ALLIANCE RESOURCE PARTNERS LP Debt Disclosure
8.LONG-TERM DEBT
Long-term debt consists of the following:
Unamortized Discount and | |||||||||||||
Principal | Debt Issuance Costs | ||||||||||||
December 31, | December 31, | ||||||||||||
| 2020 |
| 2019 |
| 2020 |
| 2019 |
| |||||
(in thousands) | |||||||||||||
Revolving credit facility | $ | 87,500 | $ | 255,000 | $ | (7,196) | $ | (3,050) | |||||
Senior notes |
| 400,000 |
| 400,000 |
| (3,964) |
| (4,879) | |||||
Securitization facility | 55,900 | 73,800 | — | — | |||||||||
May 2019 equipment financing | 4,956 | 8,199 | — | — | |||||||||
November 2019 equipment financing | 42,367 | 52,281 | — | — | |||||||||
June 2020 equipment financing | 13,057 | — | — | — | |||||||||
| 603,780 |
| 789,280 |
| (11,160) |
| (7,929) | ||||||
Less current maturities |
| (73,199) |
| (13,157) |
| — |
| — | |||||
Total long-term debt | $ | 530,581 | $ | 776,123 | $ | (11,160) | $ | (7,929) | |||||
Credit Facility. On March 9, 2020, our Intermediate Partnership entered into a Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement") with various financial institutions. The Credit Agreement provides for a $537.75 million revolving credit facility, reducing to $459.5 million on May 23, 2021, including a sublimit of $125 million for the issuance of letters of credit and a sublimit of $15.0 million for swingline borrowings (the "Revolving Credit Facility"), with a termination date of March 9, 2024. The Credit Facility replaced the $494.75 million revolving credit facility extended to the Intermediate Partnership under its Fourth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, dated as of January 27, 2017, by various banks and other lenders that would have expired on May 23, 2021. Concurrently with the entry into the Credit Agreement, we reorganized the entities holding our oil & gas interests such that Alliance Royalty, LLC became a direct wholly owned subsidiary of Alliance Minerals. We incurred debt issuance costs in 2020 of $6.3 million in connection with the Credit Agreement. These debt issuance costs are deferred and amortized as a component of interest expense over the term of the Revolving Credit Facility.
The Credit Agreement is guaranteed by certain of our Intermediate Partnership's material direct and indirect subsidiaries (the "Restricted Subsidiaries") and is secured by substantially all of the assets of the Restricted Subsidiaries. The Credit Agreement is also guaranteed by Alliance Minerals but the oil and gas minerals assets of Alliance Minerals and its direct and indirect subsidiaries (collectively with Alliance Minerals, the "Unrestricted Subsidiaries") are not collateral under the Credit Agreement. Borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility bear interest, at our option, at either (i) the Base Rate at the greater of three benchmarks or (ii) a Eurodollar Rate, plus margins for (i) or (ii), as applicable, that fluctuate depending upon the ratio of Consolidated Debt to Consolidated Cash Flow (each as defined in the Credit Agreement). The Eurodollar Rate, with applicable margin, under the Revolving Credit Facility was 3.01% as of December 31, 2020. At December 31, 2020, we had $21.8 million of letters of credit outstanding with $428.5 million available for borrowing under the Revolving Credit Facility. We incur an annual commitment fee of 0.35% on the undrawn portion of the Revolving Credit Facility. We utilize the Revolving Credit Facility, as appropriate, for working capital requirements, capital expenditures and investments, scheduled debt payments and distribution payments.
The Credit Agreement contains various restrictions affecting the Intermediate Partnership and its Restricted Subsidiaries including, among other things, restrictions on incurrence of additional indebtedness and liens, sale of assets, investments, mergers and consolidations and transactions with affiliates, including transactions with Unrestricted Subsidiaries. In each case, these restrictions are subject to various exceptions. In addition, the payment of cash distributions is restricted if such payment would result in a fixed charge coverage ratio of less than 1.0 to 1.0 (as defined in the Credit Agreement) for the four most recently ended fiscal quarters. The Credit Agreement requires the Intermediate Partnership to maintain (a) a debt to cash flow ratio of not more than 2.5 to 1.0, (b) a cash flow to interest expense ratio of not less than 3.0 to 1.0 and (c) a first lien debt to cash flow ratio of not more than 1.5 to 1.0, in each case, during the four most recently ended fiscal quarters. The debt to cash flow ratio, cash flow to interest expense ratio and first lien debt to cash flow ratio were 1.53 to 1.0, 8.45 to 1.0 and 0.52 to 1.0, respectively, for the trailing twelve months ended December 31, 2020. We remained in compliance with the covenants of the Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2020 and anticipate remaining in compliance with the covenants.
Net restricted assets, as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission, refers to the amount of our consolidated subsidiaries’ net assets for which the ability to transfer funds to ARLP in the form of cash dividends, loans, advances, or transfers is restricted. As a result of the restrictions contained in the Credit Agreement and our current compliance ratios, the amount of our net restricted assets at December 31, 2020, was $240.8 million.
Senior Notes. On April 24, 2017, the Intermediate Partnership and Alliance Resource Finance Corporation (as co-issuer), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Intermediate Partnership ("Alliance Finance"), issued an aggregate principal amount of $400.0 million of senior unsecured notes due 2025 ("Senior Notes") in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers. The Senior Notes have a term of eight years, maturing on May 1, 2025 (the "Term") and accrue interest at an annual rate of 7.5%. Interest is payable semi-annually in arrears on each May 1 and November 1. The indenture governing the Senior Notes contains customary terms, events of default and covenants relating to, among other things, the incurrence of debt, the payment of distributions or similar restricted payments, undertaking transactions with affiliates and limitations on asset sales. The issuers of the Senior Notes may redeem all or a part of the notes at any time at redemption prices set forth in the indenture governing the Senior Notes.
Accounts Receivable Securitization. On December 5, 2014, certain direct and indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of our Intermediate Partnership entered into a $100.0 million accounts receivable securitization facility ("Securitization Facility"). Under the Securitization Facility, certain subsidiaries sell certain trade receivables on an ongoing basis to our Intermediate Partnership, which then sells the trade receivables to AROP Funding, LLC ("AROP Funding"), a wholly owned bankruptcy-remote special purpose subsidiary of our Intermediate Partnership, which in turn borrows on a revolving basis up to $100.0 million secured by the trade receivables. After the sale, Alliance Coal, as servicer of the assets, collects the receivables on behalf of AROP Funding. The Securitization Facility bears interest based on a Eurodollar Rate. The agreement governing the Securitization Facility contains customary terms and conditions, including limitations with regards to certain customer credit ratings. In January 2021, we extended the term of the Securitization Facility to January 2022 and reduced the borrowing availability under the facility to $60.0 million. The Securitization Facility was previously scheduled to mature in January 2021. At December 31, 2020, we had a $55.9 million outstanding balance under the Securitization Facility.
May 2019 Equipment Financing. On May 17, 2019, the Intermediate Partnership entered into an equipment financing arrangement accounted for as debt, wherein the Intermediate Partnership received $10.0 million in exchange for conveying its interest in certain equipment owned indirectly by the Intermediate Partnership and entering into a master lease agreement for that equipment (the "May 2019 Equipment Financing"). The May 2019 Equipment Financing contains customary terms and events of default and provides for thirty-six monthly payments with an implicit interest rate of 6.25%, maturing on May 1, 2022. Upon maturity, the equipment will revert back to the Intermediate Partnership.
November 2019 Equipment Financing. On November 6, 2019, the Intermediate Partnership entered into an equipment financing arrangement accounted for as debt, wherein the Intermediate Partnership received $53.1 million in exchange for conveying its interest in certain equipment owned indirectly by the Intermediate Partnership and entering into a master lease agreement for that equipment (the "November 2019 Equipment Financing"). The November 2019 Equipment Financing contains customary terms and events of default and an implicit interest rate of 4.75%, providing for a four year term with forty-seven monthly payments of $1.0 million and a balloon payment of $11.6 million upon maturity on November 6, 2023. Upon maturity, the equipment will revert back to the Intermediate Partnership.
June 2020 Equipment Financing. On June 5, 2020, the Intermediate Partnership entered into an equipment financing arrangement accounted for as debt, wherein the Intermediate Partnership received $14.7 million in exchange for conveying its interest in certain equipment owned indirectly by the Intermediate Partnership and entering into a master lease agreement for that equipment (the "June 2020 Equipment Financing"). The June 2020 Equipment Financing contains customary terms and events of default and provides for forty-eight monthly payments with an implicit interest rate of 6.1%, maturing on June 5, 2024. Upon maturity, the equipment will revert back to the Intermediate Partnership.
Other. We also have an agreement with a bank to provide additional letters of credit in an amount of $5.0 million to maintain surety bonds to secure certain asset retirement obligations and our obligations for workers' compensation benefits. At December 31, 2020, we had $5.0 million in letters of credit outstanding under this agreement.
Aggregate maturities of long-term debt are payable as follows:
Year Ended | ||||
December 31, |
| (in thousands) |
| |
2021 | $ | 73,199 | ||
2022 |
| 16,071 | ||
2023 |
| 24,970 | ||
2024 |
| 89,540 | ||
2025 |
| 400,000 | ||
$ | 603,780 | |||
Historical Timeline
| Fiscal Year | Filed | |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Feb 23, 2021 | Showing above |
| 2019 | Feb 20, 2020 | |
| 2018 | Feb 22, 2019 | |
| 2017 | Feb 23, 2018 | |
| 2016 | Feb 24, 2017 | |
| 2015 | Feb 26, 2016 | |
About Debt Disclosures
Debt disclosures detail a company's borrowing structure — the types of instruments, interest rates, maturity schedule, and covenant restrictions that define its financial obligations and flexibility. This section is essential for assessing refinancing risk, interest rate exposure, and the margin of safety against financial distress.
Key signals: the maturity schedule reveals concentration risk — large maturities within 1-2 years during tight credit markets can force dilutive refinancing or asset sales. Compare the fair value of debt against carrying amount to gauge whether the market views the company's credit risk differently than the balance sheet suggests. Watch covenant compliance disclosures for tightening cushions, especially leverage and interest coverage ratios. Variable-rate debt exposure quantifies sensitivity to interest rate changes. Secured versus unsecured mix affects recovery rates and future borrowing capacity. Compare net debt-to-EBITDA against industry peers and covenant limits to assess financial health.