Centerbridge Inks Debt Rescue Deal With Driller Boart Longyear

Boart Longyear Ltd., a struggling Australian-listed provider of mining services, agreed with its biggest shareholder Centerbridge Partners LP on a $352 million plan to cut debt and bolster its finances.

The New York-based private equity firm will provide as much as $225 million in loans with looser restrictions and back an equity raising of as much as $127 million, Boart Longyear said in a statement today. The package will boost liquidity to about $240 million and cut net debt by about $120 million, excluding transaction costs. Boart shares surged as much as 53 percent to A$0.23, the biggest gain in three months.