Pope & Talbot Completes US$325M Refinancing

On June 28, 2006, Pope & Talbot Ltd. completed a refinancing of its existing debt. The new syndicated credit facility was arranged by Lehman Brothers Inc., with Lehman Commercial Paper Inc. acting as syndication agent, Wells Fargo Financial Corporation Canada acting as administration agent, and Ableco Finance LLC acting as collateral agent. The credit facility is made up of a US$75 million operating facility and a US$250 million term facility, which paid out the existing syndicated credit facilities led by The Toronto-Dominion Bank and a receivables purchase arPope & Talbot Ltd. was represented by Latham & Watkins LLP in California, with a team led by Glen Collyer and Stacey Rosenberg and including Kim Posin and Anne Alexander, and assisted in Chicago by Joe Athanas. Pope & Talbot Ltd. was represented in Canada by Borden Ladner Gervais LLP in Vancouver, with a team led by Don Bird and including Tim Sehmer, Ken Anderson and Martha Bruce (lending); Mark Lewis (real estate); Bruce Sinclair (tax); Debra Sing (pension); Carleigh Whitman (environmental) and Steven McKoen (securities), and assisted in Toronto by Stephen Redican.
Robert Downes and Nikola Uzelac of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP in New York represented the arranger and the syndication agent. The lenders and the collateral agent were represented by Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP in New York with a team led by Frederic Ragucci and including Helen Lloyd-Davies, Jennifer Caggiano, David Bernsohn and Daniel Angel (lending); Greg Pressman and Sima Shapiro (real estate) and Mark Dowd (environmental).
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP in Vancouver acted as Canadian counsel to the lenders, the arranger, the syndication agent and the collateral agent with a team led by David Zacks and including Bill Maclagan (tax); Greg Umbach and Karla Everatt (real estate); Bahar Hafizi (lending); Scott Sweatman (pensions) and Gloria Chao (environmental).
Melissa Schwartz at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, LLP in Washington, D.C. acted as counsel to the administration agent. Maria McKenzie at Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy LLP in Vancouver represented rangement with The Toronto-Dominion Bank, as well as provided for increased operating funds. The Toronto-Dominion Bank in connection with the repayment of the existing syndicated credit facilities, and Susan Kennedy and James Gage at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Toronto represented The Toronto-Dominion Bank in connection with the termination of the receivables purchase arrangement.