RE: EU Deal on Gas30 Jul 2025 10:28
Terry,
More meat on the bone re Carlyle
Strengthened B/S, more liquidity: DEC has executed several debt financings in parallel with the Maverick acquisition, securing a new RBL (US$900m for enlarged group), issuing its maiden HY bond (US$300m) and its largest ABS to date (US$530m). Of particular note, the ABS X issuance served to consolidate and refinance three earlier ABSs (Term Loan I, ABS I & II notes issued 2019-20, aggregate outstanding of US$272m at YE24). The transaction allowed DEC to extract equity value from the underlying assets and refine its amortisation profile (which was more conservative on these earlier ABSs). Moreover, some of the hedges associated with these earlier ABSs were very low (sub US$2/mmbtu) and have been replaced, yielding an EBITDA boost of US$38m on the refinanced assets. Notably, the issuance was significantly oversubscribed (6.5x) and priced at a 6.4% fixed coupon, an 88bp improvement over the ABS note issued last summer. Reflecting the group’s improving financial position, group liquidity as of mid-May was up to US$451m, whilst leverage was 2.7x and guided to fall to 2.0-2.5x by YE25. Carlyle partnership brings funding & endorsement: DEC has unveiled a strategic partnership with US-listed global investment firm Carlyle. Under the terms of the pact, it is envisaged that up to US$2bn of non-dilutive capital will be invested in proven developed producing (PDP) acquisitions. The proposed SPV will be funded ~65% ABS (~US$1.3bn arranged by Carlyle) and ~35% SPV ownership (~US$700m), with the majority (>50%) of the SPV ownership sourced from Carlyle. For its part, DEC will use existing PLC liquidity to fund its minority share, which will consequently be classified as an equity investment (thus the ABS will be held off DEC’s B/S). In turn, DEC will receive its pro-rata share of FCF after debt service and amortization and be entitled to charge back G&A to the partnership in exchange for managing the operations. The arrangement brings on board a highly reputable financial partner and significantly enhances DEC’s ability to pursue acquisitions of scale, reinforcing its reputation as market leader in the PDP space. Moreover, the intention is for DEC to buy-out Carlyle’s stake in future and fully consolidate the assets once the ABS is partially paid down (no pre-agreed formula for this) providing follow-on deal