YRC Signs $81 Million Facility Sale, Lease Agreement

YRC Worldwide will sell $81 million in property to NorthAmerican Terminals Management, leasing back certain facilities, the company said Aug. 7.

The sale-leaseback agreement followed Teamster ratification of the company’s wage and benefits reduction plan, which will save the embattled trucker more than $800 million by the end of 2010 and more than a billion dollars by 2013.

The nation’s largest industrial trucking operator has been selling and leasing back property to raise the cash it needs to meet liquidity covenants. Its banking group has revised those covenants several times this year alone.

Sale and financing leaseback transactions are now expected to generate around $375 million in cash and excess property sales should generate more $100 million in 2009.

A majority of the company’s Teamsters union employees last week voted to accept a 15 percent wage cut and 18-month suspension of pension contributions.
In return, the Teamsters get a larger ownership stake in the company, a seat on its board, and a greater say in how the company is run.

Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com