Parent of Retail Supplier More Than Doubles Working Capital Facility

Crius Energy Trust announced that it has expanded its working capital facility with Macquarie Energy LLC from $25 million to $60 million, with the base interest rate remaining unchanged at LIBOR plus 5.5%.

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On a pro-forma basis as of September 30, 2013, the Trust's cash and cash availability would have been $64.3 million, up from $33.9 million.

"We are pleased to have more than doubled the working capital available to our business and increased our financial flexibility through the expansion of this facility," said Michael Fallquist, President and CEO of Crius Energy Trust. "The expansion significantly improves the financial capacity of the company and is particularly timely given the current conditions in the retail energy market. This will allow us to take advantage of opportunities that arise in the market while also supporting distributions to our unitholders."

Other material changes to the credit facility with Macquarie Energy include a decrease in the unused portion of the overall exposure limit from $200 million to $150 million and an incremental interest rate of 1.25% applied to borrowings above a certain threshold. Additionally, Macquarie Energy will be issued 750,000 warrants in the Trust with a strike price of C$6.23 per unit and a term of five years, with the warrants being exercisable over a four year schedule.

"The reduced overall exposure limit of the facility still allows our business to more than double in size," said Fallquist. "The Trust and Macquarie Energy are committed to ensuring that the overall exposure limit is sufficient to support our continued growth and financing requirements. The parties have agreed to commence a syndication process soon after close to meet these needs and broaden the group of financing counterparties we work with."

Crius Energy Trust has a 26.8% ownership interest in Crius Energy LLC, which serves approximately 610,000 residential customer equivalents through various retail energy brands, including Viridian, Public Power, Fairpoint Energy, Cincinnati Bell Energy, and FTR Energy.