v2.3.0.15
Non-recourse Obligations of Variable Interest Entity
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2011
Non Recourse Obligations of Variable Interest Entity [Abstract] 
Non-Recourse Obligations of Variable Interest Entity
NON-RECOURSE OBLIGATIONS OF VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITY

The non-recourse obligations of variable interest entity represent the outstanding debt of LVE, all of which is classified as current, and is comprised of the following:
 
September 30,
2011
 
December 31,
2010
 
(In thousands)
Construction and term loan facility
$
120,155

 
$
120,572

Tax-exempt variable rate bonds
73,000

 
100,000

Notes payable to members of variable interest entity
28,757

 
22,487

 
$
221,912

 
$
243,059

 
Assets serving as collateral for these debt obligations had a carrying value of $217.4 million and $244.5 million at September 30, 2011 and December 31, 2010, respectively, and primarily consist of certain assets held for development and restricted investments. The condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2011 includes $0.7 million and $3.3 million of loss, respectively, and the condensed consolidated statement of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2011 includes $6.8 million of net operating cash outflows related to this consolidated variable interest entity; however, none of the offsetting consolidated income or operating cash inflows are available to service this debt, which is non-recourse and non-guaranteed by Boyd.
 
Construction and Term Loan Facility
In December 2007, LVE entered into a construction and term loan facility with two commercial banks with a committed amount of up to $143.5 million, of which $120.2 million was outstanding at September 30, 2011. Proceeds from the construction loan were used to finance the construction of the central energy center and district energy system. The loan is secured by the assets of LVE and does not contain financial covenants. Although LVE's loan is presently in default, and classified as current, the original loan maturities are as follows: $4.2 million in 2011; $83.1 million in 2012 and the remainder in 2013.
 
The construction loan bears interest at a variable rate based on the London InterBank Offered Rate ("LIBOR"). LVE entered into an interest rate swap with scheduled increases in the notional amount designed to fix the LIBOR portion of the interest rate on this debt until its maturity in November 2013, which was hedged against the outstanding debt. However, due to the construction delays, the outstanding amount of debt did not increase as fast as the contractual increases in notional amount of the swap, which rendered a portion of the swap ineffective, and as a result the swap was de-designated in July 2011.
 
Tax-exempt Variable Rate Bonds
In December 2007, LVE issued $100.0 million of tax-exempt variable rate bonds through the State of Nevada Department of Business and Industry, which mature in October 2035. Unused proceeds from the tax-exempt, variable rate bonds are required to be escrowed pending approved construction expenditures. Such unused funds are reported as restricted investments on our consolidated balance sheet.
 
The tax-exempt variable rate bonds bear interest at rates that are determined by a remarketing agent on a weekly basis. LVE entered into an interest rate swap with a total notional amount of $100.0 million that effectively fixes the underlying interest rate index on these bonds until November 2013. Investors in these bonds receive liquidity and credit support provided by a letter of credit from a commercial bank. This letter of credit expires in November 2013, but can be accelerated by the bank in the event of a default under the construction and term loan facility.
 
Events of Default
The central energy center and district energy system are being financed by LVE with debt that is non-recourse to us. The outstanding balance of LVE's bank debt is approximately $193.2 million as of September 30, 2011, consisting of borrowing under the construction and term loan facility of $120.2 million and outstanding tax-exempt bonds of $73.0 million. In September 2009, LVE reached an agreement with the banks that are financing the energy facilities to address defaults under the financing agreements. These LVE defaults were caused by construction delay and the termination of an energy services agreement by a hotel operator associated with the project. As a result of these defaults, the banks had previously stopped funding the project. The terms of the September 2009 agreement required the LVE joint venture partners to guarantee the payment of future interest costs by LVE through December 2010. In addition, the LVE joint venture partners had each committed to provide approximately $8.9 million of additional capital as of September 2009 to cover costs related to the termination of the energy services agreement by a hotel operator and interest costs incurred since August 2008 when construction of Echelon was suspended. In turn, the banks waived all existing defaults under the financing agreements and were relieved of their commitment to provide additional funding.
 
As a result of the ongoing construction delay, the central energy center and district energy system was not completed by the end of 2010 as originally expected. Consequently, the full amount of LVE's debt became due and payable in December 2010. LVE intends to seek additional financing to complete the facility once construction of the resort resumes; however, as of September 30, 2011, LVE was in default under the financing agreements with the banks, and all its debt has been presented as currently due.