6.  DEBT

On June 29, 2016, we executed a Supplemental Agreement with the IFC which, among other things, amended and restated our existing loan agreement to convert $20 million of the revolving portion of the credit facility, to a term loan (the “Term Loan”) with $15 million outstanding and an additional $5 million (the “Additional Term Loan”), which can be requested in a single draw, subject to the IFC’s approval, between now and December 31, 2016. The amended loan agreement is secured by the assets of our Gabon subsidiary, VAALCO Gabon (Etame), Inc. and is guaranteed by VAALCO as the parent company. Before we are able to draw the Additional Term Loan, the IFC, as part of their consideration of our loan request, will make a determination of whether our Gabon subsidiary’s current and projected revenues from operations are sufficient to cover the aggregate amount of principal, interest, commissions, fees and any other amounts due in respect of the Additional Term Loan. If drawn, the Additional Term Loan amount shall be amortized in equal quarterly installments through June 30, 2018. The amended loan agreement provides for quarterly principal and interest payments on the amounts currently outstanding through June 30, 2019, with interest accruing at a rate of LIBOR plus 5.75%; however, principal repayments under the amended loan agreement are dependent upon the timing of our additional borrowing, if any, with the payments to commence on either December 31, 2016 or March 31, 2017. If we do not borrow under the Additional Term Loan before December 15, 2016, no principal payments are due until March 31, 2017.

Compared to the $15.0 million carrying value of debt, the estimated fair value of the term loan is $15.0 million when measured using a discounted cash flow model over the life of the current borrowings at forecasted interest rates. The inputs to this model are Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy.

Covenants

Under the amended loan agreement, quarter-end net debt to EBITDAX (as defined in the loan agreement) must be no more than 3.0 to 1.0. However, the quarter-end net debt to EBITDAX limitation has been raised to 5.0 to 1.0 for all periods through the end of 2016. Additionally, our debt service coverage ratio must be greater than 1.2 to 1.0 at each quarter end. Forecasting our compliance with these and other financial covenants in future periods is inherently uncertain; therefore, we can make no assurance that we will be able to comply with our term loan covenants in future periods. Factors that could impact our quarter-end financial covenants in future periods include future realized prices for sales of oil and natural gas, estimated future production, returns generated by our capital program, and future interest costs, among others. We were in compliance with all financial covenants as of September 30, 2016.  

Interest 

Until June 29, 2016, under the terms of the original revolving credit facility, we paid commitment fees on the undrawn portion of the total commitment. Commitment fees were equal to 1.5% of the unused balance of the senior tranche of $50.0 million and 2.3% of the unused balance of the subordinated tranche of $15.0 million when a commitment was available for utilization. Subsequent to June 29, 2016 through December 31, 2016, commitment fees are 2.3% of the undrawn Additional Term Loan of $5 million.

We capitalize interest and commitment fees related to expenditures made in connection with exploration and development projects that are not subject to current depletion. Interest and commitment fees are capitalized only for the period that activities are in progress to bring these projects to their intended use.

The table below shows the components of the Interest expense line of our condensed consolidated statements of operations and the average effective interest rate, excluding commitment fees, on our borrowings: