JONATHAN HAYWARD
With a payment a day late on a $1.4-billion loan, ski-resort operator Intrawest is continuing negotiations with its lenders.
The $524-million payment was due Wednesday, after the company reportedly received a two-month extension in October.
"Intrawest continues to be in active dialogue with our lenders regarding refinancing a term loan," chief executive officer Bill Jensen said in a statement.
Intrawest is owned by private-equity firm Fortress Investment Group LLC , which acquired the company in 2006 for $1.8-billion. Fortress also assumed $950-million in debt in the deal.
Fortress paid a 20-per-cent premium over Intrawest's share price to get its hands on the company, whose well-known resorts include Whistler Blackcomb in Whistler, B.C., which will be used in the 2010 Winter Olympics for ski events.
A large portion of Intrawest's business depends on the sale of ski chalets and vacation properties, a segment of the real estate market that has been hammered by the recession. Fortress marked down the value of the Intrawest investment to 29 cents on the dollar in August, it said in a letter to investors at the time.
Mr. Jensen said Intrawest's customers at its resorts and property developments as well as Olympic organizers shouldn't expect any changes, regardless of the negotiations on the loan payment and restructuring.
"It is business as usual for Intrawest and we are providing our customers and homeowners with the memorable experiences that they have come to expect when they visit our resorts, and will continue to do so regardless of the outcome of these discussions," he said.
Fortress, which manages $32-billion in hedge funds and private equity funds, saw its shares slip 0.66 per cent to $4.50 in shortened trade on the New York Stock Exchange.