7. Long-term debt

(Expressed in thousands)


Issued	Maturity Date		September 30, 2013		December 31, 2012
Senior Secured Notes		4/15/2018	$	195,000	$	195,000

On April 12, 2011, the Company completed the private placement of $200.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 8.75% Senior Secured Notes due April 15, 2018 (the “Notes”) at par. The interest on the Notes is payable semi-annually on April 15^th and October 15^th. Proceeds from the private placement were used to retire the Senior Secured Credit Note due 2013 ($22.4 million) and the Subordinated Note due 2014 ($100.0 million) and for other general corporate purposes. The private placement resulted in the fixing of the interest rate over the term of the Notes compared to the variable rate debt that was retired and an extension of the debt maturity dates as described above. The cost to issue the Notes was approximately $4.6 million which was capitalized in the second quarter of 2011 and is amortized over the period of the Notes.

The indenture for the Notes contains covenants which place restrictions on the incurrence of indebtedness, the payment of dividends, sale of assets, mergers and acquisitions and the granting of liens. The Notes provide for events of default including nonpayment, misrepresentation, breach of covenants and bankruptcy. The Company’s obligations under the Notes are guaranteed, subject to certain limitations, by the same subsidiaries that guaranteed the obligations under the Senior Secured Credit Note and the Subordinated Note which were retired. These guarantees may be shared, on a senior basis, under certain circumstances, with newly incurred debt outstanding in the future. At September 30, 2013, the Company was in compliance with all of its covenants.

On July 12, 2011, the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-4 filed to register the exchange of the Notes for fully registered Notes was declared effective by the SEC. The Exchange Offer was completed in its entirety on August 9, 2011.

In November 2011, the Company repurchased $5.0 million of its Notes at a cost of $4.7 million resulting in the recording of a gain of $300,000 during the fourth quarter of 2011. The Company continued to hold these Notes at September 30, 2013.

On April 4, 2012, the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-3 filed to enable the Company to act as a market maker in connection with the Notes was declared effective by the SEC.

Interest expense for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2013 on the Notes was $4.3 million and $12.8 million, respectively ($4.3 million and $12.8 million, respectively, for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2012).

At September 30, 2013, the Notes were trading at $106.94 per $100.