GT Advanced Technologies has secured $100 million financing deal, according to the company’s revised bankruptcy documents filed in local courts. The Merrimack-based company hasn’t published a press release about the deal, but has sought the bankruptcy court’s approval for the loan. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Boston is scheduled to hear the motions on Wednesday, March 18.
The loan comes with certain costs
GT Advanced’s revised filing, spotted by Bob Sanders of the New Hampshire Business Review, shows that the loan does not come without costs. The bankrupt company is seeking permission to pay lenders up to $600,000 in expenses and $2 million “work fee” to obtain financing. The lenders are TPG Specialty Lending and TAO Finance 2 LLC. In case GTAT changes its mind and goes with someone else, it will have to pay lenders 4% of the loan amount.
If approved, the financing would come at a crucial time as the company continues to lose millions of dollars every month. GT Advanced filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October last year after a deal with Apple to supply the sapphire went sour. The failed deal left about 2,000 idle furnaces at GTAT’s sapphire factory in Arizona. The company said the $100 million financing will help it recover from bankruptcy.
GT Advanced to lose $52.5 million this year
GT Advanced has reached a settlement with Apple. It will sell most of the idle furnaces at about $500,000 each to pay off the Cupertino company’s $439 million loan. GTAT ended January with 76.6 million in cash, down $11.1 million from the previous month. The company estimates to lose $53.5 million in 2015, with most of the losses expected to occur between March 12 and May 8.
GT Advanced reiterates that it will turn around with the help of some new technologies. It has already laid off more than 80% of its workforce. Last month, the company bagged an order from an existing customer to supply equipment for polysilicon production. GTAT says its another product Merlin will allow customers to produce materials in order to make more efficient and cheaper solar cells.