Restructuring

Houston-based drilling expert Superior Energy Services is to emerge debt-free from bankruptcy after its plan of reorganization received court approval. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas confirmed the reorganization plan, which allows Superior to convert into equity an estimated $1.3 billion in debt. “This confirmation order marks a key milestone in…

Lower 48 oilfield services provider Pioneer Energy Service Corp. has filed for voluntary bankruptcy and is planning a comprehensive financial restructuring under an agreement with key stakeholders.

Southcross Energy Partners LP is seeking restructuring through bankruptcy and will evaluate a range of options during the process, including the sale of the business, divestiture of assets or a standalone restructuring plan, the Eagle Ford Shale processor said Monday.

Houston-based Gastar Exploration Inc. said in a regulatory filing on Monday it has hired advisers to explore strategic alternatives, including the possibility of selling the company or restructuring the balance sheet.

Stone Energy Corp.’s largest shareholder said he won’t support the company’s current restructuring plan with noteholders if it files for bankruptcy, saying in a regulatory filing that he has hired counsel to defend common shareholders in the event of those proceedings.

Tulsa-based onshore producer Midstates Petroleum Co. Inc. has emerged from voluntary bankruptcy protection with a new board of directors and nearly $2 billion less in debt.

Midcontinent producer SandRidge Energy Inc. said Monday its reorganization plan has received “overwhelming support” from stakeholders and been confirmed by a Texas bankruptcy court, enabling it to emerge from Chapter 11 in October.

A U.S. bankruptcy court has approved Penn Virginia Corp.’s restructuring plan a month after the 134 year-old company filed for Chapter 11 protection, giving it what could be a swift exit from the proceedings.

With recent strengthening of oil prices, the outlook for the next wave of exploration and production company restructurings has improved somewhat, an attorney in the Baker Botts LLP financial restructuring practice told NGI’s Shale Daily. If the improvement sticks, it will be none too soon for many. For now, though, a painful reckoning continues.