Exhibit 10.1

 

WAIVER AND CONSENT

 

This WAIVER AND CONSENT (this “Waiver”), executed as of August 15, 2011, is by
and among PETROHAWK ENERGY CORPORATION, a corporation duly formed and existing
under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Borrower”); each of the Guarantors
signatory hereto (the “Guarantors”); each of the Lenders party hereto; and BNP
PARIBAS (in its individual capacity, “BNP Paribas”), as administrative agent for
the Lenders (in such capacity, together with its successors in such capacity,
the “Administrative Agent”).

 

Recitals

 

A.            The Borrower, the Administrative Agent, and the other Agents and
Lenders named and defined therein as lenders and agents, are parties to that
certain Fifth Amended and Restated Senior Revolving Credit Agreement dated as of
August 2, 2010, as amended by the First Amendment to Fifth Amended and Restated
Senior Revolving Credit Agreement, dated as of November 8, 2010, the Second
Amendment to Fifth Amended and Restated Senior Revolving Credit Agreement, dated
as of December 22, 2010, the Third Amendment to Fifth Amended and Restated
Senior Revolving Credit Agreement, dated as of April 29, 2011, and the Fourth
Amendment to Fifth Amended and Restated Senior Revolving Credit Agreement, dated
as of July 1, 2011, pursuant to which the Lenders and Agents provided certain
loans and extensions of credit to the Borrower (as amended, the “Credit
Agreement”).

 

B.            The Borrower has entered into that certain Agreement and Plan of
Merger dated as of July 14, 2011 (the “Merger Agreement”), by and among the
Borrower, BHP Billiton Limited, a corporation organized under the laws of
Victoria, Australia (“BHPB”), BHP Billiton Petroleum (North America) Inc., a
Delaware corporation, and North America Holdings II Inc., a Delaware corporation
(“Merger Sub”).

 

C.            Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, Merger Sub, an indirect
wholly-owned subsidiary of BHPB, will acquire at least a majority of the
outstanding shares of common stock of the Borrower upon satisfaction or waiver
of the conditions of the all-cash tender offer commenced on July 25, 2011 and,
following such acquisition, Merger Sub will be merged with and into the
Borrower, with the Borrower being the surviving corporation as a wholly-owned
subsidiary of BHPB (collectively, the “BHPB Transactions”).

 

D.            The consummation of the BHPB Transactions would result in the
occurrence of certain Defaults and Events of Default under the Credit Agreement.

 

E.             In order to facilitate the consummation of the BHPB Transactions,
the Borrower may issue shares of common stock to Merger Sub if Merger Sub
exercises the “Top-Up Option”

 

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(as defined below) granted to it under the Merger Agreement.  The purchase price
owed by Merger Sub to the Borrower for such shares of common stock will be paid,
at Merger Sub’s option, (i) fully in cash, or (ii) partially in cash and
partially through a full recourse promissory note issued to the Borrower
(collectively, the “Top-Up Option Transaction”).

 

F.             The Borrower has requested, and the Borrower, the Administrative
Agent and the Majority Lenders have agreed, subject to the terms and conditions
contained herein, (i) to prospectively waive the Defaults and Events of Default
that would occur as a result of the consummation of the BHPB Transactions,
(ii) to consent to the BHPB Transactions, and (iii) to consent to the Top-Up
Option Transaction.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the mutual covenants herein
contained, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of
which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

Section 1.               Defined Terms.  Each capitalized term which is defined
in the Credit Agreement, but which is not defined in this Waiver, shall have the
meaning ascribed such term in the Credit Agreement.  The following term shall
have the following meaning for purposes of this Waiver:

 

“Top-Up Option” means an irrevocable option that Merger Sub (or one of its
Affiliates) may, but is not obligated to, exercise following the change in
control of the Borrower pursuant to the Merger Agreement, to purchase from the
Borrower the number of Equity Interests in Borrower (in the form of common
stock) that, when added to the number of Equity Interests in Borrower (in the
form of common stock) already owned by BHPB and its Affiliates immediately prior
to the time of such exercise, will constitute one share more than the number of
Equity Interests in Borrower necessary for Merger Sub to be merged into Borrower
without any vote or written consent of stockholders in accordance with the
“short-form” merger provisions of Section 253 of the Delaware General
Corporation Law, which option may be exercised, at Merger Sub’s election, (i) in
cash or (ii) by a combination of cash (not less than the aggregate par value of
the shares to be purchased under the option) and execution of a promissory note,
bearing simple interest of 5% per annum, for the remainder of the purchase
price.

 

Section 2.               Waivers of Defaults and Events of Default.  Subject to
the satisfaction of the conditions precedent set forth in Section 5 of this
Waiver, the Administrative Agent and the Majority Lenders hereby waive any
Defaults and Events of Default which arise as a result of the consummation of
the BHPB Transactions or which will arise as a result of the Top-Up Option
Transaction, including, without limitation, the Defaults and Events of Default
resulting from:  (a) the restrictions against mergers and consolidations set
forth in Section 9.12 of the Credit Agreement, (b) the occurrence of a Change in
Control, (c) any voluntary calls for, offer to

 

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repurchase or repurchases of, offer to redeem or redemptions of, the Senior
Notes outstanding on the date hereof in violation of Section 9.04(b) of the
Credit Agreement, including any “Change of Control Offer” under and as defined
in each Senior Indenture, (d) any amendments, modifications or waivers of the
Senior Indentures or the Senior Notes outstanding on the date hereof in
violation of Section 9.04(b) of the Credit Agreement, (e) the occurrence of any
event or condition in connection with the BHPB Transactions that results in any
Senior Notes becoming due prior to their scheduled maturity or that enables or
permits (with or without the giving of notice, the lapse of time or both) any
holder of any Senior Notes (or any trustee or agent on their behalf) to cause
such Senior Notes to become due, or to require the Redemption thereof or any
offer to Redeem to be made in respect thereof, prior to their scheduled maturity
or require the Borrower or any Restricted Subsidiary to make an offer in respect
thereof, (f) any Restricted Payments in excess of $5 million to terminate
directors’ or employees’ option agreements, stock appreciation rights or
restricted stock agreements under the Borrower’s incentive stock plans in
violation of Section 9.04(a) of the Credit Agreement, (g) the occurrence of any
default or event of default under the terms of any Material Indebtedness, other
than, in each case, any payment default or acceleration of payment resulting
from the BHPB Transactions, and (h) a violation of Section 9.05 of the Credit
Agreement or Section 9.15 of the Credit Agreement, in each case, in connection
with the Top-Up Option Transaction.

 

Section 3.               Consent to BHPB Transactions.  Subject to the
satisfaction of the conditions precedent set forth in Section 5 of this Waiver,
notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Credit Agreement, the
Administrative Agent and the Majority Lenders hereby consent to the BHPB
Transactions.  In addition, Section 9.12 of the Credit Agreement is hereby
amended by replacing the words “The Borrower will not” in the first line thereof
with the words “Except to the extent provided in the Agreement and Plan of
Merger, dated as of July 14, 2011, by and among the Borrower, BHP Billiton
Limited, BHP Billiton Petroleum (North America) Inc. and North America Holdings
II Inc., the Borrower will not”.

 

Section 4.               Consent to Top-Up Option Transaction.  Subject to the
satisfaction of the conditions precedent set forth in Section 5 of this Waiver,
notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Credit Agreement, the
Administrative Agent and the Majority Lenders hereby consent to the Top-Up
Option Transaction.

 

Section 5.               Conditions Precedent.  The effectiveness of this Waiver
is subject to the receipt by the Administrative Agent of the following documents
and satisfaction of the other conditions provided in this Section 5, each of
which shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Administrative Agent in form and
substance (the date on which such documents are received and conditions
satisfied or waived, the “Waiver Effective Date”):

 

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(a)           The Administrative Agent shall have received from the Borrower,
the Majority Lenders, and each of the Guarantors, counterparts (in such number
as may be requested by the Administrative Agent) of this Waiver signed on behalf
of such Person.

 

(b)           After giving effect to this Waiver, no Default or Event of Default
shall have occurred and be continuing as of the Waiver Effective Date.

 

The Administrative Agent is hereby authorized and directed to declare this
Waiver to be effective when it has received documents confirming or certifying,
to the satisfaction of the Administrative Agent, compliance with the conditions
set forth in this Section 5 or the waiver of such conditions as permitted
hereby, which declaration shall be promptly notified to the Borrower. Such
declaration shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all parties to the
Credit Agreement for all purposes.

 

Section 6.               Representations and Warranties.  The Borrower and each
Guarantor hereby affirms:  (a) that as of the date of execution and delivery of
this Waiver, and after giving effect to the waivers and consents contemplated
hereby, all of the representations and warranties contained in each Loan
Document to which it is a party are true and correct in all material respects
(unless made as of a specific earlier date, in which case, was true as of such
date), and (b) that after giving effect to the waivers and consents contemplated
hereby, no Default or Event of Default exists under the Loan Documents or will
exist under the Loan Documents.

 

Section 7.               Miscellaneous.

 

(a)           Confirmation.  The provisions of the Credit Agreement (as
supplemented by this Waiver) shall remain in full force and effect in accordance
with its terms following the effectiveness of this Waiver.

 

(b)           Ratification and Affirmation of Borrower and Guarantors.  The
Borrower and Guarantors hereby expressly (a) acknowledge the terms of this
Waiver, (b) ratify and affirm their obligations under the Loan Documents to
which they are a party, (c) acknowledge, renew and extend their continued
liabilities under the Guaranty Agreement and the other Security Instruments to
which they are a party and agree that their guarantee under the Guaranty
Agreement and the other Security Instruments to which they are a party remains
in full force and effect with respect to the Indebtedness as amended hereby.

 

(c)           Counterparts.  This Waiver may be executed by one or more of the
parties hereto in any number of separate counterparts, and all of such
counterparts taken together shall be deemed to constitute one and the same
instrument.

 

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(d)           No Oral Agreement.  THIS WRITTEN WAIVER, THE CREDIT AGREEMENT AND
THE OTHER LOAN DOCUMENTS EXECUTED IN CONNECTION HEREWITH AND THEREWITH REPRESENT
THE FINAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES AND MAY NOT BE CONTRADICTED BY EVIDENCE
OF PRIOR, CONTEMPORANEOUS, OR UNWRITTEN ORAL AGREEMENTS OF THE PARTIES.  THERE
ARE NO SUBSEQUENT ORAL AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE PARTIES.

 

(e)           Governing Law.  THIS WAIVER (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
VALIDITY AND ENFORCEABILITY HEREOF) SHALL BE GOVERNED BY, AND CONSTRUED IN
ACCORDANCE WITH, THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF TEXAS.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Waiver and Consent to be
duly executed effective as of the date first written above.

 

BORROWER:

PETROHAWK ENERGY CORPORATION

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Mark J. Mize

 

 

Mark J. Mize

 

 

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial

 

 

Officer and Treasurer

 

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GUARANTORS:

PETROHAWK OPERATING COMPANY

 

 

 

P-H ENERGY, LLC

 

 

 

HAWK FIELD SERVICES, LLC

 

 

 

PETROHAWK PROPERTIES, LP

 

 

By:

P-H Energy, LLC

 

 

 

Its General Partner

 

 

 

WINWELL RESOURCES, L.L.C.

 

 

 

WSF, INC.

 

 

 

KCS RESOURCES, LLC

 

 

 

KCS ENERGY SERVICES, INC.

 

 

 

MEDALLION CALIFORNIA PROPERTIES COMPANY

 

 

 

ONE TEC, LLC

 

 

 

ONE TEC OPERATING, LLC

 

 

 

HK TRANSPORTATION, LLC

 

 

 

PETROHAWK HOLDINGS, LLC

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Mark J. Mize

 

 

Mark J. Mize

 

 

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial

 

 

Officer and Treasurer

 

 

 

FRACHAWK SERVICES, LLC

 

 

 

BIG HAWK SERVICES, LLC

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Mark J. Mize

 

 

Mark J. Mize

 

 

Treasurer

 

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HK ENERGY MARKETING, LLC

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Mark J. Mize

 

 

Mark J. Mize

 

 

Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

 

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ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT:

BNP PARIBAS,

 

as Administrative Agent and Lender

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Juan Carlos Sandoval

 

Name: Juan Carlos Sandoval

 

Title: Director

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Evans R. Swann

 

Name: Evan R. Swann

 

Title: Managing Director

 

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CO-SYNDICATION AGENT:

BANK OF MONTREAL,

 

as Co-Syndication Agent and Lender

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ James V. Ducote

 

Name: James V. Ducote

 

Title: Director

 

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CO-SYNDICATION AGENT:

BANK OF AMERICA, N.A.,

 

as Co-Syndication Agent and Lender

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Jeffrey H. Rathkamp

 

Name: Jeffrey H. Rathkamp

 

Title: Managing Director

 

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CO-DOCUMENTATION AGENT:

JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.,

 

as Co-Syndication Agent and Lender

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Michael Kamauf

 

Name: Michael Kamauf

 

Title: Authorized Officer

 

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CO-DOCUMENTATION AGENT:

WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A.,

 

as Co-Documentation Agent and Lender

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Doug McDowell

 

Name: Doug McDowell

 

Title: Director

 

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LENDERS:

BARCLAYS BANK PLC

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Allen Huang

 

Name: Allen Huang

 

Title: AVP

 

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ROYAL BANK OF CANADA

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Jay T. Sartain

 

Name: Jay T. Sartain

 

Title: Authorized Signatory

 

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MORGAN STANLEY BANK, N.A.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Frank Jolley

 

Name: Frank Jolley

 

Title: Authorized Signatory

 

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MORGAN STANLEY SENIOR FUNDING, INC.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Frank Jolley

 

Name: Frank Jolley

 

Title: Vice President

 

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DEUTSCHE BANK TRUST COMPANY AMERICAS

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Michael Getz

 

Name: Michael Getz

 

Title: Vice President

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Omayra Laucella

 

Name: Omayra Laucella

 

Title: Vice President

 

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CREDIT AGRICOLE CORPORATE AND INVESTMENT BANK

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Tom Byargeon

 

Name: Tom Byargeon

 

Title: Managing Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Michael D. Willis

 

Name: Michael D. Willis

 

Title: Managing Director

 

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CREDIT SUISSE AG, CAYMAN ISLANDS BRANCH

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Christopher Reo Day

 

Name: Christopher Reo Day

 

Title: Vice President

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Vipul Dhadda

 

Name: Vipul Dhadda

 

Title: Associate

 

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UBS AG, STAMFORD BRANCH

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Mary E. Evans

 

Name: Mary E. Evans

 

Title: Associate Director Banking Products Services, US

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Irja R. Otsa

 

Name: Irja R. Otsa

 

Title: Associate Director Banking Products Services, US

 

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CAPITAL ONE, N.A.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Matthew L. Molero

 

Name: Matthew L. Molero

 

Title: President

 

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ING CAPITAL LLC

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Huma Manal

 

Name: Huma Manal

 

Title: Director

 

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MIHUZO CORPORATE BANK, LTD.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Leon Mo

 

Name: Leon Mo

 

Title: Authorized Signatory

 

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AMEGY BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION

 

 

 

 

 

By:

 

 

Name:

 

 

Title:

 

 

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CITIBANK, N.A.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ James Beilly

 

Name: James Beilly

 

Title: Vice President

 

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KEYBANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ David Morris

 

Name: David Morris

 

Title: Vice President

 

[Signature Page to Waiver and Consent for Petrohawk Revolving Credit Agreement]

 

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SUNTRUST BANK

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Greg Magnuson

 

Name: Greg Magnuson

 

Title: Vice President

 

[Signature Page to Waiver and Consent for Petrohawk Revolving Credit Agreement]

 

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SUMITOMO MITSUI BANKING CORPORATION

 

 

 

 

 

By:

 

 

Name:

 

 

Title:

 

 

[Signature Page to Waiver and Consent for Petrohawk Revolving Credit Agreement]

 

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THE BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ John Frazell

 

Name: John Frazell

 

Title: Director

 

[Signature Page to Waiver and Consent for Petrohawk Revolving Credit Agreement]

 

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GOLDMAN SACHS BANK USA

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Rick Canonico

 

Name: Rick Canonico

 

Title: Authorized Signatory

 

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NATIXIS

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Liana Tchernysheva

 

Name: Liana Tchernysheva

 

Title: Managing Director

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Donovan C. Broussard

 

Name: Donovan C. Broussard

 

Title: Managing Director

 

[Signature Page to Waiver and Consent for Petrohawk Revolving Credit Agreement]

 

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BOKF, N.A. D/B/A BANK OF TEXAS, N.A.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

 

 

Name:

 

 

Title:

 

 

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