GSE Environmental Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

On Sunday, GSE Environmental filed paperwork for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in North America. The news was first reported by Reuters. The voluntary petition was made in United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and follows a tumultuous 2014 in which the company abruptly needed to seek new financing and lost its listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
UPDATE: GSE REACHES CONSENSUAL AGREEMENT WITH LENDERS — official statement and update from the company.
GSE is an international manufacturer of geosynthetic materials with well-known product lines in geomembranes, geosynthetic clay liners, and drainage geocomposites and geonets. Materials are manufactured in Houston (United States), Chile, China, Egypt, Germany and Thailand.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the filing indicates USD $262 million in debt is identified and that both strong competition and a protracted European recession, regarding infrastructure sectors in which GSE works, has weighed upon the company’s performance.
Also, the company’s earnings declined by $30 million between 2012 and 2013 while plant upgrades and new plant construction (in China) cost $40 million.
The filing will not affect international facilities, such as the new manufacturing site, or their debt.
GSE owes $193 million to secured lenders, which have offered $45 million in bankruptcy financing.
The case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware, is no: 14-11126.