Houston: Cal Dive, a marine contractor in offshore oil and gas, has filed for voluntary bankruptcy protection.
The Houston-based firm has been hit by the downturn in crude prices and suffered as oil and gas producers cut back on capital spending. US crude prices have more than halved since last June.
“Our business has experienced several adverse events that were beyond our control, and with our current capital structure, we are no longer able to financially withstand the industry downturn,” said Cal Dive CEO Quinn Hebert.
Using the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process, the company will sell non-core assets and reorganise or sell as a going concern its core subsea contracting business.
It says it has a commitment of $120m from Bank of America for debtor-in-possession financing, a special form of financing for distressed companies.
Cal Dive’s foreign units have not sought bankruptcy protection and will continue to operate outside of any reorganisation proceedings.
