Houlihan Lokey Advises Charah Solutions

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that it has advised Charah Solutions, Inc. (Charah) on its successful closing of a series of three financing transactions, which were used to refinance existing indebtedness and provide liquidity to fund growth initiatives and working capital. The transactions closed on August 6, August 25, and November 9, 2021.

Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Charah is a leading provider of environmental services and byproduct sales to the power generation industry. Charah provides utilities and independent power producers with a full suite of solutions to sustainably manage and recycle ash byproducts generated from the combustion of coal in the production of electricity. The company also designs and implements solutions for ash pond management and closure, landfill construction, fly ash sales, and structural fill projects. With over 30 years of expertise, Charah is the partner of choice for solving customers’ most complex environmental challenges.

On August 6, Charah executed a stock purchase agreement for total proceeds of $13 million with B. Riley Financial, under which the company issued approximately 2.9 million shares of common stock at $4.50 per share in a private placement.

On August 25, Charah completed a publicly distributed senior unsecured notes offering totaling $135 million. The senior unsecured notes are due by August 2026 and bear interest at an annual coupon rate of 8.50%.

On November 9, Charah closed on a new $30 million ABL revolving credit facility with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive placement agent to Charah, assisting the company in arranging, structuring, and negotiating the financings. Charah achieved a covenant-lite capital structure through the financing, significantly improving flexibility, reducing cost of capital, and extending its debt maturity profile. Houlihan Lokey’s Capital Markets Group is one of the largest providers of private capital solutions in the world, raising over $11 billion across more than 60 transactions during FY 2021.

Prior to this transaction, Houlihan Lokey had previously advised Charah five times across a range of M&A and financing transactions.