Document:

Exhibit 10.2

 

$125,000,000

 

BLUE RIDGE PAPER PRODUCTS INC.

 

9.5% Senior Secured Notes due 2008

 

 

PURCHASE AGREEMENT

 

December 10, 2003

 

JEFFERIES & COMPANY, INC.

11100 Santa Monica Boulevard

10th Floor

Los Angeles, California  90025

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Blue Ridge Paper Products Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”),
hereby agrees with you as follows:

 

1.             Issuance of Notes.  Subject to the terms and conditions
herein contained, the Company proposes to issue and sell to Jefferies &
Company, Inc. (the “Initial Purchaser”) $125,000,000 aggregate principal
amount of 9.5% Senior Secured Notes due 2008 (each a “Note” and,
collectively, the “Notes”).  The
Notes will be issued pursuant to an indenture (the “Indenture”), to be
dated as of the Closing Date (as hereinafter defined), by and among the
Company, BRPP, LLC, a North Carolina limited liability company and wholly-owned
subsidiary of the Company (the “North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor”), and
U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (the “Trustee”).  Capitalized terms used, but not defined
herein, shall have the meanings set forth in the Indenture.

 

The Notes will be offered and sold to the Initial Purchaser pursuant to
an exemption from the registration requirements under the Securities Act of 1933,
as amended (the “Act”).  Upon
original issuance thereof, and until such time as the same is no longer
required under the applicable requirements of the Act, the Notes shall bear the
legends set forth in the final offering circular, dated the date hereof (the “Final
Offering Circular”).  The Company
has prepared a preliminary offering circular, dated December 1, 2003 (the
“Preliminary Offering Circular”), and the Final Offering Circular
relating to the offer and sale of the Notes (the “Offering”).  “Offering Circular” means, as of any date or
time referred to in this Agreement, the most recent offering circular (whether
the Preliminary Offering Circular or the Final Offering Circular, and any
amendment or supplement to either such document), including exhibits and
schedules thereto.

 

In connection with the sale of the Notes, the Company is concurrently
entering into a new revolving credit facility among the Company, the other
credit parties signatory thereto, the lenders signatory from time to time, and
General Electric Capital Corporation, as agent and lender, which provides for a
revolving loan facility in an amount of up to $45,000,000 (as amended,
supplemented, modified, extended or restated from time to time, the “Credit
Agreement”).

 

2.             Terms of Offering.  The Initial Purchaser has advised the
Company, and the Company understands, that the Initial Purchaser will make
offers to sell (the “Exempt

 

 

Resales”) some or all of the Notes purchased
by the Initial Purchaser hereunder on the terms set forth in the Final Offering
Circular, as amended or supplemented, to persons (the “Subsequent Purchasers”)
whom the Initial Purchaser (i) reasonably believes to be “qualified
institutional buyers” (“QIBs”) as defined in Rule 144A under the Act, as
such may be amended from time to time, (ii) reasonably believes (based upon
written representations made by such persons to the Initial Purchaser) to be
institutional “accredited investors” (“Accredited Investors”) as defined
in Rule 501(a)(1), (2), (3) or (7) under the Act or (iii) reasonably believes
to be non-U.S. persons under Regulation S under the Act.

 

Pursuant to the Indenture, any and all Subsidiaries (as defined in the
Indenture) of the Company, jointly and severally, shall fully and
unconditionally guarantee, on a senior secured basis, to each holder of the
Notes and the Trustee, the payment and performance of the Company’s obligations
under the Indenture and the Notes (such Subsidiary being referred to herein as
the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor and such guarantee being
referred to herein as a “Guarantee”).

 

Pursuant to the terms of the Collateral Agreements (as defined in the
Indenture), all of the obligations under the Notes and the Indenture will be
secured by a first priority lien and security interest in substantially all of
the tangible and intangible assets of the Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor (subject to prior ranking claims or such assets, including
a prior ranking lien on accounts receivable, inventory and related assets by
the lenders under the Credit Agreement).

 

Holders of the Notes (including Subsequent Purchasers) will have the
registration rights set forth in the registration rights agreement applicable
to the Notes (the “Registration Rights Agreement”), to be executed on
and dated as of the Closing Date. 
Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, the Company will agree,
among other things, to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”)
(a) a registration statement under the Act relating to Senior Secured Notes
(the “Exchange Notes”) which shall be identical to the Notes (except
that the Exchange Notes shall have been registered pursuant to such
registration statement and will not be subject to restrictions on transfer or
contain additional interest provisions) to be offered in exchange for the Notes
(such offer to exchange being referred to as the “Exchange Offer”),
and/or (b) under certain circumstances, a shelf registration statement pursuant
to Rule 415 under the Act (the “Shelf Registration Statement”) relating
to the resale by certain holders of the Notes. If required under the
Registration Rights Agreement, the Company will issue Exchange Notes to the
Initial Purchaser (the “Private Exchange Notes”). If the Company fails
to satisfy its obligations under the Registration Rights Agreement, they will
be required to pay additional interest to the holders of the Notes under
certain circumstances.

 

This Agreement, the Indenture, the Collateral Agreements, the
Registration Rights Agreement, the Notes, the Guarantees, the Exchange Notes
and the Private Exchange Notes are referred to herein as the “Documents.”

 

3.             Purchase, Sale and
Delivery.   On the basis of the representations,
warranties, agreements and covenants herein contained and subject to the terms
and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to issue and sell to the
Initial Purchaser, and the Initial Purchaser agrees to purchase from the
Company, the Notes at a purchase price of 96.55% of the aggregate principal
amount thereof.  Delivery to the Initial
Purchaser of and payment for the

 

 

Notes shall be made at a closing (the “Closing”) to be held at
10:00 a.m., New York time, on December 17, 2003, at the New York offices
of Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, or such other date, time or place as is
mutually agreed to by the parties (the “Closing  Date”).

 

The Company shall deliver to the Initial Purchaser one or more
certificates representing the Notes in definitive form, registered in such
names and denominations as the Initial Purchaser may request, against payment
by the Initial Purchaser of the purchase price therefor by immediately
available Federal funds bank wire transfer to such bank account or accounts as
the Company shall designate to the Initial Purchaser at least two business days
prior to the Closing.  The certificates
representing the Notes in definitive form shall be made available to the
Initial Purchaser for inspection at the New York offices of Mayer, Brown, Rowe
& Maw LLP (or such other place as shall be reasonably acceptable to the
Initial Purchaser) not later than 10:00 a.m. one business day immediately
preceding the Closing Date.  Notes to be
represented by one or more definitive global securities in book-entry form will
be deposited on the Closing Date, by or on behalf of the Company, with The
Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its designated custodian, and
registered in the name of Cede & Co.

 

4.             Representations
and Warranties of the Company.   The Company represents
and warrants to the Initial Purchaser that, as of the date hereof and as of the
Closing Date:

 

(a)           Neither the Preliminary Offering Circular,
the Final Offering Circular, nor any amendment or supplement thereto, as of the
date thereof and at all times subsequent thereto up to the Closing Date,
contained or contains any untrue statement of a material fact, or omitted or
omits to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the
light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except
that the representations and warranties set forth in this Section 4(a)
do not apply to statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity
with information relating to the Initial Purchaser and furnished to the Company
in writing by the Initial Purchaser expressly for use in the Preliminary
Offering Circular or the Final Offering Circular or any amendment or supplement
thereto.  No injunction or order has
been issued that either (i) asserts that any of the transactions contemplated
by the Documents is subject to the registration requirements of the Act or (ii)
would prevent or suspend the issuance or sale of the Notes or the use of the
Preliminary Offering Circular, the Final Offering Circular or any amendment or
supplement thereto, in any jurisdiction. 
Each of the Preliminary Offering Circular and the Final Offering
Circular, as of their respective dates, contained, and the Final Offering
Circular, as amended or supplemented as of the Closing Date, will contain, all
the information specified in, and meet the requirements of, Rule 144A(d)(4)
under the Act.

 

(b)           Each corporation, partnership, or other
entity in which the Company, directly or indirectly through any of its
subsidiaries, owns more than fifty percent (50%) of any class of equity
securities or interests is listed on Schedule I attached hereto.

 

(c)           Each of the Company and the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor (i) has been duly organized, is validly existing and
is in good standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization, (ii)
has all requisite power and authority to carry on its business and to own,
lease and operate its properties and assets, and (iii) is duly qualified

 

 

or licensed to do business and is in good standing as a foreign
corporation, partnership or other entity as the case may be, authorized to do
business in each jurisdiction in which the nature of such businesses or the
ownership or leasing of such properties requires such qualification, except
where the failure to be so qualified would not, individually or in the
aggregate, have a material adverse effect on (A) the properties, business,
prospects, operations, earnings, assets, liabilities or condition (financial or
otherwise) of the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor,
taken as a whole, (B) the ability of the Company to perform its obligations in
all material respects under any Document or (C) the validity of any of the
Documents or the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated therein
(each, a “Material Adverse Effect”).

 

(d)           All of the issued and outstanding shares of
capital stock of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued, are
fully paid and nonassessable, and were not issued in violation of, and are not
subject to, any preemptive or similar rights. 
The table under the caption “Capitalization”
in the Final Offering Circular (including the footnotes thereto) sets forth, as
of its date, the capitalization of the Company.  All of the outstanding equity interests of the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor are owned directly by the Company, free and clear of all
liens, security interests, mortgages, pledges, charges, equities, claims or
restrictions on transferability or encumbrances of any kind (collectively, “Liens),
other than those imposed by the Act and the securities or “Blue Sky” laws of
certain domestic or foreign jurisdictions. 
There are no outstanding (A) options, warrants or other rights to
purchase from the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, (B)
agreements, contracts, arrangements or other obligations of the Company or the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor to issue or (C) other rights to convert
any obligation into or exchange any securities for, in the case of each of
clauses (A) through (C), shares of capital stock of or other ownership or
equity interests in the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor.

 

(e)           No holder of securities of the Company or
the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor will be entitled to have such
securities registered under the registration statements required to be filed by
the Company with respect to the Notes pursuant to the Registration Rights
Agreement.

 

(f)            The Company has all requisite corporate
power and authority, and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has all
the requisite partnership or other power and authority, to execute, deliver and
perform their obligations under the Documents to which they are a party and to
consummate the transactions contemplated thereby.

 

(g)           This Agreement has been duly and validly
authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.  Each of the Indenture and the Collateral Agreements has been duly
and validly authorized by the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor.  Each of the Indenture and
the Collateral Agreements, when executed and delivered by the Company and the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, will constitute a legal, valid and
binding obligation of each of the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor, enforceable against each of the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor in accordance with its terms, except that the enforcement thereof may
be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership,
moratorium, fraudulent conveyance or other similar laws now or hereafter in
effect relating to or

 

 

affecting the rights and remedies of creditors generally and (ii)
general principles of equity (whether applied by a court of law or equity) and
the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be
brought.

 

(h)           The Registration Rights Agreement has been
duly and validly authorized by the Company. 
The Registration Rights Agreement, when executed and delivered by the
Company, will constitute a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Company
enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except that (A)
the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency,
reorganization, receivership, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance or other
similar laws now or hereafter in effect relating to creditors’ rights generally
and (ii) general principles of equity (whether applied by a court of law or
equity) and the discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefore
may be brought and (B) any rights to indemnity or contribution thereunder may
be limited by federal and state securities laws and public policy
considerations.

 

(i)            The Notes, when issued, will be in the form
contemplated by the Indenture.  The
Indenture meets the requirements for qualification under the Trust Indenture
Act of 1939, as amended (the “TIA”). 
The Notes, Exchange Notes and Private Exchange Notes have each been duly
and validly authorized by the Company and, in the case of the Notes, when
delivered to and paid for by the Initial Purchaser in accordance with the terms
of this Agreement and the Indenture, will have been duly executed, issued and
delivered and will be legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company,
entitled to the benefit of the Indenture, the Collateral Agreements and the
Registration Rights Agreement, and enforceable against the Company in
accordance with their terms, except that the enforcement thereof may be subject
to (i) bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership, moratorium,
fraudulent conveyance or other similar laws now or hereafter in effect relating
to or affecting the rights and remedies of creditors generally and (ii) general
principles of equity (whether applied by a court of law or equity) and the
discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought.

 

(j)            The Guarantee has been duly and validly
authorized by the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor and, when executed by
the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, will have been duly executed,
issued and delivered and will be the legal, valid and binding obligation of the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, entitled to the benefit of the
Indenture, the Collateral Agreements and the Registration Rights Agreement, and
enforceable against the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor in accordance
with its terms, except that the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i)
bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, receivership, moratorium, fraudulent
conveyance or other similar laws now or hereafter in effect relating to or
affecting the rights and remedies of creditors generally and (ii) general
principles of equity (whether applied by a court of law or equity) and the
discretion of the court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought.

 

(k)           Neither the Company nor the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor is in violation of its certificate of incorporation,
by-laws or other organizational documents (the “Charter Documents”).  Neither the Company nor the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor is (i) in violation of any applicable statute, law or
ordinance, or any judgment, decree, rule,

 

 

regulation or order (collectively, “Applicable Law”) of any
federal, state, local and other governmental authority, governmental or
regulatory agency or body, court, arbitrator or self-regulatory organization
(each, a “Governmental Authority”), except for any such violation that
would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect or
(ii) in breach of or default under any bond, debenture, note or other evidence
of indebtedness, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, lease or any other
agreement or instrument to which any of them is a party or by which any of them
or their respective property is bound (collectively, “Applicable Agreements”),
other than as disclosed in the Final Offering Circular, except for any such breach
or default that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect.  There exists no
condition that, with the passage of time or otherwise, would constitute (a) a
violation of such Charter Documents or Applicable Laws, (b) a breach of or
default under any Applicable Agreement or (c) result in the imposition of any
penalty or the acceleration of any indebtedness, except for any such
violations, breaches, penalties or accelerations that would not, individually
or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(l)            Neither the execution, delivery or
performance of the Documents nor the consummation of any transactions
contemplated therein will conflict with, violate, constitute a breach of or a
default (with the passage of time or otherwise) under, require the consent of
any person (other than consents already obtained) under, result in the
imposition of a Lien on any assets of the Company or the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor (except pursuant to the Documents), except for any such
conflict, violation, breach, default or event that would not, individually or
in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, or result in an acceleration
of indebtedness under or pursuant to (i) the Charter Documents, (ii) any
Applicable Agreement, or (iii) any Applicable Law.  After consummation of the Offering and transactions contemplated
in the Documents (including application of the proceeds as set forth under the
caption “Use of Proceeds” in the Final Offering Circular), no Default or Event
of Default (each, as defined in the Indenture) will exist.

 

(m)          When executed and delivered, the Documents
will conform in all material respects to the descriptions thereof in the Final
Offering Circular.

 

(n)           No consent, approval, authorization or order
of any Governmental Authority, or third party is required for the issuance and
sale by the Company of the Notes to the Initial Purchaser or the consummation
by the Company of the other transactions contemplated hereby, except such as
have been obtained and such as may be required under state securities or “Blue
Sky” laws in connection with the purchase and resale of the Notes by the
Initial Purchaser.

 

(o)           There is no action, claim, suit, demand,
hearing, notice of violation or deficiency, or proceeding, domestic or foreign
(collectively, “Proceedings”), pending or, to the knowledge of the
Company, threatened, that either (i) seeks to restrain, enjoin, prevent the
consummation of, or otherwise challenge any of the Documents or any of the
transactions contemplated therein, or (ii) would, individually or in the
aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. 
The Company is not subject to any judgment, order, decree, rule or
regulation of any Governmental Authority that would, individually or in the
aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

 

(p)           Each of the Company and the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor possess all licenses, permits, certificates, consents,
orders, approvals and other authorizations from, and has made all declarations
and filings with, all Governmental Authorities, presently required or necessary
to own or lease, as the case may be, and to operate their respective properties
and to carry on their respective businesses as now or proposed to be conducted
as set forth in the Final Offering Circular (“Permits”), except where
the failure to obtain such Permits would not, individually or in the aggregate,
have a Material Adverse Effect; each of the Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor has fulfilled and performed all of its obligations with
respect to such Permits and no event has occurred which allows, or after notice
or lapse of time  would allow,
revocation or termination thereof or results in any other material impairment
of the rights of the holder of any such Permit; and none of the Company or the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has received any notice of any
proceeding relating to revocation or modification of any such Permit, except as
described in the Final Offering Circular or except where such revocation or
modification would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect.

 

(q)           Each of the Company and the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has good and marketable title to all real property
owned by it and good title to all personal property owned by it and good and
indefeasible title to all leasehold estates in real and personal property being
leased by it and, as of the Closing Date, will be free and clear of all Liens
(other than Permitted Liens (as defined in the Indenture)), except for such
defects in title or lack of possession that, individually or in the aggregate,
would not have a Material Adverse Effect. 
All Applicable Agreements to which the Company or the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor is a party or by which any of them is bound are valid and
enforceable against each of the Company or such Subsidiary, as applicable, and
are valid and enforceable against the other party or parties thereto and are in
full force and effect with only such exceptions as would not, individually or
in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(r)            All Tax returns required to be filed by the
Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor have been filed and all
such returns are true, complete, and correct in all material respects, except
where the failure to so duly and timely file correct and complete returns would
not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.  All material Taxes that are due from the
Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor have been paid other
than those (i) currently payable without 
penalty or interest, (ii) being contested in good faith and by
appropriate proceedings and for which adequate reserves have been established in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles of the United States,
consistently applied (“GAAP”) or (iii) the failure to pay would not have
a Material Adverse Effect. To the knowledge of the Company, after reasonable
inquiry, there are no proposed Tax assessments against the Company or the North
Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor that would, individually or in the aggregate,
have a Material Adverse Effect.  The
accruals and reserves on the books and records of the Company and the North
Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor in respect of any material Tax liability for
any period not finally determined are adequate to meet any assessments of Tax
for any such period.  For purposes of
this Agreement, the term “Tax” and “Taxes” shall mean all Federal, state, local
and foreign taxes, and other

 

 

assessments of a similar nature (whether imposed directly or through
withholding), including any interest, additions to tax, or penalties applicable
thereto.

 

(s)           The Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor own, or are licensed under, and have the right to use, all
patents, patent rights, licenses, inventions, copyrights, know-how (including
trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or
confidential information, systems or procedures), trademarks, service marks and
trade names (collectively, “Intellectual Property”) necessary for the
conduct of their businesses and, as of the Closing Date, will be free and clear
of all Liens, other than Permitted Liens (as defined in the Indenture).  No claims or notices of any potential claim
have been asserted by any person challenging the use of any such Intellectual
Property by the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor or
questioning the validity or effectiveness of the Intellectual Property or any
license or agreement related thereto (other than any claims that, if
successful, would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect).  The use of such
Intellectual Property by the Company or any of its Subsidiaries will not
infringe on the Intellectual Property rights of any other person.

 

(t)            The Company maintains a system of internal
accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (i)
material transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or
specific authorization, (ii) material transactions are recorded as necessary to
permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP, and to
maintain asset accountability, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in
accordance with management’s general or specific authorization and (iv) the
recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at
reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any
material differences.

 

(u)           The audited and unaudited consolidated financial
statements and related notes of the Company contained in the Final Offering
Circular (the “Financial Statements”) present fairly the financial
position, results of operations and cash flows of the Company and its
consolidated Subsidiaries, as of the respective dates and for the respective
periods to which they apply and have been prepared in accordance with GAAP and
the requirements of Regulation S-X of the Act. 
The financial data set forth under “Summary Consolidated Historical and
Pro Forma Financial Data” and “Selected Historical Consolidated Financial Data”
included in the Final Offering Circular has been prepared on a basis consistent
with that of the Financial Statements and present fairly the financial position
and results of operations of the Company and its consolidated Subsidiaries as
of the respective dates and for the respective periods indicated.  All other financial, statistical, and market
and industry-related data included in the Final Offering Circular are fairly
and accurately presented and are based on or derived from sources that the
Company believes to be reliable and accurate.

 

(v)           Subsequent to the respective dates as of
which information is given in the Final Offering Circular, except as disclosed
in the Final Offering Circular, (i) neither the Company nor the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has incurred any liabilities, direct or contingent,
that are material, individually or in the aggregate, to the Company, or has
entered into any transactions not in the ordinary course of business, (ii)
there has not been any material decrease in the capital stock or any material
increase in long-term

 

 

indebtedness or any material increase in short-term indebtedness of the
Company, or any payment of or declaration to pay any dividends or any other
distribution with respect to the Company, and (iii) there has not been any
material adverse change in the properties, business, prospects, operations,
earnings, assets, liabilities or condition (financial or otherwise) of the
Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor in the aggregate (each
of clauses (i), (ii) and (iii), a “Material Adverse Change”).  To the knowledge of the Company, there is no
event that is reasonably likely to occur, which if it were to occur, would,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, except as
disclosed in the Final Offering Circular.

 

(w)          No “nationally recognized statistical rating
organization” (as such term is defined for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the
Act) (i) has imposed (or has informed the Company that it is considering
imposing) any condition (financial or otherwise) on the Company retaining any
rating assigned to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or to any securities
of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or (ii) has indicated to the Company
that it is considering (A) the downgrading, suspension, or withdrawal of, or
any review for a possible change that does not indicate the direction of the
possible change in, any rating so assigned, or (B) any change in the outlook
for any rating of the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor or
any securities of the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor.

 

(x)            All indebtedness represented by the Notes
is being incurred for proper purposes and in good faith.  On the Closing Date, after giving pro forma
effect to the consummation of the Offering and the application of the proceeds
therefrom, the Company (i) will be solvent, (ii) will have sufficient capital
for carrying on its business and (iii) will be able to pay its debts as they
mature.

 

(y)           The Company has not and, to its knowledge,
no one acting on its behalf has, (i) taken, directly or indirectly, any action
designed to cause or to result in, or that has constituted or which might reasonably
be expected to constitute, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of
any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of any of the
Notes, (ii) sold, bid for, purchased, or paid anyone any compensation for
soliciting purchases of, any of the Notes, or (iii) except as disclosed in the
Final Offering Circular, paid or agreed to pay to any person any compensation
for soliciting another to purchase any other securities of the Company.

 

(z)            Without limiting any provision herein, no
registration under the Act and no qualification of the Indenture under the TIA
is required for the sale of the Notes to the Initial Purchaser as contemplated
hereby or for the Exempt Resales, assuming (i) that the purchasers in the
Exempt Resales are QIBs or Accredited Investors or non-U.S. persons complying
with Regulation S of the Act and (ii) the accuracy of the Initial Purchaser’s
representations contained herein regarding the absence of general solicitation
in connection with the sale of the Notes to the Initial Purchaser and in the
Exempt Resales.

 

(aa)         The Notes are eligible for resale pursuant to
Rule 144A under the Act and no other securities of the Company are of the same
class (within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Act) as the Notes and listed
on a national securities exchange registered under Section 6 of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or
quoted in

 

 

a U.S. automated inter-dealer quotation system.  No securities of the Company of the same
class as the Notes have been offered, issued or sold by the Company or any of
its respective Affiliates within the six-month period immediately prior to the
date hereof.

 

(bb)         Neither of the Company nor any of its
respective Affiliates or other person acting on behalf of the Company has
offered or sold the Notes by means of any general solicitation or general
advertising within the meaning of Rule 502(c) under the Act or, with respect to
Notes sold outside the United States to non-U.S. persons (as defined in Rule
902 under the Act), by means of any directed selling efforts within the meaning
of Rule 902 under the Act, and the Company, any affiliate of the Company and
any person acting on behalf of the Company have complied with and will
implement the “offering restrictions” within the meaning of such Rule 902; provided,
that no representation is made in this subsection with respect to the
actions of the Initial Purchaser.

 

(cc)         Each of the Company, the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, and each ERISA Affiliate has fulfilled its obligations,
if any, under the minimum funding standards of Section 302 of the U.S.
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”)
with respect to each “pension plan” (as defined in Section 3(2) of ERISA),
subject to Section 302 of ERISA which the Company, the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, or any ERISA Affiliate sponsors or maintains, or with
respect to which it has (or within the last three years had) any obligation to
make contributions, and each such plan is in compliance in all material
respects with the presently applicable provisions of ERISA and the Code.  Neither the Company, the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, nor any ERISA Affiliate has incurred any unpaid liability
to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (other than for the payment of
premiums in the ordinary course) or to any such plan under Title IV of
ERISA.  “ERISA Affiliate” means a
corporation, trade or business that is, along with the Company or the North
Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, a member of a controlled group of
corporations or a controlled group of trades or businesses, as described in
Section 414 of the Code or Section 4001 of ERISA.

 

(dd)         (i) Neither the Company nor the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor is party to or bound by any collective bargaining
agreement with any labor organization, except as disclosed in the Offering
Circular; (ii) to the knowledge of the Company, there is no union
representation question existing with respect to the employees of the Company
or the Subsidiary Guarantors, and, no union organizing activities are taking
place that, could, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse
Effect; (iii) to the Company’s knowledge, no union organizing or
decertification efforts are underway or threatened against the Company or the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor; (iv) no labor strike, work stoppage,
slowdown, or other material labor dispute is pending against the Company or the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, or, to the knowledge of the Company,
threatened against the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor;
(iv) there is no worker’s compensation liability, experience or matter that
could be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; (v) to the knowledge
of the Company, there is no threatened or pending liability against the Company
or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor pursuant to the Worker
Adjustment Retraining and Notification Act of 1988, as amended (“WARN”),
or any similar state or local law; (vi) there is no employment-related charge,
complaint, grievance, investigation, unfair

 

 

labor practice claim, or inquiry of any kind, pending against the
Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor that could, individually
or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; (vii) to the knowledge of
the Company, no employee or agent of the Company or the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor has committed any act or omission giving rise to liability
for any violation identified in subsection (v) and (vi) above, other than
such acts or omissions that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a
Material Adverse Effect; and (viii) no term or condition of employment exists
through arbitration awards, settlement agreements, or side agreement that is
contrary to the express terms of any applicable collective bargaining
agreement.

 

(ee)         None of the transactions contemplated in the
Documents will violate or result in a violation of Section 7 of the
Exchange Act, (including, without limitation, Regulation T (12 C.F.R. Part
220), Regulation U (12 C.F.R. Part 221) or Regulation X (12 C.F.R. Part 224) of
the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System).

 

(ff)           The Company is not open-end investment
company, unit investment trust or face-amount certificate company that is or is
required to be registered under Section 8 of the United States Investment
Company Act of 1940 (the “Investment Company Act”); and the Company is
not and, after giving effect to the Offering and the application of the
proceeds thereof as described in the Final Offering Circular, will not be an
“investment company” as defined in the Investment Company Act.

 

(gg)         The Company has not engaged any broker,
finder, commission agent or other person (other than the Initial Purchaser) in
connection with the Offering or any of the transactions contemplated in the
Documents, and the Company is not under any obligation to pay any broker’s fee
or commission in connection with such transactions (other than commissions or
fees to the Initial Purchaser).

 

(hh)         Each of the Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor is (i) in compliance with any and all applicable laws and
regulations relating to the protection of the environment or hazardous or toxic
substances of wastes, pollutants or contaminants (“Environmental Laws”),
(ii) has received and is in compliance with all permits, licenses or other
approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct its
respective businesses and (iii) has not received notice of any actual or
potential liability for the investigation or remediation of any disposal or
release of hazardous or toxic substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants,
except where such non-compliance with Environmental Laws, failure to receive required
permits, licenses or other approvals, or liability would not, individually or
in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect, whether or not arising from
transactions in the ordinary course of business.  Neither the Company nor the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor has been named as a “potentially responsible party” under the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980,
as amended.

 

In the ordinary course of its business, the Company periodically
reviews the effect of Environmental Laws on the business, operations and
properties of the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, in
the course of which it identifies and evaluates associated costs and
liabilities (including, without limitation, any capital or operating
expenditures required for clean-up, closure of properties or compliance with

 

 

Environmental Laws, or any permit, license or approval, any related
constraints on operating activities and any potential liabilities to third
parties).  On the basis of such review,
the Company has reasonably concluded that such associated costs would not have
a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(ii)           As of the Closing Date, subject to
restrictions in the Indenture and the Credit Agreement, there will be no encumbrances
or restrictions on the ability of the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor
(x) to pay dividends or make other distributions on the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor’s capital stock or to pay any indebtedness to the Company,
(y) to make loans or advances or pay any indebtedness to, or investments in,
the Company or (z) to transfer any of its property or assets to the Company.

 

(jj)           (a)           Upon:

 

(i)            execution and delivery of the Collateral
Agreements by the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor and
the Collateral Agent (as defined therein) and compliance by the Company and the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor with their respective obligations
thereunder; and

 

(ii)                    (A)           the filing or recording
of the Collateral Agreements or appropriate financing statements with the
appropriate filing records, registry, or other public office, together with the
payment of the requisite filing or recordation fees related thereto, and

 

(B)           in the case of Motor Vehicles (as defined in
the Security Agreement), upon the recordation or notation of the Collateral
Agent’s security interest on the certificates of title or ownership in respect
of such Motor Vehicles and the filing of the Uniform Commercial Code financing
statements delivered by the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor, as the case may be, having an interest in such Motor Vehicles to the
Collateral Agent with respect to such Motor Vehicles,

 

the security interest of the Collateral Agent in the Collateral (as
defined in the Collateral Agreements) will be a valid and enforceable perfected
security interest, which security interests will be superior to and prior to
the rights of all third persons other than holders of Permitted Liens.

 

(b)            As of the Closing Date, except with respect
to Permitted Liens, there will be no currently effective financing statement,
security agreement, chattel mortgage, real estate mortgage or other document
filed or recorded with any filing records, registry, or other public office,
that purports to cover, affect or give notice of any present or possible future
Lien on, or security interest in, any assets or property of the Company or the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor or any rights thereunder.

 

(kk)         Each certificate signed by any officer of the
Company, or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, on behalf of the
Company or such subsidiary delivered to the Initial Purchaser shall be deemed a
representation and warranty by the Company or the

 

 

North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor (and not individually by such
officer) to the Initial Purchaser with respect to the matters covered thereby.

 

(ll)           Each of the Company and the North Carolina
LLC Subsidiary Guarantor are insured by insurers of recognized financial
responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent
and customary in the businesses in which they are engaged.  All policies of insurance insuring the
Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor or their respective
businesses, assets, employees, officers and directors are in full force and
effect.  The Company and the North
Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor are in compliance with the terms of such
policies and instruments in all material respects, and there are no claims by
the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor under any such
policy or instrument as to which any insurance company is denying liability or
defending under a reservation of rights clause. Neither the Company nor the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has been refused any insurance coverage
sought or applied for, and neither the Company nor any such Subsidiary has any
reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance
coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from
similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that
would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

(mm)       The Credit Agreement has been executed and has
terms consistent with those described in the Offering Circular.

 

(nn)         The Company has no subsidiaries except for the
North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor.

 

5.             Covenants of the
Company. The Company, on behalf of itself and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, hereby agrees:

 

(a)           To (i) advise the Initial Purchaser promptly
after obtaining knowledge (and, if requested by the Initial Purchaser, confirm
such advice in writing) of (A) the issuance by any state securities commission
of any stop order suspending the qualification or exemption from qualification
of any of the Notes for offer or sale in any jurisdiction, or the initiation of
any proceeding for such purpose by any state securities commission or other
regulatory authority, or (B) the happening of any event that makes any statement
of a material fact made in the Final Offering Circular untrue or that requires
the making of any additions to or changes in the Final Offering Circular in
order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under
which they were made, not misleading, (ii) use its reasonable best efforts to
prevent the issuance of any stop order or order suspending the qualification or
exemption from qualification of any of the Notes under any state securities or
Blue Sky laws, and (iii) if, at any time, any state securities commission or
other regulatory authority shall issue an order suspending the qualification or
exemption from qualification of any of the Notes under any such laws, use its
reasonable best efforts to obtain the withdrawal or lifting of such order at
the earliest possible time.

 

(b)           To (i) furnish the Initial Purchaser,
without charge, as many copies of the Final Offering Circular, and any
amendments or supplements thereto, as the Initial Purchaser may reasonably
request, and (ii) promptly prepare, upon the Initial Purchaser’s reasonable

 

 

request, any amendment or supplement to the Final Offering Circular
that the Initial Purchaser, upon advice of legal counsel, determines is
reasonably necessary in connection with Exempt Resales (and the Company hereby
consents to the use of the Preliminary Offering Circular and the Final Offering
Circular, and any amendments and supplements thereto, by the Initial Purchaser
in connection with Exempt Resales).

 

(c)           Not to amend or supplement the Final
Offering Circular prior to the Closing Date unless the Initial Purchaser shall
previously have been advised thereof and shall have provided its written
consent thereto, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld.

 

(d)           So long as the Initial Purchaser shall hold
any of the Notes (as determined by the Initial Purchaser), (i) if any event
shall occur as a result of which, in the reasonable judgment of the Company or
the Initial Purchaser, it becomes necessary or advisable to amend or supplement
the Final Offering Circular in order to make the statements therein, in the
light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, or if it
is necessary to amend or supplement the Final Offering Circular to comply with
Applicable Law, to prepare, at the expense of the Company, an appropriate
amendment or supplement to the Final Offering Circular (in form and substance
reasonably satisfactory to the Initial Purchaser) so that (A) as so amended or
supplemented, the Final Offering Circular will not include an untrue statement
of material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make
the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were
made, not misleading, and (B) the Final Offering Circular will comply with Applicable
Law and (ii) if in the reasonable judgment of the Company it becomes necessary
or advisable to amend or supplement the Final Offering Circular so that the
Final Offering Circular will contain all of the information specified in, and
meet the requirements of, Rule 144A(d)(4) of the Act, to prepare an appropriate
amendment or supplement to the Final Offering Circular (in form and substance
reasonably satisfactory to the Initial Purchaser) so that the Final Offering
Circular, as so amended or supplemented, will contain the information specified
in, and meet the requirements of, such Rule.

 

(e)           To cooperate with the Initial Purchaser and
the Initial Purchaser’s counsel in connection with the qualification of the
Notes under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as the
Initial Purchaser may request and continue such qualification in effect so long
as reasonably required for Exempt Resales; provided that the Company shall not
be required to qualify as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction in which it
is not qualified, or to take any action that would subject it to general
service of process in any jurisdiction where it was not so subject on the
Closing Date or subject itself to taxation in any such jurisdiction where it is
not then subject.

 

(f)            Whether or not any of the Offering or the
transactions contemplated under the Documents are consummated or this Agreement
is terminated, to pay (i) all costs, expenses, fees and taxes incident to and
in connection with: (A) the preparation, printing and distribution of the
Preliminary Offering Circular and the Final Offering Circular and all
amendments and supplements thereto (including, without limitation, financial
statements and exhibits), and all other agreements, memoranda, correspondence and
other documents prepared and delivered in connection herewith, (B) the
printing, processing and distribution (including, without limitation, word
processing and duplication costs)

 

 

and delivery of, each of the Documents, (C) the preparation, issuance
and delivery of the Notes, (D) the qualification of the Notes for offer and
sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of the several states (including,
without limitation, the fees and disbursements of the Initial Purchaser’s
counsel relating to such registration or qualification), (E) furnishing such
copies of the Preliminary Offering Circular and the Final Offering Circular,
and all amendments and supplements thereto, as may reasonably be requested for
use by the Initial Purchaser and (F) all sales efforts with respect to the
Notes, including “road show” presentations, (ii) all fees and expenses of the
counsel, accountants and any other experts or advisors retained by the Company,
(iii) all expenses and listing fees in connection with the application for
quotation of the Notes on the Private Offerings, Resales and Trading Automated
Linkages (“PORTAL”) market, (iv) all fees and expenses (including fees
and expenses of counsel) of the Company in connection with approval of the
Notes by DTC for “book-entry” transfer, (v) all fees charged by rating agencies
in connection with the rating of the Notes, (vi) all fees and expenses
(including reasonable fees and expenses of counsel) of the Trustee and all
collateral agents and (vii) all reasonable fees, disbursements and
out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Initial Purchaser in connection with its
services to be rendered hereunder (including, without limitation, the
reasonable fees and disbursements of the Initial Purchaser’s counsel, travel
and lodging expenses, word processing charges, messenger and duplicating
services, facsimile expenses and other customary expenditures); provided
however, the Company’s obligation to reimburse the Initial Purchaser for
non-legal related fees, disbursements and expenses hereunder shall not exceed
$100,000 and provided further that the Company’s obligation to reimburse the
Initial Purchaser for legal related fees, disbursements and expenses hereunder
shall not exceed $450,000.  If the sale of
the Notes provided for herein is for any reason not consummated as provided in
this Agreement or if this Agreement is terminated for any reason, the Company
shall promptly reimburse the Initial Purchaser in cash upon demand for all
fees, disbursements and out-of-pocket expenses (including the fees,
disbursements and expenses of Initial Purchaser’s counsel) as set forth and
subject to the limits of Section 5(f)(vii) above.

 

(g)           To use the proceeds of the Offering in the
manner described in the Final Offering Circular under the caption “Use of Proceeds.”

 

(h)           To
do and perform all things required to be done and performed under the Documents
prior to and after the Closing Date.

 

(i)            Not to, and to ensure that no affiliate (as
defined in Rule 501(b) of the Act) of the Company will, sell, offer for sale or
solicit offers to buy or otherwise negotiate in respect of any “security” (as
defined in the Act) that would be integrated with the sale of the Notes in a
manner that would require the registration under the Act of the sale to the
Initial Purchaser or to the Subsequent Purchasers of the Notes.

 

(j)            For so long as any of the Notes remain
outstanding, during any period in which the Company is not subject to
Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, to make available, upon request,
to any owner of the Notes in connection with any sale thereof and any
prospective Subsequent Purchasers of such Notes from such owner, the
information required by Rule 144A(d)(4) under the Act.

 

 

(k)           To use its best efforts to comply with all
agreements set forth in the representation letter of the Company to DTC
relating to the approval of the Notes by DTC for “book entry” transfer.

 

(l)            To use its reasonable best efforts to
permit the Notes to be eligible for inclusion in PORTAL.

 

(m)          For so long as any of the Notes remain outstanding,
the Company will furnish to the Initial Purchaser copies of all reports and
other communications (financial or otherwise) furnished by the Company to the
Trustee or to the holders of the Notes and, as soon as available, copies of any
reports or financial statements furnished to or filed by the Company with the
SEC or any national securities exchange on which any class of securities of the
Company may be listed.

 

(n)           Except in connection with the Exchange Offer
or the filing of the Shelf Registration Statement, not to, and not to authorize
or permit any person acting on its behalf to, (i) distribute any offering
material in connection with the offer and sale of the Notes other than the
Preliminary Offering Circular and the Final Offering Circular and any
amendments and supplements to the Final Offering Circular prepared in
compliance with this Agreement, or (ii) solicit any offer to buy or offer to
sell the Notes by means of any form of general solicitation or general
advertising (including, without limitation, as such terms are used in
Regulation D under the Act) or in any manner involving a public offering within
the meaning of Section 4(2) of the Act.

 

(o)           During the two year period after the Closing
Date (or such shorter period as may be provided for in Rule 144(k) under the
Act, as the same may be in effect from time to time), to not, and to not permit
any current or future Subsidiaries of either the Company or any other
affiliates (as defined in Rule 144A under the Act) controlled by the Company
to, resell any of the Notes which constitute “restricted securities” under Rule
144 that have been reacquired by the Company, any current or future
Subsidiaries of the Company or any other affiliates (as defined in Rule 144A
under the Act) controlled by the Company, except pursuant to an effective
registration statement under the Act.

 

(p)           The Company shall pay all stamp, documentary
and transfer taxes and other duties, if any, which may be imposed by the United
States or any political subdivision thereof or taxing authority thereof or
therein with respect to the issuance of the Notes or the sale thereof to the
Initial Purchaser.

 

6.             Representations
and Warranties of the Initial Purchaser.  The Initial Purchaser represents and warrants that:

 

(a)           It is a QIB as defined in Rule 144A under
the Act and it will offer the Notes for resale only upon the terms and
conditions set forth in this Agreement and in the Final Offering Circular.

 

(b)           It is not acquiring the Notes with a view to
any distribution thereof that would violate the Act or the securities laws of
any state of the United States or any other applicable jurisdiction.  In connection with the Exempt Resales, it
will solicit offers to buy the Notes only from, and will offer and sell the
Notes only to, (A) persons reasonably believed by

 

 

the Initial Purchaser to be QIBs or (B) persons reasonably believed by
the Initial Purchaser to be Accredited Investors that, prior to their purchase
of the Notes, deliver to the Initial Purchaser a letter containing the
representations and agreements set forth in Annex A to the Final Offering
Circular, or (C) non-U.S. persons reasonably believed by the Initial Purchaser
to be a purchaser referred to in Regulation S under the Act; provided, however,
that in purchasing such Notes, such persons are deemed to have represented and
agreed as provided under the caption “Notice to Investors” contained in the
Final Offering Circular.

 

(c)           No form of general solicitation or general
advertising in violation of the Act has been or will be used nor will any
offers in any manner involving a public offering within the meaning of
Section 4(2) of the Act or, with respect to Notes to be sold in reliance
on Regulation S, by means of any directed selling efforts be made by the Initial
Purchaser or any of its representatives in connection with the offer and sale
of any of the Notes.

 

(d)           The Initial Purchaser will deliver to each
Subsequent Purchaser of the Notes, in connection with its original distribution
of the Notes, a copy of the Final Offering Circular, as amended and
supplemented at the date of such delivery.

 

7.             Conditions.  The obligations of the Initial Purchaser to
purchase the Notes under this Agreement are subject to the satisfaction or
waiver of each of the following conditions:

 

(a)           All the representations and warranties of
the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor contained in this
Agreement and in each of the Documents shall be true and correct as of the date
hereof and at the Closing Date.  On or
prior to the Closing Date, the Company and each other party to the Documents
(other than the Initial Purchaser) shall have performed or complied with all of
the agreements and satisfied all conditions on their respective parts to be
performed, complied with or satisfied pursuant to the Documents (other than
conditions to be satisfied by such other parties, which the failure to so
satisfy would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse
Effect).

 

(b)           No injunction, restraining order or order of
any nature by a Governmental Authority shall have been issued as of the Closing
Date that would prevent or materially interfere with the consummation of the
Offering or any of the transactions contemplated under the Documents; and no
stop order suspending the qualification or exemption from qualification of any
of the Notes in any jurisdiction shall have been issued and no Proceeding for
that purpose shall have been commenced or, to the knowledge of the Company
after reasonable inquiry, be pending or contemplated as of the Closing Date.

 

(c)           No action shall have been taken and no
Applicable Law shall have been enacted, adopted or issued that would, as of the
Closing Date, prevent the consummation of the Offering or any of the
transactions contemplated under the Documents. 
No Proceeding shall be pending or, to the knowledge of the Company after
reasonable inquiry, threatened other than Proceedings that (A) if adversely
determined would not, individually or in the aggregate, adversely affect the
issuance or marketability of the Notes, and (B) would not, individually or in
the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

 

(d)           Subsequent to the respective dates as of
which data and information is given in the Final Offering Circular, there shall
not have been any Material Adverse Change.

 

(e)           The Notes shall have been designated PORTAL
securities in accordance with the rules and regulations adopted by the National
Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. relating to trading in the PORTAL
market.

 

(f)            On or after the date hereof, (i) there
shall not have occurred any downgrading, suspension or withdrawal of, nor shall
any notice have been given of any potential or intended downgrading, suspension
or withdrawal of, or of any review (or of any potential or intended review) for
a possible change that does not indicate the direction of the possible change
in, any rating of the Company or any securities of the Company (including,
without limitation, the placing of any of the foregoing ratings on credit watch
with negative or developing implications or under review with an uncertain
direction) by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization” as
such term is defined for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Act, (ii) there
shall not have occurred any change, nor shall any notice have been given of any
potential or intended change, in the outlook for any rating of the Company or
any securities of the Company by any such rating organization and (iii) no such
rating organization shall have given notice that it has assigned (or is
considering assigning) a lower rating to the Notes than that on which the Notes
were marketed.

 

(g)           The Initial Purchaser shall have received on
the Closing Date:

 

(i)            certificates dated the Closing Date, signed
by (1) the Chief Executive Officer and (2) the principal financial or
accounting officer of the Company, on behalf of the Company, to the effect that
(a) the representations and warranties set forth in Section 4 hereof are
true and correct in all material respects with the same force and effect as
though expressly made at and as of the Closing Date (except for the
representations and warranties that were expressly made as of a certain
specified date, (b) the Company has complied with all agreements and satisfied
all conditions in all material respects on its part to be performed or
satisfied at or prior to the Closing Date, (c) at the Closing Date, since the
date hereof or since the date of the most recent financial statements in the
Final Offering Circular (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto after
the date hereof), no event or events have occurred, no information has become
known nor does any condition exist that, individually or in the aggregate,
would have a Material Adverse Effect, (d) since the date of the most recent financial
statements in the Final Offering Circular (exclusive of any amendment or
supplement thereto after the date hereof), other than as described in the Final
Offering Circular or contemplated hereby, neither the Company nor the North
Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor has incurred any liabilities or obligations,
direct or contingent, not in the ordinary course of business, that are material
to the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary Guarantor, taken as a
whole, or entered into any transactions not in the ordinary course of business
that are material to the business, condition (financial or otherwise) or
results of operations or prospects of the Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, taken as a whole, and there has not been any change in
the capital stock or long-

 

 

term indebtedness of the Company or the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor that is material to the business, condition (financial or otherwise)
or results of operations or prospects of the Company and the North Carolina LLC
Subsidiary Guarantor, taken as a whole, and (e) the sale of the Notes has not
been enjoined (temporarily or permanently).

 

(ii)           a certificate, dated the Closing Date,
executed by the Secretary of the Company and the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor certifying such matters as the Initial Purchaser may reasonably
request.

 

(iii)          a certificate of solvency, dated the Closing
Date, executed by the principal financial or accounting officer of the Company
in such form as reasonably approved by the Initial Purchaser.

 

(iv)          the opinion of Proskauer Rose LLP, counsel to
the Company, dated the Closing Date, in customary form for such opinions and
covering such matters as the Initial Purchaser may reasonably request.

 

(v)           the opinion of Roberts & Stevens, P.A.,
counsel to the Company, dated the Closing Date, in customary form for such
opinions and covering such matters as the Initial Purchaser may reasonably
request.

 

(vi)          an opinion, dated the Closing Date, of Mayer,
Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, counsel to the Initial Purchaser, in form
satisfactory to the Initial Purchaser covering such matters as are customarily
covered in such opinions.

 

(h)           The Initial Purchaser shall have received
from KPMG LLP, independent auditors, with respect to the Company, (A) a
customary comfort letter, dated the date of the Final Offering Circular, in
form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Initial Purchaser, with
respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained
in the Final Offering Circular, and (B) a customary comfort letter, dated the
Closing Date, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Initial
Purchaser, to the effect that KPMG LLP reaffirms the statements made in its
letter furnished pursuant to clause (A) of this subparagraph (h).

 

(i)            Each of the Documents shall have been
executed and delivered by all parties thereto, and the Initial Purchaser shall
have received a fully executed original of each Document.

 

(j)            The Initial Purchaser shall have received
copies of all opinions, certificates, letters and other documents delivered
under or in connection with the Offering or any transaction contemplated in the
Documents.

 

(k)           The terms of each Document shall conform in
all material respects to the description thereof in the Final Offering
Circular.

 

(l)            On the Closing Date, the Company shall have
paid or caused to have been paid in cash the fees and expenses of Mayer, Brown,
Rowe & Maw LLP, counsel to the Initial Purchaser, up to a maximum of
$450,000.

 

 

(m)          The
Collateral Agent shall have received (with a copy for the Initial Purchaser) on
the Closing Date:

 

(i)            appropriately completed copies of Uniform
Commercial Code financing statements naming the Company and each Subsidiary
Guarantor as a debtor and the Collateral Agent as the secured party, or other
similar instruments or documents to be filed under the UCC of all jurisdictions
as may be necessary or, in the reasonable opinion of the Collateral Agent and
its counsel, desirable to perfect the security interests of the Collateral
Agent pursuant to the Security Agreement;

 

(ii)           appropriately completed copies of Uniform
Commercial Code Form UCC-3 termination statements, if any, necessary to release
all Liens (other than Permitted Liens) of any Person in any collateral described
in any Security Agreement previously granted by any Person;

 

(iii)          certified copies of Uniform Commercial Code
Requests for Information or Copies (Form UCC-11), or a similar search report
certified by a party acceptable to the Collateral Agent, dated a date
reasonably near to the Closing Date, listing all effective financing statements
which name the Company or any Subsidiary Guarantor (under its present name and
any previous names) as the debtor, together with copies of such financing
statements (none of which shall cover any collateral described in any
Collateral Agreement, other than such financing statements that evidence
Permitted Liens);

 

(iv)          such other approvals, opinions, or documents
as the Collateral Agent may reasonably request in form and substance reasonably
satisfactory to the Collateral Agent; and

 

(v)           the Collateral Agent and its counsel shall
be satisfied that (i) the Lien granted to the Collateral Agent, for the benefit
of the Secured Parties in the collateral described above is of the priority
described in the Final Offering Circular; and (ii) no Lien exists on any of the
collateral described above other than the Lien created in favor of the
Collateral Agent, for the benefit of the Secured Parties, pursuant to a
Collateral Agreement, in each case subject to the Permitted Liens.

 

(n)           All Uniform Commercial Code financing
statements or other similar financing statements and Uniform Commercial Code
Form UCC-3 termination statements required pursuant to clause (m)(i) and
(ii)  above (collectively, the “Filing
Statements”) shall have been delivered to CT Corporation System or another
similar filing service company acceptable to the Collateral Agent (the “Filing
Agent”).  The Filing Agent shall
have acknowledged in a writing reasonably satisfactory to the Collateral Agent
and its counsel (i) the Filing Agent’s receipt of all Filing Statements, (ii)
that the Filing Statements have either been submitted for filing in the
appropriate filing offices or will be submitted for filing in the appropriate
offices within ten days following the Closing Date and (iii) that the Filing
Agent will notify the Collateral Agent and its counsel of the results of such
submissions within 30 days following the Closing Date.

 

 

(o)           The Credit Agreement, having terms
consistent with those described in the Offering Circular shall have been
executed and shall be in effect.

 

8.             Indemnification
and Contribution.

 

(a)           The Company agrees to indemnify and hold
harmless the Initial Purchaser, and each person, if any, who controls the
Initial Purchaser within the meaning of Section 15 of the Act or
Section 20 of the Exchange Act, against any losses, claims, damages or
liabilities of any kind to which the Initial Purchaser or such controlling
person may become subject under the Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar
as any such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect
thereof) arise out of or are based upon:

 

(i)            any untrue statement or alleged untrue
statement of any material fact contained in any Offering Circular or any
amendment or supplement thereto;

 

(ii)           the omission or alleged omission to state,
in any Offering Circular or any amendment or supplement thereto, a material
fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein,
in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; or

 

(iii)          any breach by the Company or any of its
Subsidiaries of their respective representations, warranties and agreements set
forth herein;

 

and, subject to the provisions hereof, will reimburse, as incurred, the
Initial Purchaser and each such controlling person for any legal or other
expenses reasonably incurred by the Initial Purchaser or such controlling
person in connection with investigating, defending against or appearing as a
third-party witness in connection with any such loss, claim, damage, liability
or action in respect thereof; provided, however, the Company will
not be liable in any such case to the extent (but only to the extent) that any
such loss, claim, damage or liability is finally judicially determined by a
court of competent jurisdiction in a final, unappealable judgment, to have
resulted primarily from any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or
omission or alleged omission made in any Offering Circular or any amendment or
supplement thereto in reliance upon and in conformity with written information
concerning the Initial Purchaser furnished to the Company by the Initial
Purchaser specifically for use therein. 
This indemnity agreement will be in addition to any liability that the
Company may otherwise have to the indemnified parties.  The Company shall not be liable under this
Section 8 for any settlement of any claim or action effected without their
prior written consent, which shall not be unreasonably withheld; and provided
further, however, that this indemnity, as to the Preliminary Offering
Circular, shall not inure to the benefit of the Initial Purchaser (or any
person controlling such Initial Purchaser) on account of any loss, claim,
damage or liability arising from the sale of Notes to any person by such
Initial Purchaser if such Initial Purchaser failed to send or give a copy of
the Final Offering Circular (as the same may be supplemented or amended) to
such person at or prior to the written confirmation of the sale of the Notes to
such person, and the untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission
or alleged omission of a material fact in such Preliminary Offering Circular
was corrected in the Final Offering Circular, unless such failure resulted from
noncompliance by the Company with Section 5(b).

 

(b)           The Initial Purchaser agrees to indemnify
and hold harmless each of the Company, its directors, officers and each person,
if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the
Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act against any losses, claims, damages
or liabilities to which the Company or any such director, officer or
controlling person may become subject under the Act, the Exchange Act or
otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions
in respect thereof) are finally judicially determined by a court of competent
jurisdiction in a final, unappealable judgment, to have resulted primarily from
(i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of any material fact
contained in any Offering Circular or any amendment or supplement thereto or
(ii) the omission or the alleged omission to state therein a material fact
required to be stated in any Offering Circular or any amendment or supplement thereto
or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, in each case to the
extent (but only to the extent) that such untrue statement or alleged untrue
statement or omission or alleged omission was made in reliance upon and in
conformity with written

 

 

information concerning such Initial Purchaser furnished to the Company
or its agents by the Initial Purchaser or its agents specifically for use
therein; and, subject to the limitation set forth immediately preceding this
clause, will reimburse, as incurred, any legal or other expenses incurred by
the Company or any such director, officer or controlling person in connection
with any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action in respect thereof.  This indemnity agreement will be in addition
to any liability that the Initial Purchaser may otherwise have to the
indemnified parties.

 

(c)           As promptly as reasonably practical after
receipt by an indemnified party under this Section 8 of notice of the
commencement of any action for which such indemnified party is entitled to
indemnification under this Section 8, such indemnified party will, if a
claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under
this Section 8, notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof
in writing; but the omission to so notify the indemnifying party (i) will not
relieve such indemnifying party from any liability under paragraph (a) or (b)
above unless and only to the extent it is materially prejudiced as a result
thereof and (ii) will not, in any event, relieve the indemnifying party from
any obligations to any indemnified party other than the indemnification
obligation provided in paragraphs (a) and (b) above.  In case any such action is brought against any indemnified party,
and it notifies the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the
indemnifying party will be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent
that it may determine, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly
notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel reasonably satisfactory
to such indemnified party; provided, however, that if (i) the use
of counsel chosen by the indemnifying party to represent the indemnified party
would present such counsel with a conflict of interest, (ii) the defendants in
any such action include both the indemnified party and the indemnifying party,
and the indemnified party shall have been advised by counsel in writing that
there may be one or more legal defenses available to it and/or other
indemnified parties that are different from or additional to those available to
the indemnifying party, or (iii) the indemnifying party shall not have employed
counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party to represent the
indemnified party within a reasonable time after receipt by the indemnifying
party of notice of the institution of such action, then, in each such case, the
indemnifying party shall not have the right to direct the defense of such
action on behalf of such indemnified party or parties and such indemnified
party or parties shall have the right to select separate counsel to defend such
action on behalf of such indemnified party or parties at the expense of the
indemnifying party.  After notice from
the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of its election so to assume
the defense thereof and approval by such indemnified party of counsel appointed
to defend such action, the indemnifying party will not be liable to such
indemnified party under this Section 8 for any legal or other expenses,
other than reasonable costs of investigation, subsequently incurred by such
indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof, unless (i) the
indemnified party shall have employed separate counsel in accordance with the
proviso to the immediately preceding sentence (it being understood, however,
that in connection with such action the indemnifying party shall not be liable
for the expenses of more than one separate counsel (together with appropriate
local counsel) in any one action or separate but substantially similar or
related actions or proceedings in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same
general allegations or circumstances, designated by the Initial Purchaser in
the case of paragraph (a) of this Section 8 or the Company in the case of
paragraph (b) of this Section 8,

 

 

representing the indemnified parties under such paragraph (a) or
paragraph (b), as the case may be, who are parties to such action or actions)
or (ii) the indemnifying party has authorized in writing the employment of
counsel for the indemnified party at the expense of the indemnifying party.
After such notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party, the
indemnifying party will not be liable for the costs and expenses of any
settlement of such action effected by such indemnified party without the prior
written consent of the indemnifying party (which consent shall not be
unreasonably withheld), unless such indemnified party waived in writing its
rights under this Section 8, in which case the indemnified party may
effect such a settlement without such consent.

 

(d)           No indemnifying party shall be liable under
this Section 8 for any settlement of any claim or action (or threatened
claim or action) effected without its written consent, which shall not be
unreasonably withheld, but if a claim or action settled with its written
consent, or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff with respect to any
such claim or action, each indemnifying party jointly and severally agrees,
subject to the exceptions and limitations set forth above, to indemnify and
hold harmless each indemnified party from and against any and all losses,
claims, damages or liabilities (and legal and other expenses as set forth
above) incurred by reason of such settlement or judgment.  No indemnifying party shall, without the
prior written consent of the indemnified party (which consent shall not be
unreasonably withheld), effect any settlement or compromise of any pending or
threatened proceeding in respect of which the indemnified party is or could
have been a party, or indemnity could have been sought hereunder by the
indemnified party, unless such settlement (A) includes an unconditional written
release of the indemnified party, in form and substance satisfactory to the
indemnified party, from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of
such proceeding and (B) does not include any statement as to an admission of
fault, culpability or failure to act by or on behalf of the indemnified party.

 

(e)           In circumstances in which the indemnity
agreement provided for in the preceding paragraphs of this Section 8 is
unavailable to, or insufficient to hold harmless, an indemnified party in
respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect
thereof), each indemnifying party, in order to provide for just and equitable
contributions, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such
indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities
(or actions in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect
(i) the relative benefits received by the indemnifying party or parties, on the
one hand, and the indemnified party, on the other, from the Offering or (ii) if
the allocation provided by the foregoing clause (i) is not permitted by
applicable law, not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of
the indemnifying party or parties, on the one hand, and the indemnified party,
on the other, in connection with the statements or omissions or alleged
statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or
liabilities (or actions in respect thereof). 
The relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the
Initial Purchaser, on the other, shall be deemed to be in the same proportion
as the total proceeds from the Offering (before deducting expenses) received by
the Company bear to the total discounts and commissions received by the Initial
Purchaser.  The relative fault of the
parties shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the
untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or
alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by
the Company, on the one hand, or the Initial Purchaser, on the other, the
parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to

 

 

information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or
omission or alleged statement or omissions, and any other equitable
considerations appropriate in the circumstances.

 

(f)            The Company and the Initial Purchaser agree
that it would not be equitable if the amount of such contribution determined
pursuant to the immediately preceding paragraph (e) were determined by pro rata
or per capita allocation or by any other method of allocation that does not
take into account the equitable considerations referred to in the first
sentence of the immediately preceding paragraph (e).  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section 8, the
Initial Purchaser shall not be obligated to make contributions hereunder that
in the aggregate exceed the total discounts, commissions and other compensation
received by such Initial Purchaser under this Agreement, less the aggregate
amount of any damages that such Initial Purchaser has otherwise been required
to pay by reason of the untrue or alleged untrue statements or the omissions or
alleged omissions to state a material fact. 
No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of
Section  11(f) of the Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any
person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.  For purposes of the immediately preceding
paragraph (e), each person, if any, who controls the Initial Purchaser within
the meaning of Section 15 of the Act or Section 20 of the Exchange
Act shall have the same rights to contribution as the Initial Purchaser, and
each director of the Company, each officer of the Company and each person, if
any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Act
or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, shall have the same rights to contribution
as the Company.

 

9.             Termination.  The Initial Purchaser may terminate this
Agreement at any time prior to the Closing Date by written notice to the
Company if any of the following has occurred:

 

(a)           since the date hereof, any Material Adverse
Effect or development involving or reasonably expected to result in a
prospective Material Adverse Effect, except as described in the Final Offering
Circular (exclusive of any amendment or supplement thereto) that could, in the
Initial Purchaser’s sole judgment, be expected to (i) make it impracticable or
inadvisable to proceed with the offering or delivery of the Notes on the terms
and in the manner contemplated in the Final Offering Circular, or (ii)
materially impair the investment quality of any of the Notes;

 

(b)           the
failure of the Company to satisfy the conditions contained in Section 7(a)
hereof on or prior to the Closing Date;

 

(c)           any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or
other national or international calamity or crisis, including acts of
terrorism, or material adverse change or disruption in economic conditions in,
or in the financial markets of, the United States (it being understood that any
such change or disruption shall be relative to such conditions and markets as
in effect on the date hereof), if the effect of such outbreak, escalation,
calamity, crisis, act or material adverse change in the economic conditions in,
or in the financial markets of, the United States could be reasonably expected
to make it, in the Initial Purchaser’s sole judgment, impracticable or
inadvisable to market or proceed with the offering or delivery

 

 

of the Notes on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Final
Offering Circular or to enforce contracts for the sale of any of the Notes;

 

(d)           the suspension or limitation of trading
generally in securities on the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock
Exchange or the NASDAQ National Market or any setting of limitations on prices
for securities on any such exchange or NASDAQ National Market;

 

(e)           the enactment, publication, decree or other
promulgation after the date hereof of any Applicable Law that in the Initial
Purchaser’s counsel’s reasonable opinion materially and adversely affects, or
could be reasonably expected to materially and adversely affect, the
properties, business, prospects, operations, earnings, assets, liabilities or
condition (financial or otherwise) of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken
as a whole;

 

(f)            any securities of the Company shall have
been downgraded or placed on any “watch list” for possible downgrading by any
“nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is
defined for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Act; or

 

(g)           the declaration of a banking moratorium by
any Governmental Authority; or the taking of any action by any Governmental
Authority after the date hereof in respect of its monetary or fiscal affairs
that in the Initial Purchaser’s opinion could reasonably be expected to have a
material adverse effect on the financial markets in the United States or elsewhere.

 

10.          Survival of
Representations and Indemnities.  
The representations and warranties, covenants, indemnities and
contribution and expense reimbursement provisions and other agreements,
representations and warranties of the Company and the Initial Purchaser set
forth in or made by or on behalf of either of them pursuant to this Agreement
shall remain operative and in full force and effect, and will survive,
regardless of (i) any investigation, or statement as to the results thereof,
made by or on behalf of the Company, the North Carolina LLC Subsidiary
Guarantor and the Purchaser, (ii) acceptance and delivery of the Notes, and
payment for them hereunder, and (iii) any termination of this Agreement.

 

11.          Default by the
Initial Purchaser.   If the
Initial Purchaser shall breach its obligations to purchase the Notes that it
has agreed to purchase hereunder on the Closing Date and arrangements
satisfactory to the Company for the purchase of such Notes are not made within
36 hours after such default, this Agreement shall terminate with respect to
such Initial Purchaser without liability on the part of the Company.  Nothing herein shall relieve the Initial
Purchaser from liability for its default.

 

12.          Information Supplied
by the Initial Purchaser.   The
statements set forth on the cover page with respect to price and in the first
sentence of the third paragraph, the first and second sentences of the sixth
paragraph and the seventh paragraph under the heading “Plan of Distribution” in
the Offering Circular (to the extent such statements relate to the Initial
Purchaser) constitute the only information furnished by the Initial Purchaser
to the Company or its Subsidiaries for the purposes of Sections 4(a) and
8 hereof.

 

 

13.          Miscellaneous.

 

(a)           Notices given pursuant to any provision of
this Agreement shall be addressed as follows: (i) if to the Company, to: Blue
Ridge Paper Products Inc., Attention: 
John B. Wadsworth, Chief Financial Officer, 41 Main Street, Canton, North
Carolina 28716 with a copy to: Proskauer Rose LLP, 1585 Broadway, New York, New
York 10036, Attention:  Julie M. Allen,
Esq., and (ii) if to the Initial Purchaser, to:  Jefferies & Company, Inc., 11100 Santa Monica Boulevard, 10th
Floor, Los Angeles, California 90025, Attention:  Lloyd H. Feller, Esq., with a copy to: Mayer, Brown, Rowe &
Maw LLP, 1675 Broadway, New York, New York 10019-5820, Attention:  Jin Kim, Esq. and James J. Junewicz, Esq.
(or in any case to such other address as the person to be notified may have
requested in writing).

 

All such notices and communication shall be deemed to have been duly
given:  when delivered by hand, if
personally delivered; five business days after being deposited in the United
States mail, postage prepaid, if mailed; one business day after being timely
delivered to a next-day air courier; and when receipt is acknowledged by the
addressee, if telecopied.

 

(b)           This Agreement has been and is made solely
for the benefit of and shall be binding upon the Company, the Initial Purchaser
and, to the extent provided in Section 8 hereof, the controlling persons,
officers, directors,  partners,
employees, representatives and agents referred to in Section 8, and their
respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns, all as and
to the extent provided in this Agreement, and no other person shall acquire or
have any right under or by virtue of this Agreement.  The term “successors and assigns” shall not include a purchaser
of any of the Notes from the Initial Purchaser merely because of such purchase.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, it is
expressly understood and agreed that each purchaser who purchases Notes from
the Initial Purchaser is intended to be a beneficiary of the Company’s
covenants contained in the Registration Rights Agreement to the same extent as
if the Notes were sold and those covenants were made directly to such purchaser
by the Company, and each such purchaser shall have the right to take action
against the Company to enforce, and obtain damages for any breach of, those
covenants.

 

(c)           THE
VALIDITY AND INTERPRETATION OF THIS AGREEMENT, AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET
FORTH HEREIN SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF
THE STATE OF NEW YORK APPLICABLE TO CONTRACTS MADE AND TO BE PERFORMED WHOLLY
THEREIN, WITHOUT REGARD TO PRINCIPLES OF CONFLICTS OF LAW.

 

(d)           This Agreement may be signed in various
counterparts, which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.

 

(e)           The headings in this Agreement are for
convenience of reference only and shall not limit or otherwise affect the
meaning hereof.

 

(f)            If any term, provision, covenant or
restriction of this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to
be invalid, illegal, void or unenforceable, the remainder of the

 

 

terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions set forth herein shall
remain in full force and effect and shall in no way be affected, impaired or
invalidated, and the parties hereto shall use their best efforts to find and
employ an alternative means to achieve the same or substantially the same
result as that contemplated by such term, provision, covenant or
restriction.  It is hereby stipulated
and declared to be the intention of the parties that they would have executed
the remaining terms, provisions, covenants and restrictions without including
any of such that may be hereafter declared invalid, illegal, void or
unenforceable.

 

(g)           This Agreement may be amended, modified or
supplemented, and waivers or consents to departures from the provisions hereof
may be given, provided that the same are in writing and signed by all of the
signatories hereto.

 

 

Please confirm that the foregoing correctly sets forth the agreement
between the Company and the Initial Purchaser.

 

 

	
   

  	
  Very truly yours,

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  BLUE RIDGE PAPER PRODUCTS INC.

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  By:

  	
  /s/ Richard A. Lozyniak

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Name: Richard A. Lozyniak

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Title: Chief Executive Officer

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
  Accepted and Agreed to:

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
  JEFFERIES & COMPANY, INC.

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
  By:

  	
  /s/ Raymond J. Minella

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  Name:

  	
  Raymond J. Minella

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  Title:

  	
  Managing Director

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Director of Investment Banking Capital Markets

  	
   

  
						

 

 

SCHEDULE A

 

LIST OF SUBSIDIARIES

 

BRPP, LLCExhibit 10.3

 

MANAGEMENT SERVICES AGREEMENT

 

MANAGEMENT
SERVICES AGREEMENT, dated as of May 14, 1999 between KPS Management, LLC, a
Delaware limited liability company (“KPS”) and Blue Ridge Paper Products Inc.,
a Delaware corporation (the “Company”).

 

W  I  T  N  E  S
S  E  T  H:

 

WHEREAS, the
Company desires that KPS provide it with certain ongoing advisory and
management services, and KPS desires to render such services to the Company, on
the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement.

 

WHEREAS, the
Company is the wholly owned subsidiary of Blue Ridge Holding Corp., a Delaware
corporation (“Holdings”).

 

NOW,
THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements set forth
herein, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

SECTION 1.                                Services.

 

During the
term of this Agreement, KPS shall provide such advisory and management services
to the Company and its subsidiaries as the Board of Directors of the Company
shall reasonably request.  Such services
may be performed at KPS’s offices.

 

SECTION 2.                                Compensation.

 

In
consideration of the services to be provided in accordance with Section 1,
the Company shall pay KPS a management fee by wire transfer in immediately
available funds within 30 days of the end of each fiscal quarter of the
Company, in an amount equal to one-half of one percent (0.5%) of the
consolidated gross revenues of Holdings for such fiscal quarter then ended; provided,
however that in no event shall the sum of such quarterly payments in any
fiscal year exceed $3,000,000.  On the
date hereof, the Company shall pay KPS by wire transfer of immediately
available funds an amount equal to $500,000, which shall be credited against
the quarterly management fee payments described above.

 

SECTION 3.                                Indemnification.

 

(a)                                  None
of KPS, any of its affiliates or any of their respective partners, officers,
directors, stockholders, agents or employees (and provided pursuant to this
Agreement), except as may result from such Indemnified Party’s gross negligence
or willful misconduct.

 

(b)                                 To
the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company shall indemnify and hold
harmless each Indemnified Party from and against any losses, claims, damages,
actions, demands, deficiencies, judgments or causes of action or liabilities,
including without limitation, reasonable legal fees or other expenses incurred
in investigating or defending

 

 

against any such losses,
claims, damages or liabilities based upon, arising out of or otherwise in
respect of this Agreement.  The
provisions of this Section 3 shall survive the termination of this
Agreement.

 

SECTION 4.                                Reimbursement.

 

The Company
shall promptly, upon request, reimburse KPS and its affiliates for all
reasonable costs and expenses (including travel) incurred in connection with
the performance of this Agreement.

 

SECTION 5.                                Assignment.

 

This Agreement
may not be assigned by any party hereto without the written consent of the
other party; provided, that KPS shall be entitled to assign this Agreement to
any Person that is an affiliate of KPS or that otherwise assumes or is a successor
to substantially all of the assets and liabilities of KPS.

 

SECTION 6.                                Termination.

 

This Agreement
may be terminated by KPS at any time by written notice to the Company.  In addition, this Agreement shall terminate
automatically upon the first to occur of the (i) tenth anniversary of this
Agreement and (ii) end of the fiscal year in which KPS Special Situations Fund,
L.P. and KPS Supplemental Fund L.P., collectively, cease to own at least 10% of
the outstanding common stock of Holdings. 
The provisions of Section 3 shall survive the termination of this
Agreement.

 

SECTION 7.                                Notices.

 

All notices,
requests, demands and other communications provided for by this Agreement shall
be in writing and shall be deemed to have been given three Business Days after
mailed when mailed by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested,
or given by telecopy or other electronic means, or when delivered if given in
person, to the following addresses of the parties hereto or to such other
address as such party may have specified for notice:

 

(a)                                  KPS:

 

Management,
LLC

200 Park Avenue

58th Floor

New York, NY  10166

Attn:                    Eugene
Keilin

 

(b)                                 The
Company:

 

Blue Ridge
Paper Products Inc.

Main Street

Canton, NC  28716

Attn:                    Gordon
Jones

 

2

 

SECTION 8.                                Modification.

 

This Agreement
may not be modified or amended in any manner other than by an instrument in
writing signed by both parties hereto, or their respective successors or
assigns.

 

SECTION 9.                                Entire
Agreement.

 

This Agreement
constitutes the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the
subject matter hereof and supersedes any prior agreement or understanding among
them with respect to such subject matter.

 

SECTION 10.                          Severability.

 

If any
provision of this Agreement, or the application of such provision to any Person
or circumstance, shall be held invalid, the remainder of this Agreement or the
application of such provision to other Persons or circumstances shall not be
affected thereby.

 

SECTION 11.                          Governing
Law; Submission to Jurisdiction.

 

THIS AGREEMENT
SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED AND ENFORCED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE INTERNAL
LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT REGARD TO THE CONFLICT OF LAWS PRINCIPLES
OR RULE OF SUCH STATE.

 

SECTION 12.                          Successors
and Assigns.

 

Except as
herein otherwise specifically provided, this Agreement shall be binding upon
and inure to the benefit of the parties and their legal representatives heirs,
administrators, executors, successors and assigns.

 

SECTION 13.                          Counterparts.

 

This Agreement
may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an
original but all of which shall constitute one and the same instrument.  It shall not be necessary for all parties to
execute the same counterpart hereof.

 

SECTION 14.                          Headings.

 

Captions
contained in this Agreement are inserted only as a matter of convenience and in
no way define, limit or extend the scope or intent of this Agreement or any
provision hereof.

 

SECTION 15.                          Interpretation.

 

Wherever from
the context it appears appropriate, each term stated in either the singular or
the plural shall include the singular and the plural, and pronouns stated in
the masculine, the feminine or neuter gender shall include the masculine, the
feminine and the neuter.

 

3

 

SECTION 16.                          Waivers.

 

No provision
of this Agreement shall be deemed to have been waived unless such waiver is in
writing and signed by or on behalf of the party granting the waiver.

 

4

 

IN WITNESS
WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be executed by their
representatives thereunto duly authorized as of the day and year first above
written.

 

	
   

  	
  KPS MANAGEMENT, LLC

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  By:

  	
  /s/  David Shapiro

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Name:

  	
  David P. Shapiro

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Title:

  	
  Principal

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  BLUE RIDGE PAPER PRODUCTS INC.

  
	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
  By:

  	
  /s/  Gordon Jones

  	
   

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Name:

  	
  Gordon Jones

  
	
   

  	
   

  	
  Title:

  	
  Chief Executive Officer

  
					

 

5

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