Company also provides update on Share
Repurchase Program
THE
WOODLANDS, Texas, Dec. 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/
-- Newpark Resources, Inc. (NYSE: NR) "Newpark" or the
"Company") today announced it has completed the previously
announced transactions, which effectively provide for the Company's
exit from the Gulf of Mexico
market. The two completed transactions include the sale of
substantially all assets associated with the Gulf of Mexico completions fluids operations,
as well as a separate transaction, through which the Company has
entered a seven-year sublease of the Company's Fourchon,
Louisiana drilling fluids
shorebase and blending facility with a leading global energy
services provider. Both of these transactions include the
assignment or sublease of the underlying properties that remain
subject to the final approval of the local port authority. As
a result of these transactions, the Company received approximately
$6 million of cash from the sale of
the completions fluids assets in the fourth quarter of 2022 and
expects to generate additional cash of nearly $25 million over the next few quarters, primarily
associated with the ongoing wind-down of working capital. The
Company also announced that it repurchased 4.4 million shares (4.7%
of outstanding shares) of its common stock under its existing share
repurchase program, using total cash of $17.6 million during the fourth quarter of
2022.
Matthew Lanigan, Newpark's
President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "With the completion
of the Gulf of Mexico
transactions, we have accomplished all four of our
previously-discussed divestitures. Including the wind-down of
working capital, the four divestitures should generate more than
$100 million in cash. This includes
approximately $80 million in cash
received in the fourth quarter, enabling us to reduce our debt
levels and return value to shareholders through meaningful share
repurchases."
Lanigan continued, "The completion of these transactions reflect
significant steps in transforming Fluids Systems into a more agile,
capital-light business model, capable of stronger free cash flow
generation and returns moving forward. As we look ahead, we
plan to focus our energy on executing our disciplined growth
strategy, including the acceleration of our growth in the utilities
sector, while also continuing to return excess cash generation to
shareholders through additional share repurchases."
Newpark Resources, Inc. is a geographically diversified supplier
providing environmentally-sensitive products, as well as rentals
and services to a variety of industries, including oil and gas
exploration, electrical transmission & distribution, pipeline,
renewable energy, petrochemical, construction, and other
industries. For more information, visit our website at
www.newpark.com.
This news release contains "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995, as amended, such as statements regarding the expected
timing of the closing of the divestiture transactions, and the
amount and use of the proceeds from these transactions. All
statements other than statements of historical facts are
forward-looking statements. Words such as "will," "may," "could,"
"would," "should," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates,"
"expects," "plans," "intends," and similar expressions are intended
to identify these forward-looking statements but are not the
exclusive means of identifying them. These statements are not
guarantees that our expectations will prove to be correct and
involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and assumptions. Many
factors, including those discussed more fully elsewhere in this
release and in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission by Newpark, particularly its Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2021,
and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as well as others, could
cause actual plans or results to differ materially from those
expressed in, or implied by, these statements. These risk factors
include, but are not limited to, risks related to our ability to
complete necessary actions or obtain required approvals from the
local port authority to facilitate the transfer or sublease of our
Port Fourchon properties; execute our strategic actions; the
ongoing conflict between Russia
and Ukraine; the COVID-19
pandemic; the worldwide oil and natural gas industry; our customer
concentration and reliance on the U.S. exploration and production
market; our international operations; operating hazards present in
the oil and natural gas industry and substantial liability claims,
including catastrophic well incidents; our contracts that can be
terminated or downsized by our customers without penalty; our
product offering expansion; our ability to attract, retain and
develop qualified leaders, key employees and skilled personnel; the
price and availability of raw materials; business acquisitions and
capital investments; our market competition; technological
developments and intellectual property in our industry; severe
weather, natural disasters, and seasonality; our cost and continued
availability of borrowed funds, including noncompliance with debt
covenants; environmental laws and regulations; our legal
compliance; the inherent limitations of insurance coverage; income
taxes; cybersecurity breaches or business system disruptions; our
restructuring activities; activist stockholders that may attempt to
effect changes at our Company or acquire control over our Company;
our ability to maintain compliance with the New York Stock
Exchange's continued listing requirements; and our amended and
restated bylaws, which could limit our stockholders' ability to
obtain what such stockholders believe to be a favorable judicial
forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other
employees. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, except as required by securities laws. Newpark's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission can be obtained
at no charge at www.sec.gov, as well as through our
website at www.newpark.com.
Contacts:
Gregg Piontek
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Newpark Resources, Inc.
gpiontek@newpark.com
281-362-6800
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SOURCE Newpark Resources, Inc.