Offshore support vessel company Hermitage Offshore Services has announced that the company, alongside 28 of its vessel-owning subsidiaries, have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The voluntary petitions for reorganisation were filed in the US bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York.
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According to the company, the latest move comes due to the collapse in global oil prices as a result of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and its impact on Hermitage’s businesses.
Hermitage said it does not expect business operations and relationships with its customers and vendors to get affected while it works with its lenders through this process.
In a press statement, Hermitage Offshore stated: “The company anticipates that the company’s business operations and relationship with its customers and vendors will not be adversely affected by this proceeding while it works constructively with its lenders toward a consensual resolution.
“The company values the business of its customers and vendors and is committed to continuing its long-standing business relationships with them uninterrupted as it works through this process.
“Under Chapter 11 protection, the company’s vendors are afforded ‘administrative’ status for all shipments made, or services provided, subsequent to the filing. As a result, payments for new shipments or services will be made in the ordinary course of business either by the company or one of the company’s managers, which is not part of the Chapter 11 filing.”
Hermitage owns 21 vessels comprising ten platform supply vessels and 11 crew boats operating primarily in the North Sea and the West Coast of Africa.
The company also recently announced the sale of two anchor handling tug supply vessels.
