John Fredriksen is said to be willing to lend offshore drilling contractor Seadrill up to $1.2bn as part of a plan to restructure company debts with banks and bondholders, reports Bloomberg.
Bloomberg sources said that a proposal by a working group included a loan by Fredriksen, the company chairman and largest shareholder, of between $800m and $1.2bn as well as a postponement of bank maturities until at least 2020.
Seadrill currently owes around $9bn and in April the company adjusted nearly $3bn worth of loan agreements to extend maturities by up to six months. It also closed two debt-for-equity deals with note holders, one each in May and June, to the tune of $105m.
Seadrill shares climbed more than 23% yesterday on the NYSE following the report.
However, the company reacted by issuing a statement saying that it “remains in discussions with its stakeholders regarding its refinancing and recapitalisation plans” and there were no new developments to disclose.
