Chaparral Energy is the latest victim of the global health crisis in the U.S. energy industry, forcing the company to file for bankruptcy protection as the coronavirus continues to devastate the world's economy.
Chaparral announced Monday that it had entered into a support deal with some of the company's funded debtholders to seek a pre-packaged restructuring.
The Oklahoma oil and gas group listed its assets and liabilities in the $500 million to $1 billion range, a court filing document in Delaware's Bankruptcy Court showed.
Chaparral's Chapter 11 filing is its second in four years, setting the stage for owners of debt securities to take control of the oil-drilling firm following the collapse in the global price of oil.
In May this year, Chaparral warned investors of the company's capacity to continue operating in the wake of a huge drop in the prices of commodities in the world market and disclosed it had hired the services of legal and financial experts for guidance moving forward.
According to chief executive officer Chuck Duginski, while the company has initiated measures to carefully examine the situation, the ill effects of the current crisis to the company and the world's energy sector as a whole have been massive.
Meanwhile, financially strapped independent energy groups like Whiting Petroleum and Chesapeake Energy have been hammered by one of the worst economic turmoils the oil sector has seen in the past months. Another energy giant, California Resources Corp, has also succumbed to the crisis and filed for bankruptcy protection after failing to settle its interest dues.
Based on the Chapter 11 declaration, Chaparral and its energy firm affiliates focus on exploration and production operations in Oklahoma's hydrocarbon-rich region. There are around 66 personnel at Chaparral's headquarters while 35 others are assigned mainly in the field.
As of August 14, Chaparral had around $32 million in available cash, considered just enough to keep the company operating normally and settle its other financial requirements through its bankruptcy restructuring process.
