(Bloomberg) -- A group of investors in Singapore is asking Perisai Petroleum Teknologi Bhd. for immediate repayment on S$125 million ($91.6 million) of bonds due next week after talks for better terms on restructuring broke down.
The notice of acceleration was delivered to the Malaysian oil and gas services company earlier Friday, according to a copy obtained by Bloomberg News. It alleged breaches in debt covenants and failure by the bond trustee to institute action against the issuer or guarantor.
A slump in crude amid slowing global economic growth has hurt Singaporean borrowers in the oil services industry facing a mountain of debt, taking a toll on a country where the marine and offshore industry provides about 19 percent of manufacturing jobs. Swiber Holdings Ltd. roiled the market when it defaulted on S$460 million of local-currency notes, while shippers including Marco Polo Marine Ltd. and Rickmers Maritime are seeking leniency on debts from creditors.
“We don't have a choice as the company wasn't listening to us,” said Lily Tan, a businesswoman and one of 50-odd investors holding about 35 percent of the Perisai notes. She confirmed the delivery of the notice. “This is our hard-earned money.”
Finton Tuan, who oversees corporate affairs at Perisai in Kuala Lumpur, didn't return three messages left at the company's general line and two e-mails seeking comment on the notice. Deutsche Bank declined to comment on the notice in an e-mailed reply to questions to its trust unit in Singapore.
Perisai said in a Sept. 9 filing that it would hold a meeting in Singapore on Oct. 3 to seek a waiver from bondholders and to defer repayment by four months. The 6.875 percent notes, sold in 2013, come due on the same day.
--With assistance from Chanyaporn Chanjaroen To contact the reporters on this story: David Yong in Singapore at dyong@bloomberg.net, Andrea Tan in Singapore at atan17@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrew Monahan at amonahan@bloomberg.net, Sam Mamudi at smamudi@bloomberg.net, Sandy Hendry
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