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Company to address debt
through comprehensive restructuring
CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. May 6, 2008 - Emphasizing that its casino and resort
properties are more than adequately financed and that it will continue
to serve customers on a �business as usual� basis, Tropicana Entertainment,
LLC today filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11
of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code so it can work to maximize the value of the
company�s assets through a comprehensive restructuring.
Nine of the 11 properties owned directly by Tropicana Entertainment
are included in the petitions. While the company�s Atlantic City, New Jersey,
casino and resort is not part of the filing and is unaffected by it, Tropicana
Entertainment intends to coordinate its efforts with the Trustee of the
Atlantic City casino to maximize value for the mutual benefit of their
common creditors.
The nine business entities included in the filing are casinos and affiliates
that are directly owned by Tropicana Entertainment, LLC. They are:
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Bayou Caddy�s Jubilee Casino � Greenville, Mississippi;
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Casino Aztar � Evansville, Indiana;
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Horizon Casino Hotel � Vicksburg, Mississippi;
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Horizon Casino Resort � Lake Tahoe, Nevada;
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MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa � Lake Tahoe, Nevada;
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River Palms Resort & Casino � Laughlin, Nevada;
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Tropicana Express Hotel & Casino � Laughlin, Nevada;
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Sheraton Hotel and Belle of Baton Rouge Casino; and
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Tropicana Casino & Resort � Las Vegas, Nevada.
In addition to Tropicana Atlantic City Casino & Resort, the other Tropicana
Entertainment property excluded from the filing is the Lighthouse Point
Casino, Greenville, Mississippi. Two other casinos owned by parent Tropicana
Casinos and Resorts � the Amelia Belle Casino in Amelia, Louisiana, and
the Westin Casuarina Las Vegas Hotel, Casino & Spa � are also excluded.
During the process, Tropicana Entertainment expects to maintain current
staffing levels and will fund the majority of ongoing operations from its
own cash flow. It has secured $67 million in debtor-in-possession (DIP)
financing that it can use to supplement its working capital and ensure
each property�s competitive market position. The DIP loan is being provided
by Silver Point Finance, LLC of Greenwich, Connecticut.
Tropicana Atlantic City Operating Normally as Its Former
Corporate Parent Seeks Chapter 11 Protection
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. - May 6, 2008 - Tropicana Atlantic City, one of the
East Coast�s leading casino, entertainment and resort destinations, today
said that it is not part of the Chapter 11 filing by its former corporate
parent, Tropicana Entertainment, LLC, and is continuing normal operations.
Mark Giannantonio, President and Chief Operating Officer of Tropicana
Atlantic City, said: �I want to emphasize that Tropicana Atlantic City
is not part of our former parent company�s Chapter 11 filing. The hotel
and casino operations of Tropicana Atlantic City continue in a completely
business-as-usual manner.
�Our continuing and successful efforts to assure our customers of the
highest-quality hotel, entertainment and casino experience are in full
swing and receiving high praise from reviewers and customers alike.�
Among current initiatives, Tropicana Atlantic City will continue a rebuilding
program that includes the May 15th grand opening of a new slot area, �Havana
Roof Top Slots,� the most extraordinary slot environment in Atlantic City.
Other current initiatives include the forthcoming, much anticipated grand
opening on Memorial Day weekend of the Casino�s new Rumba Lounge, which
will include entertainment and video slots and will overlook the Casino
floor.
Mr. Giannantonio continued, �Financially, Tropicana Atlantic City has
more than adequate liquidity to meet our current and future operating needs,
and we fully intend to meet all of our obligations to employees, vendors
and customers alike. In short, today�s action by Tropicana Entertainment
should not affect any aspect of our operations.�
Tropicana Atlantic City has not been controlled by Tropicana Entertainment
since December 12, 2007, when former New Jersey State Supreme Court Justice
Gary S. Stein was appointed to oversee Tropicana Atlantic City�s operations
as trustee and later as conservator following the denial of an operating
license to its now-former owner, William J. Yung, III.
As previously announced, Justice Stein has been charged by the New Jersey
Casino Control Commission with selling Tropicana Atlantic City. Justice
Stein is currently engaged in discussions with advisors to lenders under
Tropicana Entertainment�s Senior Credit Facility and holders of its 9 5/8%
Senior Subordinated Notes concerning the best means of effecting such a
sale in order to maximize the value of Tropicana Atlantic City.
Tropicana Atlantic City
Diana Spiers-Knox, 609-340-4507 |
�Our company is going into this process from a position of financial
and operational strength,� said Tropicana President Scott C. Butera, who
will lead the restructuring. �We generate positive operational cash flows
and, along with our DIP financing, we have more-than-adequate resources
to meet our ongoing financial needs. We will continue to offer our visitors
and players a full range of lodging, entertainment and gaming services.
�The period ahead is an opportunity to work with all of our constituents
to address our debt issues and reorganize our business so that we can optimize
the value of the company�s assets,� Butera continued. �We are confident
we will emerge from this process as a stronger, more competitive brand
with a solid financial structure and clearly enhanced fundamentals.�
In conjunction with the filing, Tropicana Entertainment is seeking approval
for a variety of first day motions that will allow it to continue to manage
operations in the ordinary course. The motions include requests to make
wage and salary payments and other benefits to employees; honor customer
programs and certain other pre-petition customer obligations; and pay critical
vendors, suppliers, and certain other pre-petition trade claims. This relief
will allow the company to operate its business without interruption while
it continues restructuring in a controlled process.
The motions are typical in Chapter 11 filings, and court approval is
generally granted promptly. The company intends to pay all providers of
goods and services delivered post-petition in the ordinary course of business.
About Tropicana Entertainment, LLC
Tropicana Entertainment, LLC, an indirect subsidiary of Tropicana Casinos
and Resorts, is one of the largest privately held gaming entertainment
providers in the United States. The company operates 540,000 square feet
of casino space with 15,000 slot machine positions. With more than 11,000
employees and 8,300 hotel rooms at its properties, it produces in excess
of $1.2 billion annual revenue. More information is available at www.tropicanacasinos.com.
None of the information contained on the company�s website shall be deemed
incorporated by reference or otherwise included herein. |
