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Gehl Company Announces Amendment Of Its Credit Facility With its Bank Lenders
Monday, June 29, 2009
ANCENIS, FRANCE and WEST BEND, WI, June 29, 2009 – MANITOU
announced today that its subsidiary, GEHL Company, has entered into an amendment of its bank credit agreement allowing continued borrowing for the next 24 months. GEHL Company’s amended credit agreement with its U.S. bank lenders provides for a total credit commitment of $105 million and a term of 24 months.
This agreement includes two separate credit facilities:
• A revolving line for $80 million based on the Company’s North American
inventories and accounts receivable maturing on June 26, 2011.
• A term loan of $25 million payable in quarterly installments through June 26, 2011.
As part of the amended credit agreement, GEHL Company has granted to its
bank lenders a security interest in all of its North American assets. The amended credit agreement replaces the Company’s October 2006 $125 million unsecured credit facility. The amended credit agreement addresses all matters that gave rise to the Forbearance Agreement the Company entered into with its U.S. bank lenders on April 16, 2009. GEHL Company has significantly reduced its outstanding borrowing using operating cash flows created in part by the cost savings initiatives implemented over the past months.
Malcolm “Mac” F. Moore, President of GEHL Company, commented: “In an
unprecedented financial and economic environment, the GEHL team has been
successful in renegotiating its credit line. This important achievement should bolster the confidence of our business partners and employees and allow us to devote our full attention to running the business and preparing for the eventual upturn of the compact equipment marketplace.”
This news was welcomed by the parent company, MANITOU B.F., through its President, Jean-Christophe Giroux who declared: “The successful renegotiation of the GEHL credit agreement is an important step in the improvement of the Company’s situation at a time of economic turmoil. We can now focus on implementing operating synergies within the overall MANITOU group. Furthermore, this will allow the MANITOU group to complete negotiations with its French bank lenders to amend a portion of its October 2008 credit agreement before the end of July.”
About Gehl Company
GEHL Company is a manufacturer and distributor of compact equipment used
worldwide in construction and agricultural markets. Founded in 1859, the Company is headquartered in West Bend, Wisconsin. In October 2008, GEHL Company became a subsidiary of the MANITOU Group. The Company markets its products under the Gehl® and Mustang® brand names. Mustang product information is available on the Mustang Manufacturing website (www.mustangmfg.com). CE Attachments, Inc. information is available at www.ceattach.com. GEHL Company information is available at www.gehl.com or contact:
Gehl Company, One Gehl Way, West Bend, WI 53095 (telephone: 262-334-9461).
About Manitou
MANITOU is a French corporation headquartered in Ancenis, Loire-Atlantique. The Company designs, assembles, and distributes material handling equipment used in construction, agriculture and industrial applications. The MANITOU Group is the leader in rough terrain material handling (masted forklifts and telehandlers) with a distribution network of over 600 independent dealers in 120 countries. Other products include aerial work platforms,
truck-mounted forklifts, industrial forklifts and warehousing equipment. In 2008, the MANITOU group had total sales of €1,278 million. MANITOU shares are traded on EURONEXT. More information is available at www.manitou.com or contact communication.financiere@manitou.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company’s control. These statements are based on the Company’s current expectations and beliefs. Actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these statements. The Company is under no obligation to (and expressly disclaims any such obligation to) update or alter its forward.
