a Treasury Management Lender, on the other hand.

Lenders ” means the Persons listed on Annex I , any Person that shall have become a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption, and any Person that shall have become a party hereto as an Additional Lender pursuant to Section 2.06(c) , other than, in each case, any such Person that ceases to be a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption.

Letter of Credit ” means any standby letter of credit issued pursuant to this Agreement.

Letter of Credit Agreements ” means all letter of credit applications and other agreements (including any amendments, modifications or supplements thereto) submitted by the Borrower, or entered into by the Borrower, with the Issuing Bank relating to any Letter of Credit.

LIBO Rate ” means, with respect to any Eurodollar Borrowing for any Interest Period, the rate appearing on Reuters Screen LIBOR01 Page (or on any successor or substitute page of such service, or any successor to or substitute for such service, providing rate quotations comparable to those currently provided on such page of such service, as determined by the Administrative Agent from time to time for purposes of providing quotations of interest rates applicable to dollar deposits in the London interbank market) at approximately 11:00 a.m., London time, two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period, as the rate for dollar deposits with a maturity comparable to such Interest Period; provided that if such rate that appears on such screen or page shall be less than zero, such rate shall be deemed to be zero for purposes of this Agreement. In the event that such rate is not available at such time for any reason, then the “LIBO Rate” with respect to such Eurodollar Borrowing for such Interest Period shall be the rate at which dollar deposits of an amount comparable to such Eurodollar Borrowing and for a maturity comparable to such Interest Period are offered by the principal London office of the Administrative Agent in immediately available funds in the London interbank market at approximately 11:00 a.m., London time, two Business Days prior to the commencement of such Interest Period.

 

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LGS Lease ” means the lease agreement pursuant to which Parent Guarantor or its Subsidiary leases the liquids gathering system used for the purposes of gathering, separating, collecting and delivery for sale or transport condensate and water, together with associated natural gas, produced from natural gas and oil wells located in the Pinedale field in Sublette County, Wyoming.

Lien ” means any interest in Property securing an obligation owed to, or a claim by, a Person other than the owner of the Property, whether such interest is based on the common law, statute or contract, and whether such obligation or claim is fixed or contingent, and including but not limited to the lien or security interest arising from a mortgage, pledge, security agreement, conditional sale or trust receipt or a lease, consignment or bailment for security purposes. For the purposes of this Agreement, the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall be deemed to be the owner of any Property which it has acquired or holds subject to a conditional sale agreement, or leases under a financing lease or other arrangement pursuant to which title to the Property has been retained by or vested in some other Person in a transaction intended to create a financing.

Liquidate ” means, with respect to any Swap Agreement, the sale, assignment, novation, unwind or early termination of all or any part of such Swap Agreement; provided that for purposes of this definition, a Swap Agreement shall not be deemed to have been Liquidated if, (a) such Swap Agreement is novated to an Approved Counterparty, with the Borrower or another Credit Party being the “remaining party” for purposes of such novation, or (b) upon its sale, assignment, novation, unwind or early termination, it is replaced, in a substantially contemporaneous transaction, with one or more Swap Agreements with prices, tenors and volumes not less favorable to the Credit Parties than those of such replaced Swap Agreements and without cash payments to the Borrower or any other Credit Party in connection therewith. The terms “Liquidated” and “Liquidation” have correlative meanings thereto.

Loan Documents ” means this Agreement, the Notes, the Fee Letters, the Letter of Credit Agreements and the Security Instruments.

Loan Limit ” means (a) at any time that is an Investment Grade Period, the lesser of (i) the Total Commitment at such time and (ii)(x) the Borrowing Base in effect at the end of the most recent Borrowing Base Period minus (y) the aggregate amount of Term Loans then outstanding (without giving effect to any payments made with respect to such Term Loans after the date of the most recent Scheduled Redetermination or Interim Redetermination) and (b) during a Borrowing Base Period, the lesser of (i) the Total Commitment at such time and (ii)(x) the Borrowing Base at such time as determined in accordance with Section  2.07 , as may be adjusted from time to time pursuant to the provisions of Section 2.07(e) , minus (y) the aggregate amount of Term Loans then outstanding (without giving effect to any payments made with respect to such Term Loans after the date of the most recent Scheduled Redetermination or Interim Redetermination).

Loans ” means the loans made by the Lenders to the Borrower pursuant to this Agreement.

Majority Lenders ” means, at any time while no Loan or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders having more than fifty percent (50%) of the Total Commitments of all Non-Defaulting Lenders, and at any time while any Loan or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders holding more than fifty percent (50%) of the outstanding aggregate principal amount of the Loans and participation interests in Letters of Credit of all Non-Defaulting Lenders (in each case without regard to any sale by a Non-Defaulting Lender of a participation in any Loan under Section 12.04(c) ).

Material Acquisition ” means any acquisition of Property or series of related acquisitions of Property (including by way of merger or consolidation) that involves the payment of consideration by the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in excess of the lesser of (a) $75,000,000 and (b) the greater of (i) five percent (5%) of (x) during any Borrowing Base Period, the then-effective Borrowing Base or (y) during any Investment Grade Period, ACNTA and (ii) $50,000,000.

 

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Material Adverse Effect ” means (i) after giving effect to the filing of the Chapter 11 Cases, the entry of the Confirmation Order and the confirmation and consummation of the Plan of Reorganization, (ii) excluding any matters publicly disclosed prior to the filing of the Chapter 11 Cases, any matters disclosed in any first day pleadings or declarations in connection with the Chapter 11 Cases and the events and conditions related and/or leading up to the Chapter 11 Cases and the effects thereof and (iii) excluding results from (A) general changes in hydrocarbon prices, (B) general changes in industry or economic conditions, and (C) general changes in political conditions, including any engagements of hostilities, acts of war or terrorist activities or changes imposed by a governmental authority, a material adverse change in, or material adverse effect on (a) the business, operations, Property or condition (financial or otherwise) of the Borrower and the Guarantors taken as a whole, (b) the ability of the Borrower or any Guarantor to perform its obligations under the Loan Documents, or (c) the rights and remedies of the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender under the Loan Documents.

Material Debt ” means Debt (other than the Obligations) of the Borrower or any other Credit Party with a principal amount in excess of the Threshold Amount.

Material Disposition ” means any disposition of Property or series of related dispositions of Properties that yields gross proceeds to the Borrower or any of its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries in excess of the lesser of (a) $75,000,000 and (b) the greater of (i) five percent (5%) of (x) during any Borrowing Base Period, the then-effective Borrowing Base or (y) during any Investment Grade Period, ACNTA and (ii) $50,000,000.

Maturity Date ” means the date that is fifty-seven (57) months after the Effective Date, or, if such date is not a Business Day, the Business Day immediately following such anniversary.

Moody’s ” means Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Mortgaged Property ” means, at any time, any real or immovable Property owned by the Borrower or any Guarantor which is subject to the Liens existing at such time under the terms of the Security Instruments.

Net Working Capital ” means (a) all current assets of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, except current assets from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, less (b) all current liabilities of the Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and any Restricted Subsidiaries, except current liabilities (i) associated with asset retirement obligations relating to Oil and Gas Properties, (ii) included in Debt and (iii) any current liabilities from commodity price risk management activities arising in the ordinary course of the Oil and Gas Business, in each case as set forth in the consolidated financial statements of the Borrower prepared in accordance with GAAP (excluding any adjustments made pursuant to FASB ASC 815).

New Borrowing Base Notice ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(d) .

Non-Defaulting Lender ” means, at any time, each Lender that is not a Defaulting Lender at such time.

 

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Notes ” means the promissory notes of the Borrower described in Section 2.02(d) and being substantially in the form of Exhibit A or such other form approved by the Administrative Agent, together with all amendments, modifications, replacements, extensions and rearrangements thereof.

Obligations ” means any and all amounts owing or to be owing (including all interest on any of the Loans, any interest accruing at any post-default rate and interest accruing after the filing of any petition in bankruptcy, or the commencement of any insolvency, reorganization or like proceeding, relating to the Borrower or any Guarantor (or which could accrue but for the operation of applicable bankruptcy or insolvency laws), whether or not a claim for post-filing or post-petition interest is allowed in such proceeding) by the Borrower or any Guarantor (whether direct or indirect (including those acquired by assumption), absolute or contingent, due or to become due, now existing or hereafter arising): (a) to the Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender under any Loan Document, (b) to any Secured Swap Party under any Secured Swap Agreement, but excluding any additional transactions or confirmations entered into (i) after such Secured Swap Party ceases to be a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender or (ii) after assignment by a Secured Swap Party to another Secured Swap Party that is not a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender, or (c) to any Treasury Management Lender under any Lender Treasury Management Agreement, including in each case all renewals, extensions and/or rearrangements of any of the above; provided that solely with respect to any Guarantor that is not an “eligible contract participant” under the Commodity Exchange Act or any regulations promulgated thereunder, Excluded Swap Obligations of such Guarantor shall in any event be excluded from “Obligations” owing by such Guarantor.

OFAC ” means the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Oil and Gas Business ” means the business of acquiring, exploring, drilling, exploiting, developing, producing, operating, treating, storing, gathering, processing, and selling oil and gas and the products thereof, together with activities (including physical and financial hedging and swapping) that are ancillary thereto.

Oil and Gas Properties ” means rights, titles, interests and estates in and to oil and gas leases, oil, gas and mineral leases, or other liquid or gaseous hydrocarbon leases, mineral fee interests, overriding royalty and royalty interests, net profit interests and production payment interests, including any reserved or residual interests of whatever nature and including any interests acquired pursuant to unit agreements, pooling agreements and declarations of pooled units; provided , that, for the avoidance of doubt, “Oil and Gas Properties” shall exclude all easements and rights of way used or to be used in connection with any gathering system. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each reference to the term “Oil and Gas Properties” means any and all Oil and Gas Properties owned at the time in question by the Borrower and the other Credit Parties.

Other Connection Taxes ” means, with respect to any Recipient, Taxes imposed as a result of a present or former connection between such Recipient and the jurisdiction imposing such Tax (other than connections arising from such Recipient having executed, delivered, become a party to, performed its obligations under, received payments under, received or perfected a security interest under, engaged in any other transaction pursuant to or enforced any Loan Document, or sold or assigned an interest in any Loan or Loan Document).

Other Taxes ” means all present or future stamp, court or documentary, intangible, recording, filing or similar Taxes that arise from any payment made under, from the execution, delivery, performance, enforcement or registration of, from the receipt or perfection of a security interest under, or otherwise with respect to, any Loan Document, except any such Taxes that are Other Connection Taxes imposed with respect to an assignment (other than an assignment made pursuant to Section  5.04 or Section  5.05 ).

 

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Parent Guarantor ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Participant ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.04(c) .

Participant Register ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.04(c) .

PBGC ” means the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and any Person succeeding to any or all of its functions under ERISA.

Permitted Investors ” means, collectively, any Person that, on the Effective Date, after giving effect to the Plan of Reorganization, is the beneficial owner, together with any of its Affiliates (but excluding any operating portfolio companies of the foregoing Persons), of Equity Interests representing 10% or more of the aggregate ordinary voting power represented by the issued and outstanding Equity Interests of the Borrower at such time.

Permitted Lien ” means any Lien permitted under Section  9.03 .

Person ” means any natural person, corporation, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, association, company, partnership, Governmental Authority or other entity.

Plan ” means any employee pension benefit plan, as defined in section 3(2) of ERISA (other than a multiemployer plan as defined in section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA), that is subject to Title IV of ERISA or section 412 of the Code and that is sponsored, maintained or contributed to by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary with respect to which any of them has or could reasonably expect to have any liability, including on account of an ERISA Affiliate.

Plan Effective Date ” means the “Effective Date” as defined in the Plan of Reorganization.

Plan of Reorganization ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the recitals hereto.

Platform ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

Prime Rate ” means the rate of interest per annum publicly announced from time to time by the Administrative Agent as its prime rate in effect at its principal office in San Francisco, California; each change in the Prime Rate shall be effective from and including the date such change is publicly announced as being effective. Such rate is set by the Administrative Agent as a general reference rate of interest, taking into account such factors as the Administrative Agent may deem appropriate; it being understood that many of the Administrative Agent’s commercial or other loans are priced in relation to such rate, that it is not necessarily the lowest or best rate actually charged to any customer and that the Administrative Agent may make various commercial or other loans at rates of interest having no relationship to such rate.

Projected Volume ” means, at any time, the Borrower’s reasonably anticipated projected future production from Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties.

Property ” means any interest in any kind of property or asset, whether real, personal or mixed, or tangible or intangible, including cash, securities, accounts and contract rights.

 

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Proposed Borrowing Base ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(c)(i) .

Proposed Borrowing Base Notice ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(c)(ii) .

Proved Reserves ” means “Proved Reserves” as defined in the Definitions for Oil and Gas Reserves (as used in this paragraph, the “Definitions”) promulgated by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (or any generally recognized successor) as in effect at the time in question. “Proved Developed Producing Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as both “Developed” and “Producing” in the Definitions, “Proved Developed Nonproducing Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as both “Developed” and “Nonproducing” in the Definitions, and “Proved Undeveloped Reserves” means Proved Reserves which are categorized as “Undeveloped” in the Definitions.

Public Lender ” has the meaning assigned such term in Section  8.01 .

Purchase Money Indebtedness ” means Debt, the proceeds of which are used to finance the acquisition, construction, or improvement of inventory, equipment or other Property in the ordinary course of business.

PV-9 ” means, with respect to any Proved Reserves expected to be produced from any Borrowing Base Properties (or in connection with any proposed acquisition, Oil and Gas Properties that will be acquired by the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary), the net present value, discounted at 9% per annum , of the future net revenues expected to accrue to the Borrower’s and the Credit Parties’ collective interests in such reserves during the remaining expected economic lives of such reserves, calculated in accordance with the Bank Price Deck, in each case, without giving effect to non-property related expenses such as general and administrative expenses, debt service, future income tax expenses and depreciation, depletion and amortization.

Qualified ECP Counterparty ” means, in respect of any CFTC Hedging Obligation, the Borrower and each Guarantor to the extent that such Person (a) has total assets exceeding $10,000,000 at the time any guaranty of obligations under such CFTC Hedging Obligation or any grant of a security interest to secure such CFTC Hedging Obligation becomes effective or (b) otherwise constitutes an “eligible contract participant” with respect to such Swap Agreement under the Commodity Exchange Act and can cause another Person to qualify as an “eligible contract participant” at such time by entering into a keepwell under Section 1a(18)(A)(v)(II) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Recipient ” means (a) the Administrative Agent, (b) any Lender and (c) any Issuing Bank, as applicable.

Redemption ” means with respect to any Debt, the repurchase, redemption, prepayment, repayment, defeasance or any other acquisition or retirement for value (or the segregation of funds with respect to any of the foregoing) of such Debt. “ Redeem ” has the correlative meaning thereto.

Redetermination Date ” means, with respect to any Scheduled Redetermination or any Interim Redetermination, the date that the redetermined Borrowing Base related thereto becomes effective pursuant to Section 2.07(d) .

Register ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 12.04(b)(iv) .

Regulation D ” means Regulation D of the Board, as the same may be amended, supplemented or replaced from time to time.

 

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Related Parties ” means, with respect to any specified Person, such Person’s Affiliates and the respective directors, officers, employees, agents and advisors (including attorneys, accountants and experts) of such Person and such Person’s Affiliates.

Release ” means any depositing, spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, placing, emitting, discarding, abandoning, emptying, discharging, migrating, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing.

Remedial Work ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 8.10(a) .

Required Lenders ” means, at any time while no Loan or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders having at least sixty-six and two-thirds percent (66-2/3%) of the Total Commitment of all Non-Defaulting Lenders, and at any time while any Loan or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders holding at least sixty-six and two-thirds percent (66-2/3%) of the outstanding aggregate principal amount of the Loans and participation interests in Letters of Credit of all Non-Defaulting Lenders (in each case without regard to any sale by a Non-Defaulting Lender of a participation in any Loan under Section 12.04(c) ).

Required Ratings ” means the Borrower’s Credit Rating is (a) Baa3 with a stable or better outlook, or higher, from Moody’s, (b) BBB- with a stable or better outlook, or higher, from S&P or (c) BBB- with a stable or better outlook, or higher from Fitch.

Reserve Report ” means the Initial Reserve Report and each subsequent report, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, setting forth, as of each of the following dates:

July 1, 2017 and each July 1 thereafter

January 1, 2018 and each January 1 thereafter

(or such other date in the event of an Interim Redetermination), the oil and gas reserves attributable to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties, together with a projection of the rate of production and future net income, taxes, operating expenses and capital expenditures with respect thereto as of such date, based upon the pricing assumptions consistent with the Administrative Agent’s lending requirements at the time.

Responsible Officer ” means, as to any Person, the Chief Executive Officer, the President, any Financial Officer or any Vice President of such Person. Unless otherwise specified, all references to a Responsible Officer herein mean a Responsible Officer of the Borrower.

Restricted Payment ” means any dividend or other distribution (whether in cash, securities or other Property) with respect to any Equity Interest in the Borrower or any other Credit Party, or any payment (whether in cash, securities or other Property), including any sinking fund or similar deposit, on account of the purchase, redemption, retirement, acquisition, cancellation or termination of any Equity Interest in the Borrower or any other Credit Party.

Restricted Subsidiary ” means any Subsidiary of the Borrower that is not an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

Revolving Credit Exposure ” means, with respect to any Lender at any time, the outstanding principal amount of such Lender’s Loans and its LC Exposure at such time.

 

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Rolling Period ” means for the end of any fiscal quarter, the period of four (4) consecutive fiscal quarters ending on the last day of such fiscal quarter.

S&P ” means Standard & Poor’s Ratings Group, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., and any successor thereto that is a nationally recognized rating agency.

Sanction ” means any economic or financial sanction or trade embargo imposed, administered or enforced from time to time by the U.S. government, including those administered by OFAC, the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State.

Sanctioned Country ” means, at any time, a country, territory or region which is itself, or whose government is, the subject or target of any Sanctions (including Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria).

Sanctioned Person ” means, at any time, (a) any Person listed in any Sanctions-related list of designated Persons maintained by OFAC, the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State, (b) any Person operating, organized or resident in a Sanctioned Country or (c) any Person owned or controlled by any such Person or Persons described in the foregoing clauses (a) or (b).

Scheduled Redetermination ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 2.07(b) .

Scheduled Redetermination Date ” means the date on which a Borrowing Base that has been redetermined pursuant to a Scheduled Redetermination becomes effective as provided in Section 2.07(d) .

SEC ” means the Securities and Exchange Commission or any successor Governmental Authority.

Secured Parties ” means, collectively, the Administrative Agent, the Lenders, the Collateral Agent, the Treasury Management Lenders and Secured Swap Parties, and “Secured Party” means any of them individually.

Secured Swap Agreement ” means (a) any Swap Agreement between (i) the Borrower or any other Credit Party and (ii) any Lender or Affiliate of a Lender that exists on the Effective Date, and (b) any Swap Agreement between (i) the Borrower or any other Credit Party and (ii) any Person that is, on the date such Swap Agreement was entered into, a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender, in each case, even if such Person subsequently ceases to be a Lender (or an Affiliate thereof) for any reason.

Secured Swap Obligations ” means Obligations referred to in clause (b) of the definition of Obligations.

Secured Swap Party ” means the counterparty opposite the Borrower or any other Credit Party under any Secured Swap Agreement.

Securities Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code or other applicable law.

Securities Act ” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

Security Instruments ” means the mortgages, deeds of trust, pledge agreements, security agreements, control agreements and other agreements, instruments, supplements or certificates described

 

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or referred to in Exhibit E , and any and all other agreements, instruments, supplements, consents or certificates (including the Collateral Agency Agreement and the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement) now or hereafter executed and delivered by the Borrower, any other Credit Party, or any other Person (other than Secured Swap Agreements or participation or similar agreements between any Lender and any other lender or creditor with respect to any Obligations pursuant to this Agreement) in order to guarantee or provide collateral security for the payment or performance of the Obligations, the Notes, this Agreement or reimbursement obligations under the Letters of Credit, as such agreements may be amended, modified, supplemented or restated from time to time.

Senior Notes ” means (a) the Existing Senior Notes and (b) unsecured notes or bonds from time to time issued pursuant to one or more public or private capital markets financings (in each case, as modified, renewed, refunded, replaced in any manner or refinanced in whole or in part from time to time in compliance with this Agreement); provided that (i) such notes or bonds do not provide for any amortization of principal or any scheduled or mandatory prepayments, redemptions, repayments, or defeasance of principal on any date prior to 91 days after the Maturity Date (other than provisions requiring offers to repurchase in connection with asset sales or any change of control), (ii) such notes or bonds have a scheduled maturity date that is no earlier than 91 days after the Maturity Date, (iii) the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants and events of default pertaining to such notes or bonds are not materially more onerous, taken as a whole, than the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants and Events of Default contained in this Agreement and (iv) both immediately before and immediately after giving effect to the incurrence of any principal Debt under such notes or bonds, no Event of Default or Borrowing Base Deficiency exists or would exist after giving effect to any concurrent repayment of other Debt with the proceeds of such incurrence and any automatic reduction in the Borrowing Base pursuant to Section 2.07(e) .

Senior Notes Debt ” means unsecured Debt in respect of Senior Notes, including the principal amounts owing thereunder and any associated obligations to pay interest, premiums, indemnifications, expenses, costs or other amounts.

Senior Notes Documents ” means each indenture or agreement providing for Senior Notes Debt, the Senior Notes, all guaranties of Senior Notes, and any other instruments or agreements made or delivered by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary in connection with such Senior Notes Debt in each case, as amended, restated, modified, supplemented, renewed or replaced in any manner (whether upon or after termination or otherwise) from time to time.

Specified Commodity Sale Contract ” means any contract for the sale of Hydrocarbons for a price to be calculated at the time of delivery based on the market or index price for a location other than the delivery point (as defined in such sale contract) of the Hydrocarbons sold pursuant to such sale contract (together with any related asset management agreement for the release of transportation capacity between such locations), which sale transaction is intended to be settled by physical delivery of such Hydrocarbons by the Borrower or any other Credit Party to a Person that is, on the date such contract is entered into, a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender, in each case even if such Person subsequently ceases to be a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender for any reason.

Statutory Reserve Rate ” means a fraction (expressed as a decimal), the numerator of which is the number one and the denominator of which is the number one minus the aggregate of the maximum reserve percentages (including any marginal, special, emergency or supplemental reserves) expressed as a decimal established by the Board to which the Administrative Agent is subject with respect to the Adjusted LIBO Rate, for eurocurrency funding (currently referred to as “Eurocurrency Liabilities” in Regulation D of the Board). Such reserve percentages shall include those imposed pursuant to such Regulation D. Eurodollar Loans shall be deemed to constitute eurocurrency funding and to be subject to

 

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such reserve requirements without benefit of or credit for proration, exemptions or offsets that may be available from time to time to any Lender under such Regulation D or any comparable regulation. The Statutory Reserve Rate shall be adjusted automatically on and as of the effective date of any change in any reserve percentage.

subsidiary ” means, with respect to any Person (the “parent”) at any date, (a) any other Person the accounts of which would be consolidated with those of the parent in the parent’s consolidated financial statements if such financial statements were prepared in accordance with GAAP as of such date, or (b) any other Person of which Equity Interests representing more than 50% of the equity or more than 50% of the ordinary voting power (irrespective of whether or not at the time Equity Interests of any other class or classes of such Person shall have or might have voting power by reason of the happening of any contingency) are, as of such date, owned, Controlled or held by the parent or one or more subsidiaries of the parent or by the parent and one or more subsidiaries of the parent.

Subsidiary ” means, unless stated otherwise, any subsidiary of the Borrower.

Subsidiary Guarantor ” means any subsidiary of the Borrower that is a Guarantor.

Super Majority Lenders ” means, at any time while no Loans or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders having more than eighty percent (80%) of the Total Commitments of all Non-Defaulting Lenders, and at any time while any Loans or LC Exposure is outstanding, Non-Defaulting Lenders holding more than eighty percent (80%) of the outstanding aggregate principal amount of the Loans and participation interests in Letters of Credit of all Non-Defaulting Lenders (in each case without regard to any sale by a Non-Defaulting Lender of a participation in any Loan under Section 12.04(c) ).

Swap Agreement ” means (a) any agreement with respect to any swap, forward, future or derivative transaction or option or similar agreement, whether exchange traded, “over-the-counter” or otherwise, involving, or settled by reference to, one or more rates, currencies, commodities, equity or debt instruments or securities, or economic, financial or pricing indices or measures of economic, financial or pricing risk or value or any similar transaction or any combination of these transactions; provided that (i) no phantom stock or similar plan providing for payments only on account of services provided by current or former directors, officers, employees or consultants of the Borrower or the other Credit Parties shall be a Swap Agreement and (ii) no sale of a commodity for deferred shipment or delivery that is intended to be physically settled (other than a forward sale contract to the extent that it provides, at the time such contract (or a specified portion of such contract or a specified transaction under such contract) is entered into, for all in fixed prices; provided , that, the Borrower’s or any other Credit Party’s election for “first of month” pricing or other one month pricing pursuant to a forward sale contract for deliveries of Hydrocarbons for the immediately following calendar month shall be deemed not to be a contract for an all in fixed price for purposes of this definition) shall be a Swap Agreement pursuant to this clause (a), and (b) any Secured Lender Physical Contract. If multiple transactions are entered into under a master agreement, each transaction is a separate Swap Agreement.

Swap PV ” means, with respect to any Swap Agreement in respect of commodities, the net present value, discounted at 9% per annum , of the future receipts expected to be paid to the Borrower or the other Credit Parties under such Swap Agreement, calculated in accordance with the Bank Price Deck; provided that the “Swap PV” shall never be less than $0.00.

Swap Termination Value ” means, in respect of any one or more Swap Agreements, after taking into account the effect of any legally enforceable netting agreement relating to such Swap Agreements, (a) for any date on or after the date such Swap Agreements have been closed out and termination value(s) determined in accordance therewith, such termination value(s) and (b) for any date prior to the date

 

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referenced in clause (a), the amount(s) determined as the mark-to-market value(s) for such Swap Agreements, as determined by the counterparties to such Swap Agreements (including, without duplication, any unpaid amounts due on the date of calculation).

Synthetic Leases ” means, in respect of any Person, all leases which shall have been, or should have been, in accordance with GAAP, treated as operating leases on the financial statements of the Person liable (whether contingently or otherwise) for the payment of rent thereunder and which were properly treated as indebtedness for borrowed money for purposes of U.S. federal income taxes, if the lessee in respect thereof is obligated to either purchase for an amount in excess of, or pay upon early termination an amount in excess of, 80% of the residual value of the Property subject to such operating lease upon expiration or early termination of such lease.

Taxes ” means any and all present or future taxes, levies, imposts, duties, deductions, withholdings (including backup withholding), assessments, fees or other charges imposed by any Governmental Authority, including any interest, additions to tax or penalties applicable thereto.

Termination Date ” means the earlier of the Maturity Date and the date of termination of the Commitments.

Term Loans ” means “Loans” as defined under the Term Loan Agreement.

Term Loan Administrative Agent ” means the administrative agent under the Term Loan Agreement

Term Loan Agreement ” means that certain Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 by and between the Borrower, the lenders party thereto, and Barclays Bank PLC, as administrative agent.

Term Loan Documents ” means “Loan Documents” as defined under the Term Loan Agreement.

Term Loan Exposure ” means, with respect to any Term Loan Lender at any time, the outstanding principal amount of such Term Loan Lender’s Term Loans.

Term Loan Lenders ” means the “Lenders” as defined under the Term Loan Agreement.

Total Commitment ” means the sum of the Commitments of the Lenders.

Threshold Amount ” means the greater of (a) the lesser of (i) five percent (5%) of (x) during any Borrowing Base Period, the then-effective Borrowing Base or (y) during any Investment Grade Period, ACNTA and (ii) $65,000,000 and (b) $50,000,000.

Total Exposure ” means, as of any date of determination, the sum of the aggregate Revolving Credit Exposure and the aggregate Term Loan Exposure at such date.

Transactions ” means, (a) with respect to the Borrower, the execution, delivery and performance by the Borrower of this Agreement, each other Loan Document to which it is a party, each Term Loan Document to which it is a party and each Senior Notes Document to which it is a party, the borrowing of Loans and the issuance of Letters of Credit hereunder, the borrowing of Term Loans and the issuance of the Existing Senior Notes and the grant of Liens by the Borrower on Mortgaged Properties and other Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments and (b) with respect to each Guarantor, the execution, delivery and performance by such Guarantor of each Loan Document, Term Loan Document and Senior

 

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Notes Document to which it is a party, the guaranteeing of the Obligations by such Guarantor, the guaranteeing of the obligations under the Term Loan Documents and the Senior Notes Documents and the grant by such Guarantor of Liens on Mortgaged Properties and other Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments.

Transfer ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section  9.11 .

Treasury Management Agreement ” means any agreement to provide cash management services, including treasury, depositing, overdraft, credit or debit card, electronic funds transfer and other cash management arrangements.

Treasury Management Lender ” means any Person that, at the time it enters into a Treasury Management Agreement, is a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender, in its capacity as a party to such Treasury Management Agreement.

Type ”, when used in reference to any Loan or Borrowing, refers to whether the rate of interest on such Loan, or on the Loans comprising such Borrowing, is determined by reference to the Alternate Base Rate or the Adjusted LIBO Rate.

Ultra Petroleum ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

Undrawn Amount ” means, at any time, with respect to any Letter of Credit, the maximum amount that may be drawn under such Letter of Credit after giving effect to (a) all provisions in such Letter of Credit providing for future automatic increases in the amount that may be drawn under such Letter of Credit (regardless of whether such automatic increases have then occurred at such time) and (b) any amounts previously drawn under such Letter of Credit.

Uniform Commercial Code ” means the Uniform Commercial Code, as in effect from time to time, of the State of New York or of any other state the laws of which are required as a result thereof to be applied in connection with the attachment, perfection or priority of, or remedies with respect to, Administrative Agent’s or any Secured Party’s Lien on any Collateral.

Unproven Acreage ” means, at any time, all Oil and Gas Properties that had no Proved Reserves attributed thereto in the then most recent Reserve Report (including, for the avoidance of doubt, Oil and Gas Properties not evaluated in the most recent Reserve Report).

Unrestricted Parent Entity ” means any Subsidiary of Ultra Petroleum other than UP Energy or any Subsidiary of UP Energy other than the Borrower.

Unrestricted Subsidiary ” means (a) any Subsidiary of the Borrower designated as such on Schedule 7.14 , (b) which the Borrower has designated in writing to the Administrative Agent to be an Unrestricted Subsidiary pursuant to Section  9.15 or (c) any subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

UP Energy ” has the meaning assigned to such term in the preamble hereto.

U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate ” has the meaning assigned to such term in Section 5.03(g)(iii) .

Volumetric Production Payments ” means production payment obligations recorded as deferred revenue in accordance with GAAP, together with all undertakings and obligations in connection therewith.

 

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Withholding Agent ” means the Borrower, any Guarantor or the Administrative Agent.

Write-Down and Conversion Powers ” means, with respect to any EEA Resolution Authority, the write-down and conversion powers of such EEA Resolution Authority from time to time under the Bail-In Legislation for the applicable EEA Member Country, which write-down and conversion powers are described in the EU Bail-In Legislation Schedule.

Section 1.03 Types of Loans and Borrowings . For purposes of this Agreement, Loans and Borrowings, respectively, may be classified and referred to by Type ( e.g. , a “Eurodollar Loan” or a “Eurodollar Borrowing”).

Section 1.04 Terms Generally; Rules of Construction . The definitions of terms herein shall apply equally to the singular and plural forms of the terms defined. Whenever the context may require, any pronoun shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine and neuter forms. The words “include”, “includes” and “including” as used in this Agreement shall be deemed to be followed by the phrase “without limitation”. The word “or” is not exclusive. The word “shall” shall be construed to have the same meaning and effect as the word “will”. Unless the context requires otherwise (a) any definition of or reference to any agreement, instrument or other document herein shall be construed as referring to such agreement, instrument or other document as from time to time amended, supplemented or otherwise modified (subject to any restrictions on such amendments, supplements or modifications set forth in the Loan Documents), (b) any reference herein to any law shall be construed as referring to such law as amended, modified, codified or reenacted, in whole or in part, and in effect from time to time, (c) any reference herein to any Person shall be construed to include such Person’s successors and assigns (subject to the restrictions contained in the Loan Documents), (d) the words “herein”, “hereof” and “hereunder”, and words of similar import, shall be construed to refer to this Agreement in its entirety and not to any particular provision hereof, (e) with respect to the determination of any time period, the word “from” means “from and including” and the word “to” means “to and including”, (f) any reference herein to Articles, Sections, Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules shall be construed to refer to Articles and Sections of, and Annexes, Exhibits and Schedules to, this Agreement and (g) with respect to the requirement to deliver any certificate, an executed paper copy of such certificate shall accompany any other form of delivery permitted hereunder. No provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall be interpreted or construed against any Person solely because such Person or its legal representative drafted such provision.

Section 1.05 Accounting Terms and Determinations; GAAP . Unless otherwise specified herein, all accounting terms used herein shall be interpreted, all determinations with respect to accounting matters hereunder shall be made, and all financial statements and certificates and reports as to financial matters required to be furnished to the Administrative Agent or the Lenders hereunder shall be prepared, in accordance with GAAP, applied on a basis consistent with the financial statements referred to in Section 7.04(a) except for changes in which the Borrower’s independent certified public accountants concur and which are disclosed to the Administrative Agent as part of, or along with, the audited annual financial statements delivered to the Lenders pursuant to Section 8.01(a) ; provided that, unless the Borrower and the Majority Lenders shall otherwise agree in writing, no such change shall modify or affect the manner in which compliance with the covenants set forth in Article IX is computed such that all such computations shall be conducted utilizing financial information presented consistently with prior periods. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, for the purposes of calculating any of the ratios tested under Section  9.01 , and the components of each of such ratios, Parent Guarantor and all Unrestricted Subsidiaries, and all subsidiaries of the Unrestricted Subsidiaries (including their assets, liabilities, income, losses, cash flows, and the elements thereof) shall be excluded, except for any cash dividends or distributions actually paid by any Unrestricted Subsidiary or any of its subsidiaries to the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, which shall be deemed to be income to the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary when actually received by it.

 

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ARTICLE II

THE CREDITS

Section 2.01 Commitments . Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, each Lender agrees to make Loans to the Borrower during the Availability Period in an aggregate principal amount that will not result in such Lender’s Revolving Credit Exposure exceeding such Lender’s Commitment or the total Revolving Credit Exposures exceeding the Loan Limit. Within the foregoing limits and subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, the Borrower may borrow, repay and reborrow the Loans.

Section 2.02 Loans and Borrowings .

(a) Borrowings; Several Obligations . Each Loan shall be made as part of a Borrowing consisting of Loans made by the Lenders ratably in accordance with their respective Commitments. The failure of any Lender to make any Loan required to be made by it shall not relieve any other Lender of its obligations hereunder; provided that the Commitments are several and no Lender shall be responsible for any other Lender’s failure to make Loans as required.

(b) Types of Loans . Subject to Section  3.03 , each Borrowing shall be comprised entirely of ABR Loans or Eurodollar Loans as the Borrower may request in accordance herewith. Each Lender at its option may make any Eurodollar Loan by causing any domestic or foreign branch or Affiliate of such Lender to make such Loan; provided that any exercise of such option shall not affect the obligation of the Borrower to repay such Loan in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

(c) Minimum Amounts; Limitation on Number of Borrowings . At the commencement of each Interest Period for any Eurodollar Borrowing, such Borrowing shall be in an aggregate amount that is an integral multiple of $100,000 and not less than $500,000. At the time that each ABR Borrowing is made, such Borrowing shall be in an aggregate amount that is an integral multiple of $100,000 and not less than $500,000; provided that, notwithstanding the foregoing, an ABR Borrowing may be in an aggregate amount that is equal to the entire unused balance of the total Commitments or that is required to finance the reimbursement of an LC Disbursement as contemplated by Section 2.08(e) . Borrowings of more than one Type may be outstanding at the same time, provided that there shall not at any time be more than a total of ten Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Borrower shall not be entitled to request, or to elect to convert or continue, any Borrowing if the Interest Period requested with respect thereto would end after the Maturity Date.

(d) Notes . Upon request of a Lender, the Loans made by such Lender shall be evidenced by a single promissory note of the Borrower in substantially the form of Exhibit A , and (i) in the case of any Lender party hereto as of the date of this Agreement, such Note shall be dated as of the date of this Agreement, (ii) in the case of any Lender that becomes a party hereto pursuant to an Assignment and Assumption, such Note shall be dated as of the effective date of the Assignment and Assumption, or (iii) in the case of any Lender that becomes a party hereto in connection with an increase in the Total Commitment pursuant to Section 2.06(c) , as of the effective date of such increase, in each case, payable to such Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment as in effect on such date, and otherwise duly completed. In the event that any Lender’s Commitment increases or decreases for any reason (whether pursuant to Section  2.06 , Section 12.04(b) or otherwise), the Borrower shall, upon request of such Lender, deliver or cause to be delivered on the effective date of such increase or decrease, a new Note payable to such Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment after giving effect to

 

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such increase or decrease, and otherwise duly completed, against return to the Borrower of the Note so replaced. The date, amount, Type, interest rate and, if applicable, Interest Period of each Loan made by each Lender, and all payments made on account of the principal thereof, shall be recorded by such Lender on its books for its Note, and, prior to any transfer, may be endorsed by such Lender on a schedule attached to such Note or any continuation thereof or on any separate record maintained by such Lender. Failure to make any such notation or to attach a schedule shall not affect any Lender’s or the Borrower’s rights or obligations in respect of such Loans or affect the validity of such transfer by any Lender of its Note.

Section 2.03 Requests for Borrowings . To request a Borrowing, the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such request in writing in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, three Business Days before the date of the proposed Borrowing or, in the case of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, one Business Day before the date of the proposed Borrowing; provided that no such notice shall be required for any deemed request of an ABR Borrowing to finance the reimbursement of an LC Disbursement as provided in Section 2.08(e) . Each such written Borrowing Request shall be irrevocable and shall be in substantially the form of Exhibit B and signed by the Borrower. Each such written Borrowing Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section  2.02 :

(a) the aggregate amount of the requested Borrowing;

(b) the date of such Borrowing, which shall be a Business Day;

(c) whether such Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurodollar Borrowing;

(d) in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, the initial Interest Period to be applicable thereto, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”;

(e) the amount of the then effective Borrowing Base, the amount of the then effective Total Commitment, the current Loan Limit, the current total Term Loan Exposures, the current total Revolving Credit Exposures (without regard to the requested Borrowing) and the pro forma total Revolving Credit Exposures (giving effect to the requested Borrowing); and

(f) the location and number of the Borrower’s account to which funds are to be disbursed, which shall comply with the requirements of Section  2.05 .

If no election as to the Type of Borrowing is specified, then the requested Borrowing shall be an ABR Borrowing. If no Interest Period is specified with respect to any requested Eurodollar Borrowing, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration. Each Borrowing Request shall constitute a representation by the Borrower that the amount of the requested Borrowing shall not cause the total Revolving Credit Exposures to exceed the Loan Limit.

Promptly following receipt of a Borrowing Request in accordance with this Section  2.03 , the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of the amount of such Lender’s Loan to be made as part of the requested Borrowing.

Section 2.04 Interest Elections .

(a) Conversion and Continuance . Each Borrowing initially shall be of the Type specified in the applicable Borrowing Request and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, shall have an initial Interest Period as specified in such Borrowing Request. Thereafter, the Borrower may elect to

 

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convert such Borrowing to a different Type or to continue such Borrowing and, in the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, may elect Interest Periods therefor, all as provided in this Section  2.04 . The Borrower may elect different options with respect to different portions of the affected Borrowing, in which case each such portion shall be allocated ratably among the Lenders holding the Loans comprising such Borrowing, and the Loans comprising each such portion shall be considered a separate Borrowing.

(b) Interest Election Requests . To make an election pursuant to this Section  2.04 , the Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of such election in writing by the time that a Borrowing Request would be required under Section  2.03 if the Borrower were requesting a Borrowing of the Type resulting from such election to be made on the effective date of such election. Each such written Interest Election Request shall be irrevocable and shall be in substantially the form of Exhibit C and signed by the Borrower.

(c) Information in Interest Election Requests . Each written Interest Election Request shall specify the following information in compliance with Section  2.02 :

(i) the Borrowing to which such Interest Election Request applies and, if different options are being elected with respect to different portions thereof, the portions thereof to be allocated to each resulting Borrowing (in which case the information to be specified pursuant to Section 2.04(c)(iii) and (iv) shall be specified for each resulting Borrowing);

(ii) the effective date of the election made pursuant to such Interest Election Request, which shall be a Business Day;

(iii) whether the resulting Borrowing is to be an ABR Borrowing or a Eurodollar Borrowing; and

(iv) if the resulting Borrowing is a Eurodollar Borrowing, the Interest Period to be applicable thereto after giving effect to such election, which shall be a period contemplated by the definition of the term “Interest Period”.

(v) If any such Interest Election Request requests a Eurodollar Borrowing but does not specify an Interest Period, then the Borrower shall be deemed to have selected an Interest Period of one month’s duration.

(d) Notice to Lenders by the Administrative Agent . Promptly following receipt of an Interest Election Request, the Administrative Agent shall advise each Lender of the details thereof and of such Lender’s portion of each resulting Borrowing.

(e) Effect of Failure to Deliver Timely Interest Election Request and Events of Default on Interest Election . If the Borrower fails to deliver a timely Interest Election Request with respect to a Eurodollar Borrowing prior to the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto, then, unless such Borrowing is repaid as provided herein, at the end of such Interest Period such Borrowing shall be converted to an ABR Borrowing. Notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing: no outstanding Borrowing may be converted to or continued as a Eurodollar Borrowing (and any Interest Election Request that requests the conversion of any Borrowing to, or continuation of any Borrowing as, a Eurodollar Borrowing shall be ineffective) and unless repaid, each Eurodollar Borrowing shall be converted to an ABR Borrowing at the end of the Interest Period applicable thereto.

 

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Section 2.05 Funding of Borrowings .

(a) Funding by Lenders . Each Lender shall make each Loan to be made by it hereunder on the proposed date thereof by wire transfer of immediately available funds by 1:00 p.m., New York City time, to the account of the Administrative Agent most recently designated by it for such purpose by notice to the Lenders. The Administrative Agent will make such Loans available to the Borrower by promptly crediting the amounts so received, in like funds, to an account of the Borrower maintained with a Lender and designated by the Borrower in the applicable Borrowing Request; provided that ABR Loans made to finance the reimbursement of an LC Disbursement as provided in Section 2.08(e) shall be remitted by the Administrative Agent to the Issuing Bank. Nothing herein shall be deemed to obligate any Lender to obtain the funds for its Loan in any particular place or manner or to constitute a representation by any Lender that it has obtained or will obtain the funds for its Loan in any particular place or manner.

(b) Presumption of Funding by the Lenders . Unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from a Lender prior to the proposed date of any Borrowing that such Lender will not make available to the Administrative Agent such Lender’s share of such Borrowing, the Administrative Agent may assume that such Lender has made such share available on such date in accordance with Section 2.05(a) and may, in reliance upon such assumption, make available to the Borrower a corresponding amount.    In such event, if a Lender has not in fact made its share of the applicable Borrowing available to the Administrative Agent, then the applicable Lender and the Borrower severally agree to pay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand such corresponding amount with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such amount is made available to the Borrower to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at in the case of such Lender, the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation or in the case of the Borrower, the interest rate applicable to ABR Loans. If such Lender pays such amount to the Administrative Agent, then such amount shall constitute such Lender’s Loan included in such Borrowing. Any payment by the Borrower shall be without prejudice to any claim the Borrower may have against a Lender that shall have failed to make such payment to the Administrative Agent.

Section 2.06 Increase, Reduction and Termination of Total Commitment .

(a) Scheduled Termination of Commitments . Unless previously terminated, the Commitments shall terminate on the Maturity Date. If at any time the Borrowing Base or the Total Commitment is terminated or reduced to zero, then the Commitments shall terminate on the effective date of such termination or reduction.

(b) Optional Termination and Reduction of Total Commitment .

(i) The Borrower may at any time terminate, or from time to time reduce, the Total Commitment; provided that (A) each reduction of the Total Commitment shall be in an amount that is an integral multiple of $1,000,000 and not less than $2,000,000, (B) the Borrower shall not terminate or reduce the Total Commitment if, after giving effect to any concurrent prepayment of the Loans in accordance with Section 3.04(c)(i) , the total Revolving Credit Exposures would exceed the Total Commitments, and (C) upon any reduction of the Total Commitment, the Commitments shall be automatically reduced (ratably among the Lenders in accordance with each Lender’s Applicable Percentage) so that they equal the Total Commitment as so reduced.

(ii) The Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of any election to terminate or reduce the Total Commitment under Section 2.06(b )( i ) at least three Business Days prior to the effective date of such termination or reduction, specifying such election and the effective date thereof. Promptly following receipt of any notice, the Administrative Agent shall advise the Lenders of the

 

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contents thereof. Each notice delivered by the Borrower pursuant to this Section 2.06(b)(ii) shall be irrevocable; provided , however , that such notice of commitment reduction may state that such termination or reduction is conditioned upon the effectiveness of other credit facilities, the proceeds of which shall be used to repay the Obligations, in which case such notice may be revoked by the Borrower (by written notice provided to Agent prior to the specified effective date thereof) if such condition is not satisfied. Each reduction of the Total Commitment shall be made ratably among the Lenders in accordance with each Lender’s Applicable Percentage.

(c) Increases, Reductions and Terminations of Total Commitment .

(i) Subject to the conditions set forth in Section 2.06(c)(ii) , the Borrower may increase the Total Commitment then in effect by (A) increasing the Commitment of a Lender or (B) causing a Person that is acceptable to the Administrative Agent and each Issuing Bank that at such time is not a Lender to become a Lender (any such Person that is not at such time a Lender and becomes a Lender, an “ Additional Lender ”), or (C) a combination of the methods described in clauses (A) and (B).

(ii) Any increase in the Total Commitment shall be subject to the following additional conditions:

(A) such increase shall not be less than $25,000,000 unless the Administrative Agent otherwise consents;

(B) no Default shall have occurred and be continuing on the effective date of such increase or would result therefrom;

(C) no Lender’s Commitment may be increased without the consent of such Lender;

(D) The representations and warranties of the Borrower and the Guarantors set forth in this Agreement and in the other Loan Documents shall be true and correct in all material respects on and as of the date of such increase, except (i) to the extent any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, on and as of the date of such increase, such representations and warranties shall continue to be true and correct as of such specified earlier date, and (ii) to the extent that any such representation and warranty is expressly qualified by materiality or by reference to Material Adverse Effect, such representation and warranty (as so qualified) shall continue to be true and correct in all respects;

(E) the maturity date of such increase shall be the same as the Maturity Date;

(F) the increase shall be on the exact same terms and pursuant to the exact same documentation applicable to this Agreement (other than with respect to any arrangement, structuring, upfront or other fees or discounts payable in connection with such increase) ( provided that the Applicable Margin of the facility shall be increased to be consistent with that for such increase);

(G) the Borrower may seek Commitments, in its sole discretion, from either existing Lenders or, with the consent of the Administrative Agent and each Issuing Bank (in each case, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed), from additional banks, financial institutions or other institutional lenders or investors who will become Lenders hereunder; and

 

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(H) no Borrowing Base Deficiency shall exist after giving effect to the increase ( provided that, for the avoidance of doubt, the Borrower may elect to redetermine the Borrowing Base in accordance with Section 2.07(b)(iii) for purposes of satisfying the condition set forth in this Section 2.06(c)(ii)(H) ;

(I) if the Borrower elects to increase the Total Commitment by increasing the Commitment of a Lender, the Borrower and such Lender shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit H (a “ Commitment Increase Certificate ”); and

(J) if the Borrower elects to increase the Total Commitment by causing an Additional Lender to become a party to this Agreement, then the Borrower and such Additional Lender shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit I (an “ Additional Lender Certificate ”), together with an Administrative Questionnaire and a processing and recordation fee of $3,500 ( provided that the Administrative Agent may, in its discretion, elect to waive such processing and recordation fee in connection with any such increase), and the Borrower shall (1) if requested by the Additional Lender, deliver a Note payable to such Additional Lender in a principal amount equal to its Commitment, and otherwise duly completed and (2) pay any applicable fees as may have been agreed to between the Borrower and the Additional Lender, and, to the extent applicable and agreed to by the Borrower, the Administrative Agent.

(iii) Subject to acceptance and recording thereof pursuant to Section 2.06(c)(iv) , from and after the effective date specified in the Commitment Increase Certificate or the Additional Lender Certificate (or if any Eurodollar Borrowings are outstanding, then the last day of the Interest Period in respect of such Eurodollar Borrowings, unless the Borrower has paid any compensation required by Section  5.02 ): (A) the amount of the Total Commitment shall be increased as set forth therein, and (B) in the case of an Additional Lender Certificate, any Additional Lender party thereto shall be a party to this Agreement and have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents. In addition, the Lender or the Additional Lender, as applicable, shall purchase a pro rata portion of the outstanding Loans (and participation interests in Letters of Credit) of each of the other Lenders (and such Lenders hereby agree to sell and to take all such further action to effectuate such sale) such that each Lender (including any Additional Lender, if applicable) shall hold its Applicable Percentage of the outstanding Loans (and participation interests) after giving effect to the increase in the Total Commitment (and the resulting modifications of each Lender’s Commitment pursuant to Section 2.06(c)(iv) or Section 2.06(c)(v) ).

(iv) Upon its receipt of a duly completed Commitment Increase Certificate or an Additional Lender Certificate, executed by the Borrower and the Lender or by the Borrower and the Additional Lender party thereto, as applicable, the Administrative Questionnaire referred to in Section 2.06(c)(ii) and the break-funding payments from the Borrower, if any, required by Section  5.02 , if applicable, the Administrative Agent shall accept such Commitment Increase Certificate or Additional Lender Certificate and record the information contained therein in the Register required to be maintained by the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 12.04(b)(iv) . No increase in the Total Commitment shall be effective for purposes of this Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this Section 2.06(c)(iv) .

(v) Upon any increase in the Total Commitment pursuant to this Section 2.06(c) , (A) each Lender’s Commitment shall be automatically deemed amended to the extent necessary so that each such Lender’s Applicable Percentage equals the percentage of the Total Commitment represented by such Lender’s Commitment, in each case after giving effect to such increase, and (B)  Annex I to this Agreement shall be deemed amended to reflect the Commitment of each Lender (including any Additional Lender) as thereby increased, any changes in the Lenders’ Commitments pursuant to the foregoing clause (A), and any resulting changes in the Lenders’ Applicable Percentages.

 

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(vi) The Borrower may from time to time terminate or reduce the Total Commitment; provided that (A) each reduction of the Total Commitment shall be in an amount that is an integral multiple of $1,000,000 and not less than $1,000,000 and (B) the Borrower shall not reduce the Total Commitment if, after giving effect to any concurrent prepayment of the Loans in accordance with Section 3.04(c) , the total Revolving Credit Exposures would exceed the Total Commitment as reduced.

(vii) The Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent of any election to terminate or reduce the Total Commitment under Section 2.06(c)(vi) at least three Business Days prior to the effective date of such termination or reduction, specifying such election and the effective date thereof. Promptly following receipt of any notice, the Administrative Agent shall advise the Lenders of the contents thereof. Each notice delivered by the Borrower pursuant to this Section 2.06(c)(vii) shall be irrevocable. Any termination or reduction of the Total Commitment shall be permanent and may not be reinstated, except pursuant to Section 2.06(c)(i) . Each reduction of the Total Commitment shall be made ratably among the Lenders in accordance with each Lender’s Applicable Percentage.

(viii) Upon any redetermination or other adjustment in the Borrowing Base pursuant to this Agreement that would otherwise result in the difference between (A) the Borrowing Base and (B) total Term Loan Exposures at such time becoming less than the Total Commitment, the Total Commitment shall be automatically reduced (ratably among the Lenders in accordance with each Lender’s Applicable Percentage) so that they equal such difference (and Annex I shall be deemed amended to reflect such amendments to each Lender’s Commitment and the Total Commitment).

(ix) Contemporaneously with any increase in the Borrowing Base pursuant to this Agreement, if (A) the Borrower elects to increase the Total Commitment Amount and (B) each Lender has consented to such increase in its Commitment, then the Total Commitment Amount shall be increased (ratably among the Lenders in accordance with each Lender’s Applicable Percentage) by the amount requested by the Borrower (subject to the limitations set forth in Section 2.06(c)(ii)(A) ) without the requirement that any Lender deliver a Commitment Increase Certificate or that the Borrower pay any amounts under Section  5.02 , and Annex I shall be deemed amended to reflect such amendments to each Lender’s Commitment and the Total Commitment. The Administrative Agent shall record the information regarding such increases in the Register required to be maintained by the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 12.04(b)(iv) .

Section 2.07 Borrowing Base .

(a) Initial Borrowing Base . During a Borrowing Base Period, this Agreement shall be subject to a Borrowing Base. For the period from and including the Effective Date to but excluding the first Redetermination Date thereafter, the amount of the Borrowing Base shall be $1,200,000,000. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Borrowing Base may be subject to further adjustments from time to time pursuant to Section 2.07(e) and Section  9.11 .

(b) Scheduled and Interim Redeterminations . During a Borrowing Base Period, the Borrowing Base shall be redetermined in accordance with this Section  2.07 (each such redetermination, a “ Scheduled Redetermination ”) based on the Reserve Reports prepared as of the following dates:

July 1, 2017 and each July 1 thereafter

January 1, 2018 and each January 1 thereafter

 

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In addition, (i) the Borrower may elect to cause, by notifying the Administrative Agent thereof, and the Administrative Agent shall cause, at the election and direction of the Required Lenders, by notifying the Borrower thereof, one time between Scheduled Redeterminations, the Borrowing Base to be redetermined between Scheduled Redeterminations, (ii) upon any Additional Interim Redetermination Event, the Administrative Agent shall, at the election and direction of the Majority Lenders, by notifying the Borrower thereof, cause the Borrowing Base to be redetermined between Scheduled Redeterminations, and (iii) the Borrower may elect, by notifying the Administrative Agent of any acquisition of Oil and Gas Properties by the Borrower or any other Credit Party with a purchase price in the aggregate of at least five percent (5%) of the then effective Borrowing Base, to cause the Borrowing Base to be redetermined between Scheduled Redeterminations. Each redetermination of the Borrowing Base pursuant to the immediately preceding sentence is referred to herein as an “Interim Redetermination” and shall be effectuated in accordance with this Section  2.07 .

(c) Scheduled and Interim Redetermination Procedure .

(i) Each Scheduled Redetermination and each Interim Redetermination shall be effectuated as follows: Upon receipt by the Administrative Agent of the Reserve Report and the certificate required to be delivered by the Borrower to the Administrative Agent, in the case of a Scheduled Redetermination, pursuant to Section 8.12(a) and (d) , and, in the case of an Interim Redetermination, pursuant to Section 8.12(c) and (d) , and such other reports, data and supplemental information, including the information provided pursuant to Section 8.12(c) , as may, from time to time, be reasonably requested by the Required Lenders (the Reserve Report, such certificate and such other reports, data and supplemental information being the “ Engineering Reports ”), the Administrative Agent shall evaluate the information contained in the Engineering Reports and shall, in good faith, propose a new Borrowing Base (the “ Proposed Borrowing Base ”) based upon such information and such other information (including, without limitation, the status of title information with respect to the Oil and Gas Properties as described in the Engineering Reports and the existence of any other Debt) as the Administrative Agent deems appropriate in its sole discretion and consistent with its normal oil and gas lending criteria as it exists at the particular time.

(ii) The Administrative Agent shall notify the Borrower and the Lenders of the Proposed Borrowing Base (the “ Proposed Borrowing Base Notice ”):

(A) in the case of a Scheduled Redetermination (1) if the Administrative Agent shall have received the Engineering Reports required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.12(a) and (d)  in a timely and complete manner, then, on or before each March 15 and September 15 (or such date promptly thereafter as reasonably practicable) of each year following the date of delivery or (2) if the Administrative Agent shall not have received the Engineering Reports required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.12(a) and (d)  in a timely and complete manner, then promptly after the Administrative Agent has received complete Engineering Reports from the Borrower and has had a reasonable opportunity to determine the Proposed Borrowing Base in accordance with Section 2.07(c)(i) ; and

(B) in the case of an Interim Redetermination, promptly, and in any event, within fifteen (15) days after the Administrative Agent has received the required Engineering Reports.

(iii) Any Proposed Borrowing Base that would increase the Borrowing Base then in effect must be approved or deemed to have been approved by all of the Lenders as provided in this Section 2.07(c )( iii) ; and any Proposed Borrowing Base that would decrease or maintain the Borrowing Base then in effect must be approved or be deemed to have been approved by the Required Lenders (in

 

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each Lender’s sole discretion consistent with its normal oil and gas lending criteria as it exists at the particular time) as provided in this Section 2.07(c)(iii) . Upon receipt of the Proposed Borrowing Base Notice, each Lender shall have fifteen (15) days to agree with the Proposed Borrowing Base or disagree with the Proposed Borrowing Base by proposing an alternate Borrowing Base. If at the end of such fifteen (15) days, any Lender has not communicated its approval or disapproval in writing to the Administrative Agent, such silence shall be deemed to be an approval of the Proposed Borrowing Base. If, at the end of such 15-day period, all of the Lenders, in the case of a Proposed Borrowing Base that would increase the Borrowing Base then in effect, or the Required Lenders, in the case of a Proposed Borrowing Base that would decrease or maintain the Borrowing Base then in effect, have approved or deemed to have approved, as aforesaid, then the Proposed Borrowing Base shall become the new Borrowing Base, effective on the date specified in Section 2.07(d) . If, however, at the end of such 15-day period, all of the Lenders or the Required Lenders, as applicable, have not approved or deemed to have approved, as aforesaid, then the Administrative Agent shall poll the Lenders to ascertain the highest Borrowing Base then acceptable to a number of Lenders sufficient to constitute the Required Lenders and, so long as such amount does not increase the Borrowing Base then in effect, such amount shall become the new Borrowing Base, effective on the date specified in Section 2.07(d) .

(d) Effectiveness of a Redetermined Borrowing Base . After a redetermined Borrowing Base is approved or is deemed to have been approved by all of the Lenders or the Required Lenders, as applicable, pursuant to Section 2.07(c)(iii) or adjusted pursuant to Section 2.07(e) or Section  9.11 , the Administrative Agent shall notify the Borrower and the Lenders of the amount of the redetermined Borrowing Base (the “ New Borrowing Base Notice ”), and such amount shall become the new Borrowing Base, effective and applicable to the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders:

(i) in the case of a Scheduled Redetermination, if the Administrative Agent shall have received the Engineering Reports required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.12(a) and (d)  in a timely and complete manner, then on or before October 1, 2017 and thereafter each April 1 or October 1, as applicable, following such notice (or, in each case, such date promptly thereafter as reasonably practicable), or if the Administrative Agent shall not have received the Engineering Reports required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.12(a) and (d)  in a timely and complete manner, then on the Business Day next succeeding delivery of such notice; and

(ii) in the case of an Interim Redetermination, on the Business Day next succeeding delivery of such notice.

Such amount shall then become the Borrowing Base until the next Scheduled Redetermination Date, the next Interim Redetermination Date or the next adjustment to the Borrowing Base under Section  9.11 , whichever occurs first. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Scheduled Redetermination, Interim Redetermination or adjusted Borrowing Base shall become effective until the New Borrowing Base Notice related thereto is received by the Borrower.

(e) Reduction of Borrowing Base Upon Issuance of Senior Notes . In addition to the other redeterminations of the Borrowing Base provided for herein, and notwithstanding anything to the contrary set forth herein, upon the issuance of any Senior Notes after the Effective Date by the Borrower or any Subsidiary Guarantor pursuant to Section 9.02(e) , the Borrowing Base then in effect shall be automatically reduced by an amount equal to the product of 0.25 multiplied by the stated principal amount of such Senior Notes (without regard to any initial issue discount), and, in each case, the Borrowing Base as so reduced shall become the new Borrowing Base immediately upon the date of such issuance, effective and applicable to the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank, and the Lenders on such date until the next redetermination or modification of the Borrowing Base pursuant to this Agreement.

 

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Section 2.08 Letters of Credit .

(a) General . Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, the Borrower may request the issuance of dollar denominated Letters of Credit for its own account or for the account of any of its Restricted Subsidiaries, in a form reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent and the Issuing Bank, at any time and from time to time during the Availability Period; provided that the Borrower may not request the issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of Letters of Credit hereunder if a Borrowing Base Deficiency exists at such time or would exist as a result thereof. The aggregate amount of the outstanding Letters of Credit issued by any Issuing Bank shall not exceed such Issuing Bank’s LC Issuance Limit and the aggregate amount of all outstanding Letters of Credit issued by all Issuing Banks shall not exceed the LC Commitment. Each Letter of Credit shall be in a minimum face amount of Twenty-Five Thousand Dollars ($25,000) (or such lesser amount as may be agreed to by Issuing Bank). In the event of any inconsistency between the terms and conditions of this Agreement and the terms and conditions of any form of letter of credit application or other agreement submitted by the Borrower to, or entered into by the Borrower with, the Issuing Bank relating to any Letter of Credit, the terms and conditions of this Agreement shall control.

(b) Notice of Issuance, Amendment, Renewal, Extension; Certain Conditions . To request the issuance of a Letter of Credit (or the amendment, renewal or extension of an outstanding Letter of Credit), the Borrower shall hand deliver or facsimile (or transmit by electronic communication, if arrangements for doing so have been approved by the Issuing Bank) to the Issuing Bank and the Administrative Agent (not less than five (5) Business Days in advance of the requested date of issuance, amendment, renewal or extension) a notice:

(i) requesting the issuance of a Letter of Credit or identifying the Letter of Credit to be amended, renewed or extended;

(ii) specifying the date of issuance, amendment, renewal or extension (which shall be a Business Day);

(iii) specifying the date on which such Letter of Credit is to expire (which shall comply with Section 2.08(c) );

(iv) specifying the amount of such Letter of Credit;

(v) specifying the name and address of the beneficiary thereof and such other information as shall be necessary to prepare, amend, renew or extend such Letter of Credit; and

(vi) specifying the amount of the then effective Borrowing Base and the then effective Total Commitment and whether a Borrowing Base Deficiency exists at such time, the current total Revolving Credit Exposures and Total Exposure (without regard to the requested Letter of Credit or the requested amendment, renewal or extension of an outstanding Letter of Credit) and the pro forma total Revolving Credit Exposures and Total Exposure (giving effect to the requested Letter of Credit or the requested amendment, renewal or extension of an outstanding Letter of Credit).

Each notice shall constitute a representation and warranty by the Borrower that after giving effect to the requested issuance, amendment, renewal or extension, as applicable, (A) the LC Exposure shall not exceed the LC Commitment, (B) the aggregate amount of outstanding Letters of Credit issued by the

 

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applicable Issuing Bank does not exceed the LC Issuance Limit of such Issuing Bank, and (C) the total Revolving Credit Exposures shall not exceed the Loan Limit. No letter of credit issued by the Issuing Bank (if the Issuing Bank is not the Administrative Agent) shall be deemed to be a “Letter of Credit” issued under this Agreement unless the Issuing Bank has requested and received written confirmation from the Administrative Agent that the representations by Borrower contained in clauses (A) and (C) of the immediately preceding sentence are true and correct).

If requested by the Issuing Bank, the Borrower also shall submit a letter of credit application on the Issuing Bank’s standard form in connection with any request for a Letter of Credit; provided that, in the event of any conflict between such application and the terms of this Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall control.

(c) Expiration Date . Each Letter of Credit shall expire at or prior to the close of business on the earlier of (i) the date one year after the date of the issuance of such Letter of Credit (or, in the case of any renewal or extension thereof, one year after such renewal or extension), and (ii) the date that is five Business Days prior to the Maturity Date. Each Letter of Credit with a one (1) year term may provide for the renewal thereof for additional one (1) year periods; provided that no such period shall extend beyond the date described in clause (ii) above.

(d) Participations . By the issuance of a Letter of Credit (or an amendment to a Letter of Credit increasing the amount thereof) and without any further action on the part of the Issuing Bank or the Lenders, the Issuing Bank hereby grants to each Lender, and each Lender hereby acquires from the Issuing Bank, a participation in such Letter of Credit equal to such Lender’s Applicable Percentage of the aggregate amount available to be drawn under such Letter of Credit. In consideration and in furtherance of the foregoing, each Lender hereby absolutely and unconditionally agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent, for the account of the Issuing Bank, such Lender’s Applicable Percentage of each LC Disbursement made by the Issuing Bank and not reimbursed by the Borrower on the date due as provided in Section 2.08(e) , or of any reimbursement payment required to be refunded to the Borrower for any reason. Each Lender acknowledges and agrees that its obligation to acquire participations pursuant to this Section 2.08(d) in respect of Letters of Credit is absolute and unconditional and shall not be affected by any circumstance whatsoever, including any amendment, renewal or extension of any Letter of Credit or the occurrence and continuance of a Default, the existence of a Borrowing Base Deficiency or reduction or termination of the Commitments, and that each such payment shall be made without any offset, abatement, withholding or reduction whatsoever.

(e) Reimbursement . If the Issuing Bank shall make any LC Disbursement in respect of a Letter of Credit, the Borrower shall reimburse such LC Disbursement by paying to the Administrative Agent an amount equal to such LC Disbursement not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, on the date that such LC Disbursement is made, if the Borrower shall have received notice of such LC Disbursement prior to 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on such date, or, if such notice has not been received by the Borrower prior to such time on such date, then not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, on (i) the Business Day that the Borrower receives such notice, if such notice is received prior to 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on the day of receipt, or (ii) the Business Day immediately following the day that the Borrower receives such notice, if such notice is not received prior to such time on the day of receipt; provided that, unless the Borrower has notified the Administrative Agent that it intends to reimburse all or part of such LC Disbursement without using Loan proceeds or has submitted a Borrowing Request with respect thereto, the Borrower shall, subject to the conditions to Borrowing set forth herein, be deemed to have requested, and the Borrower does hereby request under such circumstances, that such payment be financed with an ABR Borrowing in an equivalent amount and, to the extent so financed, the Borrower’s obligation to make such payment shall be discharged and replaced by the resulting ABR Borrowing. If the Borrower fails to make such payment when due, the

 

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Administrative Agent shall notify each Lender of the applicable LC Disbursement, the payment then due from the Borrower in respect thereof and such Lender’s Applicable Percentage thereof. Promptly following receipt of such notice, each Lender shall pay to the Administrative Agent its Applicable Percentage of the payment then due from the Borrower, in the same manner as provided in Section  2.05 with respect to Loans made by such Lender (and Section  2.05 shall apply, mutatis mutandis , to the payment obligations of the Lenders), and the Administrative Agent shall promptly pay to the Issuing Bank the amounts so received by it from the Lenders. Promptly following receipt by the Administrative Agent of any payment from the Borrower pursuant to this Section 2.08(e) , the Administrative Agent shall distribute such payment to the Issuing Bank or, to the extent that Lenders have made payments pursuant to this Section 2.08(e) to reimburse the Issuing Bank, then to such Lenders and the Issuing Bank as their interests may appear. Any payment made by a Lender pursuant to this Section 2.08(e) to reimburse the Issuing Bank for any LC Disbursement (other than the funding of ABR Loans as contemplated above) shall not constitute a Loan and shall not relieve the Borrower of its obligation to reimburse such LC Disbursement.

(f) Obligations Absolute . The Borrower’s obligation to reimburse LC Disbursements as provided in Section 2.08(e) shall be absolute, unconditional and irrevocable, and shall be performed strictly in accordance with the terms of this Agreement under any and all circumstances whatsoever and irrespective of any lack of validity or enforceability of any Letter of Credit, any Letter of Credit Agreement or this Agreement, or any term or provision therein, any draft or other document presented under a Letter of Credit proving to be forged, fraudulent or invalid in any respect or any statement therein being untrue or inaccurate in any respect, payment by the Issuing Bank under a Letter of Credit against presentation of a draft or other document that does not comply with the terms of such Letter of Credit or any Letter of Credit Agreement, or any other event or circumstance whatsoever, whether or not similar to any of the foregoing, that might, but for the provisions of this Section 2.08(f) , constitute a legal or equitable discharge of, or provide a right of setoff against, the Borrower’s obligations hereunder. Neither the Administrative Agent, the Lenders nor the Issuing Bank, nor any of their Related Parties shall have any liability or responsibility by reason of or in connection with the issuance or transfer of any Letter of Credit or any payment or failure to make any payment thereunder (irrespective of any of the circumstances referred to in the preceding sentence), or any error, omission, interruption, loss or delay in transmission or delivery of any draft, notice or other communication under or relating to any Letter of Credit (including any document required to make a drawing thereunder), any error in interpretation of technical terms or any consequence arising from causes beyond the control of the Issuing Bank; provided that the foregoing shall not be construed to excuse the Issuing Bank from liability to the Borrower to the extent of any direct damages (as opposed to consequential damages, claims in respect of which are hereby waived by the Borrower to the extent permitted by applicable law) suffered by the Borrower that are caused by the Issuing Bank’s failure to exercise due care when determining whether drafts and other documents presented under a Letter of Credit comply with the terms thereof or by the Issuing Bank’s gross negligence or willful misconduct. In furtherance of the foregoing and without limiting the generality thereof, the parties agree that, with respect to documents presented which appear on their face to be in substantial compliance with the terms of a Letter of Credit, the Issuing Bank may, in its sole discretion, either accept and make payment upon such documents without responsibility for further investigation, regardless of any notice or information to the contrary, or refuse to accept and make payment upon such documents if such documents are not in strict compliance with the terms of such Letter of Credit.

(g) Disbursement Procedures . The Issuing Bank shall, promptly following its receipt thereof, examine all documents purporting to represent a demand for payment under a Letter of Credit. The Issuing Bank shall promptly notify the Administrative Agent and the Borrower by telephone (confirmed by facsimile) of such demand for payment and whether the Issuing Bank has made or will make an LC Disbursement thereunder; provided that any failure to give or delay in giving such notice shall not relieve the Borrower of its obligation to reimburse the Issuing Bank and the Lenders with respect to any such LC Disbursement.

 

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(h) Interim Interest . If the Issuing Bank shall make any LC Disbursement, then, until the Borrower shall have reimbursed the Issuing Bank for such LC Disbursement (either with its own funds or a Borrowing under Section 2.08(e) ), the unpaid amount thereof shall bear interest, for each day from and including the date such LC Disbursement is made to but excluding the date that the Borrower reimburses such LC Disbursement, at the rate per annum then applicable to ABR Loans. Interest accrued pursuant to this Section 2.08(h) shall be for the account of the Issuing Bank, except that interest accrued on and after the date of payment by any Lender pursuant to Section 2.08(e) to reimburse the Issuing Bank shall be for the account of such Lender to the extent of such payment.

(i) Replacement of the Issuing Bank . The Issuing Bank may be replaced at any time by written agreement among the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, the replaced Issuing Bank and the successor Issuing Bank. The Administrative Agent shall notify the Lenders of any such replacement of the Issuing Bank. At the time any such replacement shall become effective, the Borrower shall pay all unpaid fees accrued for the account of the replaced Issuing Bank pursuant to Section 3.05(b) . From and after the effective date of any such replacement, the successor Issuing Bank shall have all the rights and obligations of the Issuing Bank under this Agreement with respect to Letters of Credit to be issued thereafter and references herein to the term “Issuing Bank” shall be deemed to refer to such successor or to any previous Issuing Bank, or to such successor and all previous Issuing Banks, as the context shall require. After the replacement of the Issuing Bank hereunder, the replaced Issuing Bank shall remain a party hereto and shall continue to have all the rights and obligations of the Issuing Bank under this Agreement with respect to Letters of Credit issued by it prior to such replacement, but shall not be required to issue additional Letters of Credit. Schedule 1.02 shall be amended upon the written agreement of the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and any successor Issuing Bank to set forth such Issuing Bank’s LC Issuance Limit, and no successor Issuing Bank shall be an “Issuing Bank” hereunder until such amendment is effective.

(j) Cash Collateralization .

(i) If the Borrower is required to Cash Collateralize the excess attributable to an LC Exposure in connection with any prepayment pursuant to Section 3.04(c) , or the Borrower is required to Cash Collateralize a Defaulting Lender’s LC Exposure pursuant to Section 4.05(a)(v) , then the Borrower shall Cash Collateralize such LC Exposure or the excess attributable to such LC Exposure, as the case may be, as of such date. In addition, if the Commitments are terminated or the Loans become due and payable pursuant to Section 10.02(a) or the Loans are not paid in full on the Maturity Date, then the Borrower shall deposit, in an account with the Administrative Agent, in the name of the Administrative Agent and for the benefit of the Lenders, an amount in cash equal to the LC Exposure.

(ii) The Borrower, and to the extent provided by any Defaulting Lender, such Defaulting Lender, hereby grants to the Administrative Agent, for the benefit of the Issuing Bank and the Lenders, a security interest in and Lien on each account (a “ Collateral Account ”) in which the Borrower has Cash Collateralized any obligation hereunder and all cash, checks, drafts, certificates and instruments, if any, from time to time deposited or held in such account, all deposits or wire transfers made thereto, any and all investments purchased with funds deposited in such account, all interest, dividends, cash, instruments, financial assets and other Property from time to time received, receivable or otherwise payable in respect of, or in exchange for, any or all of the foregoing, and all proceeds, products, accessions, rents, profits, income and benefits therefrom, and any substitutions and replacements therefor (collectively, the “ Cash Collateral ”). The Borrower, and to the extent granted by any Defaulting Lender, such Defaulting Lender, agrees to maintain, or cause to be maintained, such security interest as an

 

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exclusive first priority and continuing perfected security interest. If at any time the Administrative Agent determines that Cash Collateral is subject to any right or claim of any Person other than the Administrative Agent and the Issuing Bank as herein provided (other than Permitted Liens), or that the total amount of such Cash Collateral is less than the minimum collateral amount required hereunder, the Borrower will, promptly upon demand by the Administrative Agent, pay or provide to the Administrative Agent additional Cash Collateral in an amount sufficient to eliminate such deficiency (after giving effect to any Cash Collateral provided by the Defaulting Lender).

(iii) The Borrower’s obligation to Cash Collateralize pursuant to this Section 2.08(j) shall be absolute and unconditional, without regard to whether any beneficiary of any Letter of Credit has attempted to draw down all or a portion of such amount under the terms of a Letter of Credit, and, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, shall not be subject to any defense or be affected by a right of set-off, counterclaim or recoupment which the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary may now or hereafter have against any such beneficiary, the Issuing Bank, the Administrative Agent, the Lenders or any other Person for any reason whatsoever.

(iv) Each Collateral Account and all Cash Collateral shall secure the payment and performance of the Borrower’s and the Guarantors’ Obligations under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents. The Administrative Agent shall have exclusive dominion and control, including the exclusive right of withdrawal, over each Collateral Account and the Cash Collateral. Other than any interest earned on the investment of such deposits, which investments shall be made at the option and sole discretion of the Administrative Agent and at the Borrower’s risk and expense, such deposits shall not bear interest. Interest or profits, if any, on such investments shall accumulate in each Collateral Account. Moneys in such account shall be applied by the Administrative Agent to reimburse the Issuing Bank for LC Disbursements for which it has not been reimbursed and, to the extent not so applied, shall be held for the satisfaction of the reimbursement obligations of the Borrower for the LC Exposure at such time or, if the maturity of the Loans has been accelerated, be applied to satisfy other obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantors under this Agreement or the other Loan Documents. If the Borrower is required to Cash Collateralize hereunder in connection with any prepayment pursuant to Section 3.04(c) , then such Cash Collateral will be returned to the Borrower promptly after the Total Exposure ceases to exceed the Borrowing Base. If the Borrower is required to Cash Collateralize hereunder pursuant to Section 4.05(a)(v) , then such Cash Collateral shall no longer be required to be held as Cash Collateral pursuant to this Section 2.08(j) following the elimination or reduction of the applicable Fronting Exposure (including by the termination of Defaulting Lender status of the applicable Lender) such that there exists excess Cash Collateral; provided that, subject to Section  4.05 the Person providing Cash Collateral and the Issuing Bank may agree that Cash Collateral shall be held to support future anticipated Fronting Exposure or other obligations, and provided further that to the extent that such Cash Collateral was provided by the Borrower, such Cash Collateral shall be returned to the Borrower but shall remain subject to the security interest granted pursuant to the Loan Documents. If the Borrower is required to Cash Collateralize hereunder pursuant to the final sentence of Section 2.08(j)(i) , then such Cash Collateral shall be returned to the Borrower within three Business Days after the LC Exposure has been reduced to zero.

ARTICLE III

PAYMENTS OF PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST; PREPAYMENTS; FEES

Section 3.01 Repayment of Loans . The Borrower hereby unconditionally promises to pay to the Administrative Agent for the account of each Lender the then unpaid principal amount of each Loan on the Termination Date.

 

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Section 3.02 Interest .

(a) ABR Loans . The Loans comprising each ABR Borrowing shall bear interest at the Alternate Base Rate plus the Applicable Margin for ABR Borrowings, but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(b) Eurodollar Loans . The Loans comprising each Eurodollar Borrowing shall bear interest at the Adjusted LIBO Rate for the Interest Period in effect for such Borrowing plus the Applicable Margin for Eurodollar Borrowings, but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(c) Post-Default Rate . Notwithstanding the foregoing, if (i) an Event of Default specified in Section 10.01(a) , 10.01(b) , 10.01(h) or 10.01(i) has occurred and is continuing, or (ii) the Required Lenders so elect (or direct the Administrative Agent to so elect) in connection with the occurrence and continuance of any other Event of Default, then in each case all Loans outstanding shall bear interest, after as well as before judgment, at a rate per annum equal to two percent (2%) plus the rate otherwise applicable to such Loans (including the Applicable Margin applicable with respect to such Loans), but in no event to exceed the Highest Lawful Rate.

(d) Interest Payment Dates . Accrued interest on each Loan shall be payable in arrears on each Interest Payment Date for such Loan and on the Termination Date; provided that interest accrued pursuant to Section 3.02(c) shall be payable on demand. In the event of any repayment or prepayment of any Loan (other than an optional prepayment of an ABR Loan prior to the Termination Date), accrued interest on the principal amount repaid or prepaid shall be payable on the date of such repayment or prepayment, and in the event of any conversion of any Eurodollar Loan prior to the end of the current Interest Period therefor, accrued interest on such Loan shall be payable on the effective date of such conversion.

(e) Interest Rate Computations . All interest hereunder shall be computed on the basis of a year of 360 days, unless such computation would exceed the Highest Lawful Rate, in which case interest shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), except that interest computed by reference to the Alternate Base Rate at times when the Alternate Base Rate is based on the Prime Rate shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), and in each case shall be payable for the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the last day). The applicable Alternate Base Rate, Adjusted LIBO Rate or LIBO Rate shall be determined by the Administrative Agent, and such determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and be binding upon the parties hereto.

Section 3.03 Alternate Rate of Interest . If prior to the commencement of any Interest Period for a Eurodollar Borrowing:

(a) the Administrative Agent determines (which determination shall be conclusive absent manifest error) that adequate and reasonable means do not exist for ascertaining the Adjusted LIBO Rate or the LIBO Rate for such Interest Period; or

(b) the Administrative Agent is advised by the Required Lenders that the Adjusted LIBO Rate or LIBO Rate, as applicable, for such Interest Period will not adequately and fairly reflect the cost to such Lenders of making or maintaining their Loans included in such Borrowing for such Interest Period;

then the Administrative Agent shall give notice thereof to the Borrower and the Lenders by telephone or facsimile as promptly as practicable thereafter and, until the Administrative Agent notifies the Borrower and the Lenders that the circumstances giving rise to such notice no longer exist, any Interest Election Request that requests the conversion of any Borrowing to, or continuation of any Borrowing as, a Eurodollar Borrowing shall be ineffective, and if any Borrowing Request requests a Eurodollar Borrowing, such Borrowing shall be made as an ABR Borrowing.

 

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Section 3.04 Prepayments .

(a) Optional Prepayments . The Borrower shall have the right at any time and from time to time to prepay any Borrowing in whole or in part, subject to prior notice in accordance with Section 3.04(b) .

(b) Notice and Terms of Optional Prepayment . The Borrower shall notify the Administrative Agent by telephone (confirmed by facsimile) of any optional prepayment hereunder (i) in the case of prepayment of a Eurodollar Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, three Business Days before the date of prepayment, or (ii) in the case of prepayment of an ABR Borrowing, not later than 12:00 noon, New York City time, one Business Day before the date of prepayment. Each such notice shall specify the prepayment date and the principal amount of each Borrowing or portion thereof to be prepaid. Promptly following receipt of any such notice relating to a Borrowing, the Administrative Agent shall advise the Lenders of the contents thereof. Each such partial prepayment of any Borrowing shall be in an amount that would be permitted in the case of an advance of a Borrowing of the same Type as provided in Section  2.02 . Each such prepayment of a Borrowing shall be applied ratably to the Loans included in the prepaid Borrowing and shall be accompanied by accrued interest to the extent required by Section  3.02 .

(c) Mandatory Prepayments .

(i) If, after giving effect to any termination or reduction in the Total Commitment pursuant to Section 2.06(c) , the total Revolving Credit Exposures exceed the Loan Limit, then the Borrower shall prepay the Borrowings on the date of such termination or reduction in an aggregate principal amount equal to such excess, and if any excess remains after prepaying all of the Borrowings as a result of an LC Exposure, Cash Collateralize such excess as provided in Section 2.08(j) .

(ii) Other than as provided for pursuant to Sections 3.04(c)(i) and 3.04(c)(iii) , upon the occurrence of a Borrowing Base Deficiency, the Borrower shall eliminate such Borrowing Base Deficiency in its entirety by electing (with written notice to the Administrative Agent) within ten (10) Business Days following the occurrence of such Borrowing Base Deficiency to take one or more of the following actions:

(A) within thirty days after the notice given pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) , prepaying the Borrowings, and if any excess remains after prepaying all of the Borrowings as a result of an LC Exposure, Cash Collateralizing such excess as provided in Section 2.08(j) ;

(B) within thirty days after the notice given pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) , adding additional Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties to the Reserve Report (and, if required under Section  8.14 , mortgaging additional Oil and Gas Properties in compliance with the requirements of Section  8.14 ) that, in each case, are acceptable to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders and would result in an increase to the Borrowing Base; or

(C) within thirty days after the notice given pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) , electing to make (and thereafter paying in accordance with such election) six equal monthly payments that collectively prepay the Borrowings until such excess is reduced to zero (and if any excess remains after prepaying all of the Borrowings as a result of an LC Exposure, Cash Collateralize such excess as provided in Section 2.08(j) ), with the first such payment being due and payable within such thirty days and each subsequent payment being due and payable on the same day in each of the subsequent calendar months;

 

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provided that all payments required to be made pursuant to this Section 3.04(c)(ii) must be made on or prior to the Termination Date.

(iii) Upon any adjustment to the Borrowing Base pursuant to Section 2.07(e) or Section  9.11 , if the Total Exposure exceeds the Borrowing Base as adjusted, then the Borrower shall prepay the Borrowings in an aggregate principal amount equal to such excess and if any excess remains after prepaying all of the Borrowings as a result of an LC Exposure, Cash Collateralize such excess as provided in Section 2.08(j) . The Borrower shall be obligated to make such prepayment and/or Cash Collateralize such excess on the third (3rd) Business Day after it receives the applicable New Borrowing Base Notice in accordance with Section 2.07(d) ; provided that all payments required to be made pursuant to this Section 3.04(c)(iii) must be made on or prior to the Termination Date.

(iv) Each prepayment of Borrowings pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be applied, first , ratably to any ABR Borrowings then outstanding, and, second , to any Eurodollar Borrowings then outstanding, and if more than one Eurodollar Borrowing is then outstanding, to each such Eurodollar Borrowing in order of priority beginning with the Eurodollar Borrowing with the least number of days remaining in the Interest Period applicable thereto and ending with the Eurodollar Borrowing with the most number of days remaining in the Interest Period applicable thereto.

(v) Each prepayment of Borrowings pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be applied ratably to the Loans included in the prepaid Borrowings. Prepayments pursuant to this Section 3.04(c) shall be accompanied by accrued interest to the extent required by Section  3.02 .

(d) No Premium or Penalty . All prepayments permitted or required under this Section  3.04 shall include breakage expense, if any, required under Section  5.02 and shall be without premium or penalty.

Section 3.05 Fees .

(a) Commitment Fees . Except as otherwise provided in Section 4.05(a)(iii) , the Borrower agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent for the account of each Lender a commitment fee, which shall accrue at the applicable Commitment Fee Rate on the average daily amount of the unused amount of the Commitment of such Lender during the period from and including the date of this Agreement to but excluding the Termination Date. Accrued commitment fees shall be payable in arrears on the last day of March, June, September and December of each year and on the Termination Date, commencing on the first such date to occur after the date hereof. All commitment fees shall be computed on the basis of a year of 360 days, unless such computation would exceed the Highest Lawful Rate, in which case interest shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), and shall be payable for the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the last day).

(b) Letter of Credit Fees . The Borrower agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent for the account of each Lender a participation fee with respect to its participations in Letters of Credit, which shall accrue at the same Applicable Margin used to determine the interest rate applicable to Eurodollar Loans on the average daily amount of such Lender’s LC Exposure (excluding any portion thereof attributable to unreimbursed LC Disbursements) during the period from and including the date of this Agreement to but excluding the later of the date on which such Lender’s Commitment terminates and the date on which such Lender ceases to have any LC Exposure. The Borrower also agrees to pay to the Issuing Bank, for its own account,(i) a fronting fee, which shall be payable at issuance of each Letter of

 

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Credit in an amount equal to 0.125% of the face amount of such Letter of Credit (which, for purposes of this clause (i), shall mean the maximum face amount of such Letter of Credit after giving effect to all provisions in such Letter of Credit providing for future automatic increases in the amount that may be drawn under such Letter of Credit) and (ii) the Issuing Bank’s standard fees with respect to the issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of any Letter of Credit or processing of drawings thereunder. Participation fees accrued through and including the last day of March, June, September and December of each year shall be payable on the third Business Day following such last day, commencing on the first such date to occur after the date of this Agreement; provided that all such fees shall be payable on the Termination Date and any such fees accruing after the Termination Date shall be payable on demand. Any other fees payable to the Issuing Bank pursuant to this Section 3.05(b) shall be payable within 10 days after demand. All participation fees shall be computed on the basis of a year of 360 days, unless such computation would exceed the Highest Lawful Rate, in which case interest shall be computed on the basis of a year of 365 days (or 366 days in a leap year), and shall be payable for the actual number of days elapsed (including the first day but excluding the last day).

(c) Administrative Agent Fees . The Borrower agrees to pay to the Administrative Agent, for its own account, fees payable in the amounts and at the times separately agreed upon between the Borrower and the Administrative Agent in the Fee Letters.

ARTICLE IV

PAYMENTS; PRO RATA TREATMENT; SHARING OF SET-OFFS

Section 4.01 Payments Generally; Pro Rata Treatment; Sharing of Set-offs .

(a) Payments by the Borrower . The Borrower shall make each payment required to be made by it hereunder (whether of principal, interest, fees or reimbursement of LC Disbursements, or of amounts payable under Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 or otherwise) prior to 12:00 noon, New York City time, on the date when due, in immediately available funds, without defense, deduction, recoupment, set-off or counterclaim. Fees, once paid, shall be fully earned and shall not be refundable under any circumstances, absent manifest error. Any amounts received after such time on any date may, in the discretion of the Administrative Agent, be deemed to have been received on the next succeeding Business Day for purposes of calculating interest thereon. All such payments shall be made to the Administrative Agent at its offices specified in Section  12.01 , except payments to be made directly to the Issuing Bank as expressly provided herein and except that payments pursuant to Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 shall be made directly to the Persons entitled thereto. The Administrative Agent shall distribute any such payments received by it for the account of any other Person to the appropriate recipient promptly following receipt thereof. If any payment hereunder shall be due on a day that is not a Business Day, the date for payment shall be extended to the next succeeding Business Day, and, in the case of any payment accruing interest, interest thereon shall be payable for the period of such extension. All payments hereunder shall be made in dollars.

(b) Application of Insufficient Payments . If at any time insufficient funds are received by and available to the Administrative Agent to pay fully all amounts of principal, unreimbursed LC Disbursements, interest and fees then due hereunder, such funds shall be applied first , towards payment of interest and fees then due hereunder, ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of interest and fees then due to such parties, and second , towards payment of principal and unreimbursed LC Disbursements then due hereunder, ratably among the parties entitled thereto in accordance with the amounts of principal and unreimbursed LC Disbursements then due to such parties.

(c) Sharing of Payments by Lenders . If any Lender shall, by exercising any right of set-off or counterclaim or otherwise, obtain payment in respect of any principal of or interest on any of its

 

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Loans or participations in LC Disbursements resulting in such Lender receiving payment of a greater proportion of the aggregate amount of its Loans and participations in LC Disbursements and accrued interest thereon than the proportion received by any other Lender, then the Lender receiving such greater proportion shall purchase (for cash at face value) participations in the Loans and participations in LC Disbursements of other Lenders to the extent necessary so that the benefit of all such payments shall be shared by the Lenders ratably in accordance with the aggregate amount of principal of and accrued interest on their respective Loans and participations in LC Disbursements; provided that (i) if any such participations are purchased and all or any portion of the payment giving rise thereto is recovered, such participations shall be rescinded and the purchase price restored to the extent of such recovery, without interest, and (ii) the provisions of this Section 4.01(c) shall not be construed to apply to any payment made by the Borrower pursuant to and in accordance with the express terms of this Agreement or any payment obtained by a Lender as consideration for the assignment of or sale of a participation in any of its Loans or participations in LC Disbursements to any assignee or participant, other than to the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary thereof (as to which the provisions of this Section 4.01(c) shall apply). The Borrower consents to the foregoing and agrees, to the extent it may effectively do so under applicable law, that any Lender acquiring a participation pursuant to the foregoing arrangements may exercise against the Borrower rights of setoff and counterclaim with respect to such participation as fully as if such Lender were a direct creditor of the Borrower in the amount of such participation.

Section 4.02 Presumption of Payment by the Borrower . Unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from the Borrower prior to the date on which any payment is due to the Administrative Agent for the account of the Lenders or the Issuing Bank that the Borrower will not make such payment, the Administrative Agent may assume that the Borrower has made such payment on such date in accordance herewith and may, in reliance upon such assumption, distribute to the Lenders or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, the amount due. In such event, if the Borrower has not in fact made such payment, then each of the Lenders or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, severally agrees to repay to the Administrative Agent forthwith on demand the amount so distributed to such Lender or Issuing Bank with interest thereon, for each day from and including the date such amount is distributed to it to but excluding the date of payment to the Administrative Agent, at the greater of the Federal Funds Effective Rate and a rate determined by the Administrative Agent in accordance with banking industry rules on interbank compensation.

Section 4.03 Deductions by the Administrative Agent .

(a) Certain Deductions by the Administrative Agent . If any Lender shall fail to make any payment required to be made by it pursuant to Section 2.05(b) , Section 2.08(d) , Section 2.08(e) or Section  4.02 , or otherwise hereunder, then the Administrative Agent may, in its sole discretion (notwithstanding any contrary provision hereof), (i) apply any amounts thereafter received by the Administrative Agent for the account of such Lender to satisfy such Lender’s obligations under such Sections until all such unsatisfied obligations are fully paid or (ii) hold any such amounts in a segregated account as cash collateral for, and application to, any future funding obligations of such Lender hereunder, in the case of each of (i) and (ii) above, in any order as determined by the Administrative Agent in its discretion.

(b) Payments to Defaulting Lenders . If a Defaulting Lender (or a Lender who would be a Defaulting Lender but for the expiration of the relevant grace period) as a result of the exercise of a set-off shall have received a payment in respect of its Revolving Credit Exposure which results in its Revolving Credit Exposure being less than its Applicable Percentage of the aggregate Revolving Credit Exposures, then (i) all amounts so set off shall be paid over immediately to the Administrative Agent for further application in accordance with the provisions of Section  4.05 and, pending such payment, shall be segregated by such Defaulting Lender from its other funds and deemed held in trust for the benefit of the

 

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Administrative Agent and the Lenders, and (ii) no payments will be made to such Defaulting Lender until such time as such Defaulting Lender shall have complied with Section  4.05 , and all amounts due and owing to the Lenders have been equalized in accordance with each Lender’s respective pro rata share of the Obligations. Further, if at any time prior to the acceleration or maturity of the Loans, the Administrative Agent shall receive any payment in respect of principal of a Loan or a reimbursement of an LC Disbursement while one or more Defaulting Lenders shall be party to this Agreement, the Administrative Agent shall apply such payment first to the Borrowing(s) for which such Defaulting Lender(s) shall have failed to fund its pro rata share until such time as such Borrowing(s) are paid in full or each Lender (including each Defaulting Lender) is owed its Applicable Percentage of all Loans then outstanding. After acceleration or maturity of the Loans, subject to the first sentence of this Section 4.03(b) , all principal will be paid ratably as provided in Section 10.02(c) .

Section 4.04 Collection of Proceeds of Production . The Security Instruments contain an assignment by the Borrower and/or the Guarantors to and in favor of the Collateral Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties of all of the Borrower’s or each Guarantor’s interest in and to production and all proceeds attributable thereto which may be produced from or allocated to the Mortgaged Property. The Security Instruments further provide in general for the application of such proceeds to the satisfaction of the Obligations and other obligations described therein and secured thereby. Notwithstanding the assignment contained in such Security Instruments, unless an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders will neither notify the purchaser or purchasers of such production nor take any other action to cause such proceeds to be remitted to the Collateral Agent, the Administrative Agent or the Lenders, but the Lenders will instead permit such proceeds to be paid to the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and the Lenders hereby authorize the Administrative Agent or the Collateral Agent to take such actions as may be necessary to cause such proceeds to be paid to the Borrower and the other Credit Parties.

Section 4.05 Defaulting Lenders .

(a) Defaulting Lender Adjustments . Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, if any Lender becomes a Defaulting Lender, then the following provisions shall apply for so long as such Lender is a Defaulting Lender, to the extent not prohibited by applicable law:

(i) Waivers and Amendments . Such Defaulting Lender’s right to approve or disapprove any amendment, waiver or consent with respect to this Agreement shall be restricted as set forth in the definitions of Required Lenders, Majority Lenders and Super-Majority Lenders and in Section 12.02(b) .

(ii) Defaulting Lender Waterfall . Any payment of principal, interest, fees or other amounts received by the Administrative Agent for the account of such Defaulting Lender (whether voluntary or mandatory, at maturity, pursuant to Article X or otherwise) or received by the Administrative Agent from a Defaulting Lender pursuant to Section  12.08 shall be applied at such time or times as may be determined by the Administrative Agent as follows: first , to the payment of any amounts owing by such Defaulting Lender to the Administrative Agent hereunder; second , to the payment on a pro rata basis of any amounts owing by such Defaulting Lender to any Issuing Bank hereunder; third , to Cash Collateralize the Issuing Bank’s Fronting Exposure with respect to such Defaulting Lender in accordance with Section 2.08(j) ; fourth , as the Borrower may request (so long as no Default or Event of Default exists), to the funding of any Loan in respect of which such Defaulting Lender has failed to fund its portion thereof as required by this Agreement, as determined by the Administrative Agent; fifth , if so determined by the Administrative Agent and the Borrower, to be held in a deposit account and released pro rata in order to (x) satisfy such Defaulting Lender’s potential future funding obligations with respect

 

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to Loans under this Agreement and (y) Cash Collateralize the Issuing Bank’s future LC Exposure with respect to such Defaulting Lender with respect to future Letters of Credit issued under this Agreement, in accordance with Section 2.08(j) ; sixth , to the payment of any amounts owing to the Lenders or Issuing Bank as a result of any judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction obtained by any Lender or the Issuing Bank against such Defaulting Lender as a result of such Defaulting Lender’s breach of its obligations under this Agreement; seventh , so long as no Default or Event of Default exists, to the payment of any amounts owing to the Borrower as a result of any judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction obtained by the Borrower against such Defaulting Lender as a result of such Defaulting Lender’s breach of its obligations under this Agreement; and eighth , to such Defaulting Lender or as otherwise directed by a court of competent jurisdiction; provided that if (x) such payment is a payment of the principal amount of any Loans or LC Disbursements in respect of which such Defaulting Lender has not fully funded its appropriate share, and (y) such Loans were made or the related Letters of Credit were issued at a time when the conditions set forth in Section  6.02 or Section  6.03 , as applicable, were satisfied or waived, such payment shall be applied solely to pay the Loans of, and LC Disbursements owed to, all Non-Defaulting Lenders on a pro rata basis prior to being applied to the payment of any Loans of, and LC Disbursements owed to, such Defaulting Lender until such time as all Loans and funded and unfunded participations in Letters of Credit are held by the Lenders pro rata in accordance with the Commitments without giving effect to Section 4.05(a)(iv) . Any payments, prepayments or other amounts paid or payable to a Defaulting Lender that are applied (or held) to pay amounts owed by a Defaulting Lender or to post Cash Collateral pursuant to this Section 4.05(a) shall be deemed paid to and redirected by such Defaulting Lender, and each Lender irrevocably consents hereto.

(iii) Certain Fees .

(A) No Defaulting Lender shall be entitled to receive any commitment fee pursuant to Section 3.05(a) for any period during which that Lender is a Defaulting Lender (and the Borrower shall not be required to pay any such fee that otherwise would have been required to have been paid to that Defaulting Lender).

(B) Each Defaulting Lender shall be entitled to receive Letter of Credit Fees pursuant to Section 3.05(b) for any period during which that Lender is a Defaulting Lender only to the extent allocable to its Applicable Percentage of the stated amount of Letters of Credit for which it has provided Cash Collateral pursuant to Section 2.08(j) .

(C) With respect to any Letter of Credit Fee not required to be paid to any Defaulting Lender pursuant to clause (iii)(B) above, the Borrower shall (x) pay to each Non-Defaulting Lender that portion of any such fee otherwise payable to such Defaulting Lender with respect to such Defaulting Lender’s participation in Letters of Credit that has been reallocated to such Non-Defaulting Lender pursuant to clause (iv) below, (y) pay to Issuing Bank the amount of any such fee otherwise payable to such Defaulting Lender to the extent allocable to such Issuing Bank’s Fronting Exposure to such Defaulting Lender, and (z) not be required to pay the remaining amount of any such fee.

(iv) Reallocation of Participations to Reduce Fronting Exposure . All or any part of such Defaulting Lender’s participation in Letters of Credit shall be reallocated among the Non-Defaulting Lenders in accordance with their respective Applicable Percentages (calculated without regard to such Defaulting Lender’s Commitment) but only to the extent that (x) the conditions set forth in Section  6.02 are satisfied at the time of such reallocation (and, unless the Borrower shall have otherwise notified the Administrative Agent at such time, the Borrower shall be deemed to have represented and warranted that such conditions are satisfied at such time), and (y) such reallocation does not cause the aggregate Revolving Credit Exposure of any Non-Defaulting Lender to exceed such Non-Defaulting Lender’s Commitment. Subject to Section  12.19 , no reallocation hereunder shall constitute a waiver or

 

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release of any claim of any party hereunder against a Defaulting Lender arising from that Lender having become a Defaulting Lender, including any claim of a Non-Defaulting Lender as a result of such Non-Defaulting Lender’s increased exposure following such reallocation.

(v) Cash Collateral . If the reallocation described in clause (iv) above cannot, or can only partially, be effected, within one Business Day following the written request of the Administrative Agent or any Issuing Bank (with a copy to the Administrative Agent), the Borrower shall, without prejudice to any right or remedy available to it hereunder or under law, Cash Collateralize the Issuing Bank’s Fronting Exposure with respect to such Defaulting Lender (determined after giving effect to subsection (iv) and any Cash Collateral provided by such Defaulting Lender) in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section 2.08(j) .

(b) Defaulting Lender Cure . If the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and Issuing Bank agree in writing that a Lender is no longer a Defaulting Lender, the Administrative Agent will so notify the parties hereto, whereupon as of the effective date specified in such notice and subject to any conditions set forth therein, that Lender will, to the extent applicable, purchase at par that portion of outstanding Loans of the other Lenders or take such other actions as the Administrative Agent may determine to be necessary to cause the Loans and funded and unfunded participations in Letters of Credit to be held pro rata by the Lenders in accordance with the Commitments (without giving effect to Section 4.05(a)(iv) ), whereupon such Lender will cease to be a Defaulting Lender; provided that no adjustments will be made retroactively with respect to fees accrued or payments made by or on behalf of the Borrower while that Lender was a Defaulting Lender; and provided , further , that except to the extent otherwise expressly agreed by the affected parties, no change hereunder from Defaulting Lender to Lender will constitute a waiver or release of any claim of any party hereunder arising from that Lender’s having been a Defaulting Lender.

(c) New Letters of Credit . So long as any Lender is a Defaulting Lender, Issuing Bank shall not be required to issue, extend, renew or increase any Letter of Credit unless it will have no Fronting Exposure after giving effect thereto.

ARTICLE V

INCREASED COSTS; BREAK FUNDING PAYMENTS; TAXES; ILLEGALITY

Section 5.01 Increased Costs .

(a) Eurodollar Changes in Law . If any Change in Law shall:

(i) impose, modify or deem applicable any reserve, special deposit, compulsory loan, insurance charge or similar requirement against assets of, deposits with or for the account of, or credit extended by, any Lender (except any such reserve requirement reflected in the Adjusted LIBO Rate); or

(ii) subject the Administrative Agent or any Lender to any Taxes (other than (A) Indemnified Taxes, (B) Taxes described in clauses (b) through (d) of the definition of Excluded Taxes and (C) Other Connection Taxes) on its Loans, Loan principal, Commitments, or other obligations, or its deposits, reserves, other liabilities or capital attributable thereto; or

(iii) impose on any Lender or the London interbank market any other condition, cost or expense (other than Taxes) affecting this Agreement or Eurodollar Loans made by such Lender;

 

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and the result of any of the foregoing shall be to increase the cost to such Lender of making, converting to, continuing or maintaining any Eurodollar Loan (or of maintaining its obligation to make any such Loan) or to reduce the amount of any sum received or receivable by such Lender in respect of any Eurodollar Loan (whether of principal, interest or otherwise), then the Borrower will pay to such Lender such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender for such additional costs incurred or reduction suffered.

(b) Capital Requirements . If any Lender or the Issuing Bank determines that any Change in Law regarding capital or liquidity requirements has or would have the effect of reducing the rate of return on such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s capital or liquidity or on the capital or liquidity of such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s holding company, if any, as a consequence of this Agreement or the Loans made by, or participations in Letters of Credit held by, such Lender, or the Letters of Credit issued by the Issuing Bank, to a level below that which such Lender or the Issuing Bank or such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s holding company could have achieved but for such Change in Law (taking into consideration such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s policies and the policies of such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s holding company with respect to capital adequacy and liquidity), then from time to time, upon receipt of a certificate described in the following subsection (c) the Borrower will pay to such Lender or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, such additional amount or amounts as will compensate such Lender or the Issuing Bank or such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s holding company for any such reduction suffered.

(c) Certificates . A certificate of a Lender or the Issuing Bank setting forth, in reasonable detail, the amount or amounts necessary to compensate such Lender or the Issuing Bank or its holding company, as the case may be, as specified in Section 4.01(a) or (b)  shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, the amount shown as due on any such certificate within ten days after receipt thereof.

(d) Effect of Failure or Delay in Requesting Compensation . Failure or delay on the part of any Lender or the Issuing Bank to demand compensation pursuant to this Section  5.01 shall not constitute a waiver of such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s right to demand such compensation; provided that the Borrower shall not be required to compensate a Lender or the Issuing Bank pursuant to this Section  5.01 for any increased costs or reductions incurred more than six months prior to the date that such Lender or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, notifies the Borrower of the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions and of such Lender’s or the Issuing Bank’s intention to claim compensation therefor; provided further that, if the Change in Law giving rise to such increased costs or reductions is retroactive, then the six month period referred to above shall be extended to include the period of retroactive effect thereof.

Section 5.02 Break Funding Payments . In the event of (a) the payment of any principal of any Eurodollar Loan other than on the last day of an Interest Period applicable thereto (including as a result of an Event of Default), (b) the conversion of any Eurodollar Loan into an ABR Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto, (c) the failure to borrow, convert or continue any Eurodollar Loan on the date specified in any notice delivered pursuant hereto, or (d) the assignment of any Eurodollar Loan other than on the last day of the Interest Period applicable thereto as a result of a request by the Borrower pursuant to Section  5.05 , then, in any such event, the Borrower shall compensate each Lender for the loss, cost and expense attributable to such event. In the case of a Eurodollar Loan, such loss, cost or expense to any Lender shall be deemed to be the excess, if any, of (x) the amount of interest which would have accrued on the principal amount of such Loan had such event not occurred, at the LIBO Rate that would have been applicable to such Loan, for the period from the date of such event to the last day of the then current Interest Period therefor (or, in the case of a failure to borrow, convert or

 

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continue, for the period that would have been the Interest Period for such Loan), over (y) the amount of interest which would accrue on such principal amount for such period at the interest rate which such Lender would bid were it to bid, at the commencement of such period, for dollar deposits of a comparable amount and period from other banks in the eurodollar market.

A certificate of any Lender setting forth any amount or amounts that such Lender is entitled to receive pursuant to this Section  5.02 shall be delivered to the Borrower and shall be conclusive absent manifest error. The Borrower shall pay such Lender the amount shown as due on any such certificate within thirty days after receipt thereof.

Section 5.03 Taxes .

(a) Issuing Bank . For purposes of this Section  5.03 , the term “Lender” includes Issuing Bank and the term “applicable law” includes FATCA.

(b) Payments Free of Taxes . Any and all payments by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower or any Guarantor under any Loan Document shall be made free and clear of and without deduction for any Indemnified Taxes; provided that if an applicable Withholding Agent shall be required to deduct any Indemnified Taxes from such payments (as determined in the good faith of an applicable Withholding Agent), (i) then the sum payable shall be increased as necessary so that after making all required deductions (including deductions applicable to additional sums payable under this Section 5.03(b) ), the Administrative Agent, any Lender or Issuing Bank (as the case may be) receives an amount equal to the sum it would have received had no such deductions been made, (ii) the Borrower or such Guarantor shall make such deductions and (iii) the Borrower or such Guarantor shall pay the full amount deducted to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law.

(c) Payment of Other Taxes by the Borrower . The Borrower shall timely pay any Other Taxes to the relevant Governmental Authority in accordance with applicable law, or at the option of the Administrative Agent, timely reimburse it for the payment of, any Other Taxes that have been paid by the Administrative Agent.

(d) Indemnification by the Borrower . The Borrower shall indemnify each Recipient, within thirty days after demand therefor, for the full amount of any Indemnified Taxes paid or payable by such Recipient, or required to be withheld or deducted from a payment to such Recipient, on or with respect to any payment by or on account of any obligation of the Borrower hereunder (including Indemnified Taxes imposed or asserted on or attributable to amounts payable under this Section  5.03 ) and any penalties, interest and reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Indemnified Taxes were correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate of the Administrative Agent, a Lender or the Issuing Bank as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to the Borrower by a Lender or the Issuing Bank (with a copy to the Administrative Agent) or by the Administrative Agent on its own behalf or on behalf of a Lender or the Issuing Bank, shall be conclusive absent manifest error.

(e) Indemnification by the Lenders . Each Lender shall severally indemnify the Administrative Agent, within ten days after demand therefor, for (i) any Indemnified Taxes attributable to such Lender (but only to the extent that the Borrower has not already indemnified the Administrative Agent for such Indemnified Taxes and without limiting the obligation of the Borrower to do so), (ii) any Taxes attributable to such Lender’s failure to comply with the provisions of Section  12.04 relating to the maintenance of a Participant Register and (iii) any Excluded Taxes attributable to such Lender, in each case, that are payable or paid by the Administrative Agent in connection with any Loan Document, and any reasonable expenses arising therefrom or with respect thereto, whether or not such Taxes were

 

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correctly or legally imposed or asserted by the relevant Governmental Authority. A certificate as to the amount of such payment or liability delivered to any Lender by the Administrative Agent shall be conclusive absent manifest error. Each Lender hereby authorizes the Administrative Agent to set off and apply any and all amounts at any time owing to such Lender under any Loan Document or otherwise payable by the Administrative Agent to the Lender from any other source against any amount due to the Administrative Agent under this paragraph (e).

(f) Evidence of Payments . As soon as practicable after any payment of Indemnified Taxes by the Borrower or a Guarantor to a Governmental Authority, the Borrower or Guarantor shall deliver to the Administrative Agent the original or a certified copy of a receipt issued by such Governmental Authority evidencing such payment, a copy of the return reporting such payment or other evidence of such payment reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(g) Status of Lenders .

(i) Any Lender that is entitled to an exemption from or reduction of withholding Tax under the law of the jurisdiction in which the Borrower is located, or any treaty to which such jurisdiction is a party, with respect to payments under this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, at the time or times reasonably requested by Borrower or the Administrative Agent, such properly completed and executed documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will permit such payments to be made without withholding or at a reduced rate. In addition, any Lender, if reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, shall deliver such other documentation prescribed by applicable law or reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as will enable the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine whether or not such Lender is subject to backup withholding or information reporting requirements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the preceding two sentences, the completion, execution, and submission of such documentation (other than such documentation set forth in Section 5.03(g)(ii)(A) , ( ii)(B) , or ( ii)(D) below) shall not be required if in the Lender’s reasonable judgment such completion, execution or submission would subject such Lender to any material unreimbursed cost or expense or would materially prejudice the legal or commercial position of such Lender. For purposes of this Section 5.03(g) , the term “Lender” shall include the Administrative Agent.

(ii) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing:

(A) any Lender that is a U.S. Person shall deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent on or prior to the date on which such Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), executed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-9 certifying that such Lender is exempt from U.S. federal backup withholding tax;

(B) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), whichever of the following is applicable:

(1) in the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of an income tax treaty to which the United States is a party, duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, claiming eligibility for benefits of an income tax treaty to which the United States is a party,

 

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(2) duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI,

(3) in the case of a Foreign Lender claiming the benefits of the exemption for portfolio interest under section 881(c) of the Code, (x) a certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-1 to the effect that such Foreign Lender is not a “bank” within the meaning of section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, a “10 percent shareholder” of the Borrower within the meaning of section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code, or a “controlled foreign corporation” described in section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code (a “ U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate ”) and (y) duly completed copies of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable;

(4) to the extent a Foreign Lender is not the beneficial owner, executed originals of Internal Revenue Service Form W-8IMY, accompanied by Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI, Internal Revenue Service Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-2 or Exhibit G-3 , Internal Revenue Service Form W-9, and/or other certification documents from each beneficial owner, as applicable; provided that if the Foreign Lender is a partnership and one or more direct or indirect partners of such Foreign Lender are claiming the portfolio interest exemption, such Foreign Lender may provide a U.S. Tax Compliance Certificate substantially in the form of Exhibit G-4 on behalf of each such direct and indirect partner; or

(C) any Foreign Lender shall, to the extent it is legally entitled to do so, deliver to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent (in such number of copies as shall be requested by the recipient) on or prior to the date on which such Foreign Lender becomes a Lender under this Agreement (and from time to time thereafter upon the reasonable request of the Borrower or the Administrative Agent), executed copies of any other form prescribed by applicable law as a basis for claiming exemption from or a reduction in U.S. Federal withholding Tax duly completed together with such supplementary documentation as may be prescribed by applicable law to permit the Borrower or the Administrative Agent to determine the withholding or deduction required to be made; and

(D) if a payment made to a Lender under any Loan Document would be subject to U.S. Federal withholding Tax imposed by FATCA if such Lender were to fail to comply with the applicable reporting requirements of FATCA (including those contained in Section 1471(b) or 1472(b) of the Code, as applicable), such Lender shall deliver to the Borrower and Administrative Agent, at the time or times prescribed by law and at such time or times reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent, such documentation prescribed by applicable law (including as prescribed by Section 1471(b)(3)(C)(i) of the Code) and such additional documentation reasonably requested by the Borrower or the Administrative Agent as may be necessary for Borrower and the Administrative Agent to comply with its obligations under FATCA and to determine that such Lender has complied with such Lender’s obligations under FATCA or to determine the amount to deduct and withhold from such payment. Solely for purposes of this clause (D), “FATCA” shall include any amendments made to FATCA after the date of this Agreement.

Each Lender agrees that if any form or certification it previously delivered expires or becomes obsolete or inaccurate in any respect, it shall update such form or certification or promptly notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent in writing of its legal inability to do so.

(h) Treatment of Certain Refunds . If the Administrative Agent, a Lender or the Issuing Bank determines, that it has received a refund of any Indemnified Taxes as to which it has been indemnified by the Borrower or with respect to which the Borrower has paid additional amounts pursuant to this Section  5.03 , it shall pay to the Borrower an amount equal to such refund (but only to the extent of

 

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indemnity payments made, or additional amounts paid, by the Borrower under this Section  5.03 with respect to the Indemnified Taxes giving rise to such refund), net of all out-of-pocket expenses of the Administrative Agent, such Lender or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, and without interest (other than any interest paid by the relevant Governmental Authority with respect to such refund). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this paragraph (h), in no event will the indemnified party be required to pay any amount to the Borrower pursuant to this paragraph (h) to the extent such payment would place the indemnified party in a less favorable net after-Tax position than the indemnified party would have been in if the Tax subject to indemnification and giving rise to such refund had not been deducted, withheld or otherwise imposed and the indemnification payments or additional amounts with respect to such Tax had never been paid. This paragraph shall not be construed to require any indemnified party to make available its Tax returns (or any other information relating to its Taxes that it deems confidential) to the Borrower or any other Person.

(i) Survival . Each party’s obligations under this Section  5.03 shall survive the resignation or replacement of the Administrative Agent or any assignment of rights by, or the replacement of, a Lender, the termination of the Commitments and the repayment, satisfaction or discharge of all obligations under any Loan Document.

Section 5.04 Mitigation Obligations; Designation of Different Lending Office . If any Lender requests compensation under Section  5.01 , or if the Borrower is required to pay any additional amount to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section  5.03 , then such Lender shall (at the request of Borrower) use reasonable efforts to designate a different lending office for funding or booking its Loans hereunder or to assign its rights and obligations hereunder to another of its offices, branches or affiliates, if, in the judgment of such Lender, such designation or assignment would eliminate or reduce amounts payable pursuant to Section  5.01 or Section  5.03 , as the case may be, in the future and would not subject such Lender to any unreimbursed cost or expense and would not otherwise be disadvantageous to such Lender. The Borrower hereby agrees to pay all reasonable costs and expenses incurred by any Lender in connection with any such designation or assignment.

Section 5.05 Replacement of Lenders . If (a) any Lender requests compensation under Section  5.01 , (b) the Borrower is required to pay any additional amount to any Lender or any Governmental Authority for the account of any Lender pursuant to Section  5.03 , and such Lender has not prevented such required payment by designating a different lending office in accordance with Section  5.04 , (c) any Lender is a Defaulting Lender, (d) the Super Majority Lenders have provided their consent to increase the Borrowing Base pursuant to Section 2.07(c)(iii) , but any Lender has not provided such consent, or (e) any Lender has given notice pursuant to Section  5.06 that it is unable to make or maintain Eurodollar Loans but Lenders constituting Majority Lenders have not given such notice, then the Borrower may, at its sole expense and effort, upon notice to such Lender and the Administrative Agent (and in the case of clause (d) above, within thirty (30) days of the effectiveness of the redetermination of the Borrowing Base pursuant to Section 2.07(d) ), require such Lender to assign and delegate, without recourse (in accordance with and subject to the restrictions contained in Section 12.04(b) ), all its interests, rights (other than its existing rights to payments pursuant to Section  5.01 or Section  5.03 ) and obligations under this Agreement to an assignee that shall assume such obligations (which assignee may be another Lender, if a Lender accepts such assignment); provided that (i) the Borrower shall have paid to the Administrative Agent the assignment fee specified in Section 12.04(b)(ii)(C) , (ii) if such assignee is not already a Lender, the Borrower shall have received the prior written consent of the Administrative Agent and the Issuing Bank, which consent shall not unreasonably be withheld, (iii) such assigning Lender shall have received payment of an amount equal to the outstanding principal of its Loans and participations in LC Disbursements, accrued interest thereon, accrued fees and all other amounts payable to it hereunder and under the other Loan Documents (including any amounts under Section  5.02 ), from the assignee (to

 

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the extent of such outstanding principal and accrued interest and fees) or the Borrower (in the case of all other amounts), (iv) in the case of any such assignment resulting from a claim for compensation under Section  5.01 or payments required to be made pursuant to Section  5.03 , such assignment will result in a reduction in such compensation or payments, (v) such assignment does not conflict with applicable law; and (vi) in the case of any assignment resulting from a Lender not consenting to increase the Borrowing Base as described in clause (d) above, the applicable assignee shall have consented to the applicable increase of the Borrowing Base. A Lender shall not be required to make any such assignment and delegation if, prior thereto, as a result of a waiver by such Lender or otherwise, the circumstances entitling the Borrower to require such assignment and delegation cease to apply.

Section 5.06 Illegality . Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, in the event that it becomes unlawful for any Lender or its applicable lending office to honor its obligation to make or maintain Eurodollar Loans either generally or having a particular Interest Period hereunder, then (a) such Lender shall promptly notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent thereof and such Lender’s obligation to make such Eurodollar Loans shall be suspended (the “ Affected Loans ”) until such time as such Lender may again make and maintain such Eurodollar Loans and (b) all Affected Loans which would otherwise be made by such Lender shall be made instead as ABR Loans (and, if such Lender so requests by notice to the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, all Affected Loans of such Lender then outstanding shall be automatically converted into ABR Loans on the date specified by such Lender in such notice) and, to the extent that Affected Loans are so made as (or converted into) ABR Loans, all payments of principal which would otherwise be applied to such Lender’s Affected Loans shall be applied instead to its ABR Loans.

ARTICLE VI

CONDITIONS PRECEDENT

Section 6.01 Effective Date . The rights and obligations under this Agreement (including the obligations of the Lenders to make Loans and of the Issuing Bank to issue Letters of Credit hereunder) shall not become effective until the date on which each of the following conditions has been satisfied (or waived in accordance with Section  12.02 ) on April 12, 2017 (and, if not satisfied prior to such time, this Agreement shall be null and void and of no force and effect):

(a) The Administrative Agent, the Arrangers and the Lenders shall have received all commitment and agency fees and all other fees and amounts due and payable on or prior to the Effective Date, including, without duplication, (i) fees payable pursuant to Section 3.05(c) , (ii) fees payable pursuant to the Fee Letters and (iii) to the extent invoiced at least two Business Days prior to the Effective Date, reimbursement or payment of all out-of-pocket expenses required to be reimbursed or paid by the Borrower hereunder (including the fees and expenses of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, counsel to the Administrative Agent).

(b) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of the Secretary, Assistant Secretary or a Responsible Officer of the Borrower and each Guarantor setting forth (i) resolutions of the members, board of directors or other appropriate governing body with respect to the authorization of the Borrower or such Guarantor to execute and deliver the Loan Documents to which it is a party and to enter into the transactions contemplated in those documents, (ii) the officers of the Borrower or such Guarantor who are authorized to sign the Loan Documents to which the Borrower or such Guarantor is a party and who will, until replaced by another officer or officers duly authorized for that purpose, act as its representative for the purposes of signing documents and giving notices and other communications in connection with this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby, (iii) specimen signatures of such authorized officers, and (iv) the limited liability company agreement, the articles or certificate of incorporation and bylaws (or comparable organizational documents) of the

 

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Borrower and such Guarantor, certified as being true and complete. The Administrative Agent and the Lenders may conclusively rely on such certificate until the Administrative Agent receives notice in writing from the Borrower to the contrary.

(c) The Administrative Agent shall have received certificates of the appropriate State agencies with respect to the existence and good standing of the Borrower and each other Credit Party.

(d) On the Effective Date, the representations and warranties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties contained in Article VII shall be true and correct in all material respects (except in the case of any representation or warranty which expressly relates to a given date or period, such representation or warranty shall be true and correct in all material respects as of the respective date or for the respective period, as the case may be); provided , that to the extent that any representation or warranty is qualified by or subject to a “material adverse effect”, “material adverse change” or similar term or qualification, the same shall be true and correct in all respects.

(e) The Administrative Agent shall have received from each party hereto counterparts (in such number as may be requested by the Administrative Agent) of this Agreement signed on behalf of such party.

(f) The Administrative Agent shall have received a duly executed Note payable to each Lender that has requested a Note at least two days before the Effective Date in a principal amount equal to its Commitment dated as of the date hereof.

(g) The Administrative Agent shall have received from each party thereto duly executed counterparts (in such number as may be requested by the Administrative Agent) of the Security Instruments described on Exhibit E . Except as otherwise set forth in Section 8.19(b) , in connection with the execution and delivery of the Security Instruments, the Administrative Agent shall be reasonably satisfied that the Liens under the Security Instruments will, upon the recording of the Security Instruments, be first priority, perfected Liens (subject only to Permitted Liens) on all other Property purported to be pledged as Collateral pursuant to the Security Instruments (including all of the Equity Interests in the Borrower and each Restricted Subsidiary that are owned by a Credit Party (and to the extent any such Equity Interests are certificated, the Borrower shall also have caused the applicable Credit Party to deliver to the Collateral Agent the original stock certificates evidencing such Equity Interests together with an appropriate undated stock power for each certificate duly executed in blank by the registered owner thereof).

(h) The Administrative Agent shall have received an opinion of Kirkland and Ellis LLP, special New York counsel to the Borrower and the Guarantors, and local counsel in the Yukon Territory, in each case in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

(i) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of insurance coverage of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties evidencing that the Borrower and the other Credit Parties are carrying insurance in accordance with Section  7.12 .

(j) The Administrative Agent shall have received a certificate of a Responsible Officer of Borrower certifying that Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, on a consolidated basis after giving effect to the Transactions, are solvent.

(k) The Administrative Agent shall have received the Initial Reserve Report, which shall be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent.

 

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(l) The Administrative Agent shall have received appropriate Uniform Commercial Code search certificates reflecting no prior Liens encumbering the Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties for the State of Delaware and the State of Pennsylvania, as applicable, and any other jurisdiction reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent, other than those being released on or prior to the Effective Date or Permitted Liens.

(m) To the extent requested in writing by the Administrative Agent at least 8 Business Days prior to the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall have received, at least three (3) Business Days prior to the Effective Date, and be reasonably satisfied in form and substance with, all documentation and other information required by bank regulatory authorities under applicable “know-your-customer” and anti-money laundering rules and regulations, including but not restricted to the USA PATRIOT Act.

(n) As of the Effective Date, after giving effect to the Transactions (including the initial Borrowings hereunder), the amount of (i) cash and Cash Equivalents of the Borrower and its Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries on such date plus (ii) the amount by which the Total Commitments shall exceed the total Revolving Credit Exposure shall not be less than $300,000,000.

(o) The Confirmation Order shall be in full force and effect, not subject to any stay, nor shall it have been amended or modified in any manner adverse to the Lenders without the consent of the Required Lenders.

(p) All conditions precedent to confirmation and to effectiveness of the Plan of Reorganization shall have been satisfied or waived to the reasonable satisfaction of the Administrative Agent, the Plan Effective Date shall have occurred or shall occur substantially contemporaneously with the Effective Date, and the substantial consummation (as defined in section 1101 of the Bankruptcy Code) of the Plan of Reorganization in accordance with its terms shall occur substantially contemporaneously with the Plan Effective Date.

(q) Since the date of entry of the Disclosure Statement Order with respect to the Chapter 11 Cases, there shall not have occurred a Material Adverse Effect or any event or occurrence which could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(r) The Administrative Agent shall have received or shall have available on-line through the “Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval” system (or any successor system thereof) maintained by the SEC (or any succeeding governmental authority) (i) audited consolidated balance sheets and related statements of income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for the three most recently completed fiscal years ended at least 105 days before the Effective Date and (ii) unaudited consolidated balance sheets and related statements of income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, for each subsequent fiscal quarter (other than the fourth fiscal quarter of any fiscal year) ended at least 55 days before the Effective Date (in each case, together with the corresponding comparative period from the prior fiscal year).

Without limiting the generality of the provisions of Section  11.04 , for purposes of determining compliance with the conditions specified in this Section  6.01 , each Lender that has signed this Agreement shall be deemed to have consented to, approved or accepted or to be satisfied with, each document or other matter required under this Section  6.01 to be consented to or approved by or acceptable to a Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice from such Lender prior to the Effective Date specifying its objection thereto. All documents executed or submitted pursuant to this Section  6.01 by and on behalf of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall be in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and its counsel. The Administrative Agent shall notify the Borrower and the Lenders of the Effective Date, and such notice shall be conclusive and binding.

 

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Section 6.02 Each Credit Event . The obligation of each Lender to make any new Loan, and of the Issuing Bank to issue, amend, renew or extend any Letter of Credit is subject to the satisfaction of the following conditions:

(a) At the time of and immediately after giving effect to such Borrowing or the issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of such Letter of Credit, as applicable, no Default shall have occurred and be continuing.

(b) The representations and warranties of the Borrower and the Guarantors set forth in this Agreement and in the other Loan Documents shall be true and correct in all material respects on and as of the date of such Borrowing or the date of issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of such Letter of Credit, as applicable, except (i) to the extent any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, on and as of the date of such Borrowing or the date of issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of such Letter of Credit, as applicable, such representations and warranties shall continue to be true and correct as of such specified earlier date, and (ii) to the extent that any such representation and warranty is expressly qualified by materiality or by reference to Material Adverse Effect, such representation and warranty (as so qualified) shall continue to be true and correct in all respects.

(c) Solely with respect to the making of any Loan hereunder, the principal amount of such Loan plus the aggregate amount of cash and Cash Equivalents (other than Excluded Cash) of the Credit Parties at the time of the making of such Loan (before giving effect thereto) minus the principal amount of such Loan (as certified by Borrower in the Borrowing Notice) to be used on or around such date, but in any event not to exceed five (5) Business Days after such date) shall not exceed the Excess Cash Threshold.

(d) The receipt by the Administrative Agent of a Borrowing Request in accordance with Section  2.03 or a request for a Letter of Credit (including an amendment, extension or renewal of a Letter of Credit) in accordance with Section 2.08(b) , as applicable.

Each request for a Borrowing and each request for the issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of any Letter of Credit shall be deemed to constitute a representation and warranty by the Borrower on the date thereof as to the matters specified in the foregoing clauses (a) and (b).

Section 6.03 Additional Conditions to Letters of Credit . In addition to the conditions precedent set forth in Section  6.02 , so long as any Lender is a Defaulting Lender, the Issuing Bank shall not be required to issue, amend or increase any Letter of Credit, unless it is satisfied that at the time of such issuance, amendment or increase: (a) the terms of Section 4.05(c) will be satisfied, (b) the LC Exposure will be 100% covered by the Commitments of the Non-Defaulting Lenders and/or the Borrower will Cash Collateralize the LC Exposure in accordance with Section 4.05(a)(v) , and (c) participating interests in any such newly issued or increased Letter of Credit shall be allocated among Non-Defaulting Lenders in accordance with Section 4.05(a)(iv) (and Defaulting Lenders shall not participate therein).

 

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ARTICLE VII

REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

Parent Guarantor and the Borrower jointly and severally represent and warrant to the Lenders that:

Section 7.01 Organization; Powers . The Borrower and each other Credit Party is duly organized, validly existing and, to the extent applicable, in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, has all requisite power and authority, and has all material governmental licenses, authorizations, consents and approvals necessary, to own its assets and to carry on its business as now conducted, and is qualified to do business in, and is in good standing in, every jurisdiction where such qualification is required, except where failure to have such power, authority, licenses, authorizations, consents, approvals and qualifications could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 7.02 Authority; Enforceability . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Transactions are within the Borrower’s and each Guarantor’s corporate, limited liability company, or partnership powers and have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate, limited liability company or partnership action and, if required, action by any holders of its Equity Interests (including any action required to be taken by any class of directors, managers or supervisors, whether interested or disinterested, as applicable, of the Borrower or any other Person, in order to ensure the due authorization of the Transactions). Each Loan Document to which the Borrower and each Guarantor is a party has been duly executed and delivered by the Borrower and such Guarantor and constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Borrower and such Guarantor, as applicable, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other laws affecting creditors’ rights generally and subject to general principles of equity, regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law.

Section 7.03 Approvals; No Conflicts . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Transactions (a) do not require any consent or approval of, registration or filing with, or any other action by, any Governmental Authority or any other third Person (including holders of its Equity Interests or any class of directors, managers or supervisors, as applicable, whether interested or disinterested, of the Borrower or any other Person), nor is any such consent, approval, registration, filing or other action necessary for the validity or enforceability of any Loan Document or the consummation of the Transactions, except such as have been obtained or made and are in full force and effect, other than (i) the recording and filing of the Security Instruments as required by this Agreement, and (ii) those third party approvals or consents which, if not made or obtained, would not cause a Default or an Event of Default under any provision of this Agreement other than this Section  7.03 or could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, (b) will not violate any applicable law or regulation or the limited liability company agreements, charter, by-laws or other organizational documents of the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any order of any Governmental Authority, (c) will not violate or result in a default under any indenture or other agreement regarding Debt binding upon the Borrower or any other Credit Party or its Properties, or give rise to a right thereunder to require any payment to be made by the Borrower or Credit Party and (d) will not result in the creation or imposition of any Lien on any Property of the Borrower or any other Credit Party (other than the Liens created by the Loan Documents).

Section 7.04 Financial Condition; No Material Adverse Change .

(a) The Borrower has heretofore furnished to the Lenders Ultra Petroleum’s consolidated balance sheet and statements of income, stockholders equity and cash flows as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, reported on by Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants. Such financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position and results of operations and cash flows of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries as of such dates and for such periods in accordance with GAAP, subject to year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes in the case of the unaudited quarterly financial statements.

 

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(b) No Material Adverse Effect has occurred since the date of entry of the Disclosure Statement Order with respect to the Chapter 11 Cases.

(c) Except as listed on Schedule 7.04(c) , none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary has on the date hereof after giving effect to the Transactions, any material Debt (including Disqualified Capital Stock) or any material off-balance sheet liabilities or partnership liabilities that would be required by GAAP to be reflected or noted in audited financial statements, material liabilities for past due taxes, or any unusual forward or long-term commitments or unrealized or anticipated losses from any such unfavorable commitments, except as referred to or reflected or provided for in the financial statements referred to in Section 7.04(a) and the other written information provided by Borrower to Administrative Agent and the Lenders prior to the date hereof.

Section 7.05 Litigation . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, and except as set forth on Schedule 7.05 , there are no actions, suits, investigations or proceedings by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority pending against or, to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, threatened against or affecting the Borrower or any other Credit Party (i) not fully covered by insurance (except for normal deductibles), that could reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to result in a Material Adverse Effect or (ii) that are non-frivolous and challenge the validity or enforceability of any Loan Document.

Section 7.06 Environmental Matters . Except for matters set forth on Schedule 7.06 or that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect:

(a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and each of their respective Properties and operations thereon are, and within all applicable statute of limitation periods have been, in compliance with all applicable Environmental Laws;

(b) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries have obtained all Environmental Permits required for their respective operations and each of their Properties, with all such Environmental Permits being currently in full force and effect, and none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the Subsidiaries has received any written notice or otherwise has knowledge that any such existing Environmental Permit will be revoked or that any application for any new Environmental Permit or renewal of any existing Environmental Permit will be denied;

(c) there are no claims, demands, suits, orders, inquiries, or proceedings concerning any violation of, or any liability (including as a potentially responsible party) under, any applicable Environmental Laws that is pending or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened against Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary or any of their respective Properties or as a result of any operations at such Properties;

(d) none of the Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary contain or have contained any: underground storage tanks; asbestos-containing materials; landfills or dumps; hazardous waste management units as defined pursuant to RCRA or any comparable state law; or sites on or nominated for the National Priority List promulgated pursuant to CERCLA or any state remedial priority list promulgated or published pursuant to any comparable state law, in each case that would reasonably be expected to result in liability under Environmental Law;

(e) there has been no Release or, to the Borrower’s knowledge, threatened Release, of Hazardous Materials at, on, under or from Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties, there are no investigations, remediations, abatements, removals, or monitorings of Hazardous Materials required under applicable Environmental Laws at such Properties and, to the knowledge of the Borrower, none of such Properties are adversely affected by any Release or threatened Release of a Hazardous Material originating or emanating from any other real property;

 

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(f) none of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary has received any written notice asserting an alleged liability or obligation under any applicable Environmental Laws with respect to the investigation, remediation, abatement, removal, or monitoring of any Hazardous Materials at, under, or Released or threatened to be Released from any real properties offsite Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties and, to the Borrower’s knowledge, there are no conditions or circumstances that could reasonably be expected to result in the receipt of such written notice;

(g) there has been no exposure of any Person or Property to any Hazardous Materials as a result of or in connection with the operations and businesses of any of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or the Subsidiaries’ Properties that could reasonably be expected to form the basis for a claim for damages or compensation; and

(h) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have made available to the Administrative Agent complete and correct copies of all material environmental site assessment reports, and studies on environmental matters (including matters relating to any alleged non-compliance with or liability under Environmental Laws) that have been prepared within the last three (3) years and are in Parent Guarantor’s or the Borrower’s possession and relating to Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any Subsidiary’s Properties or operations thereon.

Section 7.07 Compliance with the Laws and Agreements; No Defaults .

(a) After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries is in compliance with all Governmental Requirements applicable to it or its Property and all agreements and other instruments binding upon it or its Property, except where failure to comply could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, and possesses all licenses, permits, franchises, exemptions, approvals and other governmental authorizations necessary for the ownership of its Property and the conduct of its business, except where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) Neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is in default nor has any Change of Control or similar event or circumstance occurred that, but for the expiration of any applicable grace period or the giving of notice, or both, would constitute a default under, or would require the Borrower or any other Credit Party to Redeem or make any offer to Redeem under, any indenture, note, credit agreement or similar instrument pursuant to which any Material Debt is outstanding or by which the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any of their Properties is bound.

(c) No Default has occurred and is continuing.

Section 7.08 Investment Company Act . Neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is required to register as an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an entity required to register as “investment company,” within the meaning of, or subject to regulation under, the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

Section 7.09 Taxes . Each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries has timely filed or caused to be filed all federal income Tax returns and reports, and all other material Tax returns and reports, required to have been filed and has paid or caused to be paid all Taxes required to have been paid by it (in each case, for the avoidance of doubt and to the extent applicable, after giving

 

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effect to the Confirmation Order and Plan of Reorganization), except (a) Taxes that are being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and for which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary, as applicable, has set aside on its books adequate reserves in accordance with GAAP or (b) to the extent that the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries in respect of Taxes and other governmental charges are, in the reasonable opinion of the Borrower, adequate. No Tax Lien (other than an Excepted Lien) has been filed and, to the knowledge of the Borrower, no claim is being asserted with respect to any such Tax or other such governmental charge.

Section 7.10 ERISA . Except for such matters that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect:

(a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiaries and each ERISA Affiliate is in material compliance with ERISA and, where applicable, the Code regarding each Plan.

(b) Each Plan is, and has been, established and maintained in substantial compliance with its terms, ERISA and, where applicable, the Code.

(c) No act, omission or transaction has occurred which could result in the imposition on Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary (whether directly or indirectly) of either a civil penalty assessed pursuant to subsections (i) or (l) of section 502 of ERISA or a tax imposed pursuant to section 4975 of the Code or breach of fiduciary duty liability damages under section 409 of ERISA.

(d) Full payment when due has been made of all amounts which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiaries or any ERISA Affiliate is required under the terms of each Plan or applicable law to have paid as contributions to such Plan as of the date hereof.

(e) None of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, or any Subsidiary, or any ERISA Affiliate sponsors, maintains, or contributes to an employee welfare benefit plan, as defined in section 3(1) of ERISA that provides benefits to retirees or former employees of such entities, with respect to which its sponsorship of, maintenance of or contribution to may not be terminated by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or an ERISA Affiliate, as the case may be, in its sole discretion at any time without any material liability to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary other than for benefits due as of, or claims incurred prior to, the effective date of such termination, except where such a termination is not allowed under applicable law (including, but not limited to, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985).

Section 7.11 Disclosure; No Material Misstatements . The certificates, written statements and reports, and other written information, taken as a whole, furnished by or on behalf of the Borrower or any Guarantor to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders in connection with the negotiation of any Loan Document or included therein or delivered pursuant thereto, do not contain any material misstatement of fact or omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were or are made, not misleading as of the date such information is dated or certified; provided that (a) to the extent any such certificate, statement, report, or information was based upon or constitutes a forecast or projection, the Borrower represents only that it acted in good faith and utilized reasonable assumptions and due care in the preparation of such certificate, statement, report, or information (it being recognized by the Lenders, however, that projections as to future events are not to be viewed as facts and that results during the period(s) covered by such projections may differ from the projected results and that such differences may be material and that the Borrower makes no representation that such projections will be realized) and (b) as to statements, information and reports supplied by third parties, the Borrower represents only that it is not aware of any

 

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material misstatement or omission therein. There are no statements or conclusions in any Reserve Report which are based upon or include material misleading information or fail to take into account known material information regarding the matters reported therein, it being understood that projections concerning volumes attributable to the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and production and cost estimates contained in each Reserve Report are necessarily based upon professional opinions, estimates and projections and that the Borrower and the other Credit Parties do not warrant that such opinions, estimates and projections will ultimately prove to have been accurate.

Section 7.12 Insurance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have, and have caused the Restricted Subsidiaries to have, (a) all insurance policies sufficient for the compliance by each of them with all material Governmental Requirements and all material agreements and (b) insurance coverage in such amounts and against such risks as are usually insured against by companies similarly situated and engaged in the same or a similar business for the assets and operations of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries (it being understood and agreed that the Borrower and its Subsidiaries may self-insure to the extent and in a manner customary for companies engaged in the same or similar business of similar size and financial condition). The Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and the Lenders have been named as additional insureds in respect of such liability insurance policies and the Collateral Agent has been named as a loss payee with respect to such property loss insurance covering Collateral.

Section 7.13 Restriction on Liens . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party is a party to any material agreement or arrangement, or subject to any order, judgment, writ or decree, that restricts its ability to grant Liens to the Administrative Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties on or in respect of their Properties to secure the Debt under the Loan Documents, or restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from paying dividends or making any other distributions in respect of its Equity Interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, or restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from making loans or advances to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, or which requires the consent of other Persons in connection therewith, except, in each case, for such encumbrances or restrictions permitted under Section  9.14 .

Section 7.14 Subsidiaries . Except as set forth on Schedule 7.14 or as disclosed in writing to the Administrative Agent from time to time (which shall promptly furnish a copy to the Lenders), which shall upon disclosure be deemed a supplement to Schedule 7.14 , neither the Borrower nor any other Credit Party has any subsidiaries (other than subsidiaries of Unrestricted Subsidiaries). Neither Parent Guarantor nor the Borrower has any Foreign Subsidiaries. Schedule 7.14 identifies, as of the Effective Date, each subsidiary listed thereon as either a Restricted Subsidiary, Unrestricted Subsidiary or Unrestricted Parent Entity, and each Restricted Subsidiary on such schedule is wholly-owned by the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary. As of the Effective Date, Schedule 7.14 sets forth each Person (other than a subsidiary) in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Restricted Subsidiary owns Equity Interests and the percentage of all Equity Interests in such Person owned by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 7.15 Location of Business and Offices . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, the Borrower’s jurisdiction of organization is Delaware, the name of the Borrower as listed in the public records of its jurisdiction of organization is Ultra Resources, Inc., and the organizational identification number of the Borrower in its jurisdiction of organization is 6357887 (or, in each case, as set forth in a notice delivered to the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 8.01(j) in accordance with Section  12.01 ). The Borrower’s chief executive offices are located at the address specified in Section  12.01 (or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01(h) and Section 12.01(c) ). Each Guarantor’s jurisdiction of organization, name as listed in the public records of its

 

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jurisdiction of organization, organizational identification number in its jurisdiction of organization, and the location of its chief executive office is stated on Schedule 7.14 (or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01(h) ). Each Unrestricted Subsidiary’s (other than each Unrestricted Subsidiary that is a subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary) jurisdiction of organization and name as listed in the public records of its jurisdiction of organization is stated on Schedule 7.14 or as set forth in a notice delivered pursuant to Section 8.01(h) .

Section 7.16 Properties; Titles, Etc . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization:

(a) Each of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties has good and defensible title to substantially all of its Borrowing Base Properties evaluated in the most recently delivered Reserve Report and good title to all of its material personal Properties, in each case, free and clear of all Liens except Permitted Liens. The Borrower or the other Credit Parties specified as the owner owns in all material respects the net interests in production attributable to their Oil and Gas Properties as reflected in the most recently delivered Reserve Report, and the ownership of such Properties does not in any material respect obligate such Person to bear the costs and expenses relating to the maintenance, development and operations of each such Property in an amount in excess of the working interest of each Property set forth in the most recently delivered Reserve Report that is not offset by a corresponding proportionate increase in its net revenue interest in such Property or the revenues therefrom.

(b) Except as could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, (i) all material leases and agreements necessary for the conduct of the business of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties and (ii) all oil and gas leases of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties are, in each case, valid and subsisting and in full force and effect, and there exists no default or event or circumstance which with the giving of notice or the passage of time or both would give rise to a default under any such lease or leases referred to in the foregoing clauses (i) and (ii).

(c) The rights and Properties presently owned, leased or licensed by the Borrower and the other Credit Parties, including all easements and rights of way, include all rights and Properties necessary to permit the Borrower and the other Credit Parties to conduct their business in all material respects in the same manner as their business has been conducted prior to the date hereof.

(d) All of the Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties which are reasonably necessary for the operation of their businesses are in good working condition and are maintained in accordance with prudent business standards.

(e) The Borrower and each other Credit Party owns, or is licensed to use, all trademarks, tradenames, copyrights, patents and other intellectual Property material to its business (including databases, geological data, geophysical data, engineering data, seismic data, maps, interpretations and other technical data), and the use thereof by the Borrower and such other Credit Party does not infringe upon the rights of any other Person, except for any such infringements that, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 7.17 Maintenance of Properties . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, except for such acts or failures to act as could not be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties have been maintained, operated and developed in a good and workmanlike manner and in conformity with all applicable Governmental Requirements and in conformity with the provisions of all leases, subleases or other contracts comprising a part of the Borrowing Base Properties and other contracts and agreements forming a part of the Borrowing Base Properties.

 

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Section 7.18 Gas Imbalances, Prepayments . Except as set forth on Schedule 7.18 or on the most recent certificate delivered pursuant to Section 8.12(c) , on a net basis there are no gas imbalances, take or pay or other prepayments which would require Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the other Credit Parties to deliver Hydrocarbons produced from their Oil and Gas Properties at some future time, without then or thereafter receiving full payment therefor, exceeding 5.0% of the aggregate annual production of gas from the Oil and Gas Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties during the most recent calendar year (on an mcf basis).

Section 7.19 Marketing of Production . Except for contracts listed and in effect on the date hereof on Schedule 7.19 , or hereafter either disclosed in writing to the Administrative Agent or included in the most recently delivered Reserve Report, no material agreements exist, which are not cancelable on 90 days’ notice or less without penalty or detriment, for the sale of the Borrower’s and the other Credit Parties’ Hydrocarbon production (including calls on or other rights to purchase, production, whether or not the same are currently being exercised) that pertain to the sale of production at a fixed price and have a maturity or expiry date of longer than six (6) months from the date hereof.

Section 7.20 Swap Agreements and Qualified ECP Counterparty . Schedule 7.20 , as of the date hereof, and after the date hereof, each report required to be delivered by the Borrower pursuant to Section 8.01(d) , as of the date of (or as of the date(s) otherwise set forth in) such report, sets forth, a true and complete list of all Swap Agreements of the Borrower and each other Credit Party, the material terms thereof (including the type, term, effective date, termination date and notional amounts or volumes), the estimated net mark-to-market value thereof, all credit support agreements relating thereto other than Loan Documents (including any margin required or supplied) and the counterparty to each such agreement. The Borrower is a Qualified ECP Counterparty.

Section 7.21 Use of Loans and Letters of Credit . The proceeds of the Loans and the Letters of Credit shall be used (a) for general corporate purposes of the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor and its Subsidiaries; (b) to fund repayment of claims under the Chapter 11 Cases; and (c) to finance the acquisition and development of Oil and Gas Properties. Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries are not engaged principally, or as one of its or their important activities, in the business of extending credit for the purpose, whether immediate, incidental or ultimate, of buying or carrying margin stock (within the meaning of Regulation T, U or X of the Board). No part of the proceeds of any Loan or Letter of Credit will be used for any purpose which violates the provisions of Regulations T, U or X of the Board. The Borrower will not request any Borrowing or Letter of Credit, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not use, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall procure that their Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents shall not use, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available, the proceeds of any Borrowing or Letter of Credit to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or any other Person (a) in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment or giving of money, or anything else of value, to any Person in violation of any Anti-Corruption Laws, (b) for the purpose of funding, financing or facilitating any activities, business or transaction of or with any Sanctioned Person, or in any Sanctioned Country, or (c) in any manner that would knowingly or negligently result in the violation of any Sanctions applicable to any party hereto (whether as underwriter, advisor, investor, lender, hedge provider, facility or security agent or otherwise).

Section 7.22 Solvency . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order, the Plan of Reorganization and the transactions contemplated hereby and each Borrowing made hereunder, (a) the aggregate assets (after giving effect to amounts that could reasonably be expected to be received by reason of indemnity, offset, insurance or any similar arrangement), at a fair valuation, of the Borrower and the Guarantors, taken as a whole, exceed the aggregate Debt of the Borrower and the Guarantors on a consolidated basis, (b) each of the Borrower and the Guarantors has not incurred and does not intend to

 

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incur, and does not believe that it has incurred, Debt beyond its ability to pay such Debt (after taking into account the timing and amounts of cash it reasonably expects could be received and the amounts that it reasonably expects could be payable on or in respect of its liabilities, and giving effect to amounts that that could reasonably be expected to be received by reason of indemnity, offset, insurance or any similar arrangement) as such Debt becomes absolute and matures, and (c) each of the Borrower and the Guarantors does not have (and does not have reason to believe that it will have thereafter) unreasonably small capital for the conduct of its business.

Section 7.23 Anti-Corruption Laws and Sanctions . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower have implemented and maintain in effect such policies and procedures, if any, as they reasonably deem appropriate, in light of their business and international activities (if any), to ensure compliance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions, and Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries and their respective officers and employees and, to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower, their respective directors and agents, are in compliance with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions in all material respects. None of (a) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Subsidiaries or any of their respective directors, officers or employees, or (b) to the knowledge of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, any agent of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary that will act in any capacity in connection with or benefit from the credit facility established hereby, is a Sanctioned Person. No Borrowing or Letter of Credit, use of proceeds or other transaction contemplated by this Agreement will violate any Anti-Corruption Law or applicable Sanctions.

Section 7.24 EEA Financial Institutions . No Credit Party is an EEA Financial Institution.

Section 7.25 Senior Debt Status . The Obligations constitute “Senior Debt”, “Designated Senior Debt” or any similar designation under and as defined in any agreement governing any senior subordinated or subordinated Debt and the subordination provisions set forth in each such agreement are legally valid and enforceable against the parties thereto.

Section 7.26 Security Instruments . The Security Instruments are (or, in the case of Security Instruments executed after the Effective Date, will be) effective to create in favor of the Administrative Agent, for the benefit of the Credit Parties, a legal, valid and enforceable security interest in the Mortgaged Property and Collateral and proceeds thereof.

Section 7.27 PATRIOT Act . On the Effective Date, each Credit Party is in compliance in all material respects with the material provisions of the PATRIOT Act.

ARTICLE VIII

AFFIRMATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or been terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder and all other amounts payable under the Loan Documents shall have been paid in full and all Letters of Credit shall have expired (without any pending drawings thereon) or terminated and all LC Disbursements shall have been reimbursed, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

Section 8.01 Financial Statements; Other Information . The Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender:

(a) Annual Financial Statements .

 

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(i) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of the Borrower, its unaudited consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its Consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied.

(ii) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 120 days after the end of each fiscal year of Parent Guarantor, its audited consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the previous fiscal year, all reported on by independent public accountants of recognized national standing (without a “going concern” or like qualification or exception and without any qualification or exception as to the scope of such audit) to the effect that such consolidated financial statements present fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of Parent Guarantor and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied.

(b) Quarterly Financial Statements .

(i) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 60 days after the end of each of the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year of the Borrower commencing with the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017, its consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such fiscal quarter and the then elapsed portion of the fiscal year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the corresponding period or periods of (or, in the case of the balance sheet, as of the end of) the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of the Borrower and its Consolidated Subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied, subject to normal year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes.

(ii) As soon as available, but in any event in accordance with then applicable law and not later than 60 days after the end of each of the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year of Parent Guarantor commencing with the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017, its consolidated balance sheet and related statements of operations, owners’ equity and cash flows as of the end of and for such fiscal quarter and the then elapsed portion of the fiscal year, setting forth in each case in comparative form the figures for the corresponding period or periods of (or, in the case of the balance sheet, as of the end of) the previous fiscal year, all certified by one of its Financial Officers as presenting fairly in all material respects the financial condition and results of operations of Parent Guarantor and its consolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis in accordance with GAAP consistently applied, subject to normal year-end audit adjustments and the absence of footnotes.

(c) Certificate of Financial Officer — Compliance . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) or Section 8.01(b) , a compliance certificate of a Financial Officer in substantially the form of Exhibit D hereto (i) certifying as to whether a Default then exists and, if a Default then exists, (ii) specifying the details thereof and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto, (iii) setting forth reasonably detailed calculations demonstrating compliance with Section  9.01 and (iv) stating whether any change in GAAP or in the application thereof that is applicable to the Borrower has occurred since December 31, 2016 and, if any such change has occurred, specifying the effect of such change on the financial statements accompanying such certificate.

 

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(d) Certificate of Financial Officer - Swap Agreements . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) and Section 8.01(b) , a certificate of a Financial Officer, in form and substance satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, setting forth as of a recent date, a true and complete list of all Swap Agreements of the Borrower and each other Credit Party, the material terms thereof (including the type, term, effective date, termination date and notional amounts or volumes set forth for each month during the term of such Swap Agreement), the estimated net mark-to-market value therefor, any new credit support agreements relating thereto (other than Loan Documents) not listed on Schedule 7.20 , any margin required or supplied under any credit support document and the counterparty to each such agreement.

(e) Certificate of Insurer - Insurance Coverage . Concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) , one or more certificates of insurance coverage from Parent Guarantor’s insurance broker or insurers with respect to the insurance required by Section  8.07 , in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent, and, if requested by the Administrative Agent, copies of the applicable policies.

(f) SEC and Other Filings; Reports to Shareholders . For so long as any Credit Party is a publicly traded company, then promptly after the same become publicly available, copies of all periodic and other reports, proxy statements and other materials filed by such Credit Party with the SEC, or with any national securities exchange, or distributed by such Credit Party to its shareholders generally, as the case may be.

(g) Notices Under Material Instruments . Promptly after the furnishing thereof, copies of any financial statement, report or notice furnished to or by any Person pursuant to the terms of any preferred stock designation, indenture, loan or credit or other similar agreement with respect to Material Debt, and not otherwise required to be furnished to the Lenders pursuant to any other provision of this Agreement.

(h) Information Regarding Borrower and Guarantors . Promptly, but in any event within ten (10) Business Days after the occurrence thereof, written notice of any change in (i) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s corporate name, (ii) the jurisdiction in which the Borrower or any Guarantor is incorporated, formed, or otherwise organized, (iii) the location of the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s chief executive office, (iv) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s identity or corporate, limited liability or partnership structure, or (v) the Borrower’s or any Guarantor’s organizational identification number in such jurisdiction of organization or federal taxpayer identification number.

(i) Notices of Certain Changes . Promptly, but in any event within ten (10) Business Days after the execution thereof, copies of any material amendment, modification or supplement to the certificate of formation, limited liability company agreement, articles of incorporation, by-laws, any preferred stock designation or any other organic document of the Borrower or any other Credit Party.

(j) Issuance of Senior Notes . In the event the Borrower or any other Credit Party intends to issue any Senior Notes, prior written notice of such intended offering, the intended principal amount thereof and the anticipated date of closing and, upon request of the Administrative Agent, a copy of the preliminary offering memorandum (if any) and the final offering memorandum (if any).

(k) Opening of Accounts . Prompt written notice (such notice to include reasonably detailed information regarding the account number, purpose and applicable bank or other institution in respect of such Deposit Account, Commodities Account or Securities Account) to the Administrative Agent of any Deposit Account, Commodities Account or Securities Account (other than an Excluded Account) opened by the Borrower or any Guarantor.

 

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(l) Other Requested Information . Promptly following any reasonable request therefor, such other information regarding the operations, business affairs and financial condition of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary (including any Plan and any reports or other information required to be filed with the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor and/or the PBGC with respect thereto under the Code or under ERISA), or compliance with the terms of this Agreement or any other Loan Document, as the Administrative Agent may reasonably request.

(m) Annual Budget . Within sixty (60) days of the end of each fiscal year of the Borrower (the first such period being the sixty (60) day period after the end of fiscal year 2017), an annual operating budget for the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries for the immediately succeeding fiscal year (beginning with the annual operating budget for fiscal year 2018), including the projected monthly production of Hydrocarbons by the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries and the assumptions used in calculating such projections, the projected capital expenditures to be incurred by the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries, and such other information as may be reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent.

(n) Certificate of Financial Officer - Consolidating Information . If, at any time, all of the Consolidated Subsidiaries of the Borrower are not Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries, then concurrently with any delivery of financial statements under Section 8.01(a) or Section 8.01(b) , a certificate of a Financial Officer setting forth consolidating spreadsheets that show all Consolidated Unrestricted Subsidiaries and the eliminating entries, in such form as would be presentable to the auditors of the Borrower.

(o) Production Report and Lease Operating Statements . Concurrently with any delivery of a Reserve Report under Section  8.12 , (i) a report setting forth, for each calendar month during the then current fiscal year to date, the volume of production and sales attributable to production (and the prices at which such sales were made and the revenues derived from such sales) for each such calendar month from the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors and (ii) a report setting forth, for each calendar quarter during the then current fiscal year to date, the related ad valorem, severance and production taxes and lease operating expenses attributable to such production and incurred for each such calendar quarter.

Documents required to be delivered pursuant to Section 8.01(a) , (b) or (f) (to the extent any such documents are included in materials otherwise filed with the SEC) may be delivered electronically and if so delivered, shall be deemed to have been delivered on the date (i) on which Parent Guarantor or the Borrower posts such documents, or provides a link thereto on Parent Guarantor’s or the Borrower’s public website; or (ii) on which such documents are posted on the Borrower’s behalf on an Internet or intranet website, if any, to which each Lender and the Administrative Agent have access (whether a commercial, third-party website or whether sponsored by the Administrative Agent).

The Administrative Agent may make available to the Lenders materials and/or information provided by or on behalf of Parent Guarantor and/or the Borrower hereunder (collectively, “ Company Materials ”) by posting the Company Materials on SyndTrak or another similar electronic system (the “ Platform ”). Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby acknowledge that certain of the Lenders may from time to time elect to be “public-side” Lenders ( i.e. , Lenders that do not wish to receive material non-public information with respect to the Borrower or its securities) (each, a “ Public Lender ”) and the Borrower hereby agrees that (w) all Company Materials that are to be made available to Public Lenders shall be clearly and conspicuously marked “PUBLIC” which, at a minimum, shall mean that the word “PUBLIC” shall appear prominently on the first page thereof; (x) by marking Company Materials “PUBLIC,” Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall be deemed to have authorized the Administrative Agent and the Lenders to treat such Company Materials as either publicly available information or not

 

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material information (although it may be sensitive and proprietary) with respect to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their respective securities for purposes of United States Federal and state securities laws; (y) all Company Materials marked “PUBLIC” are permitted to be made available through a portion of the Platform designated “Public Investor”; and (z) the Administrative Agent shall be entitled to treat Company Materials that are not marked “PUBLIC” as being suitable only for posting on a portion of the Platform not designated “Public Investor.”

Section 8.02 Notices of Material Events . In addition to the notices required under Section  8.01 and Section 8.10(b) , the Borrower will furnish to the Administrative Agent and each Lender prompt (and in any event within five (5) Business Days of a Responsible Officer becoming aware thereof) written notice of the following:

(a) the occurrence of any Default;

(b) the filing or commencement of, or the threat in writing of, any action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority against or affecting the Borrower or any other Credit Party not previously disclosed in writing to the Lenders that could reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect, or the occurrence of any adverse development in any such action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration that is reasonably expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect;

(c) the filing or commencement of, or the threat in writing of, any action, suit, proceeding, investigation or arbitration by or before any arbitrator or Governmental Authority that (i) constitutes a material adverse claim against, or asserts a material cloud upon the Borrower’s or any other Credit Party’s title to, any material Mortgaged Property or other Collateral pledged pursuant to the Security Instruments or (ii) otherwise attacks the validity or (other than by asserting a Permitted Lien) the priority of the Administrative Agent’s Liens in any material Mortgaged Property or other Collateral pledged pursuant to the Security Instruments, or of the Security Instruments under which such Mortgaged Property or other Collateral is mortgaged or pledged; and

(d) the occurrence of any ERISA Event that results in, or could reasonably be expected to result in, a Material Adverse Effect.

Each notice delivered under this Section  8.02 shall be accompanied by a statement of a Responsible Officer setting forth the details of the event or development requiring such notice and any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto.

Section 8.03 Existence; Conduct of Business . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve, renew and keep in full force and effect (a) its legal existence and (b) the rights, licenses, permits, privileges and franchises material to the conduct of its business and maintain, if necessary, its qualification to do business in each other jurisdiction in which its Oil and Gas Properties are located or the ownership of its Properties requires such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; provided that the foregoing shall not prohibit any merger, consolidation, liquidation or dissolution permitted under Section  9.10 . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to maintain its legal existence in Delaware, another State within the United States of America or the District of Columbia.

Section 8.04 Payment of Obligations . After giving effect to the Confirmation Order and the Plan of Reorganization, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, pay its obligations, including Tax liabilities of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and all of its

 

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Restricted Subsidiaries before the same shall become delinquent or in default, except where (a) the validity or amount thereof is being contested in good faith by appropriate proceedings and Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary has set aside on its books adequate reserves with respect thereto in accordance with GAAP or (b) the failure to make payment pending such contest could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect or result in the seizure or levy of any material Property of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 8.05 Performance of Obligations under Loan Documents . The Borrower will pay the Loans in accordance with the terms hereof, and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, do and perform every act and discharge all of the obligations to be performed and discharged by them under the Loan Documents.

Section 8.06 Operation and Maintenance of Properties . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower, at their own expense, will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to:

(a) operate its Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties or cause such Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties to be operated in a careful and efficient manner in accordance with the practices of the industry and in compliance with all applicable contracts and agreements and in compliance with all Governmental Requirements, including applicable proration requirements and Environmental Laws, and all applicable laws, rules and regulations of every other Governmental Authority from time to time constituted to regulate the development and operation of its Oil and Gas Properties and the production and sale of Hydrocarbons and other minerals therefrom, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) keep and maintain all Property material to the conduct of its business in good working order and condition, ordinary wear and tear excepted, and preserve, maintain and keep in good repair, working order and efficiency (ordinary wear and tear and depletion excepted) all of its Oil and Gas Properties, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(c) promptly pay and discharge, or make reasonable and customary efforts to cause to be paid and discharged, all delay rentals, royalties, expenses and indebtedness accruing under the leases or other agreements affecting or pertaining to its Oil and Gas Properties and do all other things necessary to keep unimpaired its rights with respect thereto and prevent any forfeiture thereof or default thereunder, except where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.

(d) promptly perform or make reasonable and customary efforts to cause to be performed, in accordance with customary industry standards, the obligations required by the assignments, deeds, leases, sub-leases, contracts and agreements affecting its interests in its Oil and Gas Properties and other material Properties, except, in each case, where the failure to do so could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(e) To the extent the Borrower or another Credit Party is not the operator of any Property, the Borrower shall use reasonable efforts to cause the operator to comply with this Section  8.06 , but failure of the operator so to comply will not constitute a Default or an Event of Default hereunder.

Section 8.07 Insurance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, maintain, with financially sound and reputable insurance companies, insurance in such amounts and against such risks as are customarily maintained by companies engaged in the same or similar businesses operating in the same or similar locations (it being understood and agreed that the

 

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Borrower and its Subsidiaries may self-insure to the extent and in a manner customary for companies engaged in the same or similar business of similar size and financial condition). The Administrative Agent, the Collateral Agent and the Lenders shall be named as additional insureds in respect of such liability insurance policies, and the Collateral Agent shall be named as a loss payee with respect to property loss insurance covering Collateral and such policies shall provide that the Administrative Agent shall receive not less than 30 days’ prior notice of cancellation or non-renewal (or, if less, the maximum advance notice that the applicable carrier will agree to provide).

Section 8.08 Books and Records; Inspection Rights . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, keep proper books of record and account in which full, true and correct entries in conformity with GAAP are made of all dealings and transactions in relation to its business and activities (to the extent required by GAAP). Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, permit any representatives designated by the Administrative Agent, upon reasonable prior notice, to visit and inspect its Properties, to examine and make extracts from its books and records, and to discuss its affairs, finances and condition with its officers and independent accountants, all at such reasonable times and as reasonably requested, and at the sole expense of Borrower not to exceed two times in any calendar year (unless an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing).

Section 8.09 Compliance with Laws . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, comply with all laws, rules, regulations and orders of any Governmental Authority applicable to it or its Property, except where the failure to do so, individually or in the aggregate, could not reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will maintain in effect and enforce such policies and procedures, if any, as it reasonably deems appropriate, in light of its businesses and international activities (if any), to ensure compliance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, their Subsidiaries and each of their respective directors, officers, employees and agents with Anti-Corruption Laws and applicable Sanctions.

Section 8.10 Environmental Matters .

(a) Each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will at its sole expense: (i) comply, and cause its Properties and operations and each Subsidiary and each Subsidiary’s Properties and operations to comply, with all applicable Environmental Laws, to the extent the breach thereof could be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (ii) not Release or threaten to Release, and cause each Subsidiary not to Release or threaten to Release, any Hazardous Material on, under, about or from any of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties or any other property offsite the Property to the extent caused by Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or any of their Subsidiaries’ operations except in compliance with applicable Environmental Laws, to the extent such Release or threatened Release could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (iii) timely obtain or file, and cause each Subsidiary to timely obtain or file, all Environmental Permits, if any, required under applicable Environmental Laws to be obtained or filed in connection with the operation or use of Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties, to the extent such failure to obtain or file could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (iv) promptly commence and diligently prosecute to completion, and cause each Subsidiary to promptly commence and diligently prosecute to completion, any assessment, evaluation, investigation, monitoring, containment, cleanup, removal, repair, restoration, remediation or other remedial obligations (collectively, the “ Remedial Work ”) in the event any Remedial Work is required under applicable Environmental Laws because of or in connection with the actual or suspected past, present or future Release or threatened Release of any Hazardous Material on, under, about or from any of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower’s or their Subsidiaries’ Properties, to the extent failure to do so could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (v) conduct, and cause its Subsidiaries to conduct, their respective operations and businesses in a manner that will not expose any Property or Person to Hazardous Materials that could reasonably be expected to cause Parent

 

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Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries to owe damages or compensation that could reasonably be expected to cause a Material Adverse Effect; and (vi) establish and implement, and shall cause each Subsidiary to establish and implement, such procedures as may be necessary to continuously determine and assure that Parent Guarantor’s, the Borrower’s and their Subsidiaries’ obligations under this Section 8.10(a) are timely and fully satisfied, to the extent failure to do so could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(b) If Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary receives written notice of any action or, investigation or inquiry by any Governmental Authority or any threatened demand or lawsuit by any Person against Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries or their Properties, in each case in connection with any Environmental Laws, the Borrower will within fifteen days after any Responsible Officer obtains actual knowledge thereof give written notice of the same to Administrative Agent if the Borrower could reasonably anticipate that such action will result in liability (whether individually or in the aggregate) in excess of $20,000,000, not fully covered by insurance, subject to normal deductibles.

(c) In connection with any acquisition by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary of any Oil and Gas Property, other than an acquisition of additional interests in Oil and Gas Properties in which Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary previously held an interest, to the extent Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary obtains or is provided with same, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, promptly following Parent Guarantor, the Borrower’s or such Restricted Subsidiary’s obtaining or being provided with the same, deliver to the Administrative Agent such final and non-privileged material environmental reports of such Oil and Gas Properties as are reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent.

Section 8.11 Further Assurances .

(a) Each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower at its sole expense will, and will cause each Restricted Subsidiary to, promptly execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent all such other documents, agreements and instruments reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent to comply with, cure any defects or accomplish the conditions precedent, covenants and agreements of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, in the Loan Documents, including the Notes, or to further evidence and more fully describe the collateral intended as security for the Obligations, or to correct any omissions in this Agreement or the Security Instruments, or to state more fully the obligations secured therein, or to perfect, protect or preserve any Liens created pursuant to this Agreement or any of the Security Instruments or the priority thereof, or to make any recordings, file any notices or obtain any consents that may be reasonably necessary or appropriate in connection therewith.

(b) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby authorize the Administrative Agent to file one or more financing or continuation statements, and amendments thereto, describing all or any part of the Collateral without the signature of the Borrower or any Guarantor where permitted by law. A carbon, photographic or other reproduction of the Security Instruments or any financing statement covering the Collateral or any part thereof shall be sufficient as a financing statement where permitted by law.

Section 8.12 Reserve Reports .

(a) In addition to the Initial Reserve Report which has been delivered on or prior to the Effective Date, on or before each date set out in the right column of the following table, the Borrower

 

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shall furnish to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a Reserve Report evaluating the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors as of the date set out in the same line in the left column of such table:

 

As-of Date

  

Delivery Date

July 1, 2017 and each July 1 thereafter

   the next following September 1

January 1, 2018 and each January 1 thereafter.

   the next following March 1

(b) The Reserve Reports as of January 1 of each year shall be prepared by one or more Approved Petroleum Engineers, and the Reserve Reports as of July 1 of each year shall be prepared either by Approved Petroleum Engineers or, at the Borrower’s option, by the internal reserve engineering staff of the Borrower in accordance with the procedures used in the immediately preceding January 1 Reserve Report.

(c) In the event of an Interim Redetermination, the Borrower shall furnish to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a Reserve Report prepared either by Approved Petroleum Engineers or by Borrower’s internal reserve engineering staff, in each case in accordance with the procedures used in the immediately preceding January 1 Reserve Report. For any Interim Redetermination requested by the Administrative Agent or the Borrower pursuant to Section 2.07(b) , the Borrower shall provide such Reserve Report with an “as of” date as required by the Administrative Agent as soon as possible, but in any event no later than thirty (30) days following the receipt of such request.

(d) With the delivery of each Reserve Report (other than the Initial Reserve Report), the Borrower shall provide to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders a certificate from a Responsible Officer on behalf of the Borrower certifying that in all material respects that (i) except as set forth on an exhibit to the certificate, on a net basis there are no gas imbalances, take or pay or other prepayments in excess of the volume specified in Section  7.18 with respect to its Oil and Gas Properties evaluated in such Reserve Report which would require the Borrower or any Guarantor to deliver Hydrocarbons either generally or produced from such Oil and Gas Properties at some future time without then or thereafter receiving full payment therefor, (ii) none of their Borrowing Base Properties have been sold since the date of the last Borrowing Base determination except as set forth on an exhibit to the certificate, which certificate shall list all such Borrowing Base Properties sold and (iii) attached thereto is a schedule of the Borrowing Base Properties evaluated by such Reserve Report that are Mortgaged Properties which demonstrates the percentage of the total value of the Borrowing Base Properties that the value of such Mortgaged Properties represents in compliance with Section 8.14(a) .

Section 8.13 Title Information . During the Borrowing Base Period, on or before the delivery to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders of each Reserve Report required by Section 8.12(a) , the Borrower will use commercially reasonable efforts to deliver title information in form and substance acceptable to the Administrative Agent covering enough of the Oil and Gas Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report that were not included in the immediately preceding Reserve Report, so that the Administrative Agent shall have received, together with title information previously delivered to the Administrative Agent, satisfactory title information on at least 80% of the total PV-9 of the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report.

Section 8.14 Additional Collateral; Additional Guarantors .

(a) During any Borrowing Base Period and in connection with each redetermination of the Borrowing Base following the Effective Date, the Borrower shall review the Reserve Report and the list of current Mortgaged Properties (as described in Section 8.12(c) ) to ascertain whether the

 

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Mortgaged Properties represent at least 85% of the total PV-9 of the Proved Reserves of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by such Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production. In the event that the Mortgaged Properties do not satisfy the foregoing requirements and subject to Section 8.19(b) , then the Borrower shall, and shall cause the Restricted Subsidiaries to, promptly grant, and, subject to Section 8.19(b) , within thirty (30) days (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion) after delivery of the certificate required under Section 8.12(d) , to the Administrative Agent, as security for the Obligations, Security Instruments covering additional Borrowing Base Properties not already subject to a Lien of the Security Instruments such that after giving effect thereto, the Mortgaged Properties will comply with such requirements. All such Liens will be created and perfected by and in accordance with the provisions of deeds of trust, security agreements and financing statements or other Security Instruments, all in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent and in sufficient executed (and acknowledged where necessary or appropriate) counterparts for recording purposes.

(b) The Borrower shall promptly cause each Domestic Subsidiary (other than an Excluded Subsidiary) to guarantee the Obligations pursuant to the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement. In connection with any such guaranty, the Borrower shall, or shall cause such Subsidiary to, promptly, but in any event no later than 15 Business Days after the formation or acquisition (or other similar event) of such Subsidiary to, (i) execute and deliver a supplement to the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, executed by such Subsidiary, (ii) pledge all of the Equity Interests of such Subsidiary that are owned by the Borrower or any Guarantor (and deliver the original stock certificates, if any, evidencing the Equity Interests of such Subsidiary, together with an appropriate undated stock power for each certificate duly executed in blank by the registered owner thereof), (iii) grant Liens in favor of the Collateral Agent on all Property of such Subsidiary (other than Property excluded from the grant of such Liens pursuant to the terms of the Security Instruments) and (iv) execute and deliver such other additional closing documents, certificates and legal opinions as shall reasonably be requested by the Administrative Agent. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the following Restricted Subsidiaries shall not be required to guarantee the Obligations or execute and deliver the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement (or a supplement to such document): (A) any Restricted Subsidiary that is prohibited or restricted by applicable law, rule or regulation or by any contractual obligation existing on the Effective Date (or, if later, the date it becomes a Restricted Subsidiary) from guaranteeing the Obligations or which would require governmental (including regulatory) consent, approval, license or authorization to provide a guarantee unless such consent, approval, license or authorization has been received and for only so long as such restriction is outstanding, (B) any Foreign Subsidiary and (C) any Domestic Subsidiary of a Foreign Subsidiary that is a controlled foreign corporation within the meaning of section 957 of the Code (“ CFC ”) or any Domestic Subsidiary with no material assets other than Equity Interests (or Equity Interests and Debt) of one or more Foreign Subsidiaries that are CFCs; provided that the Borrower may (in its sole discretion) cause any Domestic Subsidiary, or if reasonably acceptable to the Administrative Agent, any Foreign Subsidiary (including any consolidated Affiliate in which the Borrower and its Subsidiaries own no Equity Interest), to become a Guarantor and to execute and deliver the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement (or a supplement to such document). Domestic Subsidiaries may be excluded from the requirements of this Section 8.14(b) if the Administrative Agent reasonably determines that the cost, burden, difficulty or consequence of providing such a guarantee outweighs the benefit to the Lenders afforded thereby.

(c) Notwithstanding any provision in any of the Loan Documents to the contrary, in no event is any Building (as defined in the applicable Flood Insurance Regulations) or Manufactured (Mobile) Home (as defined in the applicable Flood Insurance Regulations) owned by the Borrower or any other Credit Party required to be included in the Mortgaged Property and no Building or Manufactured (Mobile) Home shall be encumbered by any Security Instrument; provided , that (A) the Borrower’s and the other Credit Parties’ interests in all lands and Hydrocarbons situated under any such Building or

 

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Manufactured (Mobile) Home shall not be excluded from the Mortgaged Property and shall be encumbered by all applicable Security Instruments and (B) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not, and shall not permit any Restricted Subsidiaries to, permit to exist any Lien on any Building or Manufactured (Mobile) Home except Excepted Liens.

Section 8.15 Unrestricted Subsidiaries . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower:

(a) will cause the management, business and affairs of each of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Restricted Subsidiaries and the Unrestricted Parent Entities to be conducted in such a manner (including, without limitation, by keeping separate books of account, furnishing separate financial statements of Unrestricted Subsidiaries and any Unrestricted Parent Entities to creditors and potential creditors thereof and by not permitting Properties of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the respective Restricted Subsidiaries to be commingled) so that each Unrestricted Subsidiary and Unrestricted Parent Entity that is a corporation will be treated as a corporate entity separate and distinct from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries.

(b) will not, and will not permit any of the Restricted Subsidiaries to, incur, assume, guarantee or be or become liable for any Debt of any of the Unrestricted Subsidiaries or Unrestricted Parent Entities.

(c) will not permit any Unrestricted Subsidiary or Unrestricted Parent Entity to hold any Equity Interest in, or any Debt of, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 8.16 Commodity Exchange Act Keepwell Provisions . The Borrower hereby absolutely, unconditionally and irrevocably undertakes to provide to each Credit Party (other than the Borrower) such funds or other support as may be needed from time to time by such Credit Party in order for such Credit Party to honor its Obligations with respect to any Swap Agreements or CFTC Hedging Obligations for which it is liable, whether such Swap Agreements or CFTC Hedging Obligations are entered into directly by such Credit Party or are guaranteed under the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement ( provided , however , that the Borrower shall only be liable under this Section  8.16 for the maximum amount of such liability that can be hereby incurred without rendering its obligations under this Section  8.16 , or otherwise under this Agreement or any Loan Document, voidable under applicable law relating to fraudulent conveyance or fraudulent transfer, and not for any greater amount). The obligations of the Borrower under this Section  8.16 shall remain in full force and effect until this Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms. Borrower intends that this Section  8.16 constitute a “keepwell, support, or other agreement” for the benefit of each other Credit Party for all purposes of Section 1a(18)(A)(v)(II) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Section 8.17 ERISA Compliance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will promptly furnish and will cause the Subsidiaries and any ERISA Affiliate to promptly furnish to the Administrative Agent after written request therefor by the Administrative Agent, copies of each annual and other report with respect to each Plan or any trust created thereunder, and promptly upon becoming aware of the occurrence of any “prohibited transaction,” as described in section 406 of ERISA or in section 4975 of the Code for which no exemption exists or is available by statute, regulation, administrative exemption, or otherwise, in connection with any Plan or any trust created thereunder and that is reasonably expected to result in liability to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary that is expected to have Material Adverse Effect, a written notice signed by the President or the principal Financial Officer, the Subsidiary or the ERISA Affiliate, as the case may be, specifying the nature thereof, what action Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, the Subsidiary or the ERISA Affiliate is taking or proposes to take with respect thereto, and, when known, any action taken or proposed by the Internal Revenue Service or the Department of Labor with respect thereto.

 

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Section 8.18 Deposit Accounts; Commodities Accounts and Securities Accounts . Subject to Section 8.19(a) , the Borrower and each Guarantor will cause each of their respective Deposit Accounts, Commodities Accounts or Securities Accounts (in each case, other than Excluded Accounts) to, within 30 days (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion) following the opening of any such account, at all times be subject to an Account Control Agreement in accordance with and to the extent required by the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement.

Section 8.19 Post-Effective Date Deliverables .

(a) Account Control Agreements . Notwithstanding the requirements set forth in Section  8.18 , with respect to each Deposit Account, Commodities Account and Securities Account of the Credit Parties in existence on the Effective Date (other than, in each case, Excluded Accounts), on or prior to the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), the Borrower and each Guarantor shall deliver to the Administrative Agent duly executed Account Control Agreements in accordance with and to the extent required by the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement.

(b) Mortgages in respect of Oil and Gas Properties . To the extent not delivered on the Effective Date, the Borrower shall deliver to the Administrative Agent mortgages and other Security Instruments sufficient to create first priority, perfected Liens (subject only to Permitted Liens) (i) on or prior to the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), on at least 50% of the total PV-9 of the Borrowing Base Properties of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by the most recently delivered Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production and (ii) on or prior to the date that is ninety (90) days following the Effective Date (or such later date as the Administrative Agent may agree in its sole discretion), on at least 85% of the total PV-9 of the Proved Reserves of the Borrower and the Guarantors evaluated by the most recently delivered Reserve Report, after giving effect to exploration and production activities, acquisitions, dispositions and production.

(c) Swap Agreements . On or prior to the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date, the Borrower and each Restricted Subsidiary shall enter into and maintain Swap Agreements with one or more Approved Counterparties the notional volumes for which are not less than fifty percent (50%) of the Projected Volume of such Person’s total Proved Developed Producing Reserves for a period beginning on the date that is sixty (60) days following the Effective Date and ending on the first anniversary of the Effective Date.

ARTICLE IX

NEGATIVE COVENANTS

Until the Commitments have expired or terminated and the principal of and interest on each Loan and all fees payable hereunder and all other amounts payable under the Loan Documents have been paid in full and all Letters of Credit have expired (without any pending drawings thereon) or terminated (or cash collateralized) and all LC Disbursements shall have been reimbursed, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower covenants and agrees with the Lenders that:

Section 9.01 Financial Covenants .

(a) Interest Coverage Ratio . The Borrower will not permit, as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the ratio of (i) the EBITDAX for the Rolling Period ending on such date to (ii) the Consolidated Interest Expense of the Borrower for the Rolling Period ending on such date, to be less than 2.5 to 1.0.

 

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(b) Current Ratio . The Borrower will not permit, as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the ratio of consolidated current assets of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (including the unused amount of the Loan Limit, but excluding non-cash assets under the equivalent of ASC 815 under GAAP) as of such date to consolidated current liabilities of the Borrower and the Consolidated Restricted Subsidiaries (excluding non-cash obligations under the equivalent of ASC 815 under GAAP and current maturities under this Agreement) as of such date to be less than 1.0 to 1.0.

(c) Consolidated Net Leverage Ratios . Commencing with the last day of the fiscal quarter ending September 30, 2017, the Borrower will not permit the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio (i) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter ending on or before December 31, 2017 to exceed 4.25 to 1.00 and (ii) as of the last day of any fiscal quarter thereafter to exceed 4.0 to 1.0.

(d) Asset Coverage Ratio . At any time during an Investment Grade Period, the Borrower will not permit, as of the last day of any fiscal quarter commencing with the first fiscal quarter ending during such Investment Grade Period, the Asset Coverage Ratio as of such date to be less than 1.50 to 1.00.

Section 9.02 Debt . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, incur, create, assume or suffer to exist any Debt, except:

(a) the Notes or other Obligations arising under the Loan Documents.

(b) Debt under Capital Leases or that constitutes Purchase Money Indebtedness; provided that the sum of (i) the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(b) at any one time outstanding shall not exceed $50,000,000 in the aggregate.

(c) intercompany Debt owing by the Borrower or any Guarantor to the Borrower or any Guarantor.

(d) Debt constituting a guaranty by Borrower or any other Credit Party of other Debt permitted to be incurred under this Section  9.02 .

(e) Senior Notes and related Senior Notes Debt; provided that, solely with respect to Senior Notes and related Senior Note Debt (other than the Existing Senior Notes) issued after the Effective Date, at the time any such Senior Notes are issued, after giving effect to the incurrence of such Senior Notes Debt, the Borrower is in pro forma compliance with Section  9.01 .

(f) Debt that represents an extension, refinancing, or renewal of any of the Senior Notes Debt or Debt issued pursuant to Section 9.02(h) or (j); provided that, (i) the principal amount of such Debt is not increased (other than by the costs, fees, premiums and expenses and by accrued and unpaid interest paid in connection with any such extension, refinancing or renewal) except in compliance with the preceding clause (e) (it being understood, for the avoidance of doubt, that any such increase in the principal amount of such Debt shall be deemed to be incurred under the preceding clause (e) and subject to Section 2.07(e) hereof), (ii) such extension, refinancing or renewal does not result in any principal amount owing in respect of Senior Notes Debt becoming due earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date, and (iii) if the Senior Notes Debt that is refinanced, renewed, or extended was subordinated in right of payment to the Obligations, then the terms and conditions of the refinancing, renewal, or extension Debt must include subordination terms and conditions that are at least as favorable to the Administrative Agent and the Lenders as those that were applicable to the refinanced, renewed, or extended Debt.

 

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(g) other Debt so long as the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(g) at any one time outstanding does not exceed $50,000,000 in the aggregate.

(h) Debt arising under the Term Loan Documents;

(i) Debt under Swap Agreements permitted pursuant to Section  9.18 ; and

(j) Debt issued in satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Notes under the Approved Plan, including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment (capitalized terms used in this Section 9.02(j) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Plan of Reorganization as in effect on March 14, 2017) so long as the aggregate principal amount of all Debt described in this Section 9.02(j) at any one time outstanding does not exceed $300,000,000 in the aggregate.

Section 9.03 Liens . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or permit to exist any Lien on any of its Properties (now owned or hereafter acquired), except:

(a) Liens securing the Obligations.

(b) Excepted Liens.

(c) Liens securing Capital Leases and Purchase Money Indebtedness permitted by Section 9.02(b) but only on the Property under lease or the Property purchased, constructed or improved with such Purchase Money Indebtedness.

(d) Liens securing Debt permitted by Section 9.02(g) but only on Property not constituting Borrowing Base Properties or Collateral.

(e) Liens securing the Term Loans and the “Obligations” as defined in the Term Loan Credit Agreement.

(f) Liens on cash deposits securing obligations under Swap Agreements; provided that the amount of such cash deposits shall not exceed $25,000,000 in the aggregate at any time.

(g) Liens on cash, surety, performance or appeal bonds and similar instruments securing satisfaction of any Claims derived from or based upon makewhole, applicable premium, redemption premium, or other similar payment provisions under the OpCo Notes MNPA or any other alleged premiums, fees, or Claims arising from the treatment of the OpCo Notes under the Approved Plan, including any Claims for damages or other relief arising from such treatment; provided that any reference to “Claims” in this Section 9.03(g) shall only apply to such Claims to the extent that they do not constitute funded debt (capitalized terms used in this Section 9.03(g) but not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to such terms in the Plan of Reorganization as in effect on March 14, 2017).

 

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Section 9.04 Restricted Payments and Payments in Respect of Certain Debt .

(a) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, declare or make, or agree to pay or make, directly or indirectly (collectively in this section, “ make ”), any Restricted Payment except:

(i) the Borrower or any Guarantor may make Restricted Payments to the Borrower or any other Guarantor;

(ii) Parent Guarantor may make Restricted Payments with respect to its Equity Interests payable solely in additional shares of its Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock);

(iii) Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its Restricted Subsidiaries may make Restricted Payments pursuant to stock option plans or other benefit plans for the benefit of the employees, management and directors of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its Restricted Subsidiaries so long as no Event of Default exists at the time of such payment or results therefrom; and

(iv) Restricted Payments made at any such time during which, immediately after giving effect to the making of any such Restricted Payment on a pro forma basis, (A) no Event of Default exists or is continuing, (B) (x) during an Investment Grade Period, the ratio of Availability to the total Revolving Credit Exposures of all Lenders at such time is not less than 1:9 and (y) during a Borrowing Base Period, Availability is not less than 10% of the Borrowing Base in effect at such time, (C) no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists and (D) the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio is less than or equal to 3.00 to 1.00.

(b) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, prior to the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date, make or offer to make any optional or voluntary Redemption of or otherwise optionally or voluntarily Redeem (whether in whole or in part) any principal of any Senior Notes Debt, except that:

(i) so long as no Borrowing Base Deficiency or Event of Default exists or results therefrom, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the applicable Restricted Subsidiary may, substantially contemporaneously with its receipt of any cash proceeds from any sale by Parent Guarantor or the Borrower of Equity Interests in Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, as applicable, voluntarily prepay or otherwise Redeem any principal of Senior Notes Debt in an amount equal to the amount of the net cash proceeds received by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and/or Restricted Subsidiaries from such sale of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Capital Stock) of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower,

(ii) the Credit Parties may refinance Senior Notes Debt in accordance with Section 9.02(f) , and

(iii) voluntary prepayments or other Redemptions made at any such time during which, immediately after giving effect to such prepayment or Redemption on a pro forma basis, (A) no Event of Default exists or is continuing, (B) (x) during an Investment Grade Period, the ratio of Availability to the total Revolving Credit Exposures of all Lenders at such time is not less than 1:9 and (y) during a Borrowing Base Period, Availability is not less than 10% of the Borrowing Base in effect at such time, (C) no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists and (D) the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio is less than or equal to 3.00 to 1.00.

Section 9.05 Investments, Loans and Advances . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, make, or permit to remain outstanding, any Investments in or to any Person, except that the foregoing restriction shall not apply to:

(a) Investments made prior to the Effective Date and reflected in the financial statements referred to in Section  7.04 or that are disclosed to the Lenders in Schedule 9.05 .

 

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(b) Cash Equivalents.

(c) Investments made by Parent Guarantor or the Borrower in or to any Guarantor or made by any Guarantor (including any newly formed Restricted Subsidiary that becomes a Guarantor in accordance with this Agreement) in or to the Borrower or any other Guarantor (including any newly formed Restricted Subsidiary that becomes a Guarantor in accordance with this Agreement).

(d) loans or advances to employees, officers or directors in the ordinary course of business of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiaries, in each case only as permitted by applicable law, but in any event not to exceed $5,000,000 in the aggregate at any time outstanding.

(e) Investments in stock, obligations or securities received in settlement of debts arising from Investments permitted under this Section  9.05 or from accounts receivable and other similar obligations arising in the ordinary course of business, which Investments are obtained by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary as a result of a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding of, or difficulties in collecting from, the obligor in respect of such obligations.

(f) Investments constituting Debt permitted under Section  9.02 .

(g) other Investments that do not exceed $50,000,000 in the aggregate at any time.

(h) Investments made at any such time during which, immediately after giving effect to the making of any such Investment on a pro forma basis, (A) no Event of Default exists or is continuing, (B) (x) during an Investment Grade Period, the ratio of Availability to the total Revolving Credit Exposures of all Lenders at such time is not less than 1:9 and (y) during a Borrowing Base Period, Availability is not less than 10% of the Borrowing Base in effect at such time, (C) no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists and (D) the Consolidated Net Leverage Ratio is less than or equal to 3.00 to 1.00.

(i) Investments in Industry Investments not to exceed $50,000,000 in the aggregate at any time outstanding.

Section 9.06 Nature of Business; International Operations . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, allow any material change to be made in the character of its business as a company engaged in the Oil and Gas Business. From and after the date hereof, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries will not acquire or commit to acquire any Oil and Gas Properties not located within the geographical boundaries of the United States of America and the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries will not form or acquire any Foreign Subsidiaries. Parent Guarantor shall not directly own any interest in any Oil and Gas Property. Any Oil and Gas Properties of the Credit Parties will at all times be owned by the Borrower or one or more Restricted Subsidiaries.

Section 9.07 [Reserved] .

Section 9.08 ERISA Compliance . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Subsidiary to, at any time:

(a) engage in, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to engage in, any transaction in connection with which the Borrower or a Subsidiary could be subjected to either a civil penalty assessed pursuant to subsections (i) or (l) of section 502 of ERISA or a tax imposed by section 4975 of the Code, except where such penalty or tax could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

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(b) fail to make, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to fail to make, full payment when due of all amounts which, under the provisions of any Plan, agreement relating thereto or applicable law, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower, a Subsidiary or any ERISA Affiliate is required to pay as contributions thereto, except where such failure could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

(c) contribute to or assume an obligation to contribute to, or permit any ERISA Affiliate to contribute to or assume an obligation to contribute to, any employee welfare benefit plan, as defined in section 3(1) of ERISA that provides benefits to retirees or former employees of such entities that may not be terminated by such entities in their sole discretion at any time without any liability other than for benefits due as of, or claims incurred prior to, the effective date of such termination, except where such contribution or assumption of an obligation could not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.

Section 9.09 Sale or Discount of Notes or Receivables . Except for the sale of defaulted notes or accounts receivable not made in connection with any financing transaction, Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, sell (with or without recourse or discount) any of its notes receivable or accounts receivable to any Person other than the Borrower or any Guarantor. The settlement or compromise of joint interest billings or of accounts receivable and other receivables in connection with the collection or compromise thereof will not constitute a sale for the purposes of the preceding sentence.

Section 9.10 Mergers, Etc . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, merge into or with or consolidate with any other Person, or permit any other Person to merge into or consolidate with it, or sell, transfer, lease or otherwise dispose of (whether in one transaction or in a series of transactions) all or substantially all of its Property to any other Person (whether now owned or hereafter acquired) (any such transaction, a “ consolidation ”), or liquidate or dissolve; provided that, so long as no Event of Default has occurred and is then continuing, any Restricted Subsidiary may be liquidated or may participate in a merger or consolidation with the Borrower or Parent Guarantor ( provided that the Borrower or Parent Guarantor shall be the survivor) or any other Restricted Subsidiary or another Person who becomes a Restricted Subsidiary concurrent with such merger or consolidation.

Section 9.11 Sale of Properties and Liquidation of Swap Agreements . As used herein, “ Transfer ” means to sell, assign, farm-out, convey or otherwise transfer Property or to Liquidate any Swap Agreement in respect of commodities, provided that Transfer does not include the grant or creation of a Lien. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, Transfer (1) any Oil and Gas Property or any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, (2) any commodity Swap Agreement or (3) any Equity Interest in any Restricted Subsidiary that owns any Oil and Gas Property, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, or any commodity Swap Agreement (in this Section  9.11 , an “ E&P Subsidiary ”), except for:

(a) the sale of Hydrocarbons in the ordinary course of business;

(b) farmouts of undeveloped acreage and assignments in connection with such farmouts;

(c) Transfers among Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries provided that the provisions of Section  8.14 are complied with to the extent applicable;

 

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(d) the sale or transfer of Unproven Acreage or of any Equity Interests in any E&P Subsidiary (other than an E&P Subsidiary that owns any Borrowing Base Properties, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom, or any commodity Swap Agreement included in the most recent determination of the Borrowing Base), provided that (i) prior to and after giving effect to such sale or transfer, the Borrower is in compliance with Section  9.18 , (ii) if a Borrowing Base Deficiency Exists prior to such sale or transfer, 100% of the net cash proceeds of such sale or transfer are applied to prepay the loans up to an amount sufficient to cure such Borrowing Base Deficiency and (iii) prior to and after giving effect to such sale or transfer, no Default or Event of Default exists at such time; and

(e) Transfers of Borrowing Base Properties, of commodity Swap Agreements, and of Equity Interests in any E&P Subsidiary that owns any Borrowing Base Properties, any interest in Hydrocarbons produced or to be produced therefrom or any commodity Swap Agreement included in the most recent determination of the Borrowing Base, provided that:

(i) the consideration received in respect of such Transfer shall be cash, the assumption of liabilities (including indemnification obligations) related to the Borrowing Base Properties Transferred, new Oil and Gas Properties (and related Additional Oil and Gas Assets) and new commodity Swap Agreements acquired, or Investments permitted under Section  9.05 ;

(ii) the consideration received in respect of such Transfer shall be equal to or greater than the fair market value of the Borrowing Base Properties, commodity Swap Agreements and Equity Interests in E&P Subsidiaries that are Transferred (as reasonably determined by the Borrower and, if requested by the Administrative Agent, the Borrower shall deliver a certificate of the Borrower certifying to that effect);

(iii) if any such Transfer is of an E&P Subsidiary, such Transfer shall include all the Equity Interests of such E&P Subsidiary owned by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries; and

(iv) if any Transfer pursuant to this subsection (e) would trigger an Additional Interim Redetermination Event, the Borrower shall deliver to the Administrative Agent five (5) Business Days’ prior written notice of such Transfer or Liquidation and shall provide the Administrative Agent with such information regarding such Transfer as the Administrative Agent may reasonably request.

To the extent that Transfers made pursuant to subsection (e) would trigger an Additional Interim Redetermination Event, then the Borrowing Base will be reduced by the Borrowing Base Value of the Borrowing Base Properties and commodity Swap Agreements, as applicable, in excess of 5% of the Borrowing Base then in effect, effective upon delivery by the Administrative Agent of the related New Borrowing Base Notice under Section 2.07(d) , and if a Borrowing Base Deficiency exists after such reduction in the Borrowing Base, the Borrower shall prepay Borrowings in accordance with Section 3.04(c)(iii) . For the purposes of the preceding sentence and the preceding subsection (e), the Transfer of an E&P Subsidiary owning such Borrowing Base Properties and/or commodity Swap Agreements shall be deemed the Transfer of the Borrowing Base Properties and the Liquidation of commodity Swap Agreements owned such E&P Subsidiary.

Section 9.12 Transactions with Affiliates . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, enter into any transaction, with any Affiliate (other than Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Restricted Subsidiaries) unless such transaction is upon terms that are no less favorable to it than those that could reasonably be expected to be obtained in a comparable arm’s length transaction with a Person not an Affiliate or that are otherwise fair to Parent Guarantor, the

 

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Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary from a financial point of view. The restrictions set forth in this Section  9.12 shall not apply to (a) executing, delivering, and performing obligations under the Loan Documents, the “Loan Documents” as defined under the Term Loan Agreement and the Senior Notes Documents; (b) compensation to, and the terms of employment contracts with, individuals who are officers, managers and directors of Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, provided such compensation or contract is approved by Ultra Petroleum’s board of directors, (c) the issuance of Equity Interests (other than Disqualified Stock) by Parent Guarantor or the Borrower, (d) transactions permitted under Section  9.04 or Section  9.05 or otherwise expressly permitted under this Agreement and (e) transactions contemplated by the Plan of Reorganization.

Section 9.13 Subsidiaries . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create or acquire any additional Restricted Subsidiary or redesignate an Unrestricted Subsidiary as a Restricted Subsidiary unless the Borrower gives written notice to the Administrative Agent of such creation or acquisition and complies with Section 8.14(b) . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, sell, assign or otherwise dispose of any Equity Interests in the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary except (a) to the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary or (b) in compliance with Section  9.11 . None of the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary will have any Foreign Subsidiaries. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not permit any Equity Interests of any Restricted Subsidiary to be directly owned by any Person other than the Borrower or another Restricted Subsidiary. UP Energy will not directly own any subsidiary other than the Borrower and any Unrestricted Parent Entity.

Section 9.14 Negative Pledge Agreements; Subsidiary Dividend Restrictions . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or suffer to exist any contract, agreement or understanding (other than (i) this Agreement and the Security Instruments, (ii) agreements with respect to Debt secured by Liens permitted by Section 9.03(c) or Section 9.03(d) but then only with respect to the Property that is financed by such Debt, and (iii) documents creating Liens which are described in clause (d), (f), (h) or (i) of the definition of “Excepted Liens”, but then only with respect to the Property that is the subject of the applicable lease, document or license described in such clause (d), (f), (h) or (i)) that in any way prohibits or restricts the granting, conveying, creation or imposition of the Liens on any of its Property in favor of the Collateral Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties that are created pursuant to the Security Instruments to secure the Obligations. Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, create, incur, assume or suffer to exist any contract, agreement or understanding (other than the Loan Documents, the Term Loan Documents and the Senior Notes Documents) that restricts any Restricted Subsidiary from paying dividends or making any other distributions in respect of its Equity Interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any other Restricted Subsidiary.

Section 9.15 Designation and Conversion of Restricted and Unrestricted Subsidiaries .

(a) Any Person that becomes a Subsidiary of the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary shall be a Restricted Subsidiary unless such Person (i) is designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary on Schedule 7.14 , as of the date hereof, (ii) is designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary after the date hereof in compliance with Section 9.15(b) , or (iii) is a subsidiary of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

(b) The Borrower may designate by written notification thereof to the Administrative Agent, any Restricted Subsidiary, including a newly formed or newly acquired Subsidiary, as an Unrestricted Subsidiary if (i) prior, and after giving effect, to such designation, neither a Default nor a Borrowing Base Deficiency would exist and (ii) such designation is deemed to be an Investment in an Unrestricted Subsidiary in an amount equal to the fair market value as of the date of such designation of the Borrower’s direct and indirect ownership interest in such Subsidiary and such Investment would be permitted to be made under Section  9.05 . Except as provided in this Section 9.15(b) , no Restricted Subsidiary may be redesignated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

 

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(c) The Borrower may designate any Unrestricted Subsidiary to be a Restricted Subsidiary if after giving effect to such designation, (i) the representations and warranties of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties contained in each of the Loan Documents are true and correct in all material respects on and as of such date as if made on and as of the date of such redesignation except to the extent (A) any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, on and as of the date of such redesignation, such representations and warranties shall continue to be true and correct as of such specified earlier date and (B) to the extent that any such representation and warranty is expressly qualified by materiality or by reference to Material Adverse Effect, such representation and warranty (as so qualified) shall be true and correct in all respects on and as of the date of such redesignation, (ii) no Event of Default would exist and (iii) the Borrower complies with the requirements of Section  8.14 , Section  8.15 and Section  9.13 . Upon any such designation, an amount equal to the lesser of the fair market value of the Borrower’s direct and indirect ownership interest in such Subsidiary or the amount of the Borrower’s cash investment previously made in such Subsidiary shall be deemed no longer outstanding for purposes of the limitation on Investments under Section  9.05 .

Section 9.16 Non-Qualified ECP Counterparties . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall not permit any Guarantor that is not a Qualified ECP Counterparty to own, at any time, any Borrowing Base Properties. The Borrower shall not permit any Guarantor that is not a Qualified ECP Counterparty to own, at any time, any Equity Interests in any Restricted Subsidiaries.

Section 9.17 Amendments to Senior Debt Documents . Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, amend, modify, waive or otherwise change, consent or agree to any amendment, modification, waiver or other change to any of the terms of the Senior Notes Documents if (a) the effect thereof would be to shorten the maturity of the Senior Notes Debt to a date earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date or to provide a right to require Redemption of any Senior Notes Debt earlier than the date that is 91 days after the Maturity Date, (b) the effect thereof would be to increase the principal amount of such Senior Notes Debt (other than in connection with an additional incurrence of Senior Notes Debt that is permitted under Section 9.02(e) or a refinancing permitted under Section 9.02(f) ), or (c) such action adds or amends any financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or events of default to cause the financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or events of default to be materially more onerous, taken as a whole and as determined by the board of directors of Parent Guarantor, than those in this Agreement without this Agreement being contemporaneously amended to add similar provisions.

Section 9.18 Swap Agreements .

(a) Parent Guarantor and the Borrower will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, enter into or maintain any Swap Agreements with any Person other than:

(i) Swap Agreements with an Approved Counterparty not for speculative purposes in respect of commodities fixing a price for a term of not more than sixty months and the notional volumes for which (when aggregated with other commodity Swap Agreements then in effect other than put or floor options as to which an upfront premium has been paid or basis differential swaps on volumes already hedged pursuant to other Swap Agreements) do not exceed, as of the date such Swap Agreement is executed, eighty-five percent (85%) of the reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil and Gas Properties for each month during the sixty-month period during which such Swap Agreement is in effect for each of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, calculated separately, provided that the Borrower (A) shall have the option to update the reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil

 

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and Gas Properties between the delivery of Reserve Reports hereunder (which updates shall be provided to the Administrative Agent in writing and shall be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent) and (B) shall, without causing a breach of this Section  9.18 , have the option to enter into commodity Swap Agreements with respect to (x) such updated projected production and (y) reasonably anticipated projected production from Oil and Gas Properties not then owned by the Borrower or such Subsidiary but which are subject to a binding purchase agreement for which the Borrower or such Subsidiary is scheduled to acquire such Oil and Gas Properties within the applicable period, provided that, if such purchase agreement does not close for any reason on the date required thereunder, including any binding extensions thereof, within thirty (30) days of such required closing date, the Borrower shall unwind or otherwise terminate the Swap Agreements entered into with respect to production that was to be acquired thereunder; and

(ii) Swap Agreements with an Approved Counterparty not for speculative purposes in respect of interest rates, the notional amounts of which (when aggregated with all other Swap Agreements of the Borrower and its Subsidiaries then in effect) do not exceed eighty-five percent (85%) of the then outstanding principal amount of the Borrower’s Debt for borrowed money. In no event shall any Swap Agreement, other than a master Swap Agreement pursuant to which the Borrower executes only put or floor options as to which an upfront premium has been paid and subject to the limitations set forth in Section 9.03(e) , contain any requirement, agreement or covenant for the Borrower or any Subsidiary to post collateral or margin to secure their obligations under such Swap Agreement other than the benefit of the Security Instruments as contemplated herein.

(b) If, after the end of any calendar month, the Borrower determines that the aggregate notional volume of all Swap Agreements in respect of commodities for such calendar month exceeded 100% of actual production of Hydrocarbons in such calendar month, then the Borrower shall (i) promptly notify the Administrative Agent of such determination, and (ii) if requested by the Administrative Agent (or if otherwise necessary to ensure compliance with Section 9.18(a)(i) ), within 30 days after such request, terminate, create off-setting positions or otherwise unwind or monetize existing Swap Agreements such that, at such time, future volumes under commodity Swap Agreements and future Deemed Transportation Volumes will not exceed 100% of reasonably anticipated projected production for the then-current and any succeeding calendar months.

(c) For all purposes of determining the aggregate volumes of Swap Agreements under this Section  9.18 there shall be no double counting for transactions and agreements in respect of the same volumes that hedge different risks, including without limitation:

(i) for price swaps and basis swaps in respect of the same volumes, such as financial basis swaps between Marcellus and Henry Hub and financial price swaps of floating Henry Hub for a fixed price,

(ii) for financial price swaps and Specified Commodity Sale Contracts that functionally operate as basis swaps in respect of the same volumes,

(iii) for basis swaps that hedge different components of basis risk, such as a Specified Commodity Sale Contract that hedges basis risk between Marcellus and Texas Eastern’s East Louisiana zone and a financial basis hedge that hedges basis risk between Texas Eastern’s East Louisiana zone and Henry Hub.

 

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ARTICLE X

EVENTS OF DEFAULT; REMEDIES

Section 10.01 Events of Default . One or more of the following events shall constitute an “ Event of Default ”:

(a) the Borrower shall fail to pay any principal of any Loan or any reimbursement obligation in respect of any LC Disbursement when and as the same shall become due and payable, whether at the due date thereof or at a date fixed for prepayment thereof, by acceleration or otherwise.

(b) the Borrower shall fail to pay any interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount (other than an amount referred to in Section 10.01(a) ) payable under any Loan Document, when and as the same shall become due and payable, and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of five (5) Business Days.

(c) any representation or warranty made or deemed made by or on behalf of the Borrower or any other Credit Party in or in connection with any Loan Document or any amendment or modification of any Loan Document or waiver under such Loan Document, or in any report, certificate, financial statement or other document furnished pursuant to or in connection with any Loan Document or any amendment or modification thereof or waiver thereunder, shall prove to have been incorrect in any material respect when made or deemed made.

(d) the Borrower shall fail to give notice of any Default as required under Section 8.02(a) , or the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in Section 8.01(c) , (i) or (j) , Section 8.02(b) or (c) , Section 8.03(a) , Section  8.14 , Section  8.18 , Section  8.19 or Article IX .

(e) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to observe or perform any covenant, condition or agreement contained in this Agreement (other than those specified in Section 10.01(a) , Section 10.01(b) or Section 10.01(d) ) or any other Loan Document, and such failure shall continue unremedied for a period of thirty (30) days after the earlier to occur of (i) a Responsible Officer of the Borrower or any other Credit Party having knowledge of such default, or (ii) receipt of notice thereof by the Borrower from the Administrative Agent.

(f) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall fail to make any payment of principal or interest on any Material Debt, when and as the same shall become due and payable, and such failure to pay shall extend beyond any applicable period of grace.

(g) any event or condition occurs that results in any Material Debt becoming due prior to its scheduled maturity or that enables or permits (with or without the giving of notice, the lapse of time or both) the holder or holders of such Material Debt or any trustee or agent on its or their behalf to cause such Material Debt to become due, or to require the Redemption thereof or any offer to Redeem to be made in respect thereof, prior to its scheduled maturity.

(h) an involuntary proceeding shall be commenced or an involuntary petition shall be filed seeking liquidation, reorganization or other relief in respect of the Borrower or any other Credit Party or its debts, or of a substantial part of its assets, under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect or the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any other Credit Party or for a substantial part of its assets, and, in any such case, such proceeding or petition shall continue undismissed for sixty (60) days or an order or decree approving or ordering any of the foregoing shall be entered.

 

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(i) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall voluntarily commence any proceeding or file any petition seeking liquidation, reorganization or other relief under any Federal, state or foreign bankruptcy, insolvency, receivership or similar law now or hereafter in effect, consent to the institution of, or fail to contest in a timely and appropriate manner, any proceeding or petition described in Section 10.01(h) , apply for or consent to the appointment of a receiver, trustee, custodian, sequestrator, conservator or similar official for the Borrower or any other Credit Party or for a substantial part of its assets, file an answer admitting the material allegations of a petition filed against it in any such proceeding, make a general assignment for the benefit of creditors, or take any action for the purpose of effecting any of the foregoing.

(j) the Borrower or any other Credit Party shall become unable, admit in writing its inability or fail generally to pay its debts as they become due.

(k) one or more judgments for the payment of money in an aggregate amount in excess of the Threshold Amount (to the extent not covered by independent third party insurance as to which the insurer, which is not subject to an insolvency proceeding, does not dispute coverage) shall be rendered against the Borrower, any other Credit Party or any combination thereof and the same shall not be either discharged, vacated or stayed within thirty days after becoming a final judgment.

(l) the Loan Documents after delivery thereof shall for any reason, except to the extent permitted by the terms thereof, cease to be in full force and effect and valid, binding and enforceable in accordance with their terms against the Borrower or any other Credit Party party thereto, or shall be repudiated by any of them, or cease to create valid and perfected Liens of the priority required thereby on the Collateral purported to be covered thereby, except to the extent permitted by the terms of this Agreement or the Security Instruments, or the Borrower or any other Credit Party or any of their Affiliates shall so state in writing.

(m) a Change in Control shall occur.

Section 10.02 Remedies .

(a) In the case of an Event of Default other than one described in Section 10.01(h) or Section 10.01(i) , at any time thereafter during the continuance of such Event of Default, the Administrative Agent may, and at the request of the Majority Lenders, shall, by notice to the Borrower, take either or both of the following actions, at the same or different times: (i) terminate the Commitments, and thereupon the Commitments shall terminate immediately, and (ii) declare the Notes and the Loans then outstanding to be due and payable in whole (or in part, in which case any principal not so declared to be due and payable may thereafter be declared to be due and payable), and thereupon the principal of the Loans so declared to be due and payable, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and other obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantors accrued hereunder and under the Notes and the other Loan Documents (including the payment of Cash Collateral to secure the LC Exposure as provided in Section 2.08(j) ), shall become due and payable immediately, without presentment, demand, protest, notice of intent to accelerate, notice of acceleration or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower and each Guarantor; and in case of an Event of Default described in Section 10.01(h) or Section 10.01(i) , the Commitments shall automatically terminate and the Notes and the principal of the Loans then outstanding, together with accrued interest thereon and all fees and the other obligations of the Borrower and the Guarantors accrued hereunder and under the Notes and the other Loan Documents (including the payment of Cash Collateral to secure the LC Exposure as provided in Section 2.08(j) ), shall

 

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automatically become due and payable, without presentment, demand, protest, notice of intent to accelerate, notice of acceleration or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby waived by the Borrower and each Guarantor.

(b) In the case of the occurrence of an Event of Default, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders will have all other rights and remedies available at law and equity.

(c) All proceeds realized from the liquidation or other disposition of Collateral or otherwise received after maturity of the Notes, whether by acceleration or otherwise, shall be applied:

(i) first , to payment or reimbursement of that portion of the Obligations constituting fees, expenses and indemnities payable to the Administrative Agent in its capacity as such;

(ii) second , pro rata to payment or reimbursement of that portion of the Obligations constituting fees, expenses and indemnities payable to the Lenders;

(iii) third , pro rata to payment of accrued interest on the Loans;

(iv) fourth , pro rata to payment of principal outstanding on the Loans, to serve as Cash Collateral to secure outstanding LC Exposure, to payment of Secured Swap Obligations then due and owing to Secured Swap Parties and to payment of Obligations then due and owing to Treasury Management Lenders under Lender Treasury Management Agreements;

(v) fifth , pro rata to any other Obligations;

(vi) sixth , any excess, after all of the Obligations shall have been indefeasibly paid in full in cash, shall be paid to the Borrower or as otherwise required by any Governmental Requirement.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, amounts received from the Borrower or any Guarantor that is not an “eligible contract participant” under the Commodity Exchange Act shall not be applied to any Excluded Swap Obligations (it being understood, that in the event that any amount is applied to Obligations other than Excluded Swap Obligations as a result of this clause, the Administrative Agent shall make such adjustments as it determines are appropriate to distributions pursuant to clause fourth above from amounts received from “eligible contract participants” under the Commodity Exchange Act to ensure, as nearly as possible, that the proportional aggregate recoveries with respect to Obligations described in clause fourth above by the holders of any Excluded Swap Obligations are the same as the proportional aggregate recoveries with respect to other Obligations pursuant to clause fourth above).

ARTICLE XI

THE AGENTS

Section 11.01 Appointment; Powers . Each of the Lenders and the Issuing Bank hereby irrevocably appoints the Administrative Agent as its agent to act on its behalf as the administrative agent hereunder and under the other Loan Documents and authorizes the Administrative Agent to take such actions on its behalf and to exercise such powers as are delegated to the Administrative Agent by the terms hereof and the other Loan Documents, together with such actions and powers as are reasonably incidental thereto.

Section 11.02 Duties and Obligations of Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall not have any duties or obligations except those expressly set forth in the Loan Documents. Without

 

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limiting the generality of the foregoing: (a) the Administrative Agent shall not be subject to any fiduciary or other implied duties, regardless of whether a Default has occurred and is continuing (the use of the term “agent” herein and in the other Loan Documents with reference to the Administrative Agent is not intended to connote any fiduciary or other implied (or express) obligations arising under agency doctrine of any applicable law; rather, such term is used as a matter of market custom, and is intended to create or reflect only an administrative relationship between independent contracting parties), (b) the Administrative Agent shall have no duty to take any discretionary action or exercise any discretionary powers, except as provided in Section  11.03 , and (c) except as expressly set forth herein, the Administrative Agent shall not have any duty to disclose, and shall not be liable for the failure to disclose, any information relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Subsidiaries that is communicated to or obtained by the bank serving as Administrative Agent or any of its Affiliates in any capacity. The Administrative Agent shall be deemed not to have knowledge of any Default unless and until written notice thereof is given to the Administrative Agent by the Borrower or a Lender, and shall not be responsible for or have any duty to ascertain or inquire into: (i) any statement, warranty or representation made in or in connection with this Agreement or any other Loan Document, (ii) the contents of any certificate, report or other document delivered hereunder or under any other Loan Document or in connection herewith or therewith, (iii) the performance or observance of any of the covenants, agreements or other terms or conditions set forth herein or in any other Loan Document, (iv) the validity, enforceability, effectiveness or genuineness of this Agreement, any other Loan Document or any other agreement, instrument or document, (v) the satisfaction of any condition set forth in Article VI or elsewhere herein, other than to confirm receipt of items expressly required to be delivered to the Administrative Agent or as to those conditions precedent expressly required to be to the Administrative Agent’s satisfaction, (vi) the existence, value, perfection or priority of any collateral security or the financial or other condition of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the Borrower’s Subsidiaries or any other obligor or guarantor, or (vii) any failure by the Borrower or any other Person (other than itself) to perform any of its obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document or the performance or observance of any covenants, agreements or other terms or conditions set forth herein or therein. For purposes of determining compliance with the conditions specified in Article VI , each Lender shall be deemed to have consented to, approved or accepted or to be satisfied with, each document or other matter required thereunder to be consented to or approved by or acceptable or satisfactory to a Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received written notice from such Lender prior to the proposed closing date specifying its objection thereto.

Section 11.03 Action by Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall have no duty to take any discretionary action or exercise any discretionary powers, except discretionary rights and powers expressly contemplated hereby or by the other Loan Documents that the Administrative Agent is required to exercise in writing as directed by the Majority Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ) and in all cases the Administrative Agent shall be fully justified in failing or refusing to act hereunder or under any other Loan Documents unless it shall (a) receive written instructions from the Majority Lenders, the Required Lenders or the Lenders, as applicable, (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ) specifying the action to be taken and (b) be indemnified to its satisfaction by the Lenders against any and all liability and expenses which may be incurred by it by reason of taking or continuing to take any such action. The instructions as aforesaid and any action taken or failure to act pursuant thereto by the Administrative Agent shall be binding on all of the Lenders. If a Default has occurred and is continuing, then the Administrative Agent shall take such action with respect to such Default as shall be directed by the requisite Lenders in the written instructions (with indemnities) described in this Section  11.03 , provided that, unless and until the Administrative Agent shall have received such directions, the Administrative Agent may (but shall not be obligated to) take such action, or refrain from taking such action, with respect to such Default as it shall deem advisable in the best interests of the Lenders. In no event, however, shall the Administrative Agent be

 

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required to take any action that, in its opinion or the opinion of its counsel, exposes the Administrative Agent to personal liability or which is contrary to this Agreement, the Loan Documents or applicable law, including for the avoidance of doubt any action that may be in violation of the automatic stay under any bankruptcy or insolvency law or that may effect a forfeiture, modification or termination of property of a Defaulting Lender in violation of any bankruptcy or insolvency law. If a Default has occurred and is continuing, no syndication agents or documentation agent shall have any obligation to perform any act in respect thereof. The Administrative Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it with the consent or at the request of the Majority Lenders, the Required Lenders or the Lenders (or such other number or percentage of the Lenders as shall be necessary under the circumstances as provided in Section  12.02 ), and otherwise the Administrative Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it hereunder or under any other Loan Document or under any other document or instrument referred to or provided for herein or therein or in connection herewith or therewith INCLUDING ITS OWN ORDINARY NEGLIGENCE, except for its own gross negligence or willful misconduct as determined in a final, non-appealable judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Section 11.04 Reliance by Administrative Agent . The Administrative Agent shall be entitled to rely upon, and shall not incur any liability for relying upon, any notice, request, certificate, consent, statement, instrument, document or other writing (including any electronic message, Internet or intranet website posting or other distribution) believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed, sent or otherwise authenticated by the proper Person. The Administrative Agent also may rely upon any statement made to it orally or by telephone and believed by it to be made by the proper Person, and shall not incur any liability for relying thereon. In determining compliance with any condition hereunder to the making of a Loan that by its terms must be fulfilled to the satisfaction of a Lender, the Administrative Agent may presume that such condition is satisfactory to such Lender unless the Administrative Agent shall have received notice to the contrary from such Lender prior to the making of such Loan. The Administrative Agent may consult with legal counsel (who may be counsel for the Borrower), independent accountants and other experts selected by it, and shall not be liable for any action taken or not taken by it in accordance with the advice of any such counsel, accountants or experts. The Administrative Agent may deem and treat the payee of any Note as the holder thereof for all purposes hereof unless and until a written notice of the assignment or transfer thereof permitted hereunder shall have been filed with the Administrative Agent.

Section 11.05 Sub-agents . The Administrative Agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers by or through any one or more sub-agents appointed by the Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent may perform any and all its duties and exercise its rights and powers through their respective Related Parties. The exculpatory provisions of the preceding Sections of this Article XI shall apply to any such sub-agent and to the Related Parties of the Administrative Agent and any such sub-agent, and shall apply to their respective activities in connection with the syndication of the credit facilities provided for herein as well as activities as Administrative Agent. The Administrative Agent shall not be responsible for the negligence or misconduct of any sub-agents except to the extent that a court of competent jurisdiction determines in a final and nonappealable judgment that the Administrative Agent acted with gross negligence or willful misconduct in the selection of such sub-agents.

Section 11.06 Resignation or Removal of Administrative Agent . Subject to the appointment and acceptance of a successor Administrative Agent as provided in this Section  11.06 , the Administrative Agent may resign at any time by notifying the Lenders, the Issuing Bank and the Borrower, and the Administrative Agent may be removed by the Majority Lenders if the Administrative Agent in its capacity as a Lender is a Defaulting Lender pursuant to clause (d) of the definition thereof. Upon any such resignation or removal, the Majority Lenders shall have the right, in consultation with the Borrower, to appoint a successor. If no successor shall have been so appointed by the Majority Lenders and shall

 

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have accepted such appointment within 30 days after the retiring Administrative Agent gives notice of its resignation or removal of the retiring Administrative Agent, then the retiring Administrative Agent may, on behalf of the Lenders and the Issuing Bank, appoint a successor Administrative Agent which shall be a bank with an office in New York, New York, or an Affiliate of any such bank. Upon the acceptance of its appointment as Administrative Agent hereunder by a successor, such successor shall succeed to and become vested with all the rights, powers, privileges and duties of the retiring Administrative Agent, and the retiring Administrative Agent shall be discharged from its duties and obligations hereunder and under the other Loan Documents. The fees payable by the Borrower to a successor Administrative Agent shall be the same as those payable to its predecessor unless otherwise agreed between the Borrower and such successor. After the Administrative Agent’s resignation hereunder, the provisions of this Article XI and Section  12.03 shall continue in effect for the benefit of such retiring Administrative Agent, its sub-agents and their respective Related Parties in respect of any actions taken or omitted to be taken by any of them while it was acting as Administrative Agent.

Section 11.07 Agents as Lenders . Each bank serving as an Agent hereunder shall have the same rights and powers in its capacity as a Lender as any other Lender and may exercise the same as though it were not an Agent, and such bank and its Affiliates may accept deposits from, lend money to, own securities of, act as the financial advisor or in any other advisory capacity for and generally engage in any kind of business with Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary of the Borrower or other Affiliate thereof as if it were not an Agent hereunder and without any duty to account therefor to the Lenders.

Section 11.08 No Reliance . (a) Each Lender acknowledges that it has, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it has deemed appropriate, made its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Agreement and each other Loan Document to which it is a party. Each Lender also acknowledges that it will, independently and without reliance upon the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or any other Lender and based on such documents and information as it shall from time to time deem appropriate, continue to make its own decisions in taking or not taking action under or based upon this Agreement, any other Loan Document, any related agreement or any document furnished hereunder or thereunder. The Agents shall not be required to keep themselves informed as to the performance or observance by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Subsidiaries of this Agreement, the Loan Documents or any other document referred to or provided for herein or to inspect the Properties or books of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or the Borrower’s Subsidiaries. Except for notices, reports and other documents and information expressly required to be furnished to the Lenders by the Administrative Agent hereunder, no Agent or the Arrangers shall have any duty or responsibility to provide any Lender with any credit or other information concerning the affairs, financial condition or business of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower (or any of their Affiliates) which may come into the possession of such Agent or any of its Affiliates. In this regard, each Lender acknowledges that Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting in this transaction as special counsel to the Administrative Agent only, except to the extent otherwise expressly stated in any legal opinion or any Loan Document. Each other party hereto will consult with its own legal counsel to the extent that it deems necessary in connection with the Loan Documents and the matters contemplated therein.

(b) The Lenders acknowledge that the Administrative Agent is acting solely in administrative capacities with respect to the structuring of this Agreement and has no duties, responsibilities or liabilities under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents other than their administrative duties, responsibilities and liabilities specifically as set forth in the Loan Documents and, if applicable, in its capacity as Lenders hereunder. In structuring, arranging or syndicating this Agreement, each Lender acknowledges that the Administrative Agent may be a lender hereunder and under other loans or other securities and waives any existing or future conflicts of interest associated with the their

 

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role in such other debt instruments. If in its administration of this facility or any other debt instrument, the Administrative Agent determines (or is given written notice by any Lender) that a conflict exists, then it shall eliminate such conflict within 90 days or resign pursuant to Section  11.06 and shall have no liability for action taken or not taken while such conflict existed.

Section 11.09 Administrative Agent May File Proofs of Claim . In case of the pendency of any receivership, insolvency, liquidation, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, adjustment, composition or other judicial proceeding relative to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of the Restricted Subsidiaries, the Administrative Agent (irrespective of whether the principal of any Loan shall then be due and payable as herein expressed or by declaration or otherwise and irrespective of whether the Administrative Agent shall have made any demand on the Borrower) shall be entitled and empowered (but not obligated), by intervention in such proceeding or otherwise:

(a) to file and prove a claim for the whole amount of the principal and interest owing and unpaid in respect of the Loans and all other Obligations that are owing and unpaid and to file such other documents as may be necessary or advisable in order to have the claims of the Lenders and the Administrative Agent (including any claim for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Lenders and the Administrative Agent and their respective agents and counsel and all other amounts due the Lenders and the Administrative Agent under Section  12.03 ) allowed in such judicial proceeding; and

(b) to collect and receive any monies or other property payable or deliverable on any such claims and to distribute the same.

Any custodian, receiver, assignee, trustee, liquidator, sequestrator or other similar official in any such judicial proceeding is hereby authorized by each Lender to make such payments to the Administrative Agent and, in the event that the Administrative Agent shall consent to the making of such payments directly to the Lenders, to pay to the Administrative Agent any amount due for the reasonable compensation, expenses, disbursements and advances of the Administrative Agent and its agents and counsel, and any other amounts due the Administrative Agent under Section  12.03 .

Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to authorize the Administrative Agent to authorize or consent to or accept or adopt on behalf of any Lender any plan of reorganization, arrangement, adjustment or composition affecting the Obligations or the rights of any Lender or to authorize the Administrative Agent to vote in respect of the claim of any Lender in any such proceeding.

Section 11.10 Authority of Administrative Agent to Release Collateral and Liens .

(a) Each Lender and the Issuing Bank hereby authorizes the Administrative Agent to take the following actions and the Administrative Agent hereby agrees to take such actions at the request of the Borrower:

(i) to release any Lien on any property granted to or held by Administrative Agent under any Loan Document (w) upon (A) termination of all Commitments and payment in full of all Obligations (other than contingent indemnification obligations) owing to the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders under the Loan Documents and owing to any Secured Swap Party under any Secured Swap Agreement (other than any Issuing Bank or Secured Swap Party that has advised the Administrative Agent that the Obligations owing to it are otherwise adequately provided for or novated), and (B) termination of all Swap Agreements with Secured Swap Parties (other than any Secured Swap Party that has advised the Administrative Agent that such Swap Agreements are otherwise adequately provided for or novated), (x) that is, or is to be, sold, released or otherwise disposed of as permitted

 

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pursuant to the terms of the Loan Documents, (y) if approved, authorized or ratified in writing by the Majority Lenders (or, if approval, authorization or ratification by all Lenders is required under Section 12.02(b) , then by all Lenders) or (z) after receipt by the Borrower of at least two of the Required Ratings, at the request of the Borrower in connection with its election that an Investment Grade Period shall commence;

(ii) to subordinate (or release) any Lien on any Property granted to or held by the Administrative Agent under any Loan Document to any Lien on such Property that is permitted by Section 9.03(c) ;

(iii) to release any Guarantor from its obligations under the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement and the other Loan Documents if such Person ceases to be a Restricted Subsidiary as a result of a transaction permitted under the Loan Documents; and

(iv) to execute and deliver to the Borrower, at the Borrower’s sole cost and expense, any and all releases of Liens, termination statements, assignments or other documents necessary or useful to accomplish or evidence the foregoing.

(b) Upon the request of the Administrative Agent at any time, the Majority Lenders will confirm in writing the Administrative Agent’s authority to release particular types or items of Collateral pursuant to this Section  11.10 .

(c) Except as otherwise provided in Section  12.08 with respect to rights of setoff, and notwithstanding any other provision contained in any of the Loan Documents to the contrary, no Person other than the Administrative Agent has any right to realize upon any of the Collateral individually, to enforce any Liens on Collateral, or to enforce the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, and all powers, rights and remedies under the Security Instruments may be exercised solely by Administrative Agent on behalf of the Persons secured or otherwise benefitted thereby.

(d) By accepting the benefit of the Liens granted pursuant to the Security Instruments, each Person secured by such Liens that is not a party hereto agrees to the terms of this Section  11.10 .

Section 11.11 The Arrangers, the Syndication Agent and the Documentation Agent . The Arrangers and any other arranger, syndication agent or documentation agent hereafter appointed shall have no duties, responsibilities or liabilities under this Agreement and the other Loan Documents other than their duties, responsibilities and liabilities in their capacity as Lenders hereunder.

ARTICLE XII

MISCELLANEOUS

Section 12.01 Notices .

(a) Except in the case of notices and other communications expressly permitted to be given by telephone (and subject to Section 12.01(b) ), all notices and other communications provided for herein shall be in writing and shall be delivered by hand or overnight courier service, mailed by certified or registered mail or sent by facsimile, to it at its address set forth on Schedule 12.01 , and if to any Lender other than Barclays Bank PLC, to it at its address (or facsimile number) set forth in its Administrative Questionnaire.

 

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(b) Notices and other communications to the Lenders hereunder may be delivered or furnished by electronic communications (including e-mail and Internet or intranet websites) pursuant to procedures approved by the Administrative Agent; provided that the foregoing shall not apply to notices pursuant to Article II , III , IV or V , unless otherwise agreed by the Administrative Agent and the applicable Lender, if any, in writing. The Administrative Agent or the Borrower may, in its discretion, agree to accept notices and other communications to it hereunder by electronic communications pursuant to procedures approved by it, provided that approval of such procedures may be limited to particular notices or communications.

(c) Any party hereto may change its address or facsimile number for notices and other communications hereunder by notice to the other parties hereto. All notices and other communications given to any party hereto in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement shall be deemed to have been given on the date of receipt.

(d) The Administrative Agent and the Lenders shall be entitled to rely and act upon any notices (including telephonic notices) purportedly given by or on behalf of the Borrower even if (i) such notices were not made in a manner specified herein, were incomplete or were not preceded or followed by any other form of notice specified herein or (ii) the terms thereof, as understood by the recipient, varied from any confirmation thereof. All telephonic notices to and telephonic communications with the Administrative Agent may be recorded by the Administrative Agent, and each of the parties hereby consents to such recording.

Section 12.02 Waivers; Amendments .

(a) No failure on the part of the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender to exercise and no delay in exercising, and no course of dealing with respect to, any right, power or privilege, or any abandonment or discontinuance of steps to enforce such right, power or privilege, under any of the Loan Documents shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right, power or privilege under any of the Loan Documents preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, power or privilege. The rights and remedies of the Administrative Agent, any other Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders hereunder and under the other Loan Documents are cumulative and are not exclusive of any rights or remedies that they would otherwise have. No waiver of any provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document or consent to any departure by the Borrower therefrom shall in any event be effective unless the same shall be permitted by Section 12.02(b) , and then such waiver or consent shall be effective only in the specific instance and for the purpose for which given. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the making of a Loan or issuance of a Letter of Credit shall not be construed as a waiver of any Default, regardless of whether the Administrative Agent, any other Agent, any Lender or the Issuing Bank may have had notice or knowledge of such Default at the time.

(b) Neither this Agreement nor any provision hereof nor any Security Instrument nor any provision thereof may be waived, amended or modified except pursuant to an agreement or agreements in writing entered into by the Borrower and the Majority Lenders or by the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with the consent of the Majority Lenders; provided that no such agreement shall (i) increase the Commitment of any Lender without the written consent of such Lender, (ii) increase the Borrowing Base without the written consent of each Lender (other than any Defaulting Lender), (iii) decrease or maintain the Borrowing Base, or reduce the percentages set forth in Section 8.14(a) or Section 8.19(b) to less than 85% or 50% as set forth in such Sections, without the consent of the Required Lenders, (iv) reduce the principal amount of any Loan or LC Disbursement or reduce the rate of interest thereon, or reduce any fees payable hereunder, or reduce any other Obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document, without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby, (v) postpone the

 

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scheduled date of payment or prepayment of the principal amount of any Loan or LC Disbursement, or any interest thereon, or any fees payable hereunder, or any other Obligations hereunder or under any other Loan Document, or reduce the amount of, waive or excuse any such payment, or postpone or extend the Termination Date or the Maturity Date without the written consent of each Lender affected thereby, (vi) change Section 4.01(b) , Section 4.01(c) , the definition of “Applicable Percentage” or any other term or condition hereof in a manner that would alter the pro rata sharing of payments required thereby, without the written consent of each Lender, (vii) waive or amend Section 3.04(c) , Section  6.01 or Section 10.02(c) , without the written consent of each Lender, (viii) release any Guarantor (except as set forth in the Guaranty and Collateral Agreement or in this Agreement), or release all or substantially all of the Collateral (other than as provided in Section  11.10 ), without the written consent of each Lender (other than a Defaulting Lender), or (ix) change any of the provisions of this Section 12.02(b) or the definitions of “Required Lenders”, “Majority Lenders” or “Super Majority Lenders” or any other provision hereof specifying the number or percentage of Lenders required to waive, amend or modify any rights hereunder or under any other Loan Documents or make any determination or grant any consent hereunder or any other Loan Documents, without the written consent of each Lender; provided further that no such agreement shall amend, modify or otherwise affect the rights or duties of the Administrative Agent, any other Agent or the Issuing Bank hereunder or under any other Loan Document without the prior written consent of the Administrative Agent, such other Agent or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (1) any supplement to Schedule 7.14 shall be effective simply by delivering to the Administrative Agent a supplemental schedule clearly marked as such and, upon receipt, the Administrative Agent will promptly deliver a copy thereof to the Lenders, (2) the Borrower and the Administrative Agent may amend this Agreement or any other Loan Document without the consent of the Lenders (unless the Majority Lenders object in writing within 5 Business Days of notice by the Administrative Agent of such amendment) in order to correct, amend or cure any ambiguity, inconsistency or defect or correct any typographical error or other manifest error in any Loan Document or to modify or add financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or Events of Default to cause such financial ratio covenants, negative covenants or Events of Default to be more onerous to the Borrower than those contained in this Agreement (prior to giving effect to such amendment) in connection with any amendment, modification or other change to the Senior Debt Documents pursuant Section 9.17(c) , and (3) the Administrative Agent and the Borrower may, without the consent of any Lender, enter into any amendment, modification or waiver of this Agreement or any other Loan Document or enter into any agreement or instrument to add additional Guarantors as contemplated in Section 8.14(b) or to effect the granting, perfection, protection, expansion or enhancement of any security interest in any Collateral or Property to become Collateral to secure the Obligations for the benefit of the Lenders or as required by any Governmental Requirement to give effect to, protect or otherwise enhance the rights or benefits of any Lender under the Loan Documents. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Schedule 1.02 may be amended to add an Issuing Bank, remove an Issuing Bank or modify the LC Issuance Limit of any Issuing Bank, provided that no such modification shall result in an increase of the LC Commitment, with the consent solely of the Borrower, the Administrative Agent and such Issuing Bank (and the consent of the Majority Lenders shall not be required).

Section 12.03 Expenses, Indemnity; Damage Waiver .

(a) The Borrower shall pay (i) all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Administrative Agent and its Affiliates (including the reasonable fees, charges and disbursements of counsel and other outside consultants for the Administrative Agent, the reasonable travel, photocopy, mailing, courier, telephone and other similar expenses, and the cost of environmental assessments and audits and surveys and appraisals) in connection with the syndication of the credit facilities provided for herein, the preparation, negotiation, execution, delivery and administration (both before and after the execution hereof and including advice of counsel to the Administrative Agent as to the rights and duties of the Administrative Agent and the Lenders with respect thereto) of this Agreement

 

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and the other Loan Documents and any amendments, modifications or waivers of or consents related to the provisions hereof or thereof (whether or not the transactions contemplated hereby or thereby shall be consummated), (ii) all costs, expenses, Taxes, assessments and other charges incurred by the Administrative Agent (or any sub-agent thereof) in connection with any filing, registration, recording or perfection of any security interest contemplated by this Agreement or any Security Instrument or any other document referred to therein, (iii) all reasonable and documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Issuing Bank in connection with the issuance, amendment, renewal or extension of any Letter of Credit or any demand for payment thereunder, and (iv) all out-of-pocket expenses incurred by any Agent or the Issuing Bank or, during the continuance of any Event of Default, by any Lender (including the fees, charges and disbursements of one counsel for any Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender) in connection with the enforcement or protection of its rights under this Agreement or any other Loan Document, including its rights under this Section  12.03 , or in connection with the Loans made or Letters of Credit issued hereunder, and including all such out-of-pocket expenses incurred during any workout, restructuring or negotiations in respect of such Loans or Letters of Credit.

(b) THE BORROWER SHALL INDEMNIFY EACH AGENT (AND ANY SUB-AGENT THEREOF), THE ARRANGERS, THE ISSUING BANK AND EACH LENDER, AND EACH RELATED PARTY OF ANY OF THE FOREGOING PERSONS (EACH SUCH PERSON BEING CALLED AN INDEMNITEE ) AGAINST, AND DEFEND AND HOLD EACH INDEMNITEE HARMLESS FROM, ANY AND ALL LOSSES, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, PENALTIES, LIABILITIES AND RELATED EXPENSES, INCLUDING THE REASONABLE FEES, CHARGES AND DISBURSEMENTS OF ANY COUNSEL FOR ANY INDEMNITEE (BUT LIMITED IN THE CASE OF LEGAL FEES AND EXPENSES TO REASONABLE AND DOCUMENTED OUT-OF-POCKET FEES, DISBURSEMENTS AND OTHER CHARGES OF ONE COUNSEL TO ALL INDEMNITEES TAKEN AS A WHOLE AND, IF NECESSARY, ONE LOCAL COUNSEL FOR ALL INDEMNITEES TAKEN AS A WHOLE IN EACH RELEVANT JURISDICTION, AND IN THE CASE OF AN ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED CONFLICT OF INTEREST, ONE ADDITIONAL COUNSEL AND (IF REASONABLY NECESSARY) ONE LOCAL COUNSEL IN EACH RELEVANT JURISDICTION TO THE AFFECTED INDEMNITEES SIMILARLY SITUATED), INCURRED BY OR ASSERTED AGAINST ANY INDEMNITEE ARISING OUT OF, IN CONNECTION WITH, OR AS A RESULT OF (i)  THE EXECUTION OR DELIVERY OF THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT OR ANY AGREEMENT OR INSTRUMENT CONTEMPLATED HEREBY OR THEREBY, (ii)  THE PERFORMANCE BY THE PARTIES HERETO OR THE PARTIES TO ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OBLIGATIONS HEREUNDER OR THEREUNDER OR THE CONSUMMATION OF THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY OR BY ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT, (iii)  THE FAILURE OF THE BORROWER OR ANY RESTRICTED SUBSIDIARY TO COMPLY WITH THE TERMS OF ANY LOAN DOCUMENT, INCLUDING THIS AGREEMENT, OR WITH ANY GOVERNMENTAL REQUIREMENT, (iv)  ANY INACCURACY OF ANY REPRESENTATION OR ANY BREACH OF ANY WARRANTY OR COVENANT OF THE BORROWER OR ANY GUARANTOR SET FORTH IN ANY OF THE LOAN DOCUMENTS OR ANY INSTRUMENTS, DOCUMENTS OR CERTIFICATIONS DELIVERED IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, (v)  ANY LOAN OR LETTER OF CREDIT OR THE USE OF THE PROCEEDS THEREFROM, INCLUDING ANY REFUSAL BY THE ISSUING BANK TO HONOR A DEMAND FOR PAYMENT UNDER A LETTER OF CREDIT IF THE DOCUMENTS PRESENTED IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH DEMAND DO NOT STRICTLY COMPLY WITH THE TERMS OF SUCH LETTER OF CREDIT, OR ANY OTHER ASPECT OF THE LOAN DOCUMENTS, (vi)  THE OPERATIONS OF THE BUSINESS OF THE BORROWER AND THE BORROWER S SUBSIDIARIES BY SUCH PERSON, (vii)  ANY ASSERTION THAT THE LENDERS WERE NOT ENTITLED TO RECEIVE THE PROCEEDS RECEIVED PURSUANT TO THE SECURITY INSTRUMENTS, (viii)  ANY ENVIRONMENTAL

 

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LAW APPLICABLE TO THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OR ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES OR OPERATIONS, INCLUDING, THE PRESENCE, GENERATION, STORAGE, RELEASE, THREATENED RELEASE, USE, TRANSPORT, DISPOSAL, ARRANGEMENT OF DISPOSAL OR TREATMENT OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR AT ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES, (ix) THE BREACH OR NON-COMPLIANCE BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY WITH ANY ENVIRONMENTAL LAW APPLICABLE TO THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY, (x) THE PAST OWNERSHIP BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OF ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES OR PAST ACTIVITY ON ANY OF THEIR PROPERTIES WHICH, THOUGH LAWFUL AND FULLY PERMISSIBLE AT THE TIME, COULD RESULT IN PRESENT LIABILITY, (xi) THE PRESENCE, USE, RELEASE, STORAGE, TREATMENT, DISPOSAL, GENERATION, THREATENED RELEASE, TRANSPORT, ARRANGEMENT FOR TRANSPORT OR ARRANGEMENT FOR DISPOSAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR AT ANY OF THE PROPERTIES OWNED OR OPERATED BY THE BORROWER OR ANY SUBSIDIARY OR ANY ACTUAL OR ALLEGED PRESENCE OR RELEASE OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS ON OR FROM ANY PROPERTY OWNED OR OPERATED BY THE BORROWER OR ANY OF THE BORROWER’S SUBSIDIARIES, (xii) ANY ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITY RELATED IN ANY WAY TO THE BORROWER OR ANY OF THE BORROWER’S SUBSIDIARIES, OR ANY OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH OR SAFETY CONDITION IN CONNECTION WITH THE LOAN DOCUMENTS, OR (xiii) ANY ACTUAL OR PROSPECTIVE CLAIM, LITIGATION, INVESTIGATION OR PROCEEDING RELATING TO ANY OF THE FOREGOING, AND REGARDLESS OF WHETHER ANY INDEMNITEE IS A PARTY THERETO OR WHETHER BROUGHT BY THE BORROWER, ANY GUARANTOR OR ANY OTHER PARTY, AND SUCH INDEMNITY SHALL EXTEND TO EACH INDEMNITEE NOTWITHSTANDING THE SOLE OR CONCURRENT NEGLIGENCE OF EVERY KIND OR CHARACTER WHATSOEVER, WHETHER ACTIVE OR PASSIVE, WHETHER AN AFFIRMATIVE ACT OR AN OMISSION, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL TYPES OF NEGLIGENT CONDUCT IDENTIFIED IN THE RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF TORTS OF ONE OR MORE OF THE INDEMNITEES OR BY REASON OF STRICT LIABILITY IMPOSED WITHOUT FAULT ON ANY ONE OR MORE OF THE INDEMNITEES; PROVIDED THAT SUCH INDEMNITY SHALL NOT, AS TO ANY INDEMNITEE, BE AVAILABLE TO THE EXTENT THAT SUCH LOSSES, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, LIABILITIES OR RELATED EXPENSES ARE DETERMINED BY A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION BY FINAL AND NONAPPEALABLE JUDGMENT TO HAVE RESULTED FROM THE BAD FAITH, GROSS NEGLIGENCE OR WILLFUL MISCONDUCT OF ANY INDEMNITEE.

(c) To the extent that the Borrower fails to pay any amount required to be paid by it to any Agent (or any sub-agent thereof), the Arrangers or the Issuing Bank under Section 12.03(a) or (b)  or any Related Party of the foregoing, each Lender severally agrees to pay to such Agent (or any such sub-agent), the Arrangers or the Issuing Bank, as the case may be, such Lender’s Applicable Percentage (determined as of the time that the applicable unreimbursed expense or indemnity payment is sought) of such unpaid amount (including any such unpaid amount in respect of a claim asserted by such Lender); provided that the unreimbursed expense or indemnified loss, claim, damage, liability or related expense, as the case may be, was incurred by or asserted against such Agent (or any sub-agent thereof), the Arrangers or the Issuing Bank in its capacity as such.

(d) All amounts due under this Section  12.03 shall be payable not later than thirty (30) days after written demand therefor.

(e) Each party’s obligations under this Section  12.03 shall survive the termination of the Loan Documents and payment of the obligations hereunder.

 

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Section 12.04 Successors and Assigns; No Third Party Beneficiaries .

(a) The provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby (including any Affiliate of the Issuing Bank that issues any Letter of Credit), except that the Borrower may not assign or otherwise transfer any of its rights or obligations hereunder without the prior written consent of Administrative Agent and each Lender and no Lender may assign or otherwise transfer its rights or obligations hereunder except in accordance with this Section  12.04 . Nothing in this Agreement, expressed or implied, shall be construed to confer upon any Person (other than the parties hereto, their respective successors and assigns permitted hereby (including any Affiliate of the Issuing Bank that issues any Letter of Credit), Participants (to the extent provided in Section 12.04(c) ) and, to the extent expressly contemplated hereby, the Related Parties of each of the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders) any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or by reason of this Agreement, and except for the foregoing Persons there are no third party beneficiaries to this Agreement.

(b) (i) Subject to the conditions set forth in Section 12.04(b)(ii) , any Lender may assign to one or more assignees all or a portion of its rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of its Commitment and the Loans at the time owing to it) with the prior written consent (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed) of:

(A) the Borrower; provided that (i) no consent of the Borrower shall be required if such assignment is to a Lender, an Affiliate of a Lender, an Approved Fund or if an Event of Default under Section 10.01(a) , (h) or (i)  has occurred and is continuing and (ii) if the Borrower has not responded within ten (10) Business Days after the delivery of any such request for a consent, such consent shall be deemed to have been given; and

(B) the Administrative Agent and each Issuing Bank; provided that no consent of the Administrative Agent shall be required for an assignment to an assignee that is a Lender immediately prior to giving effect to such assignment.

(ii) Assignments shall be subject to the following additional conditions:

(A) except in the case of an assignment to a Lender or an Affiliate of a Lender or an assignment of the entire remaining amount of the assigning Lender’s Commitment or Loans, the amount of the Commitment or Loans of the assigning Lender subject to each such assignment (determined as of the date the Assignment and Assumption with respect to such assignment is delivered to the Administrative Agent) shall not be less than $1,000,000 unless each of the Borrower and the Administrative Agent otherwise consent; provided that no such consent of the Borrower shall be required if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing;

(B) each partial assignment shall be made as an assignment of a proportionate part of all the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement;

(C) the parties to each assignment shall execute and deliver to the Administrative Agent an Assignment and Assumption, together with a processing and recordation fee of $3,500; provided that the Administrative Agent may, in its sole discretion, elect to waive such processing and recordation fee in the case of any assignment;

(D) the assignee, if it shall not be a Lender, shall deliver to the Administrative Agent an Administrative Questionnaire;

 

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(E) no such assignment shall be made to a natural person, an Industry Competitor, or the Borrower or any of the Borrower’s Affiliates or Subsidiaries; and

(F) no such assignment shall be made to a Defaulting Lender or any of its subsidiaries, or any Person who, upon becoming a Lender hereunder, would constitute a Defaulting Lender or a Subsidiary of a Defaulting Lender.

(iii) Subject to Section 12.04(b)(iv) and the acceptance and recording thereof by the Administrative Agent, from and after the effective date specified in each Assignment and Assumption the assignee thereunder shall be a party hereto and, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, have the rights and obligations of a Lender under this Agreement, and the assigning Lender thereunder shall, to the extent of the interest assigned by such Assignment and Assumption, be released from its obligations under this Agreement (and, in the case of an Assignment and Assumption covering all of the assigning Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement, such Lender shall cease to be a party hereto) but shall continue to be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 with respect to facts and circumstances occurring prior to the effective date of such assignment; provided , that except to the extent otherwise expressly agreed by the affected parties, no assignment by a Defaulting Lender will constitute a waiver or release of any claim of any party hereunder arising from that Lender’s having been a Defaulting Lender. Any assignment or transfer by a Lender of rights or obligations under this Agreement that does not comply with this Section  12.04 shall be treated for purposes of this Agreement as a sale by such Lender of a participation in such rights and obligations in accordance with Section 12.04(c) .

(iv) The Administrative Agent, acting for this purpose as a non-fiduciary agent of the Borrower, shall maintain at one of its offices a copy of each Assignment and Assumption delivered to it and a register for the recordation of the names and addresses of the Lenders, and the Commitment of, and principal amount of the Loans and of the LC Disbursements owing to, each Lender pursuant to the terms hereof from time to time (the “ Register ”). The entries in the Register shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders may treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Register pursuant to the terms hereof as a Lender hereunder for all purposes of this Agreement, notwithstanding notice to the contrary. The Register shall be available for inspection by the Borrower, the Issuing Bank and any Lender, at any reasonable time and from time to time upon reasonable prior notice. In connection with any changes to the Register, if necessary, the Administrative Agent will reflect the revisions on Annex I and forward a copy of such revised Annex I to the Borrower, the Issuing Bank and each Lender. This Section 12.04(b)(iv) shall be construed so that all Loans are at all times maintained in “registered form” within the meaning of sections 163(f), 871(h)(2) and 881(c)(2) of the Code and any related Treasury Regulations (or any other relevant or successor provisions of the Code or such Treasury Regulations).

(v) Upon its receipt of a duly completed Assignment and Assumption executed by an assigning Lender and an assignee, the assignee’s completed Administrative Questionnaire (unless the assignee shall already be a Lender hereunder), the processing and recordation fee referred to in Section 12.04(b) and any written consent to such assignment required by Section 12.04(b) , the Administrative Agent shall accept such Assignment and Assumption and record the information contained therein in the Register. No assignment shall be effective for purposes of this Agreement unless it has been recorded in the Register as provided in this Section 12.04(b) .

 

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(c) Any Lender may, without the consent of the Borrower, the Administrative Agent or the Issuing Bank, sell participations to one or more banks or other entities (a “ Participant ”) in all or a portion of such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement (including all or a portion of its Commitment and the Loans owing to it); provided that:

(i) such Lender’s obligations under this Agreement shall remain unchanged, such Lender shall remain solely responsible to the other parties hereto for the performance of such obligations, the Borrower, the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the other Lenders shall continue to deal solely and directly with such Lender in connection with such Lender’s rights and obligations under this Agreement;

(ii) such Participant must first agree to comply with Section  12.11 ;

(iii) no such participation may be sold to a natural Person or an Industry Competitor; and

(iv) any agreement or instrument pursuant to which a Lender sells such a participation shall provide that such Lender retains the sole right to enforce this Agreement and to approve any amendment, modification or waiver of any provision of this Agreement, except that such agreement or instrument may provide that such Lender will not, without the consent of the Participant, agree to any amendment, modification or waiver described in the first proviso to Section 12.02(b) that affects such Participant.

Each such Participant shall be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.01 , 5.02 and 5.03 and shall be subject to the requirements of and limitations in Sections 5.01 , 5.02 , 5.03 and 5.05 (it being understood that the documentation required under Section 5.03(g) shall be delivered to the participating Lender, i.e. , the Lender selling such participation) to the same extent as if such Participant were a Lender and had acquired its interest by assignment pursuant to paragraph (b) of this Section; provided that such Participant shall not be entitled at any time to receive any greater payment under Sections 5.01 or 5.03 , with respect to any participation, than its participating Lender would have been entitled to receive at such time, except to the extent such entitlement to receive a greater payment results from a Change in Law that occurs after the Participant acquired the applicable participation. A Participant that would be a Foreign Lender if it were a Lender shall not be entitled to the benefits of Section  5.03 unless the Borrower is notified of the participation sold to such Participant and such Participant complies with Section  5.03 as though it were a Lender. Each Lender that sells a participation agrees, at the Borrower’s request and expense, to use reasonable efforts to cooperate with the Borrower to effectuate the provisions of Section  5.05 with respect to any Participant. To the extent permitted by law, each Participant also shall be entitled to the benefits of Section  12.08 as though it were a Lender; provided that such Participant agrees to be subject to Section 4.01(c) as though it were a Lender. Each Lender that sells a participation shall, acting solely for this purpose as a non-fiduciary agent of the Borrower, maintain a register on which it enters the name and address of each Participant and the principal amounts (and stated interest) of each Participant’s interest in the Loans or other obligations under the Loan Documents (the “ Participant Register ”); provided that no Lender shall have any obligation to disclose all or any portion of the Participant Register (including the identity of any Participant or any information relating to a Participant’s interest in any Commitments, Loans or its other obligations under any Loan Document) to any Person except to the extent that such disclosure is necessary to establish that such Commitment, Loan, or other obligation is in registered form under Section 5f.103-1(c) of the United States Treasury Regulations. The entries in the Participant Register shall be conclusive absent manifest error, and such Lender shall treat each Person whose name is recorded in the Participant Register as the owner of such participation for all purposes of this Agreement notwithstanding any notice to the contrary. For the avoidance of doubt, the Administrative Agent (in its capacity as Administrative Agent) shall have no responsibility for maintaining a Participant Register.

(d) Any Lender may at any time pledge or assign a security interest in all or any portion of its rights under this Agreement to secure obligations of such Lender, including any pledge or assignment to secure obligations to a Federal Reserve Bank or other central bank having jurisdiction over

 

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such Lender, and this Section  12.04 shall not apply to any such pledge or assignment of a security interest; provided that no such pledge or assignment of a security interest shall release a Lender from any of its obligations hereunder or substitute any such pledgee or assignee for such Lender as a party hereto.

(e) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section  12.04 , no transfer or assignment of the interests or obligations of any Lender or any grant of participations therein shall be permitted if such transfer, assignment or grant would require any Credit Party to file a registration statement with the SEC or to qualify the Loans under the “Blue Sky” laws of any state.

Section 12.05 Survival; Revival; Reinstatement .

(a) All covenants, agreements, representations and warranties made by Parent Guarantor and the Borrower herein and in the certificates or other instruments delivered in connection with or pursuant to this Agreement or any other Loan Document shall be considered to have been relied upon by the other parties hereto and shall survive the execution and delivery of this Agreement and the making of any Loans and issuance of any Letters of Credit, regardless of any investigation made by any such other party or on its behalf and notwithstanding that the Administrative Agent, any other Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender may have had notice or knowledge of any Default or incorrect representation or warranty at the time any credit is extended hereunder, and shall continue in full force and effect as long as the principal of or any accrued interest on any Loan or any fee or any other amount payable under this Agreement is outstanding and unpaid or any Letter of Credit is outstanding (or any drawing is pending on any Letter of Credit) and so long as the Commitments have not expired or terminated. The provisions of Section  5.01 , Section  5.02 , Section  5.03 and Section  12.03 and Article XI shall survive and remain in full force and effect regardless of the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, the repayment of the Loans, the expiration or termination of the Letters of Credit and the Commitments or the termination of this Agreement, any other Loan Document or any provision hereof or thereof.

(b) To the extent that any payments on the Obligations or proceeds of any Collateral are subsequently invalidated, declared to be fraudulent or preferential, set aside or required to be repaid to a trustee, debtor in possession, receiver or other Person under any bankruptcy law, common law or equitable cause, then to such extent, the Obligations so satisfied shall be revived and continue as if such payment or proceeds had not been received and the Administrative Agent’s and the Lenders’ Liens, security interests, rights, powers and remedies under this Agreement and each Loan Document shall continue in full force and effect. In such event, each Loan Document shall be automatically reinstated and Parent Guarantor and the Borrower shall take such action as may be reasonably requested by the Administrative Agent and the Lenders to effect such reinstatement.

Section 12.06 Counterparts; Integration; Effectiveness .

(a) This Agreement may be executed in counterparts (and by different parties hereto on different counterparts), each of which shall constitute an original, but all of which when taken together shall constitute a single contract.

(b) This Agreement, the other Loan Documents and any separate letter agreements with respect to fees payable to the Administrative Agent constitute the entire contract among the parties relating to the subject matter hereof and thereof and supersede any and all previous agreements and understandings, oral or written, relating to the subject matter hereof and thereof. THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS REPRESENT THE FINAL AGREEMENT AMONG THE PARTIES HERETO AND THERETO AND MAY NOT BE CONTRADICTED BY EVIDENCE OF PRIOR, CONTEMPORANEOUS OR SUBSEQUENT ORAL AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES. THERE ARE NO UNWRITTEN ORAL AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE PARTIES.

 

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(c) Except as provided in Section  6.01 , this Agreement shall become effective when it shall have been executed by the Administrative Agent and when the Administrative Agent shall have received counterparts hereof which, when taken together, bear the signatures of each of the other parties hereto, and thereafter shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Agreement by facsimile, as an attachment to an email or other similar electronic means shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Agreement.

Section 12.07 Severability . Any provision of this Agreement or any other Loan Document held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any jurisdiction shall, as to such jurisdiction, be ineffective to the extent of such invalidity, illegality or unenforceability without affecting the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions hereof or thereof; and the invalidity of a particular provision in a particular jurisdiction shall not invalidate such provision in any other jurisdiction.

Section 12.08 Right of Setoff . If an Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, each Lender and each of its Affiliates is hereby authorized at any time and from time to time, to the fullest extent permitted by law, to set off and apply any and all deposits (general or special, time or demand, provisional or final, in whatever currency) at any time held and other obligations (in whatever currency, and of whatsoever kind, including obligations under Swap Agreements) at any time owing by such Lender or Affiliate to or for the credit or the account of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary against any of and all the obligations of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or such Restricted Subsidiary owed to such Lender or its Affiliates now or hereafter existing under this Agreement or any other Loan Document, irrespective of whether or not such Lender shall have made any demand under this Agreement or any other Loan Document and although such obligations may be unmatured or are owed to a branch, office or Affiliate of such Lender different from the branch, office or Affiliate holding such deposit or obligated on such indebtedness. The rights of each Lender and its Affiliates under this Section  12.08 are in addition to other rights and remedies (including other rights of setoff) which such Lender or its Affiliates may have. Each Lender agrees to notify the Borrower and the Administrative Agent promptly after any such setoff and application; provided that the failure to give such notice shall not affect the validity of such setoff and application.

Section 12.09 GOVERNING LAW; JURISDICTION; CONSENT TO SERVICE OF PROCESS .

(a) THIS AGREEMENT AND THE NOTES SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT THAT UNITED STATES FEDERAL LAW PERMITS ANY LENDER TO CONTRACT FOR, CHARGE, RECEIVE, RESERVE OR TAKE INTEREST AT THE RATE ALLOWED BY THE LAWS OF THE STATE WHERE SUCH LENDER IS LOCATED.

(b) ANY LEGAL ACTION OR PROCEEDING WITH RESPECT TO THE LOAN DOCUMENTS MAY BE BROUGHT IN THE COURTS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK SITTING IN NEW YORK COUNTY, OR OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK, AND, BY EXECUTION AND DELIVERY OF THIS AGREEMENT, EACH PARTY HEREBY ACCEPTS FOR ITSELF AND (TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW) IN RESPECT OF ITS PROPERTY, GENERALLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY, THE JURISDICTION OF THE AFORESAID COURTS. EACH PARTY HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ANY OBJECTION, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY OBJECTION TO THE LAYING OF

 

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VENUE OR BASED ON THE GROUNDS OF FORUM NON CONVENIENS , WHICH IT MAY NOW OR HEREAFTER HAVE TO THE BRINGING OF ANY SUCH ACTION OR PROCEEDING IN SUCH RESPECTIVE JURISDICTIONS. THIS SUBMISSION TO JURISDICTION IS NON-EXCLUSIVE AND DOES NOT PRECLUDE A PARTY FROM BRINGING SUIT AGAINST ANOTHER PARTY IN ANY COURT OTHERWISE HAVING JURISDICTION.

(c) EACH PARTY IRREVOCABLY CONSENTS TO THE SERVICE OF PROCESS OF ANY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED COURTS IN ANY SUCH ACTION OR PROCEEDING BY THE MAILING OF COPIES THEREOF BY REGISTERED OR CERTIFIED MAIL, POSTAGE PREPAID, TO IT AT THE ADDRESS SPECIFIED IN SECTION 12.01 OR SUCH OTHER ADDRESS AS IS SPECIFIED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12.01 (OR ITS ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION), SUCH SERVICE TO BECOME EFFECTIVE THIRTY (30) DAYS AFTER SUCH MAILING (OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS IS PROVIDED BY APPLICABLE LAW). NOTHING HEREIN SHALL AFFECT THE RIGHT OF A PARTY OR ANY HOLDER OF A NOTE TO SERVE PROCESS IN ANY OTHER MANNER PERMITTED BY LAW OR TO COMMENCE LEGAL PROCEEDINGS OR OTHERWISE PROCEED AGAINST ANOTHER PARTY IN ANY OTHER JURISDICTION.

(d) EACH PARTY (i) HEREBY IRREVOCABLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY WAIVES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL ACTION OR PROCEEDING RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT AND FOR ANY COUNTERCLAIM THEREIN; (ii) IRREVOCABLY WAIVES, TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT NOT PROHIBITED BY LAW, ANY RIGHT IT MAY HAVE TO CLAIM OR RECOVER IN ANY SUCH LITIGATION ANY SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES OTHER THAN, OR IN ADDITION TO, ACTUAL DAMAGES; PROVIDED THAT, THE FOREGOING WAIVER SHALL NOT LIMIT THE INDEMNITY OBLIGATIONS OF THE BORROWER UNDER SECTION 12.03 TO THE EXTENT ANY SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARE INCLUDED IN A THIRD PARTY CLAIM IN CONNECTION WITH WHICH AN INDEMNITEE IS ENTITLED TO INDEMNIFICATION BY THE BORROWER UNDER SECTION 12.03 ; AND (iii) CERTIFIES THAT NO PARTY HERETO NOR ANY REPRESENTATIVE OR AGENT OF COUNSEL FOR ANY PARTY HERETO HAS REPRESENTED, EXPRESSLY OR OTHERWISE, OR IMPLIED THAT SUCH PARTY WOULD NOT, IN THE EVENT OF LITIGATION, SEEK TO ENFORCE THE FOREGOING WAIVERS, AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT IT HAS BEEN INDUCED TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT, THE LOAN DOCUMENTS AND THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED HEREBY AND THEREBY BY, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE MUTUAL WAIVERS AND CERTIFICATIONS CONTAINED IN THIS SECTION 12.09 .

Section 12.10 Headings . Article and Section headings and the Table of Contents used herein are for convenience of reference only, are not part of this Agreement and shall not affect the construction of, or be taken into consideration in interpreting, this Agreement.

Section 12.11 Confidentiality . Each of the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank and the Lenders agrees to maintain the confidentiality of the Information (as defined below), except that Information may be disclosed (a) to its and its Affiliates’ directors, officers, employees and agents, including accountants, legal counsel and other advisors (it being understood that the Persons to whom such disclosure is made will be informed of the confidential nature of such Information and instructed to keep such Information confidential in accordance with the terms hereof), (b) to the extent requested by any regulatory authority having jurisdiction over the disclosing party, (c) to the extent required by applicable laws or regulations or by any subpoena or similar legal process, (d) to any other party to this Agreement or any other Loan Document, (e) in connection with the exercise of any remedies hereunder or

 

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under any other Loan Document or any suit, action or proceeding relating to this Agreement or any other Loan Document or the enforcement of rights hereunder or thereunder, (f) subject to an agreement for the express benefit of the Borrower containing provisions substantially the same as those of this Section  12.11 , to any assignee of or Participant in, or any prospective assignee of or Participant in, any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement or to any actual or prospective counterparty (or its advisors) to any Swap Agreement relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its obligations, (g) with the consent of the Borrower or (h) to the extent such Information becomes publicly available other than as a result of a breach of this Section  12.11 or becomes available to the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender on a nonconfidential basis from a source (other than any Credit Party) not known by them to be subject to disclosure restrictions. For the purposes of this Section  12.11 , “ Information ” means all information received from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary relating to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary and their businesses, other than any such information that is available to the Administrative Agent, the Issuing Bank or any Lender on a nonconfidential basis prior to disclosure by Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or a Subsidiary; provided that, in the case of information received from Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary after the date hereof, such information is clearly identified at the time of delivery as confidential. Any Person required to maintain the confidentiality of Information as provided in this Section  12.11 shall be considered to have complied with its obligation to do so if such Person has exercised the same degree of care to maintain the confidentiality of such Information as such Person would accord to its own confidential information. In addition, the Administrative Agent and the Lenders may disclose the existence of this Agreement and information about this Agreement to rating agencies, market data collectors, similar service providers to the lending industry and service providers to the Agents and the Lenders in connection with the administration of this Agreement, the other Loan Documents, and the Commitments.

Section 12.12 Interest Rate Limitation . It is the intention of the parties hereto that each Lender shall conform strictly to usury laws applicable to it. Accordingly, if the transactions contemplated hereby would be usurious as to any Lender under laws applicable to it (including the laws of the United States of America or any state or other jurisdiction whose laws may be mandatorily applicable to such Lender notwithstanding the other provisions of this Agreement), then, in that event, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any of the Loan Documents or any agreement entered into in connection with or as security for the Notes, it is agreed as follows: (a) the aggregate of all consideration which constitutes interest under law applicable to any Lender that is contracted for, taken, reserved, charged or received by such Lender under any of the Loan Documents or agreements or otherwise in connection with the Notes shall under no circumstances exceed the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law, and any excess shall be canceled automatically and if theretofore paid shall be credited by such Lender on the principal amount of the Obligations (or, to the extent that the principal amount of the Obligations shall have been or would thereby be paid in full, refunded by such Lender to the Borrower); and (b) in the event that the maturity of the Notes is accelerated by reason of an election of the holder thereof resulting from any Event of Default under this Agreement or otherwise, or in the event of any required or permitted prepayment, then such consideration that constitutes interest under law applicable to any Lender may never include more than the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law, and excess interest, if any, provided for in this Agreement or otherwise shall be canceled automatically by such Lender as of the date of such acceleration or prepayment and, if theretofore paid, shall be credited by such Lender on the principal amount of the Obligations (or, to the extent that the principal amount of the Obligations shall have been or would thereby be paid in full, refunded by such Lender to the Borrower). All sums paid or agreed to be paid to any Lender for the use, forbearance or detention of sums due hereunder shall, to the extent permitted by law applicable to such Lender, be amortized, prorated, allocated and spread throughout the stated term of the Loans until payment in full so that the rate or amount of interest on account of any Loans hereunder does not exceed the maximum amount allowed by such applicable law. If at any time and from time to time the amount of interest payable to any Lender on any date shall be computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender pursuant to this Section  12.12 and in

 

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respect of any subsequent interest computation period the amount of interest otherwise payable to such Lender would be less than the amount of interest payable to such Lender computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender, then the amount of interest payable to such Lender in respect of such subsequent interest computation period shall continue to be computed at the Highest Lawful Rate applicable to such Lender until the total amount of interest payable to such Lender shall equal the total amount of interest which would have been payable to such Lender if the total amount of interest had been computed without giving effect to this Section  12.12 .

Section 12.13 EXCULPATION PROVISIONS . EACH OF THE PARTIES HERETO SPECIFICALLY AGREES THAT IT HAS A DUTY TO READ THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS AND AGREES THAT IT IS CHARGED WITH NOTICE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; THAT IT HAS IN FACT READ THIS AGREEMENT AND IS FULLY INFORMED AND HAS FULL NOTICE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE TERMS, CONDITIONS AND EFFECTS OF THIS AGREEMENT; THAT IT HAS BEEN REPRESENTED BY INDEPENDENT LEGAL COUNSEL OF ITS CHOICE THROUGHOUT THE NEGOTIATIONS PRECEDING ITS EXECUTION OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; AND HAS RECEIVED THE ADVICE OF ITS ATTORNEY IN ENTERING INTO THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS; AND THAT IT RECOGNIZES THAT CERTAIN OF THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS RESULT IN ONE PARTY ASSUMING THE LIABILITY INHERENT IN SOME ASPECTS OF THE TRANSACTION AND RELIEVING THE OTHER PARTY OF ITS RESPONSIBILITY FOR SUCH LIABILITY. EACH PARTY HERETO AGREES AND COVENANTS THAT IT WILL NOT CONTEST THE VALIDITY OR ENFORCEABILITY OF ANY EXCULPATORY PROVISION OF THIS AGREEMENT AND THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS ON THE BASIS THAT THE PARTY HAD NO NOTICE OR KNOWLEDGE OF SUCH PROVISION OR THAT THE PROVISION IS NOT “CONSPICUOUS.”

Section 12.14 Collateral Matters; Swap Agreements; Treasury Management Agreements . The benefit of the Security Instruments and of the provisions of this Agreement relating to any Collateral securing the Obligations shall also extend to and be available to Secured Swap Parties and Treasury Management Lenders on a pro rata basis (but subject to the terms of the Loan Documents, including provisions thereof relating to the application and priority of payments to the Persons entitled thereto) in respect of any obligations of the Borrower, any of its Restricted Subsidiaries or any other Guarantors which arise under Secured Swap Agreements or Lender Treasury Management Agreements, as applicable. No Secured Swap Party or Treasury Management Lender shall have any voting or approval rights under any Loan Document as a result of the existence of obligations owed to it under any such Swap Agreements or Lender Treasury Management Agreements, as applicable. By accepting the benefits of the Collateral, each Secured Swap Party agrees that, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any of its Swap Agreements with Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any other Credit Party, Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties may grant Liens under the Loan Documents that burden and attach to such Swap Agreements and the rights of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and the other Credit Parties thereunder.

Section 12.15 [Reserved] .

Section 12.16 [Reserved] .

Section 12.17 USA Patriot Act Notice . Each Agent and each Lender hereby notifies Parent Guarantor and the Borrower that pursuant to the requirements of the USA Patriot Act (Title III of Pub. L. 107-56 (signed into law October 26, 2001)) (the “ Act ”), it is required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies the Borrower and each Guarantor, which information includes the name and address of the Borrower and each Guarantor and other information that will allow it to identify the Borrower and each Guarantor in accordance with the Act.

 

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Section 12.18 No Advisory or Fiduciary Responsibility . In connection with all aspects of each transaction contemplated hereby (including in connection with any amendment, waiver or other modification hereof or of any other Loan Document), each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower acknowledges and agrees, and acknowledges its Subsidiaries’ understanding, that: (a) (i) no fiduciary, advisory or (except as expressly provided in Section  12.04 ) agency relationship between Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and its Subsidiaries and the Administrative Agent or any Lender is intended to be or has been created in respect of the transactions contemplated hereby or by the other Loan Documents, irrespective of whether the Administrative Agent or any Lender has advised or is advising Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any Subsidiary on other matters; (ii) the arranging and other services regarding this Agreement provided by the Administrative Agent and the Lenders are arm’s-length commercial transactions between Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and their Subsidiaries, on the one hand, and the Administrative Agent and the Lenders, on the other hand; (iii) each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower has consulted its own legal, accounting, regulatory and tax advisors to the extent that it has deemed appropriate; and (iv) each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower is capable of evaluating, and understands and accepts, the terms, risks and conditions of the transactions contemplated hereby and by the other Loan Documents; and (b) (i) the Administrative Agent and the Lenders each is and has been acting solely as a principal and, except as expressly agreed in writing by the relevant parties, has not been, is not, and will not be acting as an advisor, agent or fiduciary for Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of their Subsidiaries, or any other Person; (ii) neither the Administrative Agent nor the Lenders has any obligation to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or any of their Subsidiaries with respect to the transactions contemplated hereby except those obligations expressly set forth herein and in the other Loan Documents; and (iii) the Administrative Agent and the Lenders and their respective Affiliates may be engaged, for their own accounts or the accounts of customers, in a broad range of transactions that involve interests that differ from those of Parent Guarantor, the Borrower and their Subsidiaries, and neither the Administrative Agent nor the Lenders has any obligation to disclose any of such interests to Parent Guarantor, the Borrower or their Subsidiaries. To the fullest extent permitted by Law, each of Parent Guarantor and the Borrower hereby waives and releases any claims that it may have against the Administrative Agent and the Lenders with respect to any breach or alleged breach of agency (except as expressly set forth in Section  12.04 ) or fiduciary duty in connection with any aspect of any transaction contemplated hereby.

Section 12.19 Acknowledgement and Consent to Bail-In of EEA Financial Institutions . Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Loan Document or in any other agreement, arrangement or understanding among any such parties, each party hereto acknowledges that any liability of any EEA Financial Institution arising under any Loan Document, to the extent such liability is unsecured, may be subject to the Write-Down and Conversion Powers of an EEA Resolution Authority and agrees and consents to, and acknowledges and agrees to be bound by:

(a) the application of any Write-Down and Conversion Powers by an EEA Resolution Authority to any such liabilities arising hereunder which may be payable to it by any party hereto that is an EEA Financial Institution; and

(b) the effects of any Bail-In Action on any such liability, including, if applicable:

(i) a reduction in full or in part or cancellation of any such liability;

(ii) a conversion of all, or a portion of, such liability into shares or other instruments of ownership in such EEA Financial Institution, its parent undertaking, or a bridge institution

 

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that may be issued to it or otherwise conferred on it, and that such shares or other instruments of ownership will be accepted by it in lieu of any rights with respect to any such liability under this Agreement or any other Loan Document; or

(iii) the variation of the terms of such liability in connection with the exercise of the Write-Down and Conversion Powers of any EEA Resolution Authority.

The provisions of this Section  12.19 are intended to comply with, and shall be interpreted in light of, Article 55 of Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union.

[SIGNATURES BEGIN NEXT PAGE]

 

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The parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be duly executed as of the day and year first above written.

 

BORROWER:     ULTRA RESOURCES, INC. , a Delaware corporation
    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

PARENT GUARANTOR:     ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP. , a Yukon corporation
    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

PARENT GUARANTOR:     UP ENERGY CORP. , a Delaware corporation
    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

 

Signature Page

RBL Credit Agreement


BANK OF MONTREAL , as Administrative Agent
By:  

/s/ Gumaro Tijerina

Name:   Gumaro Tijerina
Title:   Managing Director

 

Signature Page to

RBL Credit Agreement


BMO HARRIS BANK N.A. , as Issuing Bank and a Lender
By:  

/s/ Gumaro Tijerina

Name:   Gumaro Tijerina
Title:   Managing Director

 

Signature Page to

RBL Credit Agreement


BARCLAYS BANK PLC , as a Lender
By:  

/s/ Kevin Crealese

Name:   Kevin Crealese
Title:   Managing Director

 

Signature Page to

RBL Credit Agreement


GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA , as a Lender
By:  

/s/ Charles D. Johnston

Name:   Charles D. Johnston
Title:   Authorized Signatory

 

Signature Page to

RBL Credit Agreement


ANNEX I

Commitments

 

Lender

   Commitment  
Barclays Bank PLC    $ 181,700,000.00  
BMO Harris Bank N.A.    $ 127,500,000.00  
Goldman Sachs Bank USA    $ 90,800,000.00  
  

 

 

 

Total

   $ 400,000,000.00  
  

 

 

 


EXHIBIT A

FORM OF NOTE

 

$[        ]                 , 201[    ]

FOR VALUE RECEIVED, ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”) hereby promises to pay to [                    ] (the “ Lender ”), at the office of Bank of Montreal (the “ Administrative Agent ”), located at 700 Louisiana Street, Suite 2100, Houston, Texas 77002, the principal sum of [                    ] Dollars ($[        ]) (or such lesser amount as shall equal the aggregate unpaid principal amount of the Loans made by the Lender to the Borrower under the Credit Agreement, as hereinafter defined), in lawful money of the United States of America and in immediately available funds, on the dates and in the principal amounts provided in the Credit Agreement, and to pay interest on the unpaid principal amount of each such Loan, at such office, in like money and funds, for the period commencing on the date of such Loan until such Loan shall be paid in full, at the rates per annum and on the dates provided in the Credit Agreement.

The date, amount, Type, interest rate, Interest Period and maturity of each Loan made by the Lender to the Borrower, and each payment made on account of the principal thereof, shall be recorded by the Lender on its books and, prior to any transfer of this Note, may be endorsed by the Lender on the schedules attached hereto or any continuation thereof or on any separate record maintained by the Lender. Failure to make any such notation or to attach a schedule shall not affect any Lender’s or the Borrower’s rights or obligations in respect of such Loans or affect the validity of such transfer by any Lender of this Note.

This Note is one of the Notes referred to in the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, the Administrative Agent, and the lenders and other parties signatory thereto (including the Lender), and evidences Loans made by the Lender thereunder (such Credit Agreement as the same may be amended, supplemented or restated from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used in this Note have the respective meanings assigned to them in the Credit Agreement.

This Note is issued pursuant to, and is subject to the terms and conditions set forth in, the Credit Agreement and is entitled to the benefits provided for in the Credit Agreement and the other Loan Documents. The Credit Agreement provides for the acceleration of the maturity of this Note upon the occurrence of certain events, for prepayments of Loans upon the terms and conditions specified therein and other provisions relevant to this Note. The Credit Agreement contains requirements for the transfer of this Note and the registration of such transfer.

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank]

 

Exhibit A

-1-


THIS NOTE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                             

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit A

-2-


EXHIBIT B

FORM OF BORROWING REQUEST

[            ], 20[    ]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), pursuant to Section  2.03 of the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Credit Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), hereby requests a Borrowing as follows:

(i)    Aggregate amount of the requested Borrowing is $[        ];

(ii)    Date of such Borrowing is [            ], 20[    ];

(iii)    Requested Borrowing is to be [an ABR Borrowing] [a Eurodollar Borrowing];

(iv)    In the case of a Eurodollar Borrowing, the initial Interest Period applicable thereto is [                    ];

(v)    Amount of Borrowing Base in effect on the date hereof is $[        ];

(vi)    Amount of the Total Commitment in effect on the date hereof is $[        ];

(vii)    The Loan Limit on the date hereof is $[                ];

(viii)    Total Term Loan Exposures on the date hereof is $[        ];

(ix)    Total Revolving Credit Exposures on the date hereof before giving effect to the requested Borrowing (i.e., outstanding principal amount of Loans and total LC Exposure) is $[        ];

(x)    Pro forma total Revolving Credit Exposures (giving effect to the requested Borrowing) is $[        ]; and

(xi)    Location and number of the Borrower’s account to which funds are to be disbursed, which shall comply with the requirements of Section  2.05 of the Credit Agreement, is as follows:

[                                          ]

[                                          ]

[                                          ]

[                                          ]

[                                          ]

 

Exhibit B

-1-


The undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that he/she is the [                    ] of the Borrower, and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. The undersigned further certifies, represents and warrants on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that the Borrower is entitled to receive the requested Borrowing under the terms and conditions of the Credit Agreement.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                               

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit B

-2-


EXHIBIT C

FORM OF INTEREST ELECTION REQUEST

[            ], 20[    ]

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), pursuant to Section  2.04 of the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Credit Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), hereby makes an Interest Election Request as follows:

(i)    The Borrowing to which this Interest Election Request applies, and if different options are being elected with respect to different portions thereof, the portions thereof to be allocated to each resulting Borrowing (in which case the information specified pursuant to (iii) and (iv) below shall be specified for each resulting Borrowing) is [                    ];

(ii)    The effective date of the election made pursuant to this Interest Election Request is [            ], 20[    ];[and]

(iii)    The resulting Borrowing is to be [an ABR Borrowing] [a Eurodollar Borrowing][; and]

[ If the resulting Borrowing is a Eurodollar Borrowing, add the following: ]

[(iv)    The Interest Period applicable to the resulting Borrowing after giving effect to such election is [                    ]].

The undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that he/she is the [                    ] of the Borrower, and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. The undersigned further certifies, represents and warrants on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) that the Borrower is entitled to receive the requested continuation or conversion under the terms and conditions of the Credit Agreement.

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                             

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit C


EXHIBIT D

FORM OF COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

The undersigned hereby certifies that he/she is the [                    ] of ULTRA RESOURCES, INC., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), and that as such he/she is authorized to execute this certificate on behalf of the Borrower. With reference to the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto being the “ Credit Agreement ”), among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the lenders (the “ Lenders ”) which are or become a party thereto, and the other parties thereto, the undersigned certifies on behalf of the Borrower (and not individually) as follows (each capitalized term used herein having the same meaning given to it in the Credit Agreement unless otherwise specified):

(a)    There exists no Default or Event of Default [or specify Default and describe any action taken or proposed to be taken with respect thereto].

(b)    Attached hereto are detailed computations showing that the Borrower is [is not] in compliance with Section  9.01 of the Credit Agreement as of the end of the [fiscal quarter][fiscal year] ending [                ].

(c)    No change in GAAP or in the application thereof has occurred since December 31, 2016 that affects the financial statements accompanying this certificate [except                    ].

EXECUTED AND DELIVERED this [                    ] day of [                    ].

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                             

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit D


EXHIBIT E

SECURITY INSTRUMENTS

Unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used in this Exhibit E has the meaning assigned to such term in that certain Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the Lenders which are or become parties thereto, and the other parties thereto.

That certain Collateral Agency Agreement, dated as of the Effective Date, among the Administrative Agent, the Term Loan Administrative Agent, the additional agents and additional trustees from time to time party thereto, the several grantors from time to time party thereto and the Collateral Agent.

That certain Guaranty and Collateral Agreement, dated as of the Effective Date, among the Credit Parties and the Collateral Agent.

Financing Statements in respect of the foregoing.

 

Exhibit E


EXHIBIT F

FORM OF ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

This Assignment and Assumption (this “ Assignment and Assumption ”) is dated as of the Effective Date set forth below and is entered into by and between [ Insert name of Assignor ] (the “ Assignor ”) and [ Insert name of Assignee ] (the “ Assignee ”). Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement identified below (as amended, the “ Credit Agreement ”), receipt of a copy of which is hereby acknowledged by the Assignee. The Standard Terms and Conditions set forth in Annex 1 attached hereto are hereby agreed to and incorporated herein by reference and made a part of this Assignment and Assumption as if set forth herein in full.

For an agreed consideration, the Assignor hereby irrevocably sells and assigns to the Assignee, and the Assignee hereby irrevocably purchases and assumes from the Assignor, subject to and in accordance with the Standard Terms and Conditions and the Credit Agreement, as of the Effective Date inserted by the Administrative Agent as contemplated below (i) all of the Assignor’s rights and obligations in its capacity as a Lender under the Credit Agreement and any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto to the extent related to the amount and percentage interest identified below of all of such outstanding rights and obligations of the Assignor under the respective facilities identified below (including any letters of credit and guarantees included in such facilities) and (ii) to the extent permitted to be assigned under applicable law, all claims, suits, causes of action and any other right of the Assignor (in its capacity as a Lender) against any Person, whether known or unknown, arising under or in connection with the Credit Agreement, any other documents or instruments delivered pursuant thereto or the loan transactions governed thereby or in any way based on or related to any of the foregoing, including contract claims, tort claims, malpractice claims, statutory claims and all other claims at law or in equity related to the rights and obligations sold and assigned pursuant to clause (i) above (the rights and obligations sold and assigned pursuant to clauses (i) and (ii) above being referred to herein collectively as the “ Assigned Interest ”). Such sale and assignment is without recourse to the Assignor and, except as expressly provided in this Assignment and Assumption, without representation or warranty by the Assignor.

 

1.    Assignor:   

 

  
2.    Assignee:   

 

  
      [and is an Affiliate/Approved Fund of [ identify Lender ] 1 ]
3.    Borrower:    Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”)
4.    Administrative Agent:    Bank of Montreal, as the Administrative Agent under the Credit Agreement

 

 

1   Select as applicable.

 

Exhibit F

-1-


5.    Credit Agreement:    Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017, among the Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, the Lenders parties thereto, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, and the other parties thereto
6.    Assigned Interest:   

 

Commitment

Assigned

   Aggregate Amount of
Commitment/Loans
for all Lenders
     Amount of
Commitment/Loans
Assigned
     Percentage Assigned
of
Commitment/Loans 2
 
   $      $            
   $      $            
   $      $            

Effective Date:             , 20     [TO BE INSERTED BY ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT AND WHICH SHALL BE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF RECORDATION OF TRANSFER IN THE REGISTER THEREFOR.]

The terms set forth in this Assignment and Assumption are hereby agreed to:

 

ASSIGNOR
[NAME OF ASSIGNOR]
By:  

                                                                                   

  Title:
ASSIGNEE
[NAME OF ASSIGNEE]
By:  

                                                                                   

  Title:

 

 

2   Set forth, to at least 9 decimals, as a percentage of the Commitment/Loans of all Lenders thereunder.

 

Exhibit F

-2-


[Consented to and] 3 Accepted:

 

BANK OF MONTREAL, as Administrative Agent
By  

                                                                                

  Title:

[Consented to:] 4

 

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                         

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

 

3   To be added only if the consent of the Administrative Agent is required by the terms of the Credit Agreement.
4   To be added only if the consent of the Borrower and/or other parties (e.g. Issuing Bank) is required by the terms of the Credit Agreement.

 

Exhibit F

-3-


ANNEX 1

[                    ] 5

STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR

ASSIGNMENT AND ASSUMPTION

1.     Representations and Warranties .

1.1     Assignor . The Assignor (a) represents and warrants that (i) it is the legal and beneficial owner of the Assigned Interest, (ii) the Assigned Interest is free and clear of any lien, encumbrance or other adverse claim and (iii) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby; and (b) assumes no responsibility with respect to (i) any statements, warranties or representations made in or in connection with the Credit Agreement or any other Loan Document, (ii) the execution, legality, validity, enforceability, genuineness, sufficiency or value of the Loan Documents or any collateral thereunder, (iii) the financial condition of the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person obligated in respect of any Loan Document or (iv) the performance or observance by the Borrower, any of its Subsidiaries or Affiliates or any other Person of any of their respective obligations under any Loan Document.

1.2.     Assignee . The Assignee (a) represents and warrants that (i) it has full power and authority, and has taken all action necessary, to execute and deliver this Assignment and Assumption and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby and to become a Lender under the Credit Agreement, (ii) it satisfies the requirements, if any, specified in the Credit Agreement that are required to be satisfied by it in order to acquire the Assigned Interest and become a Lender, (iii) from and after the Effective Date, it shall be bound by the provisions of the Credit Agreement as a Lender thereunder and, to the extent of the Assigned Interest, shall have the obligations of a Lender thereunder, (iv) it has received a copy of the Credit Agreement, together with copies of the most recent financial statements delivered pursuant to Section  8.01 thereof, as applicable, and such other documents and information as it has deemed appropriate to make its own credit analysis and decision to enter into this Assignment and Assumption and to purchase the Assigned Interest on the basis of which it has made such analysis and decision independently and without reliance on the Administrative Agent or any other Lender, and (v) if it is a Foreign Lender, attached to the Assignment and Assumption is any documentation required to be delivered by it pursuant to the terms of the Credit Agreement, duly completed and executed by the Assignee; and (b) agrees that (i) it will, independently and without reliance on the Administrative Agent, the Assignor or any other Lender, and based on such documents and information as it shall deem appropriate at the time, continue to make its own credit decisions in taking or not taking action under the Loan Documents, and (ii) it will perform in accordance with their terms all of the obligations which by the terms of the Loan Documents are required to be performed by it as a Lender.

 

 

5   Describe Credit Agreement at option of Administrative Agent.

 

Exhibit F

-4-


2.     Payments . From and after the Effective Date, the Administrative Agent shall make all payments in respect of the Assigned Interest (including payments of principal, interest, fees and other amounts) to the Assignor for amounts which have accrued to but excluding the Effective Date and to the Assignee for amounts which have accrued from and after the Effective Date.

3.     General Provisions . This Assignment and Assumption shall be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of, the parties hereto and the other parties to the Credit Agreement and their respective successors and assigns. This Assignment and Assumption may be executed in any number of counterparts, which together shall constitute one instrument. Delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page of this Assignment and Assumption by facsimile shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Assignment and Assumption. This Assignment and Assumption shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

 

Exhibit F

-5-


EXHIBIT G-1

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN LENDERS; NOT PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By:  
Name:  
Title:  
Date:                 , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-1


EXHIBIT G-2

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN PARTICIPANTS; NOT PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Participants That Are Not Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record and beneficial owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) it is not a bank within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iii) it is not a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code, and (iv) it is not a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with a certificate of its non-U.S. Person status on IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender in writing, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By:  
Name:  
Title:  
Date:                 , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-2


EXHIBIT G-3

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN PARTICIPANTS; PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Participants That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the participation in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such participation, (iii) with respect such participation, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a loan agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished its participating Lender with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform such Lender and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished such Lender with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments.

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF PARTICIPANT]
By:  
Name:  
Title:  
Date:                 , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-3


EXHIBIT G-4

FORM OF U.S. TAX COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (FOREIGN LENDERS; PARTNERSHIPS)

(For Foreign Lenders That Are Partnerships For U.S. Federal Income Tax Purposes)

Reference is hereby made to the Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”) (unless otherwise defined herein, each capitalized term used herein has the meaning assigned to such term in the Credit Agreement), among Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation, as Borrower, the Parent Guarantor, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, the financial institutions from time to time party thereto as Lenders, and the other parties party thereto.

Pursuant to the provisions of Section  5.03 of the Credit Agreement, the undersigned hereby certifies that (i) it is the sole record owner of the Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)) in respect of which it is providing this certificate, (ii) its direct or indirect partners/members are the sole beneficial owners of such Loan(s) (as well as any Note(s) evidencing such Loan(s)), (iii) with respect to the extension of credit pursuant to this Credit Agreement or any other Loan Document, neither the undersigned nor any of its direct or indirect partners/members is a bank extending credit pursuant to a loan agreement entered into in the ordinary course of its trade or business within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(A) of the Code, (iv) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a ten percent shareholder of the Borrower within the meaning of Section 881(c)(3)(B) of the Code and (v) none of its direct or indirect partners/members is a controlled foreign corporation related to the Borrower as described in Section 881(c)(3)(C) of the Code.

The undersigned has furnished the Administrative Agent and the Borrower with IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by one of the following forms from each of its partners/members that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption: (i) an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, or (ii) an IRS Form W-8IMY accompanied by an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable, from each of such partner’s/member’s beneficial owners that is claiming the portfolio interest exemption. By executing this certificate, the undersigned agrees that (1) if the information provided on this certificate changes, the undersigned shall promptly so inform the Borrower and the Administrative Agent, and (2) the undersigned shall have at all times furnished the Borrower and the Administrative Agent with a properly completed and currently effective certificate in either the calendar year in which each payment is to be made to the undersigned, or in either of the two calendar years preceding such payments. Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Credit Agreement and used herein shall have the meanings given to them in the Credit Agreement.

 

[NAME OF LENDER]
By:  
Name:  
Title:  
Date:                 , 20[    ]

 

Exhibit G-4


EXHIBIT H

FORM OF COMMITMENT INCREASE CERTIFICATE

[                ], 20[    ]

 

To: Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), the Parent Guarantor, the Administrative Agent and certain Lenders and other agents have heretofore entered into a Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (together with all amendments, restatements, supplements or other modifications thereto, the “ Credit Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning given to such terms in the Credit Agreement.

This Commitment Increase Certificate is being delivered pursuant to Section 2.06(c) of the Credit Agreement.

Please be advised that the undersigned Lender has agreed (a) to increase its Commitment under the Credit Agreement effective [            ], 20[    ] (the “ Increase Effective Date ”) from $[        ] to $[        ] and (b) that it shall continue to be a party in all respects to the Credit Agreement and the other Loan Documents.

With reference to Section 2.06(c)(iii) of the Credit Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that [Check Applicable Box]:

 

  There are, or if the Increase Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be no Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Increase Effective Date.

 

  There are, or if the Increase Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Increase Effective Date and the Borrower will pay any compensation required by Section  5.02 of the Credit Agreement on the Increase Effective Date.

With reference to Section 2.06(c)(ii)(H) of the Credit Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that, after giving effect to the increase in the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists

 

Very truly yours,

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                             

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit H

-1-


Accepted and Agreed:

BANK OF MONTREAL,

as Administrative Agent

By:  

                                                                           

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

Accepted and Agreed:
[Name of Increasing Lender]
By:  

 

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit H

-2-


EXHIBIT I

FORM OF ADDITIONAL LENDER CERTIFICATE

[            ], 20[    ]

 

To: Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent

Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”), Ultra Petroleum Corp., UP Energy Corporation, the Administrative Agent and certain Lenders and other agents have heretofore entered into a Credit Agreement, dated as of April 12, 2017 (as amended, restated, supplemented or otherwise modified from time to time, the “ Credit Agreement ”). Capitalized terms used but not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning given to such terms in the Credit Agreement.

This Additional Lender Certificate is being delivered pursuant to Section 2.06(c) of the Credit Agreement.

Please be advised that the undersigned Additional Lender has agreed (a) to become a Lender under the Credit Agreement effective [            ], 20[    ] (the “ Additional Lender Effective Date ”) with a Commitment of $[        ] and (b) that it shall be a party in all respects to the Credit Agreement and the other Loan Documents.

This Additional Lender Certificate is being delivered to the Administrative Agent together with (i) if the Additional Lender is a Foreign Lender, any documentation required to be delivered by such Additional Lender pursuant to Section 5.03(g) of the Credit Agreement, duly completed and executed by the Additional Lender, and (ii) an Administrative Questionnaire in the form supplied by the Administrative Agent, duly completed by the Additional Lender. [The [ Borrower/Additional Lender ] shall pay the processing and recordation fee payable to the Administrative Agent pursuant to Section 2.06(c)(ii)(J) of the Credit Agreement.] 6

With reference to Section 2.06(c)(iii) of the Credit Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that [Check Applicable Box]:

 

  There are, or if the Additional Lender Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be no Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Additional Lender Effective Date.

 

  There are, or if the Additional Lender Effective Date is after the date hereof, there will be Eurodollar Borrowings outstanding on the Additional Lender Effective Date and the Borrower will pay any compensation required by Section  5.02 of the Credit Agreement on the Additional Lender Effective Date.

With reference to Section 2.06(c)(ii)(H) of the Credit Agreement, the Borrower hereby confirms that, after giving effect to the increase in the Total Commitment contemplated hereby, no Borrowing Base Deficiency exists

 

 

6   Include, if applicable.

 

Exhibit I

-1-


Very truly yours,

ULTRA RESOURCES, INC.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

                                                                             

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Accepted and Agreed:

BANK OF MONTREAL,

 

As Administrative Agent

By:  

                                                                         

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

Accepted and Agreed:
[Name of Additional Lender]
By:  

 

Name:  

 

Title:  

 

 

Exhibit I

-2-

Exhibit 10.3

GUARANTY AND COLLATERAL AGREEMENT

THIS GUARANTY AND COLLATERAL AGREEMENT (as it may be amended, amended and restated, supplemented or modified from time to time, this “ Agreement ”) is entered into as of April 12, 2017, by and among each of the undersigned identified on the signature pages hereto as Grantors (together with any other entity that may become a party hereto as provided herein, each a “ Grantor , and collectively, the “ Grantors ”), and BANK OF MONTREAL, in its capacity as collateral agent (the “ Collateral Agent ”) for itself and for the Agents acting for and on behalf of the Secured Parties they respectively represent.

PRELIMINARY STATEMENTS

A. On even date herewith, Ultra Resources, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “ Borrower ”) entered into that certain Credit Agre with the Revolving Administrative Agent and the Revolving Lenders (as amended, amended and restated, restated, replaced, modified or supplemented from time to time, the “ Revolving Credit Agreement ”) pursuant to which the Revolving Lenders have agreed to make loans and other extensions of credit to the Borrower for the purposes set forth therein.

B. On even date herewith, the Borrower entered into that certain Term Loan Agreement with the Term Loan Administrative Agent and the Term Loan Lenders (as amended, amended and restated, restated, replaced, modified or supplemented from time to time, the “ Term Loan Agreement ”) pursuant to which the Term Loan Lenders have agreed to make term loans to the Borrower.

C. On even date herewith, the Revolving Administrative Agent, the Term Loan Administrative Agent and the Grantors party thereto entered into that certain Collateral Agency Agreement with the Collateral Agent (as amended, amended and restated, restated, replaced, modified or supplemented from time to time, the “ Collateral Agency Agreement ”) pursuant to which the Collateral Agent has been appointed Collateral Agent for the Secured Parties.

D. The Borrower and/or certain of the other Credit Parties and certain Secured Swap Parties have entered into or may enter into certain Secured Swap Agreements.

E. The Borrower and/or certain of the other Credit Parties and certain Treasury Management Lenders have entered into or may enter into certain Treasury Management Agreements.

F. The Guarantors, upon the terms and conditions stated herein, agree to guarantee the obligations of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties under the Revolving Credit Agreement, the Term Loan Agreement, the other Loan Documents, the Secured Swap Agreements and the Treasury Management Agreements, and the obligations of the Borrower and the other Credit Parties under the documents governing any Additional Secured Obligations (such documents referred to above in this paragraph F. being collectively referred to herein as the “ Secured Transaction Documents ”).

G. The Secured Parties have conditioned their obligations under the Secured Transaction Documents upon the execution and delivery by the Grantors of this Agreement, and the Grantors have agreed to enter into this Agreement to secure all obligations owing to the Secured Parties under the Secured Transaction Documents.

H. Each Grantor has determined that valuable benefits will be derived by it as a result of each of the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Agreement and the extensions of credit made (and to be made) by the respective Lenders thereunder.


ACCORDINGLY, the Grantors and the Collateral Agent, on behalf of the Secured Parties, hereby act and agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS

1.1. Terms Defined in UCC . Terms defined in the UCC which are not otherwise defined in this Agreement are used herein as defined in the UCC (even if such terms are capitalized herein and are not capitalized in the UCC).

1.2. Definitions of Certain Terms Used Herein . As used in this Agreement, in addition to the terms defined in the introductory paragraph hereto and in the Preliminary Statements, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Account Debtor ” means a Person who is obligated on an Account.

Additional Agent ” means the administrative agent or collateral agent or other representative of the holders of any Additional Secured Obligations that constitute revolver or term debt or other bank debt who (a) is duly appointed as a representative for purposes related to the administration of the documents pursuant to the credit agreement or other agreement governing such indebtedness and (b) has executed a Collateral Agency Joinder.

Additional Hedge Counterparty ” means the hedge counterparty opposite the Borrower or another Credit Party with respect to Secured Hedging Obligations (as defined in the Collateral Agency Agreement) that has executed a Collateral Agency Hedge Counterparty Joinder.

Additional Secured Obligations ” means any other indebtedness, obligations, liabilities, indemnities and reimbursements owed by the Credit Parties and designated as an “Additional Secured Obligation” for purposes of this Agreement in a Collateral Agency Joinder, in each case to the extent permitted under the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Agreement to be issued and to be secured by the Collateral as provided herein and in the Collateral Agency Agreement, whether such indebtedness, obligations, liabilities, indemnities and reimbursements are direct or indirect (including those acquired by assumption), absolute or contingent, due or to become due, now existing or hereafter arising.

Additional Secured Parties ” means (a) each Additional Agent, (b) each Additional Hedge Counterparty, (c) each Additional Trustee and (d) any other holders or secured parties (or equivalent term) under any Additional Secured Obligations.

Additional Trustee ” means the trustee or other representative of the holders of any Additional Secured Obligations that constitute senior notes or subordinated notes or otherwise pursuant to an indenture who (a) is duly appointed as a representative for purposes related to the administration of the documents pursuant to the indenture or other agreement governing such indebtedness and (b) has executed a Collateral Agency Joinder.

Administrative Agents ” means, collectively, (a) the Revolving Administrative Agent, (b) the Term Loan Administrative Agent and (c) any Additional Agent.

 

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Agents ” means, collectively, the Administrative Agents, any Additional Trustee and any Additional Hedge Counterparty unless the context requires otherwise.

Amendment ” shall have the meaning set forth in Section  6.4 hereof.

Article ” means a numbered article of this Agreement, unless another document is specifically referenced.

As-extracted Collateral ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Assigned Contracts ” means, collectively, all of the Grantors’ rights and remedies under, and all moneys and claims for money due or to become due to any Grantor under all written contracts, and any and all amendments, supplements, extensions, and renewals thereof including all rights and claims of the Grantors now or hereafter existing: (a) under any insurance, indemnities, warranties, and guarantees provided for or arising out of or in connection with any of the foregoing contracts; (b) for any damages arising out of or for breach or default under or in connection with any of the foregoing contracts; (c) to all other amounts from time to time paid or payable under or in connection with any of the foregoing contracts; or (d) to exercise or enforce any and all covenants, remedies, powers and privileges thereunder.

Assumption Agreement ” means an Assumption Agreement substantially in the form of Annex  1 hereto.

Chattel Paper ” and “ Electronic Chattel Paper ” shall have the meanings set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Collateral ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article  III .

Collateral Account ” means any Deposit Account under the sole dominion and control of the Collateral Agent established by the Collateral Agent as provided in Section  9.1 .

Collateral Agency Joinder ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Collateral Agency Agreement.

Collateral Agency Hedge Counterparty Joinder ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Collateral Agency Agreement.

Collateral Equity Interests ” means (a) the Pledged Equity and (b) any Equity Interests other than Pledged Equity that constitute Collateral hereunder.

Commercial Tort Claim ” means a commercial tort claim (as that term is defined in Article 9 of the UCC).

Commodity Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Commodity Account Control Agreement ” means an agreement, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, among any Credit Party, a commodity intermediary holding such Credit Party’s assets, including funds and commodity contracts, and the Collateral Agent with respect to collection and control of all deposits, commodity contracts (and the application of value on account of such commodity contracts) and other balances held in a Commodity Account maintained by any Credit Party with such commodity intermediary.

 

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Control ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 8 or, if applicable, in Section 9-104, 9-105, 9-106 or 9-107 of Article 9 of the UCC.

Control Agreement ” means a Deposit Account Control Agreement, a Securities Account Control Agreement or a Commodity Account Control Agreement, as context may require.

Copyrights ” means, with respect to any Person, all of such Person’s right, title, and interest in and to the following: (a) all copyrights, rights and interests in copyrights, works protectable by copyright, copyright registrations, and copyright applications; (b) all renewals of any of the foregoing; and (c) all rights corresponding to any of the foregoing throughout the world.

Credit Parties ” means, collectively, the Borrower and the Guarantors.

Deposit Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Deposit Account Control Agreement ” means an agreement, in form and substance satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, among any Credit Party, a banking institution holding such Credit Party’s funds, and the Collateral Agent with respect to collection and control of all deposits and balances, and the direction of disposition of funds, held in a Deposit Account maintained by any Credit Party with such banking institution.

Document ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Effective Date ” means (a) with respect to the Borrower and each other Grantor party hereto on the date hereof, the date on which (i) the conditions precedent to the “Effective Date” under and as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement have occurred and (ii) the conditions precedent to the “Effective Date” under and as defined in the Term Loan Agreement have occurred, and (b) with respect to each other Grantor, the “Effective Date” as defined in the Assumption Agreement by means of which such Grantor becomes a party hereto.

Equipment ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Equity Interests ” means shares of capital stock, partnership interests, membership interests in a limited liability company, beneficial interests in a trust or other equity ownership interests in a Person, and any warrants, options or other rights entitling the holder thereof to purchase or acquire any such Equity Interest.

Event of Default ” means any “event of default” under a Secured Transaction Document.

Excluded Account ” means (a) any Deposit Account, Commodity Account or Securities Account so long as the average daily maximum balance in each such account, individually, does not exceed $1,000,000 over any 30-day period and the aggregate daily maximum balance of all such Deposit Accounts, Commodity Accounts and Securities Accounts does not at any time exceed $10,000,000, (b) any Deposit Account that is a zero balance account or a deposit account for which the balance of such Deposit Account is transferred at the end of each date to a deposit account that is not an Excluded Account, (c) fiduciary accounts, (d) trust and suspense accounts of any Credit Party holding royalty obligations, (e) accounts constituting cash collateral accounts permitted under the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Credit Agreement, (f) the Professional Fee Escrow Account (as defined in the Plan of Reorganization (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Credit Agreement) and (g) any other Deposit Accounts exclusively used for trust, payroll, payroll taxes and other employee wage and benefit payments to or for the benefit of any employees of the Grantors.

 

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Excluded Assets ” means:

(a) any motor vehicle and other vehicles subject to certificates of title in which a lien can only be perfected by action with respect to a certificate of title;

(b) any Patents, Copyrights, Trademarks or Licenses;

(c) any contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document to the extent that the grant of a security interest therein is prohibited by, or constitutes a breach or default under or results in the termination of or gives rise to a right on the part of the parties thereto other than any Grantor to terminate (or materially modify) or requires any consent not obtained under, any such contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document, except to the extent that the term in such contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document providing for such prohibition, breach, default or right of termination or modification or requiring such consent is ineffective under Sections 9-406, 9-407, 9-408 or 9-409 of the UCC (or any successor provision or provisions) of any relevant jurisdiction or any other applicable law;

(d) any assets to the extent the grant of security interests in such assets would (i) be prohibited by a Permitted Contractual Obligation binding on the assets (including permitted liens, leases or licenses) or applicable law (in each case, except to the extent such prohibition (A) could be waived by the Borrower or any Subsidiary, (B) is the result of an attempt to circumvent the collateral requirements of the Loan Documents, or (C) is unenforceable after giving effect to applicable provisions of the UCC or other applicable law, other than proceeds thereof, the assignment of which is expressly deemed effective under the UCC or other applicable law notwithstanding such prohibitions), (ii) require obtaining the consent of any Governmental Authority, or (iii) result in material and adverse tax consequences to the Borrower, any Subsidiary or any Parent Entity that is a Credit Party, in each case as reasonably determined by the Borrower in writing delivered to the Collateral Agent;

(e) those assets with respect to which, in the reasonable judgment of the Collateral Agent and the Borrower, the burdens, costs or consequences of obtaining or perfecting such a security interest are excessive in view of the benefits to be obtained by the Secured Parties therefrom; and

(f) Excluded Equity Interests;

provided , however , that “Excluded Assets” shall (1) not include any right to receive proceeds from the sale or other disposition of Excluded Assets or any proceeds, substitutions or replacements of Excluded Assets (unless such proceeds, substitutions or replacements would constitute Excluded Assets) and (2) with respect to the exclusions set forth in clause  (c) above, not be construed to limit, impair or otherwise affect the Collateral Agent’s continuing security interests in the Borrower’s or any Grantor’s rights to or interests of the Borrower or any Grantor in (x) monies due or to become due under any such contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document (to the extent not prohibited by such contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document and applicable law), or (y) any proceeds from the sale, license, lease or other disposition of any such contract, license, agreement, instrument or other document. References in this Agreement to Collateral and to Goods, Equipment, Investment Property, and other categories or types of Collateral do not include Excluded Assets.

Excluded Equity Interests ” means (a) Excluded Foreign Equity Interests, (b) any Equity Interests to the extent the pledge thereof would be prohibited by any applicable law, (c) any Equity Interests of any Subsidiary to the extent the pledge of such Equity Interests is prohibited by Permitted Contractual Obligations existing on the Effective Date or at the time such Subsidiary is acquired (provided that such Permitted Contractual Obligations have not been entered into in contemplation of such Subsidiary being acquired) and (d) any Equity Interests of any Subsidiary to the extent that the pledge of such Equity Interests would result in material adverse tax consequences to the Borrower or any Subsidiary as reasonably determined by the Borrower.

 

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Excluded Foreign Equity Interests ” means, with respect to each Foreign Subsidiary, Equity Interests issued by such Foreign Subsidiary to the extent necessary to prevent the Collateral from including more than the lesser of (a) 66-2/3% of the total outstanding Equity Interests issued by such Foreign Subsidiary, and (b) if a pledge of 66-2/3% of such Equity Interests would result in adverse tax consequences to any Agent or Secured Party, then the maximum percentage that would not result in such adverse consequences.

Excluded Payments ” shall have the meaning set forth in Section  6.6(b)(iii) hereof.

Exhibit ” refers to a specific exhibit to this Agreement (unless another document is specifically referenced) as from time to time supplemented by any Assumption Agreements.

Fixtures ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Foreign Subsidiary ” means any Subsidiary organized under the laws of any jurisdiction outside the United States of America.

General Intangible ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Goods ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Grantor Claims ” shall have the meaning set forth in Section  14.1 hereof.

Guarantors ” means, collectively, each Grantor other than the Borrower.

Instrument ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Inventory ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Investment Property ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Lenders ” means, collectively, the Revolving Lenders and the Term Loan Lenders.

Letter-of-Credit Rights ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Licenses ” means, with respect to any Person, all of such Person’s right, title, and interest as a licensor in and to any and all licensing agreements or similar arrangements in and to its Patents, Copyrights, or Trademarks.

Loan Documents ” means, collectively, the Revolving Loan Documents and the Term Loan Documents.

Merger ” means (a) a merger, (b) a consolidation, or (c) the acquisition by an entity of a significant portion of the assets of, or of a division of, another entity.

Patents ” means, with respect to any Person, all of such Person’s right, title, and interest (other than as a licensee) in and to: (a) any and all patents and patent applications; (b) all inventions and improvements described and claimed therein; (c) all reissues, divisions, continuations, renewals, extensions, and continuations-in-part thereof; and (d) all rights corresponding to any of the foregoing throughout the world.

 

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Permitted Contractual Obligation ” means any enforceable contractual obligation of the Borrower or any Subsidiary that is permitted by the terms of the Loan Documents.

Pledged Equity ” means (a) the Equity Interests described or referred to on Exhibit  D and all other Equity Interests at any time owned by any Grantor in any other Grantor, (b) all Equity Interests issued by any Foreign Subsidiary of the Borrower or of a Guarantor (other than, in each case, Excluded Equity Interests), (c) the certificates or instruments, if any, representing such Equity Interests, (d) all dividends (cash, stock or otherwise), cash, instruments, rights to subscribe, purchase or sell and all other rights and property from time to time received, receivable or otherwise distributed in respect of or in exchange for any or all of such Equity Interests, (e) all replacements, additions to and substitutions for any of the property referred to in this definition, including, without limitation, claims against third parties, (f) the proceeds, interest, profits and other income of or on any of the property referred to in this definition and (g) all books and records relating to any of the property referred to in this definition.

Proceeds ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC and, in any event shall include, without limitation, all dividends or other income from the Pledged Equity or other Collateral, collections thereon or distributions or payments with respect thereto.

Receivables ” means the Accounts, Chattel Paper, Documents, Investment Property, Instruments and any other rights or claims to receive money which are General Intangibles or which are otherwise included as Collateral.

Revolving Administrative Agent ” means Bank of Montreal in its capacity as the “Administrative Agent” under the Revolving Credit Agreement, together with any successors in such capacity.

Revolving Lenders ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Lenders” in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Revolving Loan Documents ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Loan Documents” in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Revolving Secured Obligations ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Obligations” in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Revolving Secured Parties ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Secured Parties” in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Section ” means a numbered section of this Agreement, unless another document is specifically referenced.

Secured Obligations ” means, collectively, (a) the Revolving Secured Obligations, (b) the Term Loan Secured Obligations, (c) any Additional Secured Obligations, (d) any other indebtedness, obligations, liabilities, indemnities and reimbursements owed to any Secured Party under any Secured Transaction Document, whether direct or indirect (including those acquired by assumption), absolute or contingent, due or to become due, now existing or hereafter arising, and (e) any renewals, modifications, substitutions, rearrangements or extensions of the foregoing.

 

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Secured Parties ” means (a) the Revolving Secured Parties, (b) the Term Loan Secured Parties and (c) any Additional Secured Parties.

Secured Swap Agreements ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Secured Swap Parties ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Secured Transaction Documents ” has the meaning given to such term in the recitals hereto.

Securities Account Control Agreement ” means an agreement, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, among any Credit Party, a securities intermediary holding such Credit Party’s assets, including funds, securities, financial assets, and the Collateral Agent with respect to collection and control of all deposits, securities and other balances (including direction of transfer or redemption of financial assets in which such Credit Party has a security entitlement) held in a Securities Account maintained by any Credit Party with such securities intermediary.

Securities Account ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 8 of the UCC.

Security ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 8 of the UCC.

Stock Rights ” means all dividends, instruments or other distributions and any other right or property which the Grantors shall receive or shall become entitled to receive for any reason whatsoever with respect to, in substitution for or in exchange for any Equity Interest constituting Collateral, any right to receive an Equity Interest and any right to receive earnings, in which the Grantors now have or hereafter acquire any right, issued by an issuer of such Equity Interest.

Subsidiary ” and “ subsidiary ” shall each have the meaning given to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Supporting Obligation ” shall have the meaning set forth in Article 9 of the UCC.

Term Loan Administrative Agent ” means Barclays Bank PLC in its capacity as the “Administrative Agent” under the Term Loan Agreement, together with any successors in such capacity.

Term Loan Documents ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Loan Documents” in the Term Loan Agreement.

Term Loan Lenders ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Lenders” in the Term Loan Agreement.

Term Loan Secured Obligations ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Obligations” in the Term Loan Agreement.

Term Loan Secured Parties ” shall have the meaning given to the term “Secured Parties” in the Term Loan Agreement.

Trademarks ” means, with respect to any Person, all of such Person’s right, title, and interest (other than as a licensee) in and to the following: (a) all trademarks (including service marks), trade names, trade dress, and trade styles and the registrations and applications for registration thereof and the goodwill of the business symbolized by the foregoing; (b) all licenses of the foregoing; (c) all renewals of the foregoing; and (d) all rights corresponding to any of the foregoing throughout the world.

 

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Treasury Management Agreements ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

Treasury Management Lenders ” shall have the meaning given to such term in the Revolving Credit Agreement.

UCC ” means the Uniform Commercial Code, as in effect from time to time, of the State of New York or of any other state the laws of which are required as a result thereof to be applied in connection with the attachment, perfection or priority of, or remedies with respect to, Collateral Agent’s or any Secured Party’s Lien (as defined in the Term Loan Agreement and Revolving Credit Agreement) on any Collateral.

The foregoing definitions shall be equally applicable to both the singular and plural forms of the defined terms.

1.3. Interpretive Provisions . Section 1.02(b) of the Collateral Agency Agreement is hereby incorporated herein by reference mutatis mutandis as if stated verbatim herein as agreements of the parties hereto.

ARTICLE II

GUARANTY

2.1. Guaranty .

(a) Each of the Guarantors hereby, jointly and severally, unconditionally and irrevocably, guarantees to the Collateral Agent, for the ratable benefit of the Secured Parties and each of their respective successors, indorsees, transferees and assigns, the prompt and complete payment and performance by the Borrower and the Guarantors when due (whether at the stated maturity, by acceleration or otherwise) of the Secured Obligations (each such Guarantor’s guarantee contained in this Article  II , collectively, this “ Guaranty ”). This is a guarantee of payment and not collection and the liability of each Guarantor is primary and not secondary.

(b) Anything herein or in any other Loan Document to the contrary notwithstanding, the maximum liability of each Guarantor hereunder and under the other Secured Transaction Documents shall in no event exceed the amount which can be guaranteed by such Guarantor under applicable federal and state laws relating to the insolvency of debtors.

(c) Each Guarantor agrees that the Secured Obligations may at any time and from time to time exceed the amount of the liability of such Guarantor hereunder without impairing the Guaranty or affecting the rights and remedies of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party hereunder.

(d) Each Guarantor agrees that if the maturity of any of the Secured Obligations is accelerated by bankruptcy or otherwise, such maturity shall also be deemed accelerated for the purpose of this Guaranty without demand or notice to such Guarantor. This Guaranty shall remain in full force and effect until all of the following have occurred: (i) the payment in full and discharge of all Secured Obligations (other than unasserted contingent indemnification obligations) and (ii) the termination or expiration of all commitments to extend credit under all Secured Transaction Documents and the cancellation or termination or cash collateralization of all outstanding letters of credit issued pursuant to any such Secured Transaction Documents.

 

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(e) No payment made by the Borrower, any of the Guarantors, any other guarantor or any other Person or received or collected by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party from the Borrower, any of the Guarantors, any other guarantor or any other Person by virtue of any action or proceeding or any set-off or appropriation or application at any time or from time to time in reduction of or in payment of the Secured Obligations shall be deemed to modify, reduce, release or otherwise affect the liability of any Guarantor hereunder which shall, notwithstanding any such payment (other than any payment made by such Guarantor in respect of the Obligations or any payment received or collected from such Guarantor in respect of the Secured Obligations), remain liable for the outstanding Secured Obligations up to the maximum liability of such Guarantor hereunder until the termination of this Agreement as set forth in the last sentence of Section 2.1(d) above.

(f) To the extent that such Guarantor is a Qualified ECP Counterparty (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement), each such Guarantor hereby absolutely, unconditionally and irrevocably undertakes to provide to the Borrower, each other Guarantor and each Restricted Subsidiary (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement) such funds or other support as may be needed from time to time by the Borrower, each other Guarantor and each Restricted Subsidiary in order for the Borrower, each other Guarantor and each Restricted Subsidiary to honor its Secured Obligations with respect to Swap Agreements (as defined in the Revolving Credit Agreement), whether such Swap Agreements are entered into directly by the Borrower, any Guarantor or any Restricted Subsidiary or are guaranteed under this Agreement ( provided , however , that such Guarantor shall only be liable under this Section  2.1(f) for the maximum amount of such liability that can be hereby incurred without rendering its obligations under this Section  2.1(f) , or otherwise under this Agreement or any Loan Document, voidable under applicable law relating to fraudulent conveyance or fraudulent transfer, and not for any greater amount). The obligations of such Guarantor under this Section  2.1(f) shall remain in full force and effect until this Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms. Each such Guarantor intends that this Section  2.1(f) constitute a “keepwell, support, or other agreement” for the benefit of the Borrower, each other Guarantor and each Restricted Subsidiary for all purposes of Section 1a(18)(A)(v)(II) of the Commodity Exchange Act.

2.2. Payments . Each Guarantor hereby agrees and guarantees that payments hereunder will be paid to the Collateral Agent without set-off or counterclaim in dollars at the offices of the Collateral Agent specified pursuant to Schedule 1 of the Collateral Agency Agreement.

ARTICLE III

GRANT OF SECURITY INTEREST

Each Grantor hereby pledges, assigns and grants to the Collateral Agent, on behalf of and for the ratable benefit of the Secured Parties, a security interest in all of its right, title and interest in, to and under all of the following items, categories and types of personal property, whether now owned by or owing to, or hereafter acquired by or arising in favor of such Grantor (including under any trade name or derivations thereof), and whether owned or consigned by or to, or leased from or to, such Grantor, and regardless of where located (all of which will be collectively referred to as the “ Collateral ”), including:

(a) all Accounts;

(b) all Chattel Paper;

(c) all Documents;

 

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(d) all Equipment;

(e) all General Intangibles;

(f) all Goods (other than consumer goods);

(g) all Instruments;

(h) all Inventory;

(i) all Investment Property;

(j) all cash in possession of the Collateral Agent;

(k) all letters of credit, Letter-of-Credit Rights and Supporting Obligations;

(l) all Deposit Accounts;

(m) all Commercial Tort Claims listed on Exhibit  G hereto;

(n) all Securities Accounts;

(o) all Commodity Accounts;

(p) all Assigned Contracts and all Swap Agreements;

(q) all Pledged Equity;

(r) all Fixtures;

(s) all As-extracted Collateral;

(t) and all accessions to, substitutions for and replacements, Proceeds (including Stock Rights), insurance proceeds and products of the foregoing, together with all books and records, customer lists, credit files, computer files, programs, printouts and other computer materials and records related thereto and any General Intangibles at any time evidencing or relating to any of the foregoing;

to secure the prompt and complete payment and performance of the Secured Obligations; provided , however , that “Collateral” shall not include any Excluded Assets; and provided further , that if and when any property shall cease to be an Excluded Asset, such property shall be deemed at all times from and after such date to constitute Collateral.

ARTICLE IV

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, WAIVERS AND CONSENTS

4.1. Acknowledgments, Waivers and Consents .

(a) Each Grantor acknowledges and agrees that the obligations undertaken by it under this Agreement involve the guarantee and/or the provision of collateral security for such Grantor’s own obligations and the obligations of Persons other than such Grantor and that such Grantor’s guarantee and/or provision of collateral security for the Secured Obligations are absolute, irrevocable and unconditional under any and all circumstances. In full recognition and furtherance of the foregoing, each

 

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Grantor understands and agrees, to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law and except as may otherwise be expressly and specifically provided in the Secured Transaction Documents, that each Grantor shall remain obligated hereunder (including, without limitation, with respect to any guarantee made by such Grantor hereby and the collateral security provided by such Grantor herein) and the enforceability and effectiveness of this Agreement and the liability of such Grantor, and the rights, remedies, powers and privileges of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties under this Agreement and the other Secured Transaction Documents shall not be affected, limited, reduced, discharged or terminated in any way, notwithstanding that, without any reservation of rights against any Grantor and without notice to or further assent by any Grantor, any of the following occur:

(i) any demand for payment of any of the Secured Obligations made by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party shall be rescinded by the Collateral Agent or such other Secured Party and any of the Secured Obligations shall be continued;

(ii) the Secured Obligations, the liability of any Grantor or any other Person upon or for any part thereof or any collateral security or guarantee therefor or right of offset with respect thereto, shall be, from time to time, in whole or in part, renewed, extended, amended, modified, accelerated, compromised, waived, settled, surrendered or released by, or any indulgence or forbearance in respect thereof granted by, the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party;

(iii) the Secured Transaction Documents and any other documents executed and delivered in connection therewith shall be amended, modified, supplemented or terminated, in whole or in part in accordance with the respective terms thereof;

(iv) the Borrower, any other Grantor or any other Person shall from time to time accept or enter into new or additional agreements, security documents, guarantees or other instruments in addition to, in exchange for or relative to, any Secured Transaction Document, all or any part of the Secured Obligations or any Collateral now or in the future serving as security for the Secured Obligations;

(v) any collateral security, guarantee or right of offset at any time held by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party for the payment of the Secured Obligations shall be sold, exchanged, waived, surrendered or released;

(vi) any change in the time, manner or place of payment of or in any other term of, all or any part of the Secured Obligations, or any other amendment or waiver of or any consent to any departure from any Secured Transaction Document or any other agreement or instrument governing or evidencing any Secured Obligations, including any increase or decrease in the rate of interest thereon; and

(vii) any other event shall occur which constitutes a defense or release of sureties generally, other than the payment and performance in full of all Secured Obligations.

(b) Each Grantor hereby expressly waives to the fullest extent permitted by law any defense now or in the future arising by reason of,

(i) any default, failure or delay, willful or otherwise, in the payment or performance of the Secured Obligations;

(ii) the illegality, invalidity or unenforceability of the Secured Transaction Documents, any other agreement or instrument governing or evidencing any of the Secured Obligations, any of the Secured Obligations or any other collateral security therefor or guarantee or right of offset with respect thereto at any time or from time to time held by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party;

 

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(iii) any defense, set-off or counterclaim (in any case, whether based on contract, tort or any other theory), other than a defense of payment or performance, which may at any time be available to or be asserted by any Grantor or any other Person against the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party;

(iv) the insolvency, bankruptcy arrangement, reorganization, adjustment, composition, liquidation, disability, dissolution or lack of power of any Grantor or any other Person at any time liable for the payment of all or part of the Secured Obligations or the failure of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party to file or enforce a claim in bankruptcy or other proceeding with respect to any Person; or any sale, lease or transfer of any or all of the assets of the any Grantor, or any changes in the equity owners of any Grantor;

(v) the fact that any Collateral or liens or security interests contemplated or intended to be given, created or granted as security for the repayment of the Secured Obligations shall not be properly perfected or created, or shall prove to be unenforceable or subordinate to any other lien or security interest, it being recognized and agreed by each of the Grantors that it is not entering into this Agreement in reliance on, or in contemplation of the benefits of, the validity, enforceability, collectability or value of any of the Collateral for the Secured Obligations;

(vi) any failure of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party to marshal assets in favor of any Grantor or any other Person, to exhaust any collateral for all or any part of the Secured Obligations, to pursue or exhaust any right, remedy, power or privilege it may have against any Grantor or any other Person or to take any action whatsoever to mitigate or reduce any Grantor’s liability under this Agreement or any other Secured Transaction Document;

(vii) any present or future law, regulation or order of any jurisdiction (whether of right or in fact) or of any agency which (A) provides that the obligation of a surety or guarantor must neither be larger in amount nor in other respects more burdensome than that of the principal, (B) reduces, amends, restructures or otherwise affects any term of any Secured Transaction Document or the Secured Obligations or (C) purports to prohibit the payment of the Borrower, any other Grantor, any other Credit Party or any other guarantor of the Secured Obligations of the principal or interest on the Secured Obligations;

(viii) the possibility that the Secured Obligations may at any time and from time to time exceed the aggregate liability of such Grantor under this Agreement;

(ix) any change in the corporate existence, structure or ownership of the Borrower, any other Grantor, any other Credit Party or any other guarantor of any of the Secured Obligations, or any insolvency, bankruptcy, reorganization or other similar proceeding affecting the Borrower, any other Grantor, any other Credit Party or any other guarantor of the Secured Obligations, or any of their assets or any resulting release or discharge of any obligation of the Borrower, any other Grantor, any other Credit Party or any other guarantor or any of the Secured Obligations; or

(x) any other circumstance or act whatsoever by the Borrower, any other Credit Party, any other guarantor of the Secured Obligations, the Collateral Agent, any Lender or any other Person, other than a defense of payment or performance, including any action or omission of the type described in Section  4.01(a) (with or without notice to or knowledge of any Grantor), which constitutes, or might be construed to constitute, an equitable or legal discharge or defense of the Borrower

 

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for the Secured Obligations, or of such Grantor under the Guaranty or with respect to the collateral security provided by such Grantor herein, or which might be available to a surety or guarantor, in bankruptcy or in any other instance;

except in each case to the extent that any written amendment, settlement, compromise, waiver or release expressly modifies or terminates the obligations of such Grantor.

(c) Each Grantor hereby waives to the extent permitted by law: (i) except as expressly provided otherwise in any Secured Transaction Document, all notices to such Grantor, or to any other Person, including but not limited to, notices of the acceptance of this Agreement, the Guaranty or the provision of collateral security provided herein, or the creation, renewal, extension, modification, accrual of any Secured Obligations, or notice of or proof of reliance by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party upon the Guaranty or upon the collateral security provided herein, or of default in the payment or performance of any of the Secured Obligations owed to the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party and enforcement of any right or remedy with respect thereto; or notice of any other matters relating thereto; the Secured Obligations, and any of them, shall conclusively be deemed to have been created, contracted or incurred, or renewed, extended, amended or waived, in reliance upon the Guaranty and the collateral security provided herein and no notice of creation of the Secured Obligations or any extension of credit already or hereafter contracted by or extended to the Borrower need be given to any Grantor; and all dealings between the Borrower and any of the Grantors, on the one hand, and the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties, on the other hand, likewise shall be conclusively presumed to have been had or consummated in reliance upon the Guaranty and on the collateral security provided herein; (ii) diligence and demand of payment, presentment, protest, dishonor and notice of dishonor; (iii) any statute of limitations affecting any Grantor’s liability hereunder or the enforcement thereof; (iv) all rights of revocation with respect to the Secured Obligations, the Guaranty and the provision of collateral security herein; and (v) all principles or provisions of law which conflict with the terms of this Agreement and which can, as a matter of law, be waived.

(d) When making any demand hereunder or otherwise pursuing its rights and remedies hereunder against any Grantor, the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party may, but shall be under no obligation to, join or make a similar demand on or otherwise pursue or exhaust such rights and remedies as it may have against the Borrower, any other Grantor or any other Person or against any collateral security or guarantee for the Secured Obligations or any right of offset with respect thereto, and any failure by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party to make any such demand, to pursue such other rights or remedies or to collect any payments from the Borrower, any other Grantor or any other Person or to realize upon any such collateral security or guarantee or to exercise any such right of offset, or any release of the Borrower, any other Grantor or any other Person or any such collateral security, guarantee or right of offset, shall not relieve any Grantor of any obligation or liability hereunder, and shall not impair or affect the rights and remedies, whether express, implied or available as a matter of law, of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party against any Grantor. For the purposes hereof “demand” shall include the commencement and continuance of any legal proceedings. Neither the Collateral Agent nor any other Secured Party shall have any obligation to protect, secure, perfect or insure any lien or security interest at any time held by it as security for the Secured Obligations or for the Guaranty or any property subject thereto.

4.2. No Subrogation, Contribution or Reimbursement . Notwithstanding any payment made by any Grantor hereunder or any set-off or application of funds of any Grantor by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party, until the payment and performance in full of all Secured Obligations no Grantor shall be entitled to be subrogated to any of the rights of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party against the Borrower or any other Grantor or any collateral security or guarantee or right of offset held by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party for the payment of the Secured Obligations, nor shall any

 

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Grantor seek or be entitled to seek any indemnity, exoneration, participation, contribution or reimbursement from the Borrower or any other Grantor in respect of payments made by such Grantor hereunder, and each Grantor hereby expressly waives, releases and agrees not to exercise any such rights of subrogation, reimbursement, indemnity and contribution. Each Grantor further agrees that to the extent that such waiver and release set forth herein is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be void or voidable for any reason, any rights of subrogation, reimbursement, indemnity and contribution such Grantor may have against the Borrower, any other Grantor or against any collateral or security or guarantee or right of offset held by the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party shall be junior and subordinate to any rights the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties may have against the Borrower and such Grantor and to all right, title and interest the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties may have in any collateral or security or guarantee or right of offset. The Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Secured Parties, may use, sell or dispose of any item of Collateral or security as provided in this Agreement without regard to any subrogation rights any Grantor may have, and upon any disposition or sale, any rights of subrogation any Grantor may have shall terminate.

4.3. Release . Each Guarantor consents and agrees that the Collateral Agent may at any time, or from time to time, in compliance with the Secured Transaction Documents and otherwise in its discretion:

(a) renew, extend or change the time of payment, and/or the manner, place or terms of payment of all or any part of the Secured Obligations; and

(b) exchange, release and/or surrender all or any of the Collateral (including the Pledged Equity), or any part thereof, by whomsoever deposited, which is now or may hereafter be held by the Collateral Agent in connection with all or any of the Secured Obligations; all in such manner and upon such terms as the Collateral Agent may deem proper, and without notice to or further assent from any Grantor that is a Guarantor, it being hereby agreed that each such Guarantor shall be and remain bound upon this Agreement, irrespective of the value or condition of any of the Collateral, and notwithstanding any such change, exchange, settlement, compromise, surrender, release, renewal or extension, and notwithstanding also that the Secured Obligations may, at any time, exceed the aggregate principal amount thereof set forth in the Revolving Credit Agreement, Term Loan Agreement, or any other agreement governing any Secured Obligations.

ARTICLE V

REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

Each Grantor represents and warrants to the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties that:

5.1. Title, Perfection and Priority . The representations and warranties of the Parent and the Borrower in the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Agreement concerning each Grantor, this Agreement, and the Collateral are true and correct in all material respects (without duplication of any materiality qualifier contained therein), except to the extent any such representations and warranties are expressly limited to an earlier date, in which case, such representations and warranties are true and correct in all material respects as of such specified earlier date. When financing statements have been filed in the appropriate offices against each Grantor in the locations listed on Exhibit  E , the Collateral Agent will have a validly perfected first priority security interest in that Collateral of the Grantor in which a security interest may be perfected by the filing of financing statements, subject only to liens or security interests permitted under the Secured Transaction Documents.

5.2. Type and Jurisdiction of Organization, Organizational and Identification Numbers . The type of entity of such Grantor, its state of organization, the organizational number issued to it by its state

 

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of organization and its federal employer identification number are set forth on Exhibit  A . Except as may be set forth in Exhibit  A or in an applicable Assumption Agreement, such Grantor has not had any other entity type, jurisdiction of organization or organizational number, and has not been a party to any Merger, during the past five years prior to its becoming a Grantor hereunder; provided that if Grantor has been a party to such a Merger, Exhibit  A or the applicable Assumption Agreement sets forth the information required by this Section  5.2 for each constituent party to such Merger.

5.3. Principal Location . Such Grantor’s mailing address and the location of its place of business (if it has only one) or its chief executive office (if it has more than one place of business), are disclosed in Exhibit  A .

5.4. Deposit Accounts, Commodity Accounts and Securities Accounts . All of such Grantor’s Deposit Accounts, Commodity Accounts and Securities Accounts as of the Effective Date are listed on Exhibit  B and any Excluded Accounts as of the Effective Date are identified as such on Exhibit  B .

5.5. Exact Names . Such Grantor’s name in which it has executed this Agreement is the exact legal name of such Grantor as it appears in such Grantor’s organizational documents, as amended, as filed with such Grantor’s jurisdiction of organization as of the Effective Date. Except as may be described in Exhibit  A or in an applicable Assumption Agreement, such Grantor has not, during the past five years prior to its becoming a party hereto, had any other name or been a party to any merger or consolidation; provided that if Grantor has been a party to such a Merger, Exhibit  A or the applicable Assumption Agreement sets forth the information required by this Section  5.2 for each constituent party to such Merger.

5.6. Letter-of-Credit Rights and Chattel Paper on Effective Date . Exhibit  C lists all Letter-of-Credit Rights and Chattel Paper owned by such Grantor as of the Effective Date, if any, with a value in excess of $1,000,000. All action by such Grantor necessary or desirable to protect and perfect the Collateral Agent’s lien and security interest on each item listed on Exhibit  C that can be accomplished by the filing of the financing statements in accordance with the second sentence of Section  5.1 has been duly taken.

5.7. No Financing Statements, Security Agreements . No financing statement describing all or any portion of the Collateral which has not lapsed or been terminated naming such Grantor as debtor has been filed or is of record in any jurisdiction except (a) for financing statements naming the Collateral Agent as the secured party, (b) financing statements with respect to liens or security interests permitted by Section  6.1(e) , (c) financing statements being terminated concurrently with the execution hereof, and (d) financing statements filed as a precaution to describe personal property leased to a Grantor.

5.8. Pledged Equity .

(a) Exhibit  D sets forth a complete and accurate list of all Pledged Equity owned by such Grantor as of the Effective Date. Such Grantor is the direct, sole beneficial owner and sole holder of record of the Pledged Equity listed on Exhibit  D as being owned by it, free and clear of any liens or security interests except for liens or security interests permitted by the Secured Transaction Documents. Such Grantor further represents and warrants that (i) all Pledged Equity owned by it is duly authorized and validly issued and, if such Pledged Equity is stock in a corporation, is fully paid and non-assessable, (ii) with respect to any certificates delivered to the Collateral Agent representing Pledged Equity, either such certificates are Securities as defined in Article 8 of the UCC as a result of actions by the issuer or otherwise, or, if such certificates are not Securities, such Grantor has so informed the Collateral Agent so that the Collateral Agent may take steps to perfect its security interest therein as a General Intangible, and (iii) no Pledged Equity is held by a securities intermediary in, or carried in or credited to, a Securities Account Control Agreement.

 

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(b) In addition, except for any that have been obtained, as of the Effective Date, no consent, approval, authorization, or other action by, and no giving of notice, filing with, any governmental authority or any other Person is required for the pledge by such Grantor of such Pledged Equity pursuant to this Agreement or for the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by such Grantor.

(c) Except as set forth in Exhibit  D , as of the Effective Date such Grantor owns 100% of the issued and outstanding Equity Interests in each issuer that has issued Pledged Equity to such Grantor.

5.9. Instruments, Securities and Documents . Exhibit  D lists all Instruments, Securities (other than Pledged Equity) and Documents constituting or evidencing Collateral owned by such Grantor as of the Effective Date, if any, that such Grantor is required to deliver to the Collateral Agent pursuant to Section  6.4 hereof.

5.10. Benefit to the Guarantor . The Borrower is a member of an affiliated group of companies that includes each Guarantor, and the Borrower and the Guarantors are engaged in related businesses. The Borrower is a subsidiary of the Parent and each Guarantor (other than the Parent) is a Subsidiary of the Borrower and each Guarantor’s guarantee and surety obligations pursuant to this Agreement reasonably may be expected to benefit, directly or indirectly, it; and it has determined that this Agreement is necessary and convenient to the conduct, promotion and attainment of the business of such Guarantor and the Borrower.

ARTICLE VI

COVENANTS

From the date of this Agreement, and thereafter until this Agreement is terminated, each Grantor agrees that:

6.1. General .

(a) Access to Records . Such Grantor will comply with the Parent’s and the Borrower’s covenants contained in Section 8.08 of each of the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Agreement concerning maintenance of books and records and provision of access to such records and the Collateral to the Revolving Administrative Agent or Term Loan Administrative Agent (and their respective designated representatives).

(b) Authorization to File Financing Statements; Ratification . Such Grantor hereby authorizes the Collateral Agent to file financing statements and other documents describing the Collateral in order to perfect the security interests created hereby. Each Grantor hereby agrees to deliver or file such financing statements, and to take such other actions, as may from time to time be reasonably requested by the Collateral Agent in order to maintain the perfection and priority described in Section  5.1 and, if applicable and subject to the limitations herein, Control of, the Collateral owned by such Grantor. Any financing statement filed by the Collateral Agent may be filed in any filing office in any UCC jurisdiction and may (i) describe such Grantor’s Collateral (1) as all assets of the Grantor or words of similar effect, regardless of whether any particular asset comprised in the Collateral falls within the scope of Article 9 of the UCC of such jurisdiction, or (2) by any other description which reasonably approximates the description contained in this Agreement, and (ii) contain any other information required by part 5 of

 

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Article 9 of the UCC for the sufficiency or filing office’s acceptance of any financing statement or amendment, including whether such Grantor is an organization, the type of organization and any organization identification number issued to such Grantor. Such Grantor also agrees to furnish any such information to the Collateral Agent promptly upon reasonable request.

(c) Further Assurances . Such Grantor will, if so reasonably requested by the Collateral Agent, furnish to the Collateral Agent, as often as the Collateral Agent reasonably requests, statements and schedules further identifying and describing the Collateral owned by it and such other reports and information in connection with its Collateral as the Collateral Agent may reasonably request, all in such detail as the Collateral Agent may reasonably specify. Such Grantor also agrees to take any and all actions necessary to defend title to the Collateral against all persons and to defend, and effectuate and maintain, the security interest of the Collateral Agent (for the benefit of the Secured Parties) in its Collateral and the priority thereof against any lien or security interest not expressly permitted hereunder.

(d) Disposition of Collateral . Such Grantor will not sell, lease or otherwise dispose of the Collateral owned by it in violation of Section  9.11 of the Revolving Credit Agreement or Section  9.11 of the Term Loan Agreement.

(e) Liens . Such Grantor will not create, incur, or suffer to exist any lien or security interest on the Collateral owned by it except (i) the security interest created by this Agreement, and (ii) other liens or security interests permitted under the Secured Transaction Documents.

(f) Other Financing Statements . Such Grantor will not authorize the filing of any financing statement naming it as debtor covering all or any portion of the Collateral owned by it, except for (i) financing statements naming the Collateral Agent as the secured party, (ii) financing statements with respect to liens or security interests permitted by Section  6.1(e) , and (iii) financing statements filed as a precaution to describe personal property leased to a Grantor. Such Grantor acknowledges that it is not authorized to file any financing statement or amendment or termination statement with respect to any financing statement naming the Collateral Agent as secured party without the prior written consent of the Collateral Agent, subject to such Grantor’s rights under Section 9-509(d)(2) of the UCC.

6.2. Electronic Chattel Paper . Upon request by the Collateral Agent, such Grantor shall take all steps necessary to grant the Collateral Agent Control of such Grantor’s electronic chattel paper in accordance with the UCC and all “transferable records” as defined in each of the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act and the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act to the extent necessary to ensure that the aggregate value of all electronic chattel paper of all Grantors for which Control has not been granted to the Collateral Agent does not exceed $1,000,000.

6.3. Inventory and Equipment . Each Grantor will perform its obligations with respect to Inventory and Equipment under Section 8.06 of each of the Revolving Credit Agreement and Term Loan Agreement and under any deed of trust or mortgage that it grants to the Collateral Agent.

6.4. Delivery of Instruments, Certificated Securities, Chattel Paper and Documents . Such Grantor will (a) deliver to the Collateral Agent, (i) immediately upon the Effective Date, the originals of all certificated Securities (together with stock or securities powers duly indorsed in blank by an effective indorsement), (ii) within 30 days after the Effective Date (or such later date as the Collateral Agent may agree in its sole discretion) deliver to the Collateral Agent the originals of all Instruments (together with note powers or other instruments of transfer duly indorsed in blank by an effective indorsement) and all tangible Chattel Paper, in each case, constituting Collateral owned by it on the Effective Date, and (iii) thereafter, upon request by the Collateral Agent, deliver to the Collateral Agent any such tangible Chattel Paper and Instruments (together with note powers or other instruments of transfer duly indorsed in

 

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blank by an effective indorsement) constituting Collateral, in each case, to the extent necessary to ensure that the aggregate value of all Chattel Paper and other Instruments constituting Collateral and owned by the Grantors for which the originals have not been delivered to the Collateral Agent does not exceed $1,000,000, (b) upon the Collateral Agent’s request, deliver to the Collateral Agent any tangible negotiable Document evidencing or constituting Collateral to the extent necessary to ensure that the aggregate value of all Documents constituting Collateral and owned by the Grantors for which the Documents have not been delivered to the Collateral Agent does not exceed $1,000,000, (c) with respect to any Subsidiary of such Grantor that becomes a Subsidiary after the Effective Date, deliver to the Collateral Agent within fifteen Business Days (or such later date as the Collateral Agent may agree in its sole discretion) after the formation or acquisition of such Subsidiary, the certificates representing the Pledged Equity issued by such Subsidiary (if such Pledged Equity constitutes certificated securities under the UCC) together with stock or securities powers duly indorsed in blank by an effective indorsement, (d) following the Effective Date, upon receipt thereof, deliver to the Collateral Agent any certificated Securities constituting Collateral (other than certificated Securities of Subsidiaries described in clause (c) immediately above), together with stock or securities powers duly indorsed in blank by effective indorsement, to the extent necessary to ensure that the aggregate value of all certificated Securities described in this clause (d) constituting Collateral and owned by the Grantors for which originals have not been delivered to the Collateral Agent does not exceed $1,000,000, and (e) upon the Collateral Agent’s request, deliver to the Collateral Agent a duly executed amendment to this Agreement (an “ Amendment ”), substantially in the form of Exhibit  F hereto, pursuant to which such Grantor will identify and ratify the pledge of such additional Collateral. Such Grantor hereby authorizes the Collateral Agent to attach each Amendment to this Agreement and agrees that all additional Collateral owned by it set forth in such Amendments shall be considered to be part of the Collateral.

6.5. Uncertificated Collateral Equity Interests . If as of the Effective Date, any Collateral Equity Interest constitutes an uncertificated security (within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC), such Grantor thereof shall, within 30 days following the Effective Date with respect to any such Collateral Equity Interest constituting Pledged Equity and within 30 days after request by the Collateral Agent (with respect to any other Collateral Equity Interest (or, in each case, such later date as the Collateral Agent may agree in its sole discretion), cause the issuer thereof to enter into a control agreement with such Grantor and the Collateral Agent wherein such issuer agrees to comply with instructions with respect to such Collateral Equity Interest originated by the Collateral Agent without further consent of such Grantor or any other Person, such agreement to be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent and sufficient to cause the Collateral Agent’s security interest in such Collateral Equity Interest to be perfected by control within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC. If, after the Effective Date, any Grantor acquires any Collateral Equity Interest constituting an uncertificated security, such Grantor shall cause the issuer thereof, within 30 days after request by the Collateral Agent (or such later date as the Collateral Agent may agree in its sole discretion) to enter into a control agreement as described in the preceding sentence with respect to such uncertificated Collateral Equity Interest (and making the agreements described in the preceding sentence), such agreement to be in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent and sufficient to cause the Collateral Agent’s security interest in such Collateral Equity Interests to be perfected by control within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC.

6.6. Collateral Equity Interests .

(a) Registration of Collateral Equity Interests . After an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, such Grantor will permit any registerable Collateral Equity Interest owned by it to be registered in the name of the Collateral Agent or its nominee at any time at the option of an Administrative Agent.

 

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(b) Exercise of Rights in Collateral Equity Interests .

(i) Subject to clause  (ii) below, such Grantor shall have the right to exercise all voting rights or other rights relating to the Collateral Equity Interest owned by it for all purposes not inconsistent with this Agreement, the Revolving Credit Agreement, the Term Loan Agreement or any other Secured Transaction Document; provided however , that no vote or other right shall be exercised or action taken which would have the effect of impairing the rights of the Collateral Agent in respect of such Collateral Equity Interest.

(ii) Such Grantor will permit the Collateral Agent or its nominee at any time during the continuance of an Event of Default to exercise, and such Grantor hereby grants the Collateral Agent during the continuance of an Event of Default the exclusive right to exercise, all voting rights or other rights relating to the Collateral Equity Interest owned by such Grantor, including, without limitation, exchange, subscription or any other rights, privileges, or options pertaining to any Equity Interest or Investment Property constituting such Collateral Equity Interest as if it were the absolute owner thereof.

(iii) So long as no Event of Default shall have occurred and be continuing, such Grantor shall be entitled to collect and receive for its own use all cash dividends and interest paid in respect of the Collateral Equity Interest owned by it to the extent not in violation of the Credit Agreement; provided that, to the extent, if any, that any Collateral Equity Interest is issued by a Person other than a Credit Party, the following distributions and payments (collectively referred to as the “ Excluded Payments ”) shall be delivered to the Collateral Agent as and to the extent required in the following subsection (iv): (A) dividends and interest paid or payable other than in cash in respect of such Collateral Equity Interest, and instruments and other property received, receivable or otherwise distributed in respect of, or in exchange for, any such Collateral Equity Interest; (B) dividends and other distributions paid or payable in cash in respect of such Collateral Equity Interest in connection with a partial or total liquidation or dissolution or in connection with a reduction of capital, capital surplus or paid-in capital of an issuer; and (C) cash paid, payable or otherwise distributed, in respect of principal of, or in redemption of, or in exchange for, such Collateral Equity Interest; provided however , that until actually paid, all rights to such distributions shall remain subject to the liens and security interests created by this Agreement; and

(iv) All Excluded Payments, whenever paid or made, shall be delivered to the Collateral Agent to hold as Pledged Equity and shall, if received by such Grantor, be received in trust for the benefit of the Collateral Agent (on behalf of the Secured Parties), be segregated from the other property or funds of such Grantor, and be forthwith delivered to the Collateral Agent as Pledged Equity in the same form as so received (with any necessary indorsement).

(c) Securities; Partnership and Limited Liability Company Interests . Each Grantor agrees that:

(i) with respect to any Collateral Equity Interest owned by it that constitutes a security under Article 8 of the UCC (including any such interest in any limited partnership or limited liability company), such Grantor shall not, without the Collateral Agent’s prior consent, cause or (to the extent such Grantor controls the issuer of such Collateral Equity Interest) allow such Collateral Equity Interest to cease to constitute a security under Article 8 of the UCC;

(ii) with respect to any Collateral Equity Interest that constitutes a “certificated security” under Article 8 of the UCC (including any such interest in a limited partnership or limited liability company), such Grantor will not, without the Collateral Agent’s prior consent, cause or (to the extent such Grantor controls the issuer of such Collateral Equity Interest) allow such Collateral Equity Interests to become an “uncertificated security” within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC;

 

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(iii) with respect to any Collateral Equity Interest that constitutes an “uncertificated security” under Article 8 of the UCC (including any such interest in a limited partnership or limited liability company), such Grantor will not, without the Collateral Agent’s prior consent, cause or (to the extent such Grantor controls the issuer of such Collateral Equity Interests) allow such Collateral Equity Interest to become a “certificated security” within the meaning of the UCC;

(iv) with respect to any Collateral Equity Interest owned by it that constitutes an interest in a limited partnership or limited liability company that is not a security (within the meaning of Article 8 of the UCC) such Grantor shall not, without the Collateral Agent’s prior consent, cause or (to the extent such Grantor controls the issuer of such Collateral Equity Interest) allow the issuer of such Collateral Equity Interest to elect or otherwise take any action that would cause such Collateral Equity Interest to constitute a security for purposes of Article 8 of the UCC; and

(v) with respect to any Pledged Equity owned by it such Grantor will not, without the Collateral Agent’s prior consent, allow or cause such Pledged Equity to be deposited in, carried in or credited to a Securities Account.

6.7. Commercial Tort Claims . Such Grantor shall promptly notify the Collateral Agent of any commercial tort claim (as defined in the UCC) acquired by it that is the subject of pending litigation and that could reasonably be expected to result in a judgment or settlement in such Grantor’s favor in excess of $1,000,000 and, upon request by the Collateral Agent, such Grantor shall enter into an Amendment substantially in the form of Exhibit  F hereto, granting to the Collateral Agent (on behalf of the Secured Parties) a first priority security interest in such Commercial Tort Claim.

6.8. Letter-of-Credit Rights . If such Grantor is or becomes the beneficiary of a letter of credit with a face amount in excess of $1,000,000, it shall promptly notify the Collateral Agent thereof and, if requested to do so by the Collateral Agent, make reasonable commercial efforts to cause the issuer and/or confirmation bank to (a) consent to the assignment of the related Letter-of-Credit Rights to the Collateral Agent and (b) agree to direct all payments thereunder to a Deposit Account subject to a Deposit Account Control Agreement, all in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent.

6.9. Control Agreements . Within the time periods set forth in Sections 8.18 and 8.19(a) of the Revolving Credit Agreement and Sections 8.18 and 8.20(a) of the Term Loan Agreement, for each Deposit Account, Securities Account and Commodity Account (other than Excluded Accounts) that such Grantor at any time maintains, such Grantor will, at all times, pursuant to a Control Agreement in form and substance satisfactory to the Collateral Agent, cause the depository bank that maintains such Deposit Account, the securities intermediary that maintains such Securities Account, or the commodities intermediary that maintains such Commodity Account, as applicable, to agree to comply at any time (a) with entitlement orders from the Collateral Agent to such securities intermediary with regard to a Securities Account, (b) with instructions from the Collateral Agent to such depository bank, directing the disposition of funds from time to time in such Deposit Account, and (c) with directions of the Collateral Agent to such commodity intermediary for the application of value on account of commodity contracts carried in such Commodity Account, in each case without further consent of such Grantor and sufficient to grant the Collateral Agent with “control” within the meaning of Section 8-106 of the UCC, Section 9-104 of the UCC and Section 9-106 of the UCC, as applicable, and Grantor shall take such other action as the Collateral Agent may reasonably request or approve in order to perfect the Collateral Agent’s (on behalf of the Secured Parties) security interest in such Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodity Account, including by control as aforesaid; provided that, such Grantor shall not cause or permit any Excluded Account to cease to constitute an “Excluded Account” (other than as a result of the closing of such Excluded Account) unless such Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodity Account, as applicable, is subject to a Control Agreement in favor of the Collateral Agent in form and

 

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substance satisfactory to the Collateral Agent. Notwithstanding the foregoing or the terms of any Control Agreement, unless an Event of Default is continuing the Collateral Agent will not enforce the terms of any Control Agreement in order to take possession of, or prevent or limit the ability of any Grantor to direct the disposition of, the funds and other assets held in any Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodity Account. The Borrower agrees to provide to the Collateral Agent each notice that the Borrower provides to the Revolving Administrative Agent (at the time such notice is provided to the Revolving Administrative Agent) regarding the opening of a Deposit Account, Securities Account or Commodity Account (other than an Excluded Account).

6.10. Change of Name or Location; etc . Such Grantor shall insure that Borrower gives the notices required in Section 8.01(h) of the Revolving Credit Agreement and Section 8.01(i) of the Term Loan Agreement with respect to any change in Grantor’s name, jurisdiction of organization, or the other matters addressed in such section of the Credit Agreement.

6.11. Additional Grantors . Each Grantor agrees to cause each of its Subsidiaries that is required to become a party to this Agreement pursuant to Section 8.14(b) of each of the Revolving Credit Agreement and the Term Loan Agreement to become a Grantor for all purposes of this Agreement by executing and delivering an Assumption Agreement substantially in the form of Annex  1 hereto.

ARTICLE VII

EVENTS OF DEFAULT AND REMEDIES

7.1. Remedies . During the continuation of an Event of Default:

(a) the Collateral Agent shall be entitled to exercise any or all of the following rights and remedies to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law:

(i) those rights and remedies provided in this Agreement or any other Secured Transaction Document; provided that, this Section  7.1(a) shall not be understood to limit any rights or remedies available to the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties prior to an Event of Default;

(ii) those rights and remedies available to a secured party under the UCC (whether or not the UCC applies to the affected Collateral) or under any other applicable law (including, without limitation, any law governing the exercise of a bank’s right of setoff or bankers’ lien) when a debtor is in default under a security agreement;

(iii) the right to give notice of sole control or any other instruction, directive or entitlement order under any Control Agreement and take any action therein with respect to such Collateral, and the right to indorse and collect any cash proceeds of the Collateral;

(iv) without notice, demand or advertisement of any kind to any Grantor or any other Person (except as specifically provided in Section  10.1 or elsewhere herein or in the UCC), the right to enter the premises of any Grantor where any Collateral is located (through self-help and without judicial process), the right to collect, receive, assemble, process, appropriate, sell, lease, assign, grant an option or options to purchase or otherwise dispose of, deliver, or realize upon, the Collateral or any part thereof in one or more parcels at public or private sale or sales (which sales may be adjourned or continued from time to time with or without notice and may take place at any Grantor’s premises or elsewhere), for cash, on credit or for future delivery without assumption of any credit risk, and upon such other terms as are commercially reasonable;

 

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(v) concurrently with written notice to the applicable Grantor, the right to transfer and register in its name or in the name of its nominee the whole or any part of the Collateral Equity Interest, and, whether or not such Collateral Equity Interest has been registered in the name of the Collateral Agent or its nominee, the rights to exchange certificates or instruments representing or evidencing Collateral Equity Interests for certificates or instruments of smaller or larger denominations, to exercise the voting and all other rights as a holder with respect thereto, to collect, receive and retain all dividends, Stock Rights and other distributions made thereon and to otherwise act with respect to the Collateral Equity Interests as though the Collateral Agent was the outright owner thereof; and

(vi) the right to discharge past due taxes, assessments, charges, fees or liens or security interests on the Collateral (except for such liens or security interests as are specifically permitted hereunder).

(b) The Collateral Agent, on behalf of the Secured Parties, may comply with any applicable state or federal law requirements in connection with a disposition of the Collateral and compliance will not be considered to adversely affect the commercial reasonableness of any sale of the Collateral.

(c) Upon any such public sale or sales or any such private sale or sales, the Collateral Agent shall have the right, to the extent permitted by law, to purchase for the benefit of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties, the whole or any part of the Collateral so sold, free of any right of equity redemption, which equity redemption the Grantor hereby expressly releases.

(d) Until the Collateral Agent is able to effect a sale, lease, or other disposition of Collateral, the Collateral Agent shall have the right, as provided under applicable law, to hold or use Collateral, or any part thereof, to the extent that it deems appropriate for the purpose of preserving or protecting the Collateral or its value, enforcing this Agreement or perfecting and maintaining the perfection and priority of the Collateral Agent’s security interest in the Collateral. The Collateral Agent may, if it so elects, seek the appointment of a receiver or keeper to take possession of Collateral and to enforce any of the Collateral Agent’s remedies (for the benefit of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties), with respect to such appointment.

(e) Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither the Collateral Agent nor any other Secured Party shall be required to (i) make any demand upon, or pursue or exhaust any of their rights or remedies against, any Grantor, any other obligor, guarantor, pledgor or any other Person with respect to the payment of the Secured Obligations or to pursue or exhaust any of their rights or remedies with respect to any Collateral therefor or any direct or indirect guarantee thereof, (ii) marshal the Collateral or any guarantee of the Secured Obligations or to resort to the Collateral or any such guarantee in any particular order, or (iii) effect a public sale of any Collateral.

(f) Each Grantor recognizes that the Collateral Agent may be unable to effect a public sale of any or all the Collateral Equity Interests and may be compelled to resort to one or more private sales thereof in accordance with clause  (a) above. Each Grantor also acknowledges that any private sale may result in prices and other terms less favorable to the seller than if such sale were a public sale and, notwithstanding such circumstances, agrees that any such private sale shall not be deemed to have been made in a commercially unreasonable manner solely by virtue of such sale being private. The Collateral Agent shall be under no obligation to delay a sale of any of the Pledged Equity for the period of time necessary to permit any Grantor or the issuer of the Collateral Equity Interests to register such securities for public sale under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or under applicable state securities laws, even if the applicable Grantor and the issuer would agree to do so.

 

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7.2. Grantor’s Obligations Upon Default . Upon the request of the Collateral Agent during the continuance of an Event of Default, each Grantor will:

(a) assemble and make available to the Collateral Agent the Collateral and all books and records relating thereto at any place or places reasonably specified by the Collateral Agent, whether at a Grantor’s premises or elsewhere; and

(b) permit the Collateral Agent, by the Collateral Agent’s representatives and agents, to enter, occupy and use any premises where all or any part of the Collateral, or the books and records relating thereto, or both, are located, to take possession of all or any part of the Collateral or the books and records relating thereto, or both, to remove all or any part of the Collateral or the books and records relating thereto, or both, and to conduct sales of the Collateral, without any obligation to pay the Grantor for such use and occupancy.

7.3. Grant of Intellectual Property License . For the purpose of enabling the Collateral Agent to exercise the rights and remedies under this Article  VII at such time as the Collateral Agent shall be lawfully entitled to exercise such rights and remedies, each Grantor hereby grants to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties, an irrevocable, nonexclusive license (exercisable without payment of royalty or other compensation to any Grantor) to use, license or sublicense, during the continuance of an Event of Default, any intellectual property rights now owned or hereafter acquired by such Grantor, and wherever the same may be located, and including in such license access to all media in which any of the licensed items may be recorded or stored and to all computer software and programs used for the compilation or printout thereof.

ARTICLE VIII

ACCOUNT VERIFICATION; ATTORNEY IN FACT; PROXY

8.1. Account Verification and Collection . During the continuation of an Event of Default, the Collateral Agent shall have the right at any time at the Grantors’ expense to (a) verify the validity, amount or any other material information relating to any Accounts, including verification with the relevant Account Debtors, and (b) enforce collection of any such Accounts and to adjust, settle or compromise the amount of payment thereof, in each case to the full extent permitted by applicable law.

8.2. Authorization for Secured Party to Take Certain Action .

(a) Each Grantor irrevocably authorizes the Collateral Agent at any time and from time to time and appoints the Collateral Agent as its attorney in fact to do all acts and things necessary or desirable in the Collateral Agent’s sole discretion to preserve and protect the Collateral and perfect and maintain the perfection and priority of the Collateral Agent’s security interest in the Collateral including, without limitation, to indorse and collect any cash proceeds of the Collateral, and to contact and enter into one or more agreements with the issuers of uncertificated securities which are Pledged Equity or with securities intermediaries holding Pledged Equity as may be necessary or advisable to give the Collateral Agent control over such Pledged Equity; provided that, this authorization shall not relieve such Grantor of any of its obligations under this Agreement, the Credit Agreement or under any other Loan Document.

(b) All acts of said attorney or designee are hereby ratified and approved. The powers conferred on the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Collateral Agent and other Secured Parties, under this Section  8.2 are solely to protect the Collateral Agent’s interests in the Collateral and shall not impose any duty upon the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party to exercise any such powers. The Collateral Agent agrees that it shall not exercise any power or authority granted to it under this Section  8.2 unless an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing.

 

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8.3. Proxy . EACH GRANTOR HEREBY IRREVOCABLY CONSTITUTES AND APPOINTS THE COLLATERAL AGENT AS ITS PROXY AND ATTORNEY-IN-FACT TO TAKE THOSE ACTIONS WITH RESPECT TO ITS PLEDGED EQUITY THAT ARE DESCRIBED IN SECTION  6.6(b)(ii) , INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO VOTE SUCH PLEDGED EQUITY, WITH FULL POWER OF SUBSTITUTION TO DO SO. IN ADDITION TO THE RIGHT TO VOTE ANY SUCH PLEDGED EQUITY, THE APPOINTMENT OF THE COLLATERAL AGENT AS PROXY AND ATTORNEY-IN-FACT SHALL INCLUDE THE RIGHT TO EXERCISE ALL OTHER RIGHTS, POWERS, PRIVILEGES AND REMEDIES TO WHICH A HOLDER OF SUCH PLEDGED EQUITY WOULD BE ENTITLED (INCLUDING GIVING OR WITHHOLDING WRITTEN CONSENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS, CALLING SPECIAL MEETINGS OF SHAREHOLDERS AND VOTING AT SUCH MEETINGS). SUCH PROXY SHALL BE EFFECTIVE, AUTOMATICALLY AND WITHOUT THE NECESSITY OF ANY ACTION (INCLUDING ANY TRANSFER OF ANY SUCH PLEDGED EQUITY ON THE RECORD BOOKS OF THE ISSUER THEREOF) BY ANY PERSON (INCLUDING THE ISSUER OF SUCH PLEDGED EQUITY OR ANY OFFICER OR AGENT THEREOF). NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, THE COLLATERAL AGENT MAY EXERCISE THE RIGHTS AND POWERS PROVIDED IN THIS SECTION  8.3 ONLY DURING THE CONTINUANCE OF AN EVENT OF DEFAULT.

8.4. Nature of Appointment; Limitation of Duty . THE APPOINTMENT OF THE COLLATERAL AGENT AS PROXY AND ATTORNEY-IN-FACT IN THIS ARTICLE  VIII IS COUPLED WITH AN INTEREST AND SHALL BE IRREVOCABLE UNTIL THE DATE ON WHICH THIS AGREEMENT IS TERMINATED IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION  10.13 . NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING CONTAINED HEREIN, NEITHER THE COLLATERAL AGENT, NOR ANY SECURED PARTY, NOR ANY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE AFFILIATES, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS OR REPRESENTATIVES SHALL HAVE ANY DUTY TO EXERCISE ANY RIGHT OR POWER GRANTED HEREUNDER OR OTHERWISE OR TO PRESERVE THE SAME AND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY FAILURE TO DO SO OR FOR ANY DELAY IN DOING SO, EXCEPT IN RESPECT OF DAMAGES ATTRIBUTABLE SOLELY TO THEIR OWN GROSS NEGLIGENCE OR WILLFUL MISCONDUCT AS FINALLY DETERMINED BY A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION; PROVIDED THAT, IN NO EVENT SHALL THEY BE LIABLE FOR ANY PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.

ARTICLE IX

COLLECTION AND APPLICATION OF RECEIVABLES AND OTHER COLLATERAL PROCEEDS

9.1. Collection and Application of Receivables and Other Collateral Proceeds . The Collateral Agent hereby authorizes each Grantor to collect such Grantor’s Receivables, and the Collateral Agent may curtail or terminate said authority at any time after the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default (but not at any other time). If required by the Collateral Agent at any time after the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default, any Proceeds constituting collections of such Receivables, when collected by such Grantor, (a) shall be forthwith (and, in any event, within two Business Days) be deposited by such Grantor in the exact form received, duly indorsed by such Grantor to the Collateral Agent if required, in a Collateral Account maintained under the sole dominion and control of the Collateral Agent, subject to withdrawal by the Collateral Agent for the account of the Secured Parties only as provided below in this Section, and (b) until so turned over, shall be held by such Grantor in trust for the Secured Parties, segregated from other funds of such Grantor. Each such deposit of Proceeds of Receivables shall be accompanied by a report identifying in reasonable detail the nature and source of the payments included in the deposit. All Proceeds constituting collections of Receivables while held by the Collateral Account bank (or by any Grantor in trust for the benefit of the Secured

 

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Parties) shall continue to be collateral security for the Secured Obligations of the applicable Grantor and shall not constitute payment thereof until applied as hereinafter provided. At any time when an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, at the Collateral Agent’s election, the Collateral Agent may apply all or any part of the funds on deposit in the Collateral Account established by the relevant Grantor to the payment of the Secured Obligations of such Grantor then due and owing, such application to be made as set forth below in this Section. In addition to the rights of the Secured Parties specified above with respect to payments of Receivables, if an Event of Default shall occur and be continuing, all Proceeds of Collateral received by any Grantor consisting of cash, checks and other near cash items shall be held by such Grantor in trust for the Secured Parties segregated from other funds of such Grantor, and shall, at the request of the Collateral Agent, forthwith upon receipt by such Grantor, be turned over to the Collateral Agent in the exact form received by such Grantor (duly indorsed by such Grantor to the Collateral Agent, if required). All Proceeds received by the Collateral Agent hereunder shall be held by the Collateral Agent in a Collateral Account maintained under its sole dominion and control. All Proceeds while held by the Collateral Agent in a Collateral Account (or by such Grantor in trust for the Secured Parties) shall continue to be held as collateral security for all the Secured Obligations and shall not constitute payment thereof until applied as provided below in this Section. At any time after the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default, at the Collateral Agent’s election, the Collateral Agent may apply all or any part of Proceeds of any Grantor held in any Collateral Account in payment of the Secured Obligations of such Grantor in such order as the Collateral Agent may elect in compliance with the Secured Transaction Documents, and any part of such funds which the Collateral Agent elects not so to apply and deems not required as collateral security for such Secured Obligations shall be paid over from time to time by the Collateral Agent to the Borrower or to whomsoever may be lawfully entitled to receive the same. Any balance of such Proceeds remaining after the Secured Obligations shall have been paid in full shall be paid over to the Borrower or to whomsoever may be lawfully entitled to receive the same.

ARTICLE X

GENERAL PROVISIONS

10.1. Waivers . As provided in Section 9-612 of the UCC adopted in the State of New York, any notice of the time and place of any public sale or the time after which any private sale or other disposition of all or any part of the Collateral may be made shall be deemed sent within a reasonable time if sent to the Grantors, addressed as set forth in Article  XI , after the occurrence of an Event of Default and at least ten days prior to (a) the date of any such public sale or (b) the time after which any such private sale or other disposition may be made. To the extent it may lawfully do so, each Grantor absolutely and irrevocably waives and relinquishes the benefit and advantage of, and covenants not to assert against the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party, any valuation, stay, appraisal, extension, moratorium, redemption or similar laws and any and all rights or defenses it may have as a surety now or hereafter existing which, but for this provision, might be applicable to the sale of any Collateral made under the judgment, order or decree of any court, or under the power of sale conferred by this Agreement, or applicable law. Except as otherwise specifically provided herein, each Grantor hereby waives presentment, demand, protest or any notice (to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law) of any kind in connection with this Agreement or any Collateral.

10.2. Limitation on Collateral Agent’s and any Secured Party’s Duty with Respect to the Collateral . The Collateral Agent shall have no obligation to clean-up or otherwise prepare the Collateral for sale. The Collateral Agent and each other Secured Party shall use reasonable care with respect to the Collateral in its possession or under its control. Neither the Collateral Agent nor any other Secured Party shall have any other duty as to any Collateral in its possession or control or in the possession or control of any agent or nominee of the Collateral Agent or such other Secured Party, or any income thereon or as to the preservation of rights against prior parties or any other rights pertaining thereto.

 

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10.3. Compromises and Collection of Collateral . The Grantors and the Collateral Agent recognize that setoffs, counterclaims, defenses and other claims may be asserted by obligors with respect to certain of the Receivables, that certain of the Receivables may be or become uncollectible in whole or in part and that the expense and probability of success in litigating a disputed Receivable may exceed the amount that reasonably may be expected to be recovered with respect to a Receivable. In view of the foregoing, each Grantor agrees that the Collateral Agent may at any time and from time to time, if an Event of Default has occurred and is continuing, compromise with the obligor on any Receivable, accept in full payment of any Receivable such amount as the Collateral Agent in its sole discretion shall determine or abandon any Receivable, and any such action by the Collateral Agent shall be commercially reasonable so long as the Collateral Agent acts in good faith based on information known to it at the time it takes any such action.

10.4. Secured Party Performance of Debtor Obligations . Without having any obligation to do so, the Collateral Agent may during the continuance of an Event of Default perform or pay any obligation which any Grantor has agreed to perform or pay in this Agreement and the Grantors shall reimburse the Collateral Agent for any amounts paid by the Collateral Agent pursuant to this Section  10.4 . The Grantors’ obligation to reimburse the Collateral Agent pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be included in the Secured Obligations and payable on demand.

10.5. Specific Performance of Certain Covenants . Each Grantor acknowledges and agrees that a breach of any of the covenants contained herein will cause irreparable injury to the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties, that the Collateral Agent and other Secured Parties have no adequate remedy at law in respect of such breaches and therefore agrees that the covenants of the Grantors contained herein shall be specifically enforceable against the Grantors.

10.6. No Waiver; Amendments; Cumulative Remedies . No delay or omission of the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party to exercise any right or remedy granted under this Agreement or under any other Secured Transaction Document shall impair such right or remedy or be construed to be a waiver of any default thereunder or an acquiescence therein, and any single or partial exercise of any such right or remedy shall not preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right or remedy. No waiver, amendment or other variation of the terms, conditions or provisions of this Agreement whatsoever (other than any Amendment or Assumption Agreement) shall be valid unless in writing signed by the Collateral Agent and then only to the extent in such writing specifically set forth. In addition, all such waivers or amendments shall be effective only if given with the necessary approvals of the requisite percentage of Revolving Lenders under the Revolving Credit Agreement and of the requisite percentage of Term Loan Lenders under the Term Loan Agreement, if applicable. All rights and remedies contained in this Agreement or by law afforded shall be cumulative and all shall be available to the Collateral Agent and the Secured Parties until the termination of this Agreement in accordance with its terms.

10.7. Limitation by Law; Severability of Provisions . All rights, remedies and powers provided in this Agreement may be exercised only to the extent that the exercise thereof does not violate any applicable provision of law, and all the provisions of this Agreement are intended to be subject to all applicable mandatory provisions of law that may be controlling and to be limited to the extent necessary so that they shall not render this Agreement invalid, unenforceable or not entitled to be recorded or registered, in whole or in part. Any provision in this Agreement that is held to be inoperative, unenforceable, or invalid in any jurisdiction shall, as to that jurisdiction, be inoperative, unenforceable, or invalid without affecting the remaining provisions in that jurisdiction or the operation, enforceability, or validity of that provision in any other jurisdiction, and to this end the provisions of this Agreement are declared to be severable.

 

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10.8. Reinstatement . This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect and continue to be effective should any petition be filed by or against any Grantor for liquidation or reorganization, should any Grantor become insolvent or make an assignment for the benefit of any creditor or creditors or should a receiver or trustee be appointed for all or any significant part of any Grantor’s assets, and shall continue to be effective or be reinstated, as the case may be, if at any time payment and performance of the Secured Obligations, or any part thereof, is, pursuant to applicable law, rescinded or reduced in amount, or must otherwise be restored or returned by any obligee of the Secured Obligations, whether as a “voidable preference,” “fraudulent conveyance,” or otherwise, all as though such payment or performance had not been made. In the event that any payment, or any part thereof, is rescinded, reduced, restored or returned, the Secured Obligations shall be reinstated and deemed reduced only by such amount paid and not so rescinded, reduced, restored or returned.

10.9. Benefit of Agreement . The terms and provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the Grantors, the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties and their respective successors and assigns (including all persons who become bound as a debtor to this Agreement), except that no Grantor shall have the right to assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Agreement or any interest herein, without the prior written consent of the Collateral Agent. No sales of participations, assignments, transfers, or other dispositions of any agreement governing the Secured Obligations or any portion thereof or interest therein shall in any manner impair the lien and security interest granted to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties, hereunder.

10.10. Survival of Representations . All representations and warranties of the Grantors contained in this Agreement shall survive the execution and delivery of this Agreement.

10.11. Taxes and Expenses . In addition to, but not in qualification or limitation of, any similar obligations under other Secured Transaction Documents, any taxes (other than taxes constituting “Excluded Taxes” under the Revolving Credit Agreement or the Term Loan Agreement) payable or ruled payable by Federal or State authority in respect of this Agreement shall be paid by the Grantors, together with interest and penalties, if any, upon and pursuant to the terms set forth in Section  5.03 of the Revolving Credit Agreement or Section  5.03 of the Term Loan Agreement. The Grantors shall reimburse the Collateral Agent for any and all out-of-pocket expenses (including reasonable attorneys’, auditors’ and accountants’ fees) paid or incurred by the Collateral Agent in connection with the preparation, execution, delivery, administration, collection and enforcement of this Agreement, in each case upon and pursuant to the terms set forth in Section  12.03 of the Revolving Credit Agreement. Any and all costs and expenses incurred by the Grantors in the performance of actions required pursuant to the terms hereof shall be borne solely by the Grantors.

10.12. Headings . The title of and section headings in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only, and shall not govern the interpretation of any of the terms and provisions of this Agreement.

10.13. Termination . This Agreement shall continue in effect (notwithstanding the fact that from time to time there may be no Secured Obligations outstanding) until all of the events described in the last sentence of Section 2.1(d) hereof have occurred.

10.14. Entire Agreement . This Agreement and the other Secured Transaction Documents embody the entire agreement and understanding between the Grantors and the Collateral Agent relating to the Collateral and supersede all prior agreements and understandings between the Grantors and the Collateral Agent relating to the Collateral.

 

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10.15. CHOICE OF LAW . THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

10.16. CONSENT TO JURISDICTION . EACH GRANTOR HEREBY IRREVOCABLY SUBMITS TO THE NON-EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OF ANY UNITED STATES FEDERAL OR NEW YORK STATE COURT, IN EITHER CASE, SITTING IN NEW YORK COUNTY, NEW YORK IN ANY ACTION OR PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT AND EACH GRANTOR HEREBY IRREVOCABLY AGREES THAT ALL CLAIMS IN RESPECT OF SUCH ACTION OR PROCEEDING MAY BE HEARD AND DETERMINED IN ANY SUCH COURT AND IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ANY OBJECTION IT MAY NOW OR HEREAFTER HAVE AS TO THE VENUE OF ANY SUCH SUIT, ACTION OR PROCEEDING BROUGHT IN SUCH A COURT OR THAT SUCH COURT IS AN INCONVENIENT FORUM. NOTHING HEREIN SHALL LIMIT THE RIGHT OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT OR ANY SECURED PARTY OR GRANTOR TO BRING PROCEEDINGS IN THE COURTS OF ANY OTHER JURISDICTION.

10.17. WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL . EACH GRANTOR, THE COLLATERAL AGENT AND EACH OTHER SECURED PARTY HEREBY WAIVE TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY JUDICIAL PROCEEDING INVOLVING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, ANY MATTER (WHETHER SOUNDING IN TORT, CONTRACT OR OTHERWISE) IN ANY WAY ARISING OUT OF, RELATED TO, OR CONNECTED WITH THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY OTHER LOAN DOCUMENT OR THE RELATIONSHIP ESTABLISHED THEREUNDER.

10.18. Indemnity . Section  12.03(b) and Section  12.03(d) of the Revolving Credit Agreement and Term Loan Agreement, respectively, are hereby incorporated by reference mutatis mutandis , as if stated verbatim herein as agreements and obligations of each Grantor.

10.19. Counterparts . This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, all of which taken together shall constitute one agreement, and any of the parties hereto may execute this Agreement by signing any such counterpart. Delivery of an executed counterpart of this Agreement by facsimile or other electronic transmission (e.g. .pdf) shall be effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart of this Agreement.

ARTICLE XI

NOTICES

11.1. Notices Generally . Except in the case of notices and other communications expressly permitted to be given by telephone (and except as provided in Section 11.2 below), all notices and other communications provided for herein shall be in writing and shall be delivered by hand or overnight courier service, mailed by certified or registered mail or sent by telecopier to the applicable recipient at its address set forth on Exhibit A hereto, and all notices and other communications expressly permitted hereunder to be given by telephone shall be made to the applicable telephone number as set forth on Exhibit A hereto.

Notices sent by hand or overnight courier service, or mailed by certified or registered mail, shall be deemed to have been given when received, and notices sent by telecopier shall be deemed to have been given when sent (except that, if not given during normal business hours for the recipient, shall be deemed to have been given at the opening of business on the next Business Day for the recipient), except that notices to the Collateral Agent shall be deemed to be effective only when actually received by it. Notices delivered through electronic communications to the extent provided in Section  11.2 below, shall be effective as provided in such Section  11.2 .

 

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11.2. Electronic Communications . Notices and other communications hereunder may be delivered or furnished by electronic communication (including e mail and Internet or intranet web sites) pursuant to procedures approved by an Administrative Agent, except that no such communication to the Collateral Agent shall be effective unless delivered pursuant to a procedure approved by it. Each of the Collateral Agent (with the approval of an Administrative Agent) and Borrower may, in its discretion, agree to accept notices and other communications to it hereunder by electronic communications pursuant to procedures approved by it, provided that approval of such procedures may be limited to particular notices or communications.

Unless the Collateral Agent otherwise prescribes, (a) notices and other communications sent to an e-mail address shall be deemed received upon the sender’s receipt of an acknowledgement from the intended recipient (such as by the “return receipt requested” function, as available, return e-mail or other written acknowledgement), provided that if such notice or other communication is not sent during the normal business hours of the recipient, such notice or communication shall be deemed to have been sent at the opening of business on the next Business Day for the recipient, and (b) notices or communications posted to an Internet or intranet web site shall be deemed received upon the deemed receipt by the intended recipient at its e-mail address as described in the foregoing clause (a) of notification that such notice or communication is available and identifying the web site address therefor.

11.3. Effectiveness of Facsimile Documents and Signatures . This Agreement may be transmitted and/or signed by facsimile to the recipient’s facsimile number set forth on Exhibit A hereto. The effectiveness of this Agreement and signatures shall, subject to applicable law, have the same force and effect as manually signed originals and shall be binding on parties hereto. The Collateral Agent may also require that any such documents and signatures be confirmed by a manually signed original thereof; provided, however, that the failure to request or deliver the same shall not limit the effectiveness of any facsimile document or signature.

11.4. Change of Address, Etc . Any party hereto may change its address, telecopier or telephone number for notices and other communications hereunder by notice to the other parties hereto.

11.5. Reliance by Collateral Agent . The Collateral Agent shall be entitled to rely and act upon any notices purportedly given by or on behalf of any Agent (including any Additional Hedge Counterparty), or any Grantor even if (a) such notices were not made in a manner specified herein, were incomplete or were not preceded or followed by any other form of notice specified herein, or (b) the terms thereof, as understood by the recipient, varied from any confirmation thereof. Borower shall indemnify the Collateral Agent from all losses, costs, expenses and liabilities resulting from the reliance by the Collateral Agent on each notice purportedly given by or on behalf of each Agent, Additional Hedge Counterparty or the Grantors. All telephonic notices to and other telephonic communications with the Collateral Agent may be recorded by the Collateral Agent, and each of the parties hereto hereby consents to such recording.

11.6. Change in Address for Notices . Each of the Grantors, the Collateral Agent and the Lenders may change the address for service of notice upon it by a notice in writing to the other parties.

 

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ARTICLE XII

THE COLLATERAL AGENT

Bank of Montreal has been appointed Collateral Agent for the Secured Parties hereunder pursuant to Article 2 of the Collateral Agency Agreement. It is expressly understood and agreed by the parties to this Agreement that any authority conferred upon the Collateral Agent hereunder is subject to the terms of the delegation of authority made by the Secured Parties to the Collateral Agent pursuant to the Collateral Agency Agreement, and that the Collateral Agent has agreed to act (and any successor Collateral Agent shall act) as such hereunder only on the express conditions contained in the Collateral Agency Agreement. Any successor Collateral Agent appointed pursuant to Article 2 of the Collateral Agency Agreement shall be entitled to all the rights, interests and benefits of the Collateral Agent hereunder.

ARTICLE XIII

CONSENT TO PLEDGED EQUITY

Each Grantor, in its respective capacity as an issuer of Pledged Equity (in such capacity, an “ Issuer ”), hereby (a) consents to the grant by each other Grantor to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Secured Parties, of a security interest in and lien on all of the Pledged Equity, (b) represents to the Collateral Agent that it has no rights of setoff or other claims against any of the Pledged Equity, (c) acknowledges and agrees that it shall, upon demand by the Collateral Agent, pay to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Secured Parties, any dividends and distributions due to any Grantor in accordance with the terms hereof, and (d) consents to the transfer of such Pledged Equity to the Collateral Agent or its nominee following an Event of Default and to the substitution of the Collateral Agent or its nominee as a partner in any partnership or as a member in any limited liability company with all the rights and powers related thereto.

Each Grantor hereby authorizes and instructs each Issuer to comply with any instruction received by it from the Collateral Agent in writing that (a) states that an Event of Default has occurred and (b) is otherwise in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, without any other or further instructions from such Grantor.

ARTICLE XIV

SUBORDINATION OF INDEBTEDNESS

14.1. Subordination of All Grantor Claims . As used herein, the term “ Grantor Claims ” means all debts and obligations of the Borrower or any other Grantor to any Grantor, whether such debts and obligations now exist or are hereafter incurred or arise, or whether the obligation of the debtor thereon be direct, contingent, primary, secondary, several, joint and several, or otherwise, and irrespective of whether such debts or obligations be evidenced by note, contract, open account, or otherwise, and irrespective of the Person or Persons in whose favor such debts or obligations may, at their inception, have been, or may hereafter be created, or the manner in which they have been or may hereafter be acquired by. After and during the continuation of an Event of Default, upon the written direction of the Collateral Agent, no Grantor shall receive or collect, directly or indirectly, from any obligor in respect thereof any amount upon the Grantor Claims.

14.2. Claims in Bankruptcy . In the event of receivership, bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, debtor’s relief or other insolvency proceedings involving any Grantor, the Collateral Agent on behalf of the Secured Parties shall have the right to prove their claim in any proceeding, so as to establish their rights hereunder and receive directly from the receiver, trustee or other court custodian, dividends and payments which would otherwise be payable upon Grantor Claims. Each Grantor hereby assigns such dividends and payments to the Collateral Agent for the benefit of the Secured Parties for

 

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application against the Secured Obligations as provided under Section  3.6 of the Collateral Agency Agreement. Should the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party receive, for application upon the Secured Obligations, any such dividend or payment which is otherwise payable to any Grantor, and which, as between such Grantor, shall constitute a credit upon the Grantor Claims, then upon payment in full of the Secured Obligations, the intended recipient shall become subrogated to the rights of the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties to the extent that such payments to the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties on the Grantor Claims have contributed toward the liquidation of the Secured Obligations, and such subrogation shall be with respect to that proportion of the Secured Obligations which would have been unpaid if the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties had not received dividends or payments upon the Grantor Claims.

14.3. Payments Held in Trust . In the event that notwithstanding Section  14.1 and Section  14.2 , any Grantor should receive any funds, payments, claims or distributions which is prohibited by such Sections, then it agrees: (a) to hold in trust for the Collateral Agent and the other Secured Parties an amount equal to the amount of all funds, payments, claims or distributions so received, and (b) that it shall have absolutely no dominion over the amount of such funds, payments, claims or distributions except to pay them promptly to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Secured Parties; and each Grantor covenants promptly to pay the same to the Collateral Agent.

14.4. Liens Subordinate . Each Grantor agrees that, until the termination of this Agreement as provided in the Secured Transaction Documents, any liens or security interests securing payment of the Grantor Claims shall be and remain inferior and subordinate to any liens or security interests securing payment of the Secured Obligations, regardless of whether such encumbrances in favor of such Grantor, the Collateral Agent or any other Secured Party presently exist or are hereafter created or attach. Prior to the termination of this Agreement as provided in the Secured Transaction Documents, no Grantor shall, without the prior written consent of the Collateral Agent, (a) exercise or enforce any creditor’s right it may have against any debtor in respect of the Grantor Claims, or (b) foreclose, repossess, sequester or otherwise take steps or institute any action or proceeding (judicial or otherwise, including without limitation the commencement of or joinder in any liquidation, bankruptcy, rearrangement, debtor’s relief or insolvency proceeding) to enforce any lien or security interest held by it.

14.5. Notation of Records . Upon the request of the Collateral Agent, all promissory notes and all accounts receivable ledgers or other evidence of the Grantor Claims accepted by or held by any Grantor shall contain a specific written notice thereon that the indebtedness evidenced thereby is subordinated under the terms of this Agreement.

[Signature Pages Follow]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Grantors and the Collateral Agent have executed this Agreement as of the date first above written.

 

GRANTORS:     ULTRA  RESOURCES,  INC. , a Delaware corporation
    ULTRA PETROLEUM CORP. , a Yukon corporation
    UP ENERGY CORPORATION , a Delaware corporation
    KEYSTONE GAS GATHERING, LLC , a Delaware limited liability company
    ULTRA WYOMING, LLC , a Delaware limited liability company
    UPL PINEDALE, LLC , a Delaware limited liability company
    UPL THREE RIVERS HOLDINGS, LLC , a Delaware limited liability company
    ULTRA WYOMING LGS, LLC , a Delaware limited liability company
    By:  

/s/ Garland R. Shaw

    Name:   Garland R. Shaw
    Title:  

Senior Vice President and

Chief Financial Officer

 

Signature Page

Guaranty and Collateral Agreement


COLLATERAL AGENT:     BANK OF MONTREAL , as Collateral Agent
    By:  

/s/ Gumaro Tijerina

    Name:   Gumaro Tijerina
    Title:   Managing Director

 

Signature Page

Guaranty and Collateral Agreement

Exhibit 99.2

 

LOGO    Ultra Petroleum Corp.

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ULTRA PETROLEUM SUCCESSFULLY EMERGES FROM

IN-COURT RESTRUCTURING

HOUSTON, Texas – April 12, 2017 – Ultra Petroleum Corp. (“ Ultra ” or the “ Company ”) announced today that it has successfully completed its in-court restructuring and emerged from chapter 11. In support of its plan of reorganization, Ultra raised $2.98 billion in exit financing in order to pay creditors in full and preserve significant value for existing equity holders. Additionally, the Company has been approved to list its newly-issued common stock on The NASDAQ Global Select Market and will begin trading tomorrow under the ticker symbol “UPL”.

“Today is an exciting day for Ultra Petroleum. We achieved the goals we have diligently pursued throughout our chapter 11 proceedings: maximizing the value of the Company for the benefit of all of our stakeholders,” said Michael D. Watford, its Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We are extremely appreciative of the investors and institutions that supported our plan with the substantial equity and debt capital investments reflected in the nearly $3.0 billion of new financings we closed today. Additionally, we are grateful to our dedicated employees for their continued efforts to operate, manage and grow our business and I thank them for their work during this process.”

Financing Transactions

In support of its restructuring and in order to satisfy its obligations under the plan of reorganization confirmed by the bankruptcy court, the Company closed the following financing transactions:

 

    $580.0 million equity rights offering for common stock of the Company;

 

    $800.0 million Senior Secured Term Loan Agreement maturing on the seventh anniversary of the closing date among Ultra Resources, Inc. (“ Ultra Resources ”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, as Borrower, Barclays Bank PLC, as Administrative Agent, and the lenders named therein (the “ Term Loan ”);

 

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    $700.0 million of 6.875% Senior Notes due 2022 (the “ 2022 Notes ”) issued by Ultra Resources and guaranteed by the Company and its other subsidiaries;

 

    $500.0 million of 7.125% Senior Notes due 2025 (the “ 2025 Notes ”) issued by Ultra Resources and guaranteed by the Company and its other subsidiaries; and

 

    $400.0 million Senior Secured Revolving Credit Agreement maturing fifty-seven months from the closing date among Ultra Resources, as Borrower, Bank of Montreal, as Administrative Agent, and the lenders named therein (the “ Credit Agreement ”).

Common Stock – NASDAQ Listing

In connection with its emergence from chapter 11, the Company is issuing 195.0 million shares of new common stock. All of the Company’s existing common stock that had been trading under the ticker symbol “UPLMQ” was cancelled and the existing stockholders received new common stock as set forth in the plan of reorganization. All of the allowed claims attributable to the prepetition high yield bonds issued by the Company were converted into new common stock as set forth in the plan of reorganization. The shares related to the $580.0 million equity rights offering were issued and the fee payable to the commitment parties under the Backstop Commitment Agreement was paid in new common stock as set forth in the plan of reorganization.

As noted above, the Company has been approved to list its newly-issued common stock on NASDAQ. Its common stock is anticipated to begin trading on NASDAQ at the opening of trading on April 13, 2017, under the ticker symbol “UPL”.

Board of Directors

As previously disclosed, the Company has retained Mr. Watford as the Chairman of its Board of Directors (the “Board”), along with each of its pre-emergence independent, non-executive board members, including Dr. W. Charles Helton, its Lead Independent Director, Stephen J. McDaniel, Roger A. Brown, and Michael J. Keeffe. The Company is also pleased to announce that, effective today, it has added Neal P. Goldman and Alan J. Mintz to the Board as new independent, non-executive members who were recommended to the Company by the backstop commitment parties and approved by Mr. Watford.

About Ultra Petroleum

Ultra Petroleum Corp. is an independent energy company engaged in domestic natural gas and oil exploration, development and production. Additional information on the company is available at www.ultrapetroleum.com .

Statements made in this press release that are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements are based on certain assumptions and expectations made by the Company which reflect management’s experience, estimates and perception of historical trends, current conditions, and anticipated future developments. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Such statements are subject to a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, and which may cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those implied or anticipated in the forward-looking

 

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statements. These include risks relating to financial performance and results, ability to improve its financial results and profitability following emergence from bankruptcy, availability of sufficient cash flow to execute its business plan, declining commodity prices and demand for oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, the Company’s ability to hedge future production at suitable prices and volumes, the Company’s ability to replace reserves and efficiently develop its current reserves, the regulatory environment and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. These and other important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. Please read “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other public filings. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or future events.

For further information contact:

Sandi Kraemer

Director, Investor Relations and External Reporting

Phone: 281-582-6613

Email: skraemer@ultrapetroleum.com

 

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