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CONVERTIBLE NOTES PAYABLE AND REVOLVING FINANCING AGREEMENT | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2011
CONVERTIBLE NOTES PAYABLE AND REVOLVING FINANCING AGREEMENT | 15. CONVERTIBLE NOTES PAYABLE AND REVOLVING FINANCING AGREEMENT Convertible Notes from Carlyle On November 16, 2007, the Company entered into a Stock and Notes Purchase Agreement (“Purchase Agreement”) with Carlyle Asia Growth Partners III, L.P. (“CAGP”) and CAGP III Co. Investment, L.P. (together with CAGP, the “Investors”). Under the terms of the Purchase Agreement, the Company sold the Investors a 10% Secured Convertible Promissory Note of $5,000,000 (the “First Note”). Additionally, the Purchase Agreement provides for two subsequent transactions to be effected by the Company and the Investors, which include (i) the issuance by the Company of and subscription by the Investors for 4,066,706 shares of common stock of Company, at $1.23 per share for $5,000,000, and (ii) the issuance and sale by the Company to the Investors of a 5% Secured Convertible Promissory Note of $15,000,000 (the foregoing transactions, together with sale and purchase of the First Note, are hereinafter referred to as the “Offering”). The subsequent transactions are contingent upon the satisfaction of certain conditions specified in the Purchase Agreement, including entry into specified energy and recycling project contracts and the purchase of certain energy recycling systems. The First Note bore interest at 10% and was due November 16, 2009. The principal amount of the First Note, together with any interest thereon, converted, at the option of the holders at any time on or prior to maturity, into shares of the Company’s common stock at an initial conversion price of $1.23 per share (subject to anti-dilution adjustments). The First Note was subject to mandatory conversion upon the consummation of the aforementioned issuance and subscription of shares of the Company’s common stock under the Purchase Agreement. The obligations of the Company under the First Note ranked senior to all other debt of the Company. As collateral for the First Note, Mr. Ku, our CEO and the Chairman of our Board of Directors, pledged 9,653,471 shares of the Company’s common stock held by him to secure the First Note. This pledge was released during the first quarter ended March 31, 2011 and is of no further force or effect. The First Note was considered to have a beneficial conversion feature (“BCF”) because the conversion price was less than the quoted market price at the time of issuance. Accordingly, the beneficial conversion feature of $5,000,000 was recorded separately as unamortized beneficial conversion feature based on the intrinsic value method. As the BCF was greater than the face value of the note, all of the proceeds were allocated to the BCF. No value was assigned to the note option or the equity option (two subsequent transactions discussed above). The First Note was recorded in the balance sheet at face value less the unamortized beneficial conversion feature. The terms for the First Note were amended on April 29, 2008 and the First Note was repaid in full on June 25, 2008, as described below. On April 29, 2008, the Company entered into an Amendment to the Purchase Agreement with the Investors. Under the terms of the Amendment, (i) the Company issued and the Investors subscribed for 4,066,706 shares of common stock of the Company, at $1.23 per share for $5,002,048, as originally contemplated under the Agreement; (ii) the Investors converted the principal under the First Note (and waived any accrued interest thereon) into 4,065,040 shares of common stock of the Company at $1.23, pursuant to the terms and conditions of the First Note issued under the Agreement; (iii) the Company issued and sold to the Investors a new 5% Secured Convertible Promissory Note of $5,000,000 (the “Second Note” and collectively with the First Note, the “Notes”); and (iv) the Company granted to the Investors an option to purchase a 5% Secured Convertible Promissory Note of $10,000,000, exercisable by the Investors at any time within nine (9) months following the date of the closing of the transactions contemplated by the Amendment (the “Option Note”). The Second Note bore interest at 5% and matured on April 29, 2011. The principal face amount of the Second Note, together with any interest thereon, was convertible, at the option of the holders at any time on or after March 30, 2010 (or such earlier date if the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2009 are available prior to March 30, 2010) and prior to maturity, into shares of the Company’s common stock at an initial conversion price that is tied to the after-tax net profits of the Company for the year ending December 31, 2009, as described in the Second Note. As more fully described in the Second Note, the obligations of the Company under the Second Note are senior to all other debt of the Company. The Second Note and the 8% Note described below are both secured by a security interest granted to the Investors pursuant to the Share Pledge Agreement. On June 25, 2008, the Company and investors entered into a Rescission and Subscription Agreement to rescind the conversion of the First Note and the issuance of conversion shares of Common Stock at the Second Closing pursuant to Amendment to Stock and Notes Purchase Agreement dated April 29, 2008. The Company and the Investors rescinded the conversion of the principal amount ($5,000,000) under the First Note into 4,065,040 shares of Common Stock, and the Investors waived accrued interest on the First Note. Accordingly, the interest expense which had accrued on the note was recorded as a decrease in interest expense for the period. At the Rescission and Subscription Closing, the Company repaid the First Note to the Investors in full, and as partial repayment sold and issued 4,065,040 shares of Common Stock to the Investors at $1.23 per share for $5,000,000. This was done through a cross receipt arrangement; the BCF was reversed to additional paid in stock. The Company has now concluded that in substance the transaction resulted in the conversion of the first $5,000,000 note into common stock, and based on substance over form, the remaining BCF of $3,472,603 at the date of conversion was expensed. On April 29, 2009, CREG issued an 8% Secured Convertible Promissory Note of $3 million to CAGP with a maturity of April 29, 2012. The note holder has the right to convert all or any part of the outstanding principal amount of this note, together with interest, if any, into shares of the Company’s common stock, at any time on or after March 30, 2010 (or such earlier date if the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2009 are available on a date prior to March 30, 2010) and prior to the maturity date (or such later date on which this note is paid in full), at a conversion price per share of common stock equal to US $0.80. The conversion feature of this note is not beneficial to the holder as the stock price on April 29, 2009 was $0.47. On April 29, 2009, CREG and the Investors amended and restated the 5% secured convertible promissory note (the “Second Note”), which was issued as part of the amendment of the Purchase Agreement on April 28, 2008. Accordingly, the Conversion Rights and Conversion Price were amended so that the holder of the Second Note has the right, but not the obligation, to convert all or any part of the aggregate outstanding principal amount of the Second Note, together with interest, into shares of the Company’s common stock, at any time on or after March 30, 2010 (or such earlier date if the audited consolidated financial statements of the Company for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2009 are available on a date prior to March 30, 2010) and prior to the maturity date (or such later date on which this Note is paid in full), at the following conversion price: (a) an amount equal to (i) the Company’s net profit, adjusted in accordance with the Second Note, multiplied by (ii) 5.5, and less (iii) the principal amount of the Second Note, together with accrued interest, divided by (b) the then total shares of the Company’s common stock outstanding on a fully-diluted basis. This note is considered to have a beneficial conversion feature starting from January 1, 2010 because the conversion price for this note was $1.154 as of April 29, 2011. Accordingly, the beneficial conversion feature of $3.15 million was recorded separately as unamortized beneficial conversion feature based on the intrinsic value method and the Second Note was recorded in the balance sheet at face value less the unamortized beneficial conversion feature. The interest on the convertible debts is payable annually, in arrears, provided the holder gives 30-day notice before each April 29 that it requires the interest payment. Unpaid interest is due and payable at maturity. At the holder’s election, at the time the holder elects to convert the debt into shares, shares can be issued as paid-in-kind interest to the extent that there is unpaid interest at the time of conversion. To date, the Company has timely paid all interest payable, in cash. In June 2011, Carlyle converted the Second Note into 4,334,192 shares of the Company’s common stock at $1.154 per share. The effective date of the conversion was April 29, 2011. As of December 31, 2011, the interest accrued on the second note was fully paid. The Company issued 4,334,192 shares of common stock to the Investors on July 21, 2011 (4,149,599 shares of common stock to CAGP; 184,593 shares of common stock to CAGP III Co. Investment, L.P.). A BCF of $745,547 was fully amortized as of the conversion date. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company amortized $1,368,988 BCF for the note. Registration Rights Agreement On April 29, 2009, the Company also agreed with Carlyle to amend and restate the Registration Rights Agreement for the convertible notes to amend the rights for demand registration by the Investors and the applicable liquidated damages for the Company if it fails to timely comply with the demand for registration. Under the registration rights agreement, the Company must file the registration statement within 90 days of receipt of a demand notice to convert (the “Filing Date”), and the registration statement must have become effective within 120 days after filing (the “Effective Date”) or the Company must pay damages to the holders of the shares to be registered. The Company must also pay damages if the registration statement ceases for any reason to remain continuously effective as to all Registrable Shares for which it is required to be effective, or the holders are not permitted to utilize the prospectus to resell shares for thirty (30) consecutive calendar days during any 12-month period. The damages for failure to meet any of these requirements are equal to 1% of the sum of:
| (x) | the purchase price of the unconverted notes;
| (y) | the purchase price of shares of Company Common Stock purchased under a related agreement; and
| (z) | the conversion price of shares of Common Stock received on conversion of notes, for each 30 days, or a pro rata portion of such 1% for a period less than 30 days.
The liquidated damages must be paid in cash; the registration rights agreement does not provide for any alternative payment arrangement. The maximum potential amount of consideration, undiscounted, that the Company could be required to transfer under the registration payment arrangement cannot exceed 1% of the sum described above in any thirty (30) calendar day period. Convertible Note Agreement with China Cinda On August 18, 2010, the “Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries Sifang, Shanghai TCH and Xi’an TCH entered into a Notes Purchase Agreement (the “Note Agreement”) with China Cinda (HK) Asset Management Co., Ltd, a company organized under the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China (“Cinda”). Under the terms of the Note Agreement, the Company will issue Cinda two tranches of convertible notes (the “Notes”), each having a principal amount equal to the US Dollar equivalent of RMB 50 million. Also on August 18, 2010, Xi’an TCH and China Jingu International Trust Co. Ltd. (“Jingu”), an affiliate of Cinda also entered into a Capital Trust Loan Agreement (“Trust Loan Agreement”), in which Jingu will raise 100 million RMB under a Jingu CREG Recycling Economy No. 1 Collective Fund Trust Plan (“Trust Plan”) and lend such amount under the Trust Plan to Xi’an TCH (the “Loans”). If the Loans under the Trust Loan Agreement do not occur, then under the Note Agreement the principal amount of the Notes to be issued in each tranche will be the US dollar equivalent of RMB 100 million. All proceeds from the Notes and the Loans will be used to complete the Phases IV and V of the Erdos TCH Energy Saving Development Co., Ltd. (“Erdos TCH”) project, a joint venture between Xi’an TCH and Erdos Metallurgy Co., Ltd. to recycle waste heat from Erdos Metallurgy’s refining plants to generate power and steam and sell them back to Erdos Metallurgy, as well as other working capital needs. Under the Trust Loan Agreement and separate agreements entered by Jingu, Erdos TCH, Shanghai TCH, Xi’an TCH and Mr. Guohua Ku on August 18, 2010, Erdos TCH shall pledge the accounts receivable, equipment and assets of its Phases IV and V projects to Jingu as a guarantee to the Loans, Xi’an TCH shall pledge its 80% equity in Erdos TCH to Jingu as a guarantee to the Loans, Shanghai TCH shall provide a joint liability guarantee to Jingu for the Loans, and Mr. Guohua Ku shall provide his personal joint liability to Jingu for the Loans. Under the Note Agreement the Notes shall be issued before August 18, 2011. The Notes have a three year maturity date from the date of the issuance of the first tranche. The exchange rate between RMB and US Dollar for each issue of Notes is the middle rate published by the People’s Bank of China (the “PBOC”) for the second business day prior to each issuance. Each Note bears interest at a rate equal to that of PBOC base interest rate for the relevant interest period (the period commencing on and including January 1 of each year and ending on and including December 31 of such year) plus two percent (2%). If Cinda does not convert or fully convert the Notes to shares prior to maturity, the Company will pay the difference between the interest rate described above and 18% on the outstanding amount. The Loans have the following covenants: (i) maintain at all time a fixed charge coverage ratio of not less than 2:1; (ii) obtain consent from the lender prior to pay or declare any cash dividends or distributions on outstanding common stock; and (iii) maintain at all times a consolidated leverage ratio of not less than 65%. Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Trust Loan Agreement, the Company is required to comply with these covenants annually on its consolidated financial statements audited under US GAAP. The Company met all of the covenants. Each Note has a conversion price at the lower of (i) US$2.46 per share or (ii) an amount equal to the Company’s earnings per share based upon the consolidated earnings of the Company for 2010 on a weighted average fully diluted basis, multiplied by 7. In connection with the Trust Loan Agreement, the Company also entered into an Exchange Rights Agreement pursuant to which the Loans can be exchanged (on the same terms as the Notes can be converted) for shares of the Company’s common stock which can in turn be registered under the Registration Rights Agreement. The Notes will have a contingent beneficial conversion feature which will be recorded when the contingency is resolved. As collateral for the Notes, Mr. Ku, our CEO, Chairman of our Board of Directors, and a major shareholder of the Company, entered into a Share Pledge Agreement with Cinda, on August 18, 2010, to pledge 4,500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock held by him to secure the first Note. The Agreement also calls for an additional 4,500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock held by Mr. Ku to secure the second Note before its issuance. As of December 31, 2011, the Company received $7,533,391 (RMB 50,000,000) from the first tranche of the Loans. As of January 30, 2011, the Company received another $7,533,391 (RMB 50,000,000) from the first tranche convertible Note. Under ASC 815 – Derivatives and Hedging, the fair value of the conversion option is a derivative that has been bifurcated and treated as liability at the date of inception. Based on AU 560 - subsequent events, the conversion feature has been accounted for at December 31, 2011 and 2010 using the conversion price of $2.46. The conversion feature is akin to a call option, therefore, the Black-Scholes option pricing model was used by using the maximum conversion price of $2.46 as the strike price. Since the conversion option is an embedded derivative and is bifurcated from the host contact, BCF analysis is not required. The fair value of the conversion feature was recorded as a liability and will be marked to market until the conversion rate is set. As the loan has a reset clause in the event the Company issues shares below the conversion price, it will be treated as a liability as long as the loan is outstanding. The unamortized discount due to conversion feature will continue to be amortized over the term of the loan; during the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company amortized $10,747,493 from unamortized discount due to beneficial conversion feature including the fully expensed unamortized portion as a result of repayment of the loans. For the first RMB 50,000,000 of the Note, RMB 25,000,000 has been repaid. The Company recorded the derivative liability of $1.12 million for the remaining half conversion option at December 31, 2011, based on the Black-Scholes model by using the following assumptions: estimated life of three years, volatility of 153%, risk free interest rate of 0.36%, and dividend yield of 0%. On December 9, 2011, the Company, Cinda and Mr. Guohua Ku, the Chairman, CEO and a major shareholder of the Company entered into a Supplemental Agreement (the “Supplemental Agreement”) to the Notes Purchase Agreement which was dated August 18, 2010. Pursuant to the terms of the Supplemental Agreement, the Company and Cinda terminated their respective obligations to sell and purchase the second tranche of convertible note under the Note Agreement which has a principal amount equal to the US Dollar equivalent of RMB 50 million. The Company and Cinda also agreed that the Company will redeem the outstanding convertible note at the U.S. Dollar amount equivalent to RMB 25 million each on December 30, 2011 and November 30, 2012, respectively, plus accrued interest at eighteen percent (18%) per annum (the "Redemption Interest Rate") up to the applicable Redemption Date, minus any interest already accrued and paid (together with the Redemption Principal Amount, the "Redemption Price"). For any default in payment of the Redemption Price, the interest rate on the Redemption Principal Amount will be the Redemption Interest Rate plus an additional five percent (5%) per annum and due on demand. The interest on the Redemption Principal Amount due on November 30, 2012 (the "Second Redemption Principal Amount") will accrue at a rate of eighteen percent (18%) per annum and should be payable by the Company on June 20, 2012. On December 9, 2011, Mr. Ku executed a Certificate for additional collateral to pledge an additional 1.5 million shares of the common stock of the Company that he owns as collateral to Cinda to secure the unpaid note. In addition, on December 9, 2011, Xi’an TCH and Jingu, an affiliate of Cinda also entered into a Supplemental Agreement (the “Jingu Agreement”) to the Capital Trust Loan Agreement which was dated August 18, 2010. Under the terms of the Jingu Agreement, Xi’an TCH will repay the entire outstanding RMB 50 million loan principal amount plus interest at 18% and related fees (the “Loan”) to Jingu by December 16, 2011. If there is a default in payment by Xi’an TCH by such date, a penalty at the rate of 23% will be imposed on the unpaid amount. Upon the execution of the Supplementary Agreement, Jingu Agreement and repayment of the Loan, Xi’an TCH’s obligations under the Trust Loan Agreement will be terminated and all the pledge and guarantee agreements ancillary to the Trust Loan Agreement shall be terminated and released. In connection with the Supplementary Agreement, the Company, Xi’an TCH, Mr. Ku, Cinda and Kent International Industrial (Shenzhen) Limited (“Kent International”), an affiliate of Cinda also entered into an Agreement on Oversea’s Financial Payment on December 9, 2011, pursuant to which Xi’an TCH will make the two RMB 25 million payments to Kent International before December 31, 2011 and November 30, 2012 respectively if the Company cannot acquire the equivalent U.S. dollar currency to pay back the note to Cinda after its best efforts. If the Company is able to acquire U.S. dollar currency to repay the Cinda note within one year of their due dates under Supplementary Agreement, it shall wire the dollar payment to Cinda and Kent International shall return the equivalent RMB to Xi’an TCH at the exchange rate of the middle rate published by the PBOC on the date when Cinda receives such dollar payment. Shanghai TCH and Mr. Ku will provide joint liability guarantees to Kent International for payment obligations of the Company and Xi’an TCH. Shanghai TCH and Mr. Ku also entered into Guarantee Agreements with Kent International. Out of the first tranche of $7.94 million (RMB 50 million), $3.97 million (RMB 25 million) and interest $1.13 million (RMB 7.14 million) were repaid to Cinda on December 30, 2011; second tranche of $7.94 million (RMB 50 million) and interest of $1.00 million (RMB 6.45 million) was repaid to Jingu on December 16, 2011.

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