SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) - Discussions with a financier who was planning to extend at least US$180 million (S$242 million) in new debt to Pacific Radiance have come to a halt.

The mainboard-listed offshore marine services firm, which is coming up with a debt restructuring plan, on Monday evening (Jan 20) said the talks have "stalled" due to "certain difficulties" which arose in the course of discussions around December 2019.

The debt funding as well as new equity via a share placement were meant to finance Pacific Radiance's proposed US$180 million acquisition of Abu Dhabi-based Allianz Marine and Logistics Services (AMLS) and to repay the group's existing debts by way of schemes of arrangement.

If the new debt funding had come through, the group would have proposed schemes that included a cash payment of about US$175.6 million to discharge the group's bank debt.

Pacific Radiance on Monday said it has approached other potential financiers who had submitted indicative proposals to the company last year.

One of them, a global asset management firm with more than US$100 billion assets under management, has shown "keen interest" in extending debt financing, Pacific Radiance said.

Pacific Radiance and AMLS are at an "advanced stage" of their initial discussions with this potential financier, and aim to enter into a term sheet for the proposed debt financing, Pacific Radiance said.

Meanwhile, the High Court of Singapore has extended the debt moratoria to Feb 28 for Pacific Radiance and two of its units, Pacific Crest and CSI Offshore. The three firms had requested the further extension before the moratoria were to expire on Oct 17, 2019.

The companies will convene their respective court meetings by Feb 18 to consider and, if thought fit, approve their proposed schemes of arrangement.

Drew & Napier and KPMG Services are Pacific Radiance's legal and financial advisers respectively for the debt restructuring.

Trading in Pacific Radiance shares has been voluntarily suspended since Feb 28, 2018.