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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on JanuaryFebruary 21, 2014

Registration No. 333-          333-193473


UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549



Amendment No. 1 to

FORM S-4

REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

SUMMIT MIDSTREAM HOLDINGS, LLC
SUMMIT MIDSTREAM FINANCE CORP.*
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware
Delaware
(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
 4922
4922
(Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code Number)
 45-1649688
80-0930343
(IRS Employer
Identification Number)

2100 McKinney Avenue
Suite 1250
Dallas, Texas 75201
(214) 242-1955

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant's principal executive offices)



Brock M. Degeyter
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Summit Midstream Partners, LP
2100 McKinney Avenue
Suite 1250
Dallas, Texas 75201
(214) 242-1955

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)



Copy to:

Brett E. Braden
Latham & Watkins LLP
811 Main Street, Suite 3700
Houston, Texas 77002
(713) 546-5400



Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale of the securities to the public:
As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

          If the securities being registered on this Form are being offered in connection with the formation of a holding company and there is compliance with General Instruction G, check the following box.    o

          If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.    o

          If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering.    o

          Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer" and "smaller reporting company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer o Accelerated filer ý Non-accelerated filer o
(Do not check if a
smaller reporting company)
 Smaller reporting company o

          If applicable, place an X in the box to designate the appropriate rule provision relied upon in conducting this transaction:

        
 
Title of Each Class of
Securities to be Registered

 Amount to be
Registered

 Proposed
Offering Price
Per Note(1)

 Proposed Maximum
Aggregate
Offering Price(1)

 Amount of
Registration Fee

 

71/2% Senior Notes due 2021

 $300,000,000 100% $300,000,000 $38,640
 

Guarantees of 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021(2)

 N/A N/A N/A N/A
 

Total

 $300,000,000   $300,000,000 $38,640

 

(1)
Estimated solely for purposes of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(f) of the Securities Act, as amended.

(2)
No separate consideration will be received for the guarantees, and no separate fee is payable pursuant to Rule 457(a) of the rules and regulations under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

*
The companies listed on the next page in the Table of Additional Registrant Guarantors are also included in this registration statement as additional registrants.



          The registrants hereby amend this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrants shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the SEC, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

   


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TABLE OF ADDITIONAL REGISTRANT GUARANTORS

        The following are additional registrants that may guarantee the debt securities registered hereby:

Exact Name of Registrant Guarantor
as Specified in its Charter(1)
 State or Other Jurisdiction of
Incorporation or Organization
 I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number
 

Summit Midstream Partners, LP

  Delaware  45-5200503 

Bison Midstream, LLC

  Delaware  36-4762273 

Grand River Gathering, LLC

  Delaware  35-2417781 

DFW Midstream Services LLC

  Delaware  27-0706575 

(1)
The address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of each of the additional registrant guarantor's principal executive offices is c/o Summit Midstream Partners, LP, 2100 McKinney Avenue, Suite 1250, Dallas, Texas 75201, (214) 242-1955. The primary standard industrial classification code number of each of the additional registrant guarantors is 4922. The name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of the agent for service for each of the additional registrant guarantors is Brock M. Degeyter, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Summit Midstream Partners, LP, 2100 McKinney Avenue, Suite 1250, Dallas, Texas 75201, (214) 242-1955.

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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offering is not permitted.

SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED JANUARYFEBRUARY 21, 2014

PROSPECTUS

LOGO

Summit Midstream Holdings, LLC
Summit Midstream Finance Corp.

Offer to Exchange

Up To $300,000,000 of

71/2% Senior Notes due 2021(CUSIP Nos. 86614W AA4 and U8604T AA4),

That Have Not Been Registered Under

The Securities Act of 1933

For

Up To $300,000,000 of

71/2% Senior Notes due 2021

That Have Been Registered Under

The Securities Act of 1933

The exchange offer and withdrawal rights will expire at

5:00 p.m., New York City time, on                  , 2014, unless extended.



         We are offering to exchange up to $300,000,000 aggregate principal amount of our new 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021, which have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, or the "Securities Act," referred to in this prospectus as the "new notes," for any and all of our outstanding unregistered 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021, referred to in this prospectus as the "old notes." We issued the old notes on June 17, 2013 in a transaction not requiring registration under the Securities Act. We are offering you new notes in exchange for old notes in order to satisfy our registration obligations from that previous transaction. The old notes and the new notes are collectively referred to in this prospectus as the "notes," and they will be treated as a single class under the indenture governing them.

         Please read "Risk Factors" beginning on page 11 for a discussion of factors you should consider before participating in the exchange offer.

         We will exchange new notes for all outstanding old notes that are validly tendered and not withdrawn before expiration of the exchange offer. You may withdraw tenders of old notes at any time prior to the expiration of the exchange offer. The exchange procedure is more fully described in "Exchange Offer—Procedures for Tendering." If you fail to tender your old notes, you will continue to hold unregistered notes that you will not be able to transfer freely.

         The terms of the new notes are substantially identical to the terms of the old notes, except that the transfer restrictions, registration rights and provisions for additional interest relating to the old notes do not apply to the new notes. Please read "Description of New Notes" for more details on the terms of the new notes. We will not receive any cash proceeds from the issuance of the new notes in the exchange offer.

         Each broker-dealer that receives new notes for its own account pursuant to this offering must acknowledge that it will deliver this prospectus in connection with any resale of such new notes. This prospectus, as it may be amended or supplemented from time to time, may be used by a broker-dealer in connection with resales of new notes received in exchange for old notes where such old notes were acquired by such broker-dealer as a result of market-making activities or other trading activities. We have agreed that, for a period of up to 180 days after the exchange date (as such period may be extended), we will make this prospectus, as amended or supplemented, available to any broker-dealer for use in connection with any such resale. Please read "Plan of Distribution."

         Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.



The date of this prospectus is                  , 2014


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        This prospectus is part of a registration statement we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In making your investment decision, you should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and in the accompanying letter of transmittal. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with any other information. If you receive any unauthorized information, you must not rely on it. We are not making an offer to sell these securities or soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where an offer or solicitation is not authorized or in which the person making that offer or solicitation is not qualified to do so or to anyone whom it is unlawful to make an offer or solicitation. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus, as well as the information we previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that is incorporated by reference herein, is accurate as of any date other than its respective date.


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 Page 

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

  ii 

PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

  1 

RISK FACTORS

  11 

USE OF PROCEEDS

  17 

RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES

  18 

EXCHANGE OFFER

  19 

DESCRIPTION OF OTHER INDEBTEDNESS

  26 

DESCRIPTION OF NEW NOTES

  28 

MATERIAL UNITED STATES FEDERAL TAX CONSEQUENCES

  76 

PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION

  77 

LEGAL MATTERS

  79 

EXPERTS

  79 

WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION; INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

  79 

ANNEX A: LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

  A-1 



        This prospectus incorporates important business and financial information about us that is not included or delivered with this prospectus. Such information is available without charge to holders of the old notes upon written or oral request made to Summit Midstream Partners, LP, 2100 McKinney Avenue, Suite 1250, Dallas, Texas 75201, Attention: Brock M. Degeyter (Telephone (214) 242-1955). To obtain timely delivery of any requested information, holders of the old notes must make any request no later than five business days prior to the expiration of the exchange offer.

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

        Investors are cautioned that certain statements contained in this prospectus, including information included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus, are "forward-looking" statements. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may project, indicate or imply future results, events, performance or achievements, and may contain the words "expect," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions, or future conditional verbs such as "may," "will," "should," "would," and "could." In addition, any statement concerning future financial performance (including future revenues, earnings or growth rates), ongoing business strategies or prospects, and possible actions taken by us or our subsidiaries, are also forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve external risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, those described under the section entitled "Risk Factors" included herein.

        Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and projections about future events and are inherently subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of our management team. All forward-looking statements in this prospectus and subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us, or to persons acting on our behalf, are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements in this paragraph. These risks and uncertainties include, among others:

ii


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        Developments in any of these areas could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or projected or cause a significant reduction in the market price of our common units or notes.

        The foregoing list of risks and uncertainties may not contain all of the risks and uncertainties that could affect us. In addition, in light of these risks and uncertainties, the matters referred to in the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus may not in fact occur. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by law.

iii


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PROSPECTUS SUMMARY

        This summary highlights some of the information included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus and does not contain all of the information that may be important to you. You should read this entire prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference and to which we refer you before making an investment decision. You should carefully consider the information set forth under "Risk Factors" beginning on page 11 of this prospectus, the other cautionary statements described in this prospectus, and the risk factors and other cautionary statements, including those described under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, in each case as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K. In addition, certain statements include forward-looking information that involves risks and uncertainties. See "Forward-Looking Statements."

        Summit Midstream Holdings, LLC ("Summit Holdings") is a Delaware limited liability company and Summit Midstream Finance Corp. ("Finance Corp." and together with Summit Holdings, the "Issuers") is a Delaware corporation; each is a direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Summit Midstream Partners, LP ("SMLP" or the "Partnership") and a co-issuer of the notes. SMLP is a Delaware limited partnership that completed its initial public offering ("IPO") on October 3, 2012 and is the parent guarantor of the notes. Unless the context otherwise indicates, references to "we," "us," and "our" and like terms refer to SMLP together with its subsidiaries, including Summit Holdings. The financial statements incorporated by reference in this prospectus are those of SMLP.

        Summit Midstream Partners, LLC ("Summit Investments") is a Delaware limited liability company, the ultimate owner of SMLP's general partner and SMLP's predecessor for accounting purposes (the "Predecessor"). Summit Investments is owned by affiliates of Energy Capital Partners and GE Energy Financial Services. References in this prospectus to "Energy Capital Partners" refer collectively to Energy Capital Partners II, LLC and its parallel and co-investment funds. References in this prospectus to "GE Energy Financial Services" refer to GE Energy Financial Services, Inc. References in this prospectus to our "Sponsors" refer collectively to Energy Capital Partners and GE Energy Financial Services.


Summit Midstream Partners, LP

        We are a growth-oriented limited partnership focused on owning and operating midstream energy infrastructure assets that are strategically located in the core producing areas of unconventional resource basins, primarily shale formations, in North America. We currently provide primarily fee-based natural gas gathering and compression services in four unconventional resource basins: (i) the Piceance Basin, which includes the Mesaverde formation and the Mancos and Niobrara shale formations in western Colorado; (ii) the Fort Worth Basin, which includes the Barnett Shale formation in north-central Texas; (iii) the Williston Basin, which includes the Bakken and Three Forks shale formations in northwestern North Dakota; and (iv) the Appalachian Basin, which includes the Marcellus Shale formation in northern West Virginia.

        We generate a substantial majority of our revenue under long-term, primarily fee-based natural gas gathering agreements. Substantially all of our gas gathering agreements are underpinned by areas of mutual interest, or AMIs, and minimum volume commitments, or MVCs. Our AMIs cover approximately one million acres in the aggregate, have original terms that range from five years to 25 years, and provide that any natural gas producing wells drilled by our customers within such AMIs will be shipped on our gathering systems. Our MVCs, which totaled 3.2 Tcf at September 30, 2013 and average approximately 881 MMcf/d through 2020, are designed to ensure that we will generate a certain amount of revenue from each customer over the life of the respective gas gathering agreement, whether by collecting gathering fees on actual throughput or from cash payments to cover any MVC shortfall. Our MVCs have remaining terms that range from three to 13 years and, as of September 30, 2013, had a weighted-average remaining life of 10.1 years, assuming minimum

 


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throughput volumes for the remainder of their respective terms. We believe that the fee-based nature of these agreements enhances the stability of our cash flows by limiting our direct commodity price exposure.


Our Midstream Assets

        Grand River system.    The Grand River system is located in the Piceance Basin in western Colorado and currently serves producers targeting the liquids-rich Mesaverde formation. It is optimally located for expansion to gather production from the emerging Mancos and Niobrara shale formations underlying the Mesaverde formation. We have constructed a new medium-pressure gathering system to service future higher pressure natural gas production from the Mancos and Niobrara shale formations.

        DFW Midstream system.    The DFW Midstream system is primarily located in southeastern Tarrant County, the largest natural gas producing county in Texas. We consider this area to be the core of the core of the Barnett Shale because of the quality of the geology and the high production profile of the wells drilled to date. We believe that the AMIs underpinning our system are substantially undeveloped compared with other areas in the Barnett Shale due to the historical lack of gathering infrastructure. Our AMIs and our system footprint provide us with a competitive advantage to add additional producers and incremental volumes in this core area of the Barnett Shale at a competitive capital cost.

        Bison Midstream system.    The Bison Midstream system is located in the Williston Basin in northwestern North Dakota and serves producers that are targeting the Bakken and Three Forks shale formations. These formations are primarily targeted for crude oil production and producer drilling decisions are based largely on the prevailing price of crude oil. The Bison Midstream system gathers and compresses associated natural gas that exists in the crude oil production stream. We believe that the pace of drilling activity and thus, natural gas volume throughput on the Bison Midstream system, will primarily depend on the price of crude oil which provides diversity of commodity price exposure for us relative to our other natural gas midstream operations.

        Mountaineer Midstream system.    The Mountaineer Midstream system is located in the Appalachian Basin and currently serves Antero Resources Corporation, or Antero, which is targeting liquids-rich natural gas production from the Marcellus Shale formation in Harrison and Doddridge counties in West Virginia. The Mountaineer Midstream system serves as a critical inlet to MarkWest's Sherwood Processing Complex, the primary destination for liquids-rich natural gas in northern West Virginia. Throughput capacity on the Mountaineer Midstream system is currently being expanded from 550 MMcf/d to 1,050 MMcf/d to support Antero's current and future anticipated drilling activities in this prolific region of the Marcellus Shale play.

        The following table provides information regarding our gathering assets as of, or for the nine months ended, September 30 for the periods indicated:

 
 Grand River DFW
Midstream
 Bison
Midstream
 Mountaineer
Midstream
 
 
 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 2013 2012 

Miles of pipeline (as of September 30)

  301  282  119  110  330      * 41      *

Aggregate average throughput (for the nine months ended September 30) (MMcf/d)

  502  585  398  344  14      * 50      *

*
Gathering system was not an asset of the Partnership during this period.

 


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Our Business Strategies

        Our principal business strategy is to increase the amount of cash distributions we make to our unitholders over time. Our plan for continuing to execute this strategy includes the following key components:

 


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Our Competitive Strengths

        We believe that we will be able to continue to execute the components of our principal business strategy successfully because of the following competitive strengths:


Our Sponsors

        We were formed in 2009 by members of management and Energy Capital Partners, which together with its affiliated funds, is a private equity firm with over $11.0 billion in capital commitments that is focused on investing in North America's energy infrastructure. Energy Capital Partners has significant energy and financial expertise to complement its investment in us. As of December 31, 2013, Energy Capital Partners and its affiliated funds had 24 investment platforms with investments in the power generation, electric transmission, midstream natural gas and renewable sectors of the energy industry. In August 2011, Energy Capital Partners sold an interest in Summit Investments to GE Energy Financial Services. GE Energy Financial Services invests globally in essential, long-lived and capital-intensive energy assets. As of December 31, 2013, GE Energy Financial Services held approximately $18 billion in energy assets worldwide. GE Energy Financial Services has invested over $2 billion in midstream-related assets.


Our Principal Executive Offices

        Our principal executive offices are located at 2100 McKinney Avenue, Suite 1250, Dallas, Texas 75201, and our telephone number is (214) 242-1955. Our website is located at www.summitmidstream.com. We make available our periodic reports and other information filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, free of charge through our website, as soon as reasonably practicable after those reports and other information are electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. Information on our website or any other website is not incorporated by reference herein and does not constitute a part of this prospectus.

 


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The Exchange Offer

        On June 17, 2013, we completed a private offering of $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021, which we refer to in this prospectus as the "old notes." As part of that private offering, we entered into a registration rights agreement with the initial purchasers of the old notes in which we agreed, among other things, to deliver this prospectus to you and to use our commercially reasonable efforts to complete the exchange offer no later than 365 days after June 17, 2013. The following is a summary of the exchange offer.

Old notes

 On June 17, 2013, we issued $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021.

New notes

 

71/2% Senior Notes due 2021. The terms of the new notes are substantially identical to the terms of the old notes, except that the transfer restrictions, registration rights and provisions for additional interest relating to the old notes do not apply to the new notes. The new notes offered hereby, together with any old notes that remain outstanding after the completion of the exchange offer, will be treated as a single class for all purposes under the indenture, including, without limitation, waivers, amendments, redemptions and offers to purchase. The new notes will have a CUSIP number different from that of any old notes that remain outstanding after the completion of the exchange offer.

Exchange offer

 

We are offering to exchange up to $300.0 million aggregate principal amount of our new 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021 that have been registered under the Securities Act for an equal amount of our outstanding 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021 that have not been so registered to satisfy our obligations under the registration rights agreement that we entered into when we issued the old notes in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act.

Expiration date

 

The exchange offer will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on                        , 2014 unless we decide to extend it.

Conditions to the exchange offer

 

The registration rights agreement does not require us to accept old notes for exchange if the exchange offer, or the making of any exchange by a holder of the old notes, would violate any applicable law or policy of the SEC. The exchange offer is not conditioned on a minimum aggregate principal amount of old notes being tendered. Please read "Exchange Offer—Conditions to the Exchange Offer" for more information about the conditions to the exchange offer.

 


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Procedures for tendering old notes

 

All of the old notes are held in book-entry form through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company, or "DTC." To participate in the exchange offer, you must follow the automatic tender offer program, or "ATOP," procedures established by DTC for tendering notes held in book-entry form. The ATOP procedures require that (i) the exchange agent receive, prior to the expiration date of the exchange offer, a computer generated message known as an "agent's message" that is transmitted through ATOP, and (ii) DTC confirm that:

 

DTC has received your instructions to exchange your old notes, and

 

you agree to be bound by the terms of the letter of transmittal in Annex A hereto.

 

For more information on tendering your old notes, please refer to the sections in this prospectus entitled "Exchange Offer—Terms of the Exchange Offer," "Exchange Offer—Procedures for Tendering" and "Description of New Notes—Book-Entry, Delivery and Form."

Guaranteed delivery procedures

 

None.

Withdrawal of tenders

 

You may withdraw your tender of old notes at any time prior to the expiration date. To withdraw, you must submit a notice of withdrawal to the exchange agent using ATOP procedures before 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the expiration date of the exchange offer. Please refer to the section in this prospectus entitled "Exchange Offer—Withdrawal of Tenders."

Acceptance of old notes and delivery of new notes

 

If you fulfill all conditions required for proper acceptance of old notes, we will accept any and all old notes that you properly tender in the exchange offer on or before 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the expiration date. We will return any old notes that we do not accept for exchange to you without expense promptly after the expiration date. Please refer to the section in this prospectus entitled "Exchange Offer—Terms of the Exchange Offer."

Fees and expenses

 

We will bear all expenses related to the exchange offer. Please read "Exchange Offer—Fees and Expenses."

Use of proceeds

 

The issuance of the new notes will not provide us with any new proceeds. We are making the exchange offer solely to satisfy our obligations under the registration rights agreement.

 


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Consequences of failure to exchange old notes

 

If you do not exchange your old notes in the exchange offer, you will no longer be able to require us to register the old notes under the Securities Act, except in limited circumstances provided under the registration rights agreement. In addition, you will not be able to resell, offer to resell or otherwise transfer the old notes unless we have registered the old notes under the Securities Act, or unless you resell, offer to resell or otherwise transfer them under an exemption from the registration requirements of, or in a transaction not subject to, the Securities Act.

U.S. federal income tax consequences

 

The exchange of new notes for old notes in the exchange offer will not be a taxable event for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Please read "Material United States Federal Tax Consequences."

Exchange agent

 

We have appointed U.S. Bank National Association as exchange agent for the exchange offer. You should direct questions and requests for assistance, requests for additional copies of this prospectus or the letter of transmittal to the exchange agent addressed as follows: By First Class Mail: U.S. Bank National Association, Attn: Specialized Finance, 60 Livingston Avenue—EP-MN-WS2N, St. Paul, MN 55107-2292 or By Courier or Overnight Delivery: U.S. Bank National Association, Attn: Specialized Finance, 111 Fillmore Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55107-1402. Eligible institutions may make requests for facsimile transmission at (651) 466-7372, Attn: Specialized Finance.

 


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Terms of the New Notes

        The new notes will be substantially identical to the terms of the old notes, except that the transfer restrictions, registration rights and provisions for additional interest relating to the old notes do not apply to the new notes. The new notes will evidence the same debt as the old notes, and the same indenture that governs the old notes will govern the new notes. We sometimes refer to the new notes and the old notes, collectively, as the "notes."

        The following summary contains basic information about the new notes and is not intended to be complete. It does not contain all information that may be important to you. For a more complete understanding of the new notes, please read "Description of New Notes."

Issuers

 Summit Midstream Holdings, LLC and Summit Midstream Finance Corp.

Notes offered

 

$300.0 million principal amount of 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021.

Maturity date

 

July 1, 2021.

Interest rate

 

7.500% per year (calculated using a 360-day year).

Interest payment dates

 

Interest on the new notes will be payable semi-annually on January 1 and July 1 of each year. The initial interest payment on the new notes will include all accrued and unpaid interest on the old notes exchanged therefor.

Denominations

 

The new notes will be issued in minimum denominations of $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof.

Guarantees

 

The new notes will be fully and unconditionally and jointly and severally guaranteed by SMLP (in such capacity, the "Parent Guarantor") and all of its existing and certain future subsidiaries (other than the Issuers).

Ranking

 

The new notes will be unsecured obligations of the Issuers and will:

 

rank equally in right of payment with all of the Issuers' existing and future senior obligations;

 

rank senior in right of payment to all of the Issuers' indebtedness and other obligations that are, by their terms, expressly subordinated in right of payment to the notes;

 

be effectively subordinated to all of the Issuers' existing and future secured indebtedness (including obligations under the revolving credit facility), to the extent of the value of the assets securing such indebtedness; and

 

be structurally subordinated to all obligations of each of SMLP's future subsidiaries that is not a guarantor of the notes.

 

As of JanuaryFebruary 15, 2014, we had $591.0$611.0 million of senior indebtedness, including $291.0$311.0 million of secured indebtedness under the revolving credit facility, and no subordinated indebtedness.

 


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Optional redemption

 

The issuers may, at their option, redeem some or all of the new notes at any time on or after July 1, 2016, at the redemption prices listed under "Description of New Notes—Optional Redemption."

 

Prior to such time, the Issuers may redeem the new notes at 100% of the principal amount thereof, plus the "applicable premium" and accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date as described herein.

 

In addition, the Issuers may redeem up to 35% of the notes before July 1, 2016 in an amount not greater than the net cash proceeds from certain equity offerings, at a price equal to 107.500% of the aggregate principal amount of the notes plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date as described herein.

 

Please read "Description of New Notes—Optional Redemption."

Change of control

 

If a change of control event occurs, each holder of new notes may require the Issuers to repurchase all or a portion of the holder's notes at a purchase price equal to 101% of the principal amount of the new notes, plus accrued interest, if any, to the date of settlement. Please read "Description of New Notes—Repurchase at the Option of Holders—Change of Control."

Certain covenants

 

The indenture governing the notes contains covenants that, among other things, limit our ability to:

 

incur additional debt or issue preferred securities;

 

make distributions, repurchase equity or redeem subordinated debt;

 

make payments on subordinated indebtedness;

 

create liens or other encumbrances;

 

make investments, loans or other guarantees;

 

sell or otherwise dispose of a portion of our assets;

 

engage in transactions with affiliates; and

 

make acquisitions or merge or consolidate with another entity.

 

However, many of these covenants will terminate if both Standard & Poor's Ratings Services and Moody's Investors Service Inc. assign the notes an investment grade rating and no default exists with respect to the notes. These covenants are subject to a number of important qualifications and exceptions which are described in the section "Description of New Notes—Certain Covenants."

 


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Transfer restrictions

 

The new notes generally will be freely transferable, but will also be securities for which the public market may be limited. There can be no assurance as to the development, persistence or liquidity of any market for the new notes. We do not intend to apply for a listing of the new notes on any securities exchange or any automated dealer quotation system.

Form of new notes

 

The new notes will be represented initially by one or more global notes. Each global new note will be deposited with the trustee, as custodian for DTC.

Same-day settlement

 

The global new notes will be shown on, and transfers of the global new notes will be effected only through, records maintained in book-entry form by DTC and its direct and indirect participants.

 

The new notes are expected to trade in DTC's same day funds settlement system until maturity or redemption. Therefore, secondary market trading activity in the new notes will be settled in immediately available funds.

Trading

 

We do not expect to list the new notes for trading on any securities exchange.

Trustee, registrar and exchange agent

 

U.S. Bank National Association.

Governing law

 

The notes and the indenture relating to the notes are governed by, and will be construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York.

Risk factors

 

The new notes involve risks. Please see "Risk Factors" beginning on page 11 and the risk factors set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, in each case as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, for a discussion of certain factors you should consider in evaluating an investment in the new notes.

 


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RISK FACTORS

        Before deciding whether to participate in the exchange offer, you should consider carefully the risks and uncertainties described below and in Item 1A "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, in each case as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, together with all of the other information included in, or incorporated by reference into, this prospectus and, to the extent applicable, any subsequently filed reports when evaluating an investment in the new notes. If any of the risks discussed in the foregoing or in the documents incorporated by reference were to materialize, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially adversely affected and you could lose all or part of your investment. Please also read "Forward-Looking Statements."


Risks Related to the Exchange Offer

         If you fail to exchange old notes, existing transfer restrictions will remain in effect, and the market value of old notes may be adversely affected because they may be more difficult to sell.

        If you fail to exchange old notes for new notes in the exchange offer, then you will continue to be subject to the existing transfer restrictions on the old notes. In general, the old notes may not be offered or sold unless they are registered or exempt from registration under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. Except in connection with this exchange offer or as required by the registration rights agreement, we do not intend to register resales of the old notes.

        The tender of old notes in the exchange offer will reduce the principal amount of the currently outstanding old notes. Due to the corresponding reduction in liquidity, this may have an adverse effect upon, and increase the volatility of, the market price of any currently outstanding old notes that you continue to hold following the completion of the exchange offer.


Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and the Notes

         We have a holding company structure in which our subsidiaries conduct our operations and own our operating assets.

        We are a holding company, and our operating subsidiaries conduct all of our operations and own all of our operating assets. We have no significant assets other than our interest in our operating subsidiaries. As a result, our ability to make required payments on the notes depends on the performance of our operating subsidiaries and their ability to distribute funds to us. The ability of our subsidiaries to make distributions to us may be restricted by, among other things, the revolving credit facility and applicable state limited liability company laws and other laws and regulations. If we are unable to obtain the funds necessary to pay the principal amount at maturity of the notes, or to repurchase the notes upon the occurrence of a change of control, we may be required to adopt one or more alternatives, such as a refinancing of the notes or a sale of assets. We may not be able to refinance the notes or sell assets on acceptable terms, or at all.

         Our substantial debt could adversely affect our financial condition and prevent us from fulfilling our obligations under the notes.

        We currently have a substantial amount of indebtedness. As of JanuaryFebruary 15, 2014, we had total debt of approximately $591.0$611.0 million, and we had $409.0$389.0 million of remaining borrowing capacity under the revolving credit facility. In addition, we may also incur additional indebtedness in the future. Specifically, our high level of debt could have important consequences to the holders of the notes, including the following:


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         Despite our current level of indebtedness, the indenture will permit us and our subsidiaries to incur substantially more indebtedness. This could further increase the risks associated with our substantial indebtedness.

        We and our subsidiaries may be able to incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future. The terms of our indenture will not prohibit us or our subsidiaries from doing so. If we incur any additional indebtedness that ranks equally with the notes and the guarantees, the holders of that indebtedness will be entitled to share ratably with the notes offered hereby and the related guarantees in any proceeds distributed in connection with any insolvency, liquidation, reorganization, dissolution or other winding-up of us. This may have the effect of reducing the amount of any proceeds paid to you. If new indebtedness is added to our current debt levels, the related risks that we and our subsidiaries now face could intensify.

         We may be unable to service our indebtedness, including the notes.

        Our ability to make scheduled payments on and to refinance our indebtedness, including the notes and our revolving credit facility, which matures in November 2018, depends on and is subject to our financial and operating performance, which in turn is affected by general and regional economic, financial, competitive, business and other factors beyond our control, including the availability of financing in the banking and capital markets. We cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future borrowings will be available to us in an amount sufficient to enable us to service our debt, including the notes, to refinance our debt or to fund our other liquidity needs. If we are unable to meet our debt obligations or to fund our other liquidity needs, we will need to restructure or refinance all or a portion of our debt, including the notes, which could cause us to default on our debt obligations and impair our liquidity. Any refinancing of our indebtedness could be at higher interest rates and may require us to comply with more onerous covenants which could further restrict our business operations.

         The notes and the guarantees will be unsecured and effectively subordinated to our and the guarantors' existing and future secured indebtedness.

        The notes and the guarantees will be general unsecured obligations ranking effectively junior in right of payment to all of the Issuers' existing and future secured indebtedness and that of each guarantor (to the extent of the value of the assets securing such indebtedness). Additionally, the indenture governing the notes permits us to incur additional secured indebtedness in the future. As of JanuaryFebruary 15, 2014, we had $591.0$611.0 million of debt outstanding, $291.0$311.0 million of which was secured indebtedness under the revolving credit facility, and we had $409.0$389.0 million of remaining borrowing capacity under our revolving facility. In the event that either of the Issuers or a guarantor is declared bankrupt, becomes insolvent or is liquidated or reorganized, any indebtedness that ranks ahead of the notes and the guarantees will be entitled to be paid in full from the Issuers' assets or the assets of the


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guarantor, as applicable, before any payment may be made with respect to the notes or the affected guarantees. Holders of the notes will participate ratably with all holders of our unsecured indebtedness that is deemed to be of the same class as the notes, and potentially with all of our other general creditors, based upon the respective amounts owed to each holder or creditor, in our remaining assets. In any of the foregoing events or in the event of the liquidation, dissolution, reorganization, bankruptcy or similar proceeding of the business of a non-guarantor subsidiary, as described below, we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient assets to pay amounts due on the notes. As a result, holders of the notes may receive less, ratably, than holders of secured indebtedness.

         The notes will be structurally subordinated to all liabilities of any future non-guarantor subsidiaries.

        The notes will be structurally subordinated to the indebtedness and other liabilities of any of our future subsidiaries that do not guarantee the notes. Any such non-guarantor subsidiaries are separate and distinct legal entities and will have no obligation, contingent or otherwise, to pay any amounts due pursuant to the notes, or to make any funds available therefor, whether by loans, distributions or other payments. Any right that we or the subsidiary guarantors have to receive any assets of any such non-guarantor subsidiaries upon the liquidation or reorganization of those subsidiaries, and the consequent rights of holders of notes to realize proceeds from the sale of any of those subsidiaries' assets, will be effectively subordinated to the claims of those subsidiaries' creditors, including trade creditors and holders of preferred equity interests of those subsidiaries. Accordingly, in the event of a bankruptcy, liquidation or reorganization of any such non-guarantor subsidiaries, these non-guarantor subsidiaries will pay the holders of their debts, holders of preferred equity interests and their trade creditors before they will be able to distribute any of their assets to us.

         Certain restrictive covenants in the indenture governing the notes will be suspended if such notes achieve investment grade ratings.

        Most of the restrictive covenants in the indenture governing the notes will not apply for so long as the notes achieve investment grade ratings from Moody's Investors Service, Inc. and Standard & Poor's Rating Services, and no default or event of default has occurred. If these restrictive covenants cease to apply, we may take actions, such as incurring additional debt or making certain dividends or distributions that would otherwise be prohibited under the indenture. Ratings are given by these rating agencies based upon analyses that include many subjective factors. We cannot assure you that the notes will achieve investment grade ratings, nor can we assure you that investment grade ratings, if granted, will reflect all of the factors that would be important to holders of the notes.

         Our revolving credit facility and the indenture governing the notes impose significant operating and financial restrictions on us and our subsidiaries, which may prevent us from capitalizing on business opportunities.

        Our revolving credit facility and the indenture governing the notes impose significant operating and financial restrictions on us. Our ability to borrow under our revolving credit facility is subject to compliance with certain financial covenants, including leverage and interest coverage ratios. These restrictions will limit our ability, among other things, to:


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        Please read "Description of Other Indebtedness." As a result of these covenants and restrictions, we will be limited in how we conduct our business and we may be unable to raise additional debt or equity financing to compete effectively or to take advantage of new business opportunities. The terms of any future indebtedness we may incur could include more restrictive covenants. We cannot assure you that we will be able to maintain compliance with these covenants in the future and, if we fail to do so, that we will be able to obtain waivers from the lenders and/or amend the covenants. A breach of any of these covenants or other provisions in our debt agreements could result in an event of default, which if not cured or waived, could result in such debt becoming immediately due and payable. This, in turn, could cause our other debt to become due and payable as a result of cross-acceleration provisions contained in the agreements governing such other debt. In the event that some or all of our debt is accelerated and becomes immediately due and payable or we are unable to refinance our revolving credit facility at its maturity, we may not have the funds to repay, or the ability to refinance, such debt. Additionally, our revolving credit facility is secured by substantially all of our assets, and if we are unable to satisfy our obligations thereunder, the lenders could seek to foreclose on our assets.

         Federal and state statutes allow courts, under specific circumstances, to void subsidiary guarantees and require noteholders to return payments received from subsidiary guarantors.

        Under the federal bankruptcy law and comparable provisions of state fraudulent transfer laws, a subsidiary's guarantee of the notes could be voided, or claims in respect of a guarantee could be subordinated to all other debts of that subsidiary guarantor, if, among other things, the subsidiary guarantor, at the time it incurred the debt evidenced by its guarantee:

        In addition, any payment by that subsidiary guarantor pursuant to its guarantee could be voided and required to be returned to the subsidiary guarantor, or to a fund for the benefit of our creditors or the creditors of the subsidiary guarantor.


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        The measures of insolvency for purposes of these fraudulent transfer laws will vary depending upon the law applied in any proceeding to determine whether a fraudulent transfer has occurred. Generally, however, a subsidiary guarantor would be considered insolvent if:

        On the basis of historical financial information, recent operating history and other factors, we believe that each subsidiary guarantor, after giving effect to its guarantee of the notes, will not be insolvent, will not have unreasonably small capital for the business in which it is engaged and will not have incurred debts beyond its ability to pay such debts as they mature. We cannot assure you, however, as to what standard a court would apply in making these determinations or that a court would agree with our conclusions in this regard.

         We may not have the funds necessary to finance the repurchase of the notes in connection with a change of control offer required by the indenture.

        Upon the occurrence of specific kinds of change of control events, the indenture governing the notes will require the Issuers to make an offer to repurchase all such notes at 101% of the principal amount thereof, plus accrued and unpaid interest (and liquidated damages, if any) to the date of repurchase. However, it is possible that we will not have sufficient funds, or the ability to raise sufficient funds, at the time of the change of control to make the required repurchase of the notes. In addition, restrictions under the revolving credit facility may not allow us to make such a repurchase upon a change of control. If we could not refinance the revolving credit facility or otherwise obtain a waiver from the holders of such debt, we would be prohibited from repurchasing the notes, which would constitute an event of default under the indenture. In addition, certain important corporate events, such as leveraged recapitalizations that would increase the level of our indebtedness, would not constitute a "Change of Control" under the indenture. Because the definition of change of control under our revolving credit facility will differ from that under the indenture, there may be a change of control and resulting default under our revolving credit facility at a time when no change of control has occurred under the indenture. Please read "Description of New Notes—Repurchase at the Option of Holders—Change of Control."

         Your ability to transfer the notes may be limited by the absence of a trading market.

        There is no organized trading market for the notes. We do not currently intend to apply for listing of the notes on any securities exchange or stock market. Although the initial purchasers informed us, when the old notes were issued, that they intended to make a market in the notes, they are not obligated to do so. In addition, they may discontinue any such market making at any time without notice. The liquidity of any market for the notes will depend on the number of holders of those notes, the interest of securities dealers in making a market in those notes and other factors. Accordingly, we cannot assure you as to the development or liquidity of any market for the notes. Historically, the market for noninvestment grade debt has been subject to disruptions that have caused substantial volatility in the prices of securities similar to the notes. We cannot assure you that the market, if any, for the notes will be free from similar disruptions. Any such disruption may adversely affect the holders of the notes.


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        Future trading prices of the notes will depend on many factors, including:


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USE OF PROCEEDS

        The exchange offer is intended to satisfy our obligations under the registration rights agreement. We will not receive any cash proceeds from the issuance of the new notes in the exchange offer. In consideration for issuing the new notes as contemplated by this prospectus, we will receive old notes in a like principal amount. The terms of the new notes are substantially identical to the terms of the old notes, except that the transfer restrictions, registration rights and provisions for additional interest relating to the old notes do not apply to the new notes. Old notes surrendered in exchange for the new notes will be retired and cancelled and will not be reissued. Accordingly, the issuance of the new notes will not result in any change in our outstanding indebtedness.


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RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES

        The following table sets forth our ratio of earnings to fixed charges for the periods indicated on a consolidated historical basis. For purposes of computing the ratio of earnings to fixed charges, "earnings" are defined as income before taxes plus fixed charges less capitalized interest. "Fixed charges" consist of interest expensed and capitalized, amortization of deferred loan costs and an estimate of interest within rent expense.

 
  
  
  
  
  
 Predecessor
to Summit
Midstream
Partners, LP
 
 
  
  
  
  
 Period From
September 3,
2009 to
December 31,
2009
 Period From
January 1,
2009 to
September 3,
2009
 
 
  
 Years Ended December 31, 
 
 Nine Months Ended
September 30, 2013
 
 
 2012 2011 2010 

Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges

  2.68x  3.51x  6.36x  119.51x  (732.22)x(1) (2.36)x(2)

(1)
The ratio of earnings to fixed charges was less than 1:1 for the period from September 3, 2009 to December 31, 2009. In order to achieve a ratio of earnings to fixed charges of 1:1, we would have had to generate an additional $6.6 million of earnings for the period from September 3, 2009 to December 31, 2009.

(2)
The ratio of earnings to fixed charges was less than 1:1 for the period from January 1, 2009 to September 3, 2009. In order to achieve a ratio of earnings to fixed charges of 1:1, we would have had to generate an additional $0.8 million of earnings for the period from January 1, 2009 to September 3, 2009.

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EXCHANGE OFFER

        We sold the old notes on June 17, 2013 pursuant to that certain purchase agreement, dated as of June 12, 2013, by and among Summit Holdings, Finance Corp., Summit Midstream GP, LLC, SMLP, the guarantors named therein and the initial purchasers named therein. The old notes were subsequently offered by the initial purchasers to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act and to non-U.S. persons pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act.

Purpose of the Exchange Offer

        We sold the old notes in transactions that were exempt from or not subject to the registration requirements under the Securities Act. Accordingly, the old notes are subject to transfer restrictions. In general, you may not offer or sell the old notes unless either they are registered under the Securities Act or the offer or sale is exempt from, or not subject to, registration under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws.

        In connection with the sale of the old notes, we entered into a registration rights agreement with the initial purchasers of the old notes. In that agreement, we agreed to use our commercially reasonable efforts to file an exchange offer registration statement after the closing date following the offering of the old notes. Now, to satisfy our obligations under the registration rights agreement, we are offering holders of the old notes, who are able to make certain representations described below, the opportunity to exchange their old notes for the new notes in the exchange offer. The exchange offer will be open for a period of at least 20 full business days. During the exchange offer period, we will exchange the new notes for all old notes properly surrendered and not withdrawn before the expiration date. The new notes will be registered under the Securities Act, and the transfer restrictions, registration rights and provisions for additional interest relating to the old notes will not apply to the new notes.

Resale of New Notes

        Based on no-action letters of the staff of the SEC issued to third parties, we believe that new notes may be offered for resale, resold and otherwise transferred by you without further compliance with the registration and prospectus delivery provisions of the Securities Act if:

        The staff of the SEC, however, has not considered the exchange offer for the new notes in the context of a no-action letter, and the staff of the SEC may not make a similar determination as in the no-action letters issued to these third parties.

        If you tender in the exchange offer with the intention of participating in any manner in a distribution of the new notes, you:

        Unless an exemption from registration is otherwise available, any securityholder intending to distribute new notes should be covered by an effective registration statement under the Securities Act. The registration statement should contain the selling securityholder's information required by Item 507 or 508, as applicable, of Regulation S-K under the Securities Act.


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        This prospectus may be used for an offer to resell, resale or other transfer of new notes only as specifically described in this prospectus. If you are a broker-dealer, you may participate in the exchange offer only if you acquired the old notes as a result of market-making activities or other trading activities. Each broker-dealer that receives new notes for its own account in exchange for old notes, where such old notes were acquired by such broker-dealer as a result of market-making activities or other trading activities, must acknowledge by way of the letter of transmittal that it will deliver this prospectus in connection with any resale of the new notes. Please read the section captioned "Plan of Distribution" for more details regarding the transfer of new notes.

Terms of the Exchange Offer

        Subject to the terms and conditions described in this prospectus and in the letter of transmittal, we will accept for exchange any old notes properly tendered and not withdrawn prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the expiration date of the exchange offer. We will issue new notes in principal amount equal to the principal amount of old notes surrendered in the exchange offer. Old notes may be tendered only for new notes and only in denominations of $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess thereof. We will deliver the new notes promptly after the expiration date of the exchange offer.

        The exchange offer is not conditioned upon any minimum aggregate principal amount of old notes being tendered in the exchange offer.

        As of the date of this prospectus, $300,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021 representing old notes are outstanding. This prospectus is being sent to DTC, the sole registered holder of the old notes, and to all persons that we can identify as beneficial owners of the old notes. There will be no fixed record date for determining registered holders of old notes entitled to participate in the exchange offer.

        We intend to conduct the exchange offer in accordance with the provisions of the registration rights agreement, the applicable requirements of the Securities Act and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the "Exchange Act," and the rules and regulations of the SEC. Old notes whose holders do not tender for exchange in the exchange offer will remain outstanding and continue to accrue interest. These old notes will be entitled to the rights and benefits such holders have under the indenture relating to the notes and the registration rights agreement.

        We will be deemed to have accepted for exchange properly tendered old notes when we have given oral or written notice of the acceptance to the exchange agent and complied with the applicable provisions of the registration rights agreement. The exchange agent will act as agent for the tendering holders for the purposes of receiving the new notes from us.

        If you tender old notes in the exchange offer, you will not be required to pay brokerage commissions or fees or, subject to the letter of transmittal, transfer taxes with respect to the exchange of old notes. We will pay all charges and expenses, other than certain applicable taxes described below, in connection with the exchange offer. Please read "—Fees and Expenses" for more details regarding fees and expenses incurred in connection with the exchange offer.

        We will return any old notes that we do not accept for exchange for any reason without expense to their tendering holders promptly after the expiration or termination of the exchange offer.

Expiration Date

        The exchange offer will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on                        , 2014, unless, in our sole discretion, we extend it.


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Extensions, Delays in Acceptance, Termination or Amendment

        We expressly reserve the right, at any time or various times, to extend the period of time during which the exchange offer is open. We may delay acceptance of any old notes by giving oral or written notice of such extension to their holders at any time until the exchange offer expires or terminates. During any such extensions, all old notes previously tendered will remain subject to the exchange offer, and we may accept them for exchange.

        To extend the exchange offer, we will notify the exchange agent orally or in writing of any extension. We will notify the holders of old notes of the extension via a press release issued no later than 9:00 a.m., New York City time, on the business day after the previously scheduled expiration date.

        If any of the conditions described below under "—Conditions to the Exchange Offer" have not been satisfied, we reserve the right, in our sole discretion

by giving oral or written notice of such delay, extension or termination to the exchange agent. Subject to the terms of the registration rights agreement, we also reserve the right to amend the terms of the exchange offer in any manner.

        Any such delay in acceptance, extension, termination or amendment will be followed as promptly as practicable by oral or written notice thereof to holders of the old notes. Any notice relating to the extension of the exchange offer will disclose the number of securities tendered as of the date of the notice, as required by Rule 14e-1(d) under the Exchange Act. If we amend the exchange offer in a manner that we determine to constitute a material change, we will promptly disclose such amendment by means of a prospectus supplement. The prospectus supplement will be distributed to holders of the old notes. Depending upon the significance of the amendment and the manner of disclosure to holders, we will extend the exchange offer if it would otherwise expire during such period. If an amendment constitutes a material change to the exchange offer, including the waiver of a material condition, we will extend the exchange offer, if necessary, to remain open for at least five business days after the date of the amendment. In the event of any increase or decrease in the consideration we are offering for the old notes or in the percentage of old notes being sought by us, we will extend the exchange offer to remain open for at least 10 business days after the date we provide notice of such increase or decrease to the registered holders of old notes.

        If we delay accepting any old notes or terminate the exchange offer, we will promptly pay the consideration offered, or return any old notes deposited, pursuant to the exchange offer as required by Rule 14e-1(c).

Conditions to the Exchange Offer

        We will not be required to accept for exchange, or exchange any new notes for, any old notes if the exchange offer, or the making of any exchange by a holder of old notes, would violate applicable law or policy of the staff of the SEC. Similarly, we may terminate the exchange offer as provided in this prospectus before expiration of the offer in the event of such a potential violation.

        We will not be obligated to accept for exchange the old notes of any holder that has not made to us the representations described under "—Procedures for Tendering" and "Plan of Distribution" and such other representations as may be reasonably necessary under applicable SEC rules, regulations or interpretations to allow us to use an appropriate form to register the new notes under the Securities Act.


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        Additionally, we will not accept for exchange any old notes tendered, and will not issue new notes in exchange for any such old notes, if at such time any stop order has been threatened or is in effect with respect to the exchange offer registration statement of which this prospectus constitutes a part or the qualification of the indenture under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended.

        We expressly reserve the right to amend or terminate the exchange offer, and to reject for exchange any old notes not previously accepted for exchange, upon the occurrence of any of the conditions to the exchange offer specified above. We will give oral or written notice of any extension, amendment, non-acceptance or termination to the holders of the old notes as promptly as practicable.

        These conditions are for our sole benefit, and we may assert them or waive them in whole or in part at any time or at various times prior to the expiration of the exchange offer in our sole discretion. If we fail at any time to exercise any of these rights, this failure will not mean that we have waived our rights. Each such right will be deemed an ongoing right that we may assert at any time or at various times prior to the expiration of the exchange offer.

Procedures for Tendering

        To participate in the exchange offer, you must properly tender your old notes to the exchange agent as described below. We will only issue new notes in exchange for old notes that you timely and properly tender. Therefore, you should allow sufficient time to ensure timely delivery of the old notes, and you should follow carefully the instructions on how to tender your old notes. It is your responsibility to properly tender your old notes. We have the right to waive any defects. However, we are not required to waive defects, and neither we nor the exchange agent is required to notify you of any defects in your tender.

        If you have any questions or need help in exchanging your old notes, please call the exchange agent whose address and phone number are described in the letter of transmittal included as Annex A to this prospectus.

        All of the old notes were issued in book-entry form, and all of the old notes are currently represented by global certificates registered in the name of Cede & Co., the nominee of DTC. We have confirmed with DTC that the old notes may be tendered using ATOP. The exchange agent will establish an account with DTC for purposes of the exchange offer promptly after the commencement of the exchange offer, and DTC participants may electronically transmit their acceptance of the exchange offer by causing DTC to transfer their old notes to the exchange agent using the ATOP procedures. In connection with the transfer, DTC will send an "agent's message" to the exchange agent. The agent's message will state that DTC has received instructions from the participant to tender old notes and that the participant agrees to be bound by the terms of the letter of transmittal.

        By using the ATOP procedures to exchange old notes, you will not be required to deliver a letter of transmittal to the exchange agent. However, you will be bound by its terms just as if you had signed it.

        There is no procedure for guaranteed late delivery of the old notes.

        Each broker-dealer that receives new notes for its own account in exchange for old notes, where such old notes were acquired by such broker-dealer as a result of market-making activities or other trading activities, must acknowledge that it will deliver a prospectus in connection with any resale of such new notes. Please read "Plan of Distribution."

        Determinations in the Exchange Offer.    We will determine in our sole discretion all questions as to the validity, form, eligibility, time of receipt, acceptance of tendered old notes and withdrawal of tendered old notes. Our determination will be final and binding on all parties. We reserve the absolute right to reject any old notes not properly tendered or any old notes our acceptance of which would, in


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the opinion of our counsel, be unlawful. We also reserve the right to waive any defect, irregularities or conditions of tender as to particular old notes. Our interpretation of the terms and conditions of the exchange offer, including the instructions in the letter of transmittal, will be final and binding on all parties. Unless waived, all defects or irregularities in connection with tenders of old notes must be cured within such time as we shall determine. Although we intend to notify holders of defects or irregularities with respect to tenders of old notes, neither we, the exchange agent nor any other person will incur any liability for failure to give such notification. Tenders of old notes will not be deemed made until such defects or irregularities have been cured or waived. Any old notes received by the exchange agent that are not properly tendered and as to which the defects or irregularities have not been cured or waived will be returned to the tendering holder promptly upon expiration or termination of the exchange offer.

        When We Will Issue New Notes.    In all cases, we will issue new notes for old notes that we have accepted for exchange in the exchange offer only after the exchange agent receives, prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the expiration date:

        Return of Old Notes Not Accepted or Exchanged.    If we do not accept any tendered old notes for exchange or if old notes are submitted for a greater principal amount than the holder desires to exchange, the unaccepted or non-exchanged old notes will be returned without expense to their tendering holder. Such non-exchanged old notes will be credited to an account maintained with DTC. These actions will occur promptly upon the expiration or termination of the exchange offer.

        Your Representations to Us.    By agreeing to be bound by the letter of transmittal, you will represent to us that, among other things:

Withdrawal of Tenders

        Except as otherwise provided in this prospectus, you may withdraw your tender at any time prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the expiration date of the exchange offer. For a withdrawal to be effective you must comply with the appropriate ATOP procedures. Any notice of withdrawal must specify the name and number of the account at DTC to be credited with withdrawn old notes and otherwise comply with the ATOP procedures.

        We will determine all questions as to the validity, form, eligibility and time of receipt of a notice of withdrawal. Our determination shall be final and binding on all parties. We will deem any old notes so withdrawn not to have been validly tendered for exchange for purposes of the exchange offer.


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        Any old notes that have been tendered for exchange but that are not exchanged for any reason will be credited to an account maintained with DTC for the old notes. This return or crediting will take place promptly upon withdrawal, rejection of tender, expiration or termination of the exchange offer. You may retender properly withdrawn old notes by following the procedures described under "—Procedures for Tendering" above at any time on or prior to the expiration date of the exchange offer.

Fees and Expenses

        We will bear the expenses of soliciting tenders. The principal solicitation is being made by mail; however, we may make additional solicitation by e-mail, telephone or in person by our officers and regular employees and those of our affiliates.

        We have not retained any dealer-manager in connection with the exchange offer and will not make any payments to broker-dealers or others soliciting acceptances of the exchange offer. We will, however, pay the exchange agent reasonable and customary fees for its services and reimburse it for its related reasonable out-of-pocket expenses.

        We will pay the cash expenses to be incurred in connection with the exchange offer. They include:

Transfer Taxes

        We will pay all transfer taxes, if any, applicable to the exchange of old notes in the exchange offer. Each tendering holder, however, will be required to pay any transfer taxes, whether imposed on the registered holder or any other person, if a transfer tax is imposed for any reason other than the exchange of old notes in the exchange offer.

Consequences of Failure to Exchange

        If you do not exchange your old notes for new notes in the exchange offer, the old notes you hold will remain outstanding and continue to accrue interest, but will continue to be subject to the existing restrictions on transfer. In general, you may not offer or sell the old notes except under an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. After the expiration of this exchange offer, we do not intend to register old notes under the Securities Act unless the registration rights agreement requires us to do so.

Accounting Treatment

        We will record the new notes in our accounting records at the same carrying value as the old notes. This carrying value is the aggregate principal amount of the old notes, as reflected in our accounting records on the date of exchange. Accordingly, we will not recognize any gain or loss for accounting purposes in connection with the exchange offer, other than the recognition of the fees and expenses of the offering as stated under "—Fees and Expenses."


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Other

        Participation in the exchange offer is voluntary, and you should consider carefully whether to accept. You are urged to consult your financial and tax advisors in making your own decision on what action to take.

        We may in the future seek to acquire untendered old notes in open market or privately negotiated transactions, through subsequent exchange offers or otherwise. We have no present plans to acquire any old notes that are not tendered in the exchange offer or to file a registration statement to permit resales of any untendered old notes.


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DESCRIPTION OF OTHER INDEBTEDNESS

Revolving Credit Facility

        Summit Holdings' revolving credit facility (i) has a borrowing capacity of $700 million, (ii) matures in November 2018 and (iii) has an accordion feature to increase borrowing capacity up to $200 million. As of JanuaryFebruary 15, 2014, we had total debt of approximately $591.0$611.0 million, and we had $409.0$389.0 million of remaining borrowing capacity under the revolving credit facility. The revolving credit facility is secured by the membership interests of Summit Holdings and those of its subsidiaries. Substantially all of Summit Holdings' and its subsidiaries' assets are pledged as collateral under the revolving credit facility. The facility, and Summit Holdings' obligations, are guaranteed by SMLP and each of its subsidiaries. At our option, borrowings under the revolving credit facility bear interest at a variable rate per annum equal to either (i) the London InterBank Offered Rate plus the applicable margins ranging from 1.75% to 2.75% or (ii) a base rate plus the applicable margins ranging from 0.75% to 1.75%.

        The revolving credit facility contains affirmative and negative covenants customary for credit facilities of its size and nature, that, among other things, limit or restrict Summit Holdings' ability (as well as the ability of its subsidiaries) to:

        As of September 30, 2013, we were in compliance with the financial and other covenants in our revolving credit facility.

        The revolving credit facility also contains events of default customary for credit facilities of its size and nature, including, but not limited to:


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        Upon the occurrence of an event of default, subject to the terms and conditions of the revolving credit facility, the lenders may, in addition to exercising other remedies, declare any outstanding principal and any accrued and unpaid interest to be immediately due and payable. There have been no defaults on the revolving credit facility.


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DESCRIPTION OF NEW NOTES

        We are offering to exchange up to $300,000,000 aggregate principal amount of our new 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021, which have been registered under the Securities Act, referred to in this prospectus as the "new notes," for any and all of our outstanding unregistered 71/2% Senior Notes due 2021, referred to in this prospectus as the "old notes." We issued the old notes on June 17, 2013 in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act. We are offering you new notes in exchange for old notes in order to satisfy our registration obligations from that previous transaction. The new notes will be treated as a single class with any old notes that remain outstanding after the completion of the exchange offer. The new notes will be issued, and the old notes are outstanding, under an indenture dated as of June 17, 2013, among Summit Midstream Holdings, LLC and Summit Midstream Finance Corp., as issuers, the Guarantors (as defined below) party thereto and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee, as supplemented and amended. You can find the definition of various terms used in this Description of New Notes under "—Certain Definitions" below.

        This Description of New Notes is intended to be a useful overview of the material provisions of the notes, the guarantees and the indenture. Since this Description of New Notes is only a summary, you should refer to the indenture which is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, for a complete description of our obligations and your rights.

        In this description, the term "Company" refers only to Summit Midstream Holdings, LLC and not to any of its subsidiaries, the term "Finance Corp." refers to Summit Midstream Finance Corp., the term "Parent" refers only to Summit Midstream Partners, LP and not to any of its subsidiaries and the term "Issuers" refers to the Company and Finance Corp. The term "notes" in this section of the prospectus includes both the old notes issued on June 17, 2013 and the new notes, unless the context otherwise requires.

        If the exchange offer is consummated, Holders of old notes who do not exchange their old notes for new notes will vote together with the Holders of the new notes for all relevant purposes under the indenture. In that regard, the indenture requires that certain actions by the Holders under the indenture (including acceleration after an Event of Default) must be taken, and certain rights must be exercised, by Holders of specified minimum percentages of the aggregate principal amount of all outstanding notes issued under the indenture. In determining whether Holders of the requisite percentage in aggregate principal amount of notes have given any notice, consent or waiver or taken any other action permitted under the indenture, any old notes that remain outstanding after the exchange offer will be aggregated with the new notes, and the Holders of these old notes and new notes will vote together as a single class for all such purposes. Accordingly, all references in this Description of New Notes to specified percentages in aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes mean, at any time after the exchange offer for the old notes is consummated, such percentage in aggregate principal amount of such old notes and the new notes then outstanding.

        The registered Holder of a note will be treated as the owner of it for all purposes. Only registered Holders will have rights under the indenture.

Brief Description of the Notes and the Guarantees

        The Notes.    The notes are:


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        The Guarantees.    Currently, the notes are fully and unconditionally and jointly and severally guaranteed by the Parent and all of the Parent's existing Subsidiaries (other than the Company and Finance Corp.) (the "Subsidiary Guarantors" and, together with the Parent, the "Guarantors").

        Each guarantee of the notes is:

        As of JanuaryFebruary 15, 2014, the Company and the Guarantors had:

        The indenture permits the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries to incur additional Indebtedness, including additional secured Indebtedness.

        Currently, all of the Parent's existing subsidiaries (other than the Company and Finance Corp.) have fully and unconditionally and jointly and severally guaranteed the notes. However, in the future, certain of the Parent's newly created or acquired Subsidiaries may not guarantee the notes. In the event of a bankruptcy, liquidation or reorganization of any of these non-guarantor Subsidiaries, the non-guarantor Subsidiaries will pay current outstanding obligations to the holders of their debt and their trade creditors before they will be able to distribute any of their assets to the Issuers.

        Currently, all of the Parent's Subsidiaries are "Restricted Subsidiaries." However, under the circumstances described below under the subheading "—Certain Covenants—Designation of Restricted and Unrestricted Subsidiaries," the Parent will be permitted to designate certain of its Subsidiaries as "Unrestricted Subsidiaries." Our Unrestricted Subsidiaries will not be subject to many of the restrictive covenants in the indenture. Our Unrestricted Subsidiaries will not guarantee the notes.

Principal, Maturity and Interest

        The Issuers issued the old notes with an initial maximum aggregate principal amount of $300.0 million. In addition to the new notes offered hereby and the old notes, the Issuers may issue additional notes from time to time, provided that the additional notes are fungible with the notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes so that such additional notes will trade as part of a single class with the initial notes. Any offering of additional notes is subject to the covenant described below under the caption "—Certain Covenants—Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Securities." Any old notes remaining outstanding after the completion of the exchange offer and any additional notes subsequently issued under the indenture, together with all new notes, will be treated as a single class for all purposes under the indenture, including, without limitation, for waivers, amendments and offers to purchase. The Issuers will issue notes in denominations of $2,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess of $2,000. The notes will mature on July 1, 2021.

        Interest on the notes accrues at the rate of 7.500% per annum, and is payable semi-annually in arrears on January 1 and July 1, commencing on January 1, 2014. The Issuers will make each interest payment to the Holders of record on the December 15 and June 15 immediately preceding each interest payment date.

        In the case of the new notes, all interest accrued on the old notes from the original issue date, June 17, 2013, will be treated as having accrued on the new notes that are issued in exchange for the old notes. Interest will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year comprised of twelve 30-day months.


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Methods of Receiving Payments on the Notes

        If a Holder has given wire transfer instructions to the Issuers, the Issuers will pay all principal, interest and premium, if any, on that Holder's notes in accordance with those instructions. All other payments on the notes will be made at the office or agency of the paying agent and registrar within the City and State of New York unless the Issuers elect to make interest payments by check mailed to the Holders at their addresses set forth in the register of Holders.

Paying Agent and Registrar for the Notes

        The trustee is currently acting as paying agent and registrar. The Issuers may change the paying agent or registrar without prior notice to the Holders of the notes, and the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may act as paying agent or registrar.

Transfer and Exchange

        A Holder may transfer or exchange notes in accordance with the indenture. The registrar and the trustee may require a Holder to furnish appropriate endorsements and transfer documents in connection with a transfer of notes. No service charge will be imposed by the Issuers, the trustee or the registrar for any registration of transfer or exchange of notes, but Holders will be required to pay all taxes due on transfer. The Issuers are not required to transfer or exchange any note selected for redemption. Also, the Issuers are not required to transfer or exchange any note for a period of 15 days before a selection of notes to be redeemed.

Guarantees

        The Parent and all of the Parent's existing Subsidiaries (excluding the Company and Finance Corp.) have fully and unconditionally and jointly and severally guaranteed the old notes on a senior unsecured basis, and they will guarantee the new notes on the same basis. In the future, the Restricted Subsidiaries of the Parent will be required to guarantee the notes under the circumstances described under "—Certain Covenants—Additional Subsidiary Guarantees." The Guarantors have fully and unconditionally and jointly and severally guaranteed the notes. The obligations of each Subsidiary Guarantor under its Subsidiary Guarantee will be limited as necessary to prevent that Subsidiary Guarantee from constituting a fraudulent conveyance under applicable law. See "Risk Factors—Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and the Notes—Federal and state statutes allow courts, under specific circumstances, to void subsidiary guarantees and require noteholders to return payments received from subsidiary guarantors."

        A Subsidiary Guarantor may not sell or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of its properties or assets to, or consolidate with or merge with or into (whether or not such Subsidiary Guarantor is the surviving Person), another Person, other than the Parent, the Company or another Subsidiary Guarantor, unless:


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        The Guarantee of a Subsidiary Guarantor will be automatically released:

Optional Redemption

        At any time prior to July 1, 2016, the Issuers may on any one or more occasions redeem up to 35% of the aggregate principal amount of the notes issued under the indenture at a redemption price of 107.500% of the principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the redemption date), in an amount not greater than the net cash proceeds of one or more Equity Offerings by the Parent, provided that:

        On and after July 1, 2016, the Issuers may redeem all or a part of the notes at the redemption prices (expressed as percentages of principal amount) set forth below, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, on the notes redeemed to the applicable redemption date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the redemption date), if redeemed during the twelve-month period beginning on July 1 of the years indicated below:

Year
 Percentages 

2016

  105.625%

2017

  103.750%

2018

  101.875%

2019 and thereafter

  100.000%

        Prior to July 1, 2016, the Issuers may redeem all or part of the notes at a redemption price equal to the sum of:


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plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the redemption date).

Selection and Notice

        If less than all of the notes are to be redeemed at any time, the trustee will select notes for redemption on a pro rata basis (or, in the case of notes issued in global form as discussed under "—Book-Entry, Delivery and Form," based on a method as DTC, in New York, New York, or its nominee or successor may require or, where such nominee or successor is the trustee, a method that most nearly approximates pro rata selection as the trustee deems fair and appropriate unless otherwise required by law) unless otherwise required by law or applicable stock exchange or depositary requirements.

        No notes of $2,000 or less can be redeemed in part. Notices of optional redemption will be mailed by first class mail at least 30 but not more than 60 days before the redemption date to each Holder of notes to be redeemed at its registered address, except that optional redemption notices may be mailed more than 60 days prior to a redemption date if the notice is issued in connection with a defeasance of the notes or a satisfaction and discharge of the indenture. Notices of redemption may not be conditional, except that any redemption pursuant to the first paragraph under "—Optional Redemption," may, at the Company's discretion, be subject to completion of the related Equity Offering.

        If any note is to be redeemed in part only, the notice of redemption that relates to that note will state the portion of the principal amount of that note that is to be redeemed. A new note in principal amount equal to the unredeemed portion of the original note will be issued in the name of the Holder of notes upon cancellation of the original note. Notes called for redemption become due on the date fixed for redemption. On and after the redemption date, interest ceases to accrue on notes or portions of them called for redemption.

Mandatory Redemption

        Except as set forth below under "—Repurchase at the Option of Holders," neither of the Issuers is required to make mandatory redemption or sinking fund payments with respect to the notes or to repurchase the notes at the option of the Holders.

Repurchase at the Option of Holders

        If a Change of Control occurs, unless the Issuers have previously or concurrently exercised their right to redeem all of the notes as described under "—Optional Redemption," each Holder of notes will have the right to require the Company to repurchase all or any part (equal to $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000) of that Holder's notes pursuant to a Change of Control Offer on the terms set forth in the indenture. In the Change of Control Offer, the Company will offer a cash payment (a "Change of Control Payment") equal to 101% (or, at the Company's election, a higher percentage) of the aggregate principal amount of notes repurchased plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, on the notes repurchased, to the date of settlement (the "Change of Control Settlement Date"), subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the Change of Control Settlement Date. Within 30 days following any Change of Control, unless the Issuers have previously or concurrently exercised their right to redeem all of the notes as described under "—Optional Redemption," the Company will mail a


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notice to each Holder and the trustee describing the transaction or transactions that constitute the Change of Control and offering to repurchase notes as of the Change of Control Settlement Date specified in the notice, which date will be no earlier than 30 days and no later than 60 days from the date such notice is mailed, pursuant to the procedures required by the indenture and described in such notice.

        The Company will comply with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 under the Exchange Act and any other securities laws and regulations thereunder to the extent those laws and regulations are applicable in connection with the repurchase of the notes as a result of a Change of Control. To the extent that the provisions of any securities laws or regulations conflict with the Change of Control provisions of the indenture, the Company will comply with the applicable securities laws and regulations and will not be deemed to have breached its obligations under the Change of Control provisions of the indenture by virtue of such conflict.

        Promptly following the expiration of the Change of Control Offer, the Company will, to the extent lawful, accept for payment all notes or portions of notes properly tendered pursuant to the Change of Control Offer. Promptly thereafter on the Change of Control Settlement Date, the Company will:

        On the Change of Control Settlement Date, the paying agent will mail to each Holder of notes properly tendered the Change of Control Payment for such notes (or, if all the notes are then in global form, make such payment through the facilities of DTC), and the trustee will authenticate and mail (or cause to be transferred by book entry) to each Holder a new note equal in principal amount to any unpurchased portion of the notes surrendered, if any; provided, however, that each new note will be in a principal amount of $2,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess of $2,000. The Company will publicly announce the results of the Change of Control Offer on or as soon as practicable after the Change of Control Settlement Date.

        The Credit Agreement provides that certain change of control events with respect to the Company would constitute an event of default thereunder, entitling the lenders, among other things, to accelerate the maturity of all indebtedness outstanding thereunder. Any future credit agreements or other agreements relating to indebtedness to which the Company or any Guarantor becomes a party may contain similar restrictions and provisions. The indenture provides that, prior to complying with any of the provisions of this "Change of Control" covenant, but in any event no later than the Change of Control Settlement Date, the Company or any Guarantor must either repay all of its other outstanding Senior Debt or obtain the requisite consents, if any, under all agreements governing such Senior Debt to permit the repurchase of notes required by this covenant.

        The provisions described above that require the Company to make a Change of Control Offer following a Change of Control will be applicable whether or not any other provisions of the indenture are applicable. Except as described above with respect to a Change of Control, the indenture does not contain provisions that permit the Holders of the notes to require that the Company repurchase or redeem the notes in the event of a takeover, recapitalization or similar transaction.

        The Company will not be required to make a Change of Control Offer upon a Change of Control if a third party makes the Change of Control Offer in the manner, at the time and otherwise in compliance with the requirements set forth in the indenture applicable to a Change of Control Offer made by the Company and purchases all notes properly tendered and not withdrawn under the Change of Control Offer. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the indenture, a Change of Control Offer may be made in advance of a Change of Control, and conditioned upon the consummation of such Change of Control if a definitive agreement is in place for the Change of Control at the time the Change of Control Offer is made.


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        The definition of Change of Control includes a phrase relating to the direct or indirect sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of "all or substantially all" of the properties or assets of the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries taken as a whole. Although there is a limited body of case law interpreting the phrase "substantially all," there is no precise established definition of the phrase under applicable law. Accordingly, the ability of a Holder of notes to require the Company to repurchase its notes as a result of a sale, lease, transfer, conveyance or other disposition of less than all of the properties or assets of the Parent and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole to another Person or group may be uncertain.

        In the event that Holders of not less than 90% of the aggregate principal amount of the outstanding notes accept a Change of Control Offer and the Company purchases all of the notes held by such Holders, the Company will have the right, upon not less than 30 nor more than 60 days' prior notice, given not more than 30 days following the purchase pursuant to the Change of Control Offer described above, to redeem all of the notes that remain outstanding following such purchase at a redemption price equal to the Change of Control Payment plus, to the extent not included in the Change of Control Payment, accrued and unpaid interest on the notes that remain outstanding, to the date of redemption (subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the redemption date).

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, consummate an Asset Sale unless:


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        Within 360 days after the receipt of any Net Proceeds from an Asset Sale, the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may apply those Net Proceeds at its option to any combination of the following:

        The requirement of clause (2) or (4) of the immediately preceding paragraph shall be deemed to be satisfied if a bona fide binding contract committing to make the investment, acquisition or expenditure referred to therein is entered into by the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries with a Person other than an Affiliate of the Parent within the time period specified in the preceding paragraph and such Net Proceeds are subsequently applied in accordance with such contract within 180 days following the date such agreement is entered into.

        Pending the final application of any Net Proceeds, the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may invest the Net Proceeds in any manner that is not prohibited by the indenture. Any Net Proceeds from Asset Sales that are not applied or invested as provided in the preceding paragraph will constitute "Excess Proceeds."

        On the 361st day after the Asset Sale (or, at the Company's option, any earlier date), if the aggregate amount of Excess Proceeds then exceeds $25.0 million, the Company will make an Asset Sale Offer to all Holders of notes, and all holders of other Indebtedness that is pari passu with the notes containing provisions similar to those set forth in the indenture with respect to offers to purchase or redeem with the proceeds of sales of assets, to purchase the maximum principal amount of notes and such other pari passu Indebtedness that may be purchased out of the Excess Proceeds. The offer price in any Asset Sale Offer will be equal to 100% of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of settlement, subject to the right of Holders of record on the relevant record date to receive interest due on an interest payment date that is on or prior to the date of settlement, and will be payable in cash. If any Excess Proceeds remain after consummation of an Asset Sale Offer, the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may use those Excess Proceeds for any purpose not otherwise prohibited by the indenture. If the aggregate principal amount of notes and other pari passu Indebtedness tendered into such Asset Sale Offer exceeds the amount of Excess Proceeds, the trustee will select the notes and such other pari passu Indebtedness to be purchased on a pro rata basis (except that any notes represented by a note in global form will be selected by such method as DTC or its nominee or successor may require or, where such nominee or successor is the trustee, a method that most nearly approximates pro rata selection as the trustee deems fair and appropriate unless otherwise required by law). Upon completion of each Asset Sale Offer, the amount of Excess Proceeds will be reset at zero.

        The Company will comply with the requirements of Rule 14e-1 under the Exchange Act and any other securities laws and regulations thereunder to the extent those laws and regulations are applicable in connection with each repurchase of notes pursuant to an Asset Sale Offer. To the extent that the provisions of any securities laws or regulations conflict with the "Asset Sales" provisions of the


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indenture, the Company will comply with the applicable securities laws and regulations and will not be deemed to have breached its obligations under the "Asset Sales" provisions of the indenture by virtue of such compliance.

Certain Covenants

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly:

unless, at the time of and after giving effect to such Restricted Payment, no Default (except a Reporting Default) or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing or would occur as a consequence of such Restricted Payment and either:


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        So long as no Default (except a Reporting Default) or Event of Default has occurred and is continuing or would be caused thereby (except with respect to clause (1) below under which the payment of a distribution or dividend is permitted), the preceding provisions will not prohibit:


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        The amount of all Restricted Payments (other than cash) will be the fair market value on the date of the Restricted Payment of the Restricted Investment proposed to be made or the asset(s) or securities proposed to be transferred or issued by the Parent or a Restricted Subsidiary, as the case may be, pursuant to the Restricted Payment. The fair market value of any Restricted Investment, assets or securities that are required to be valued by this covenant will be determined, in the case of amounts under $20.0 million, by an officer of the General Partner and, in the case of amounts over $20.0 million, by the Board of Directors of the Parent, whose determination shall be evidenced by a Board Resolution. Not later than the date of making any Restricted Payment (excluding any Restricted Payment described in the preceding clause (2), (3), (4), (5) or (6)) the Parent will deliver to the trustee an officers' certificate stating that such Restricted Payment is permitted and setting forth the basis upon which the calculations required by this "Restricted Payments" covenant were computed.

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly, create, incur, issue, assume, guarantee or otherwise become directly or indirectly liable, contingently or otherwise, with respect to (collectively, "incur") any Indebtedness (including Acquired Debt), and the Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, issue any Disqualified Stock, and the Parent will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to issue any preferred securities; provided, however, that the Parent and any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may incur Indebtedness (including Acquired Debt) or issue Disqualified Stock or preferred securities, if, for the Parent's most recently ended four full fiscal quarters for which internal financial statements are available immediately preceding the date on which such additional Indebtedness is incurred or such Disqualified Stock or preferred securities are issued, the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio would have been at least 2.0 to 1.0, determined on a pro forma basis (including a pro forma application of the net proceeds therefrom), as if the additional Indebtedness had been incurred or Disqualified Stock or preferred securities had been issued, as the case may be, at the beginning of such four-quarter period.


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        The first paragraph of this covenant will not prohibit the incurrence of any of the following items of Indebtedness (collectively, "Permitted Debt") or the issuance of any preferred securities described in clause (11) below:


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        For purposes of determining compliance with this "Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Securities" covenant, in the event that an item of Indebtedness (including Acquired Debt) meets the criteria of more than one of the categories of Permitted Debt described in clauses (1) through (14) above, or is entitled to be incurred pursuant to the first paragraph of this covenant, the Parent will be permitted to classify (or later classify or reclassify in whole or in part in its sole discretion) such item of Indebtedness in any manner that complies with this covenant. Any Indebtedness under the Credit Agreement on the date of the indenture shall be considered incurred under clause (1) of the second paragraph of this covenant.


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        The accrual of interest, the accretion or amortization of original issue discount, the payment of interest on any Indebtedness in the form of additional Indebtedness with the same terms, and the payment of dividends on Disqualified Stock in the form of additional shares of the same class of Disqualified Stock will not be deemed to be an incurrence of Indebtedness or an issuance of Disqualified Stock for purposes of this covenant, provided, in each such case, that the amount thereof is included in Fixed Charges of the Parent as accrued. Further, the accounting reclassification of any obligation of the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries as Indebtedness will not be deemed an incurrence of Indebtedness for purposes of this covenant.

        The Parent will not and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, create, incur, assume or otherwise cause or suffer to exist or become effective any Lien of any kind (other than Permitted Liens) securing Indebtedness upon any of their property or assets, now owned or hereafter acquired, unless the notes or any Guarantee of Parent or such Restricted Subsidiary, as applicable, is secured on an equal and ratable basis with (or on a senior basis to, in the case of obligations subordinated in right of payment to the notes or such Guarantee, as the case may be) the obligations so secured until such time as such obligations are no longer secured by a Lien.

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, directly or indirectly, create or permit to exist or become effective any consensual encumbrance or restriction on the ability of any Restricted Subsidiary to:

        However, the preceding restrictions will not apply to encumbrances or restrictions existing under or by reason of:


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        None of the Issuers or the Parent may, directly or indirectly: (1) consolidate or merge with or into another Person (whether or not such Issuer or the Parent is the survivor); or (2) sell, assign, transfer,


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lease, convey or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of its properties or assets in one or more related transactions, to another Person, unless:

        The restrictions described in the foregoing clause (4) will not apply to (a) any consolidation or merger of the Parent with or into one of its Restricted Subsidiaries for any purpose or (b) any sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance, lease or other disposition of properties or assets of a Restricted Subsidiary (other than Finance Corp.) to the Parent, the Company or another Restricted Subsidiary that is a Subsidiary Guarantor.

        Notwithstanding the second preceding paragraph, the Parent and the Company are permitted to reorganize as any other form of entity in accordance with the following procedures provided that:


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        Notwithstanding anything in the indenture to the contrary, in the event the Company becomes a corporation or the Company or the Person formed by or surviving any consolidation or merger (permitted in accordance with the terms of the indenture) is a corporation, Finance Corp. may be merged into the Company or it may be dissolved and cease to be an Issuer.

        Upon compliance with the foregoing requirements with respect to any consolidation or merger or any sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance, lease or other disposition of all or substantially all of the properties or assets of an Issuer Parent in accordance with the foregoing in which such Issuer or Parent is not the surviving entity, the surviving Person formed by such consolidation or into or with which such Issuer or Parent is merged or to which such sale, assignment, transfer, conveyance, lease or other disposition is made shall succeed to, and be substituted for, and may exercise every right and power of, such Issuer or Parent, as applicable, under the indenture with the same effect as if such surviving Person had been named as such Issuer or Parent in the indenture, and thereafter (except in the case of a lease of all or substantially all of such Issuer's properties or assets), such Issuer or Parent, as applicable, will be relieved of all obligations and covenants under the indenture and the notes or its Guarantee. Although there is a limited body of case law interpreting the phrase "substantially all," there is no precise established definition of the phrase under applicable law. Accordingly, in certain circumstances there may be a degree of uncertainty as to whether a particular transaction would involve "all or substantially all" of the properties or assets of a Person.

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, make any payment to, or sell, lease, transfer or otherwise dispose of any of its properties or assets to, or purchase any property or assets from, or enter into or make or amend any transaction, contract, agreement, understanding, loan, advance or guarantee with, or for the benefit of, any Affiliate (each, an "Affiliate Transaction"), unless:


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        The following items will not be deemed to be Affiliate Transactions and, therefore, will not be subject to the provisions of the prior paragraph:


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        The Board of Directors of the Parent may designate any Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent to be an Unrestricted Subsidiary if that designation would not cause a Default. If a Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent is designated as an Unrestricted Subsidiary, the aggregate fair market value of all outstanding Investments owned by the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries in the Subsidiary properly designated will be deemed to be either an Investment made as of the time of the designation that will reduce the amount available for Restricted Payments under the first paragraph of the covenant described above under the caption "—Restricted Payments" or represent Permitted Investments, as determined by the Parent. That designation will only be permitted if the Investment would be permitted at that time and if the Subsidiary so designated otherwise meets the definition of an Unrestricted Subsidiary.

        The Board of Directors of the Parent may at any time designate any Unrestricted Subsidiary to be a Restricted Subsidiary, provided that such designation will be deemed to be an incurrence of Indebtedness by a Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent of any outstanding Indebtedness of such Unrestricted Subsidiary and such designation will only be permitted if (1) such Indebtedness is permitted under the covenant described above under the caption "—Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Securities," calculated on a pro forma basis as if such designation had occurred at the beginning of the four-quarter reference period, and (2) no Default or Event of Default would be in existence following such designation.

        If any Restricted Subsidiary of the Parent that is not already a Guarantor guarantees any Indebtedness of either of the Issuers or any Guarantor under any Credit Facility, then that Subsidiary will become a Guarantor by executing a supplemental indenture and delivering it to the trustee within 20 Business Days of the date on which it guaranteed such Indebtedness; provided, however, that the preceding shall not apply to Subsidiaries of the Parent that have properly been designated as Unrestricted Subsidiaries in accordance with the indenture for so long as they continue to constitute Unrestricted Subsidiaries. Notwithstanding the preceding, any Guarantee of a Restricted Subsidiary that was incurred pursuant to this paragraph will be released in the circumstances described under "—Guarantees."

        The Parent will not, and will not permit any of its Restricted Subsidiaries to, enter into any sale and leaseback transaction; provided, however, that the Parent or any of its Restricted Subsidiaries may enter into a sale and leaseback transaction if:


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        The Parent will not, and will not permit any Restricted Subsidiary to, engage in any business other than a Permitted Business, except to such extent as would not be material to the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries taken as a whole.

        Finance Corp. may not incur Indebtedness unless (1) the Company or the Parent is a co-obligor or guarantor of such Indebtedness or (2) the net proceeds of such Indebtedness are loaned to the Company or the Parent, used to acquire outstanding debt securities issued by the Company or the Parent or used to repay Indebtedness of the Company or the Parent as permitted under the covenant described about under the caption "—Incurrence of Indebtedness and Issuance of Preferred Securities." Finance Corp. may not engage in any business not related directly or indirectly to obtaining money or arranging financing for the Parent or its Restricted Subsidiaries.

        Whether or not required by the Commission, so long as any notes are outstanding, the Parent will file with the Commission for public availability within the time periods specified in the Commission's rules and regulations (unless the Commission will not accept such a filing), and the Parent will furnish to the trustee and, upon its prior request, to any of the Holders or Beneficial Owners of notes, within five Business Days of filing, or attempting to file, the same with the Commission:

        The availability of the foregoing information or reports on the Commission's website will be deemed to satisfy the foregoing delivery requirements.

        If the Parent has designated any of its Subsidiaries as Unrestricted Subsidiaries, then, to the extent material, the quarterly and annual financial information required by the second preceding paragraph will include a reasonably detailed presentation, either on the face of the financial statements or in the footnotes thereto, and in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, of the financial condition and results of operations of the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries separate from the financial condition and results of operations of the Unrestricted Subsidiaries of the Parent.

        In addition, the Company and the Guarantors have agreed that, for so long as any notes remain outstanding, they will furnish to the Holders and Beneficial Owners of the notes and to securities analysts and prospective investors in the notes, upon their request, the information required to be delivered pursuant to Rule l44A(d)(4) under the Securities Act.


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        If at any time (a) the rating assigned to the notes by both S&P and Moody's is an Investment Grade Rating, (b) no Default has occurred and is continuing under the indenture and (c) the Issuers have delivered to the trustee an officers' certificate certifying to the foregoing provisions of this sentence, the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries will no longer be subject to the provisions of the indenture described above under the caption "—Repurchase at the Option of Holders—Asset Sales" and the following provisions of the indenture described above under the caption "—Certain Covenants":

        However, the Parent and its Restricted Subsidiaries will remain subject to the provisions of the indenture described above under the caption "—Repurchase at the Option of Holders—Change of Control," the covenant respecting payments for consent described below in the last paragraph under the caption "—Amendment, Supplement and Waiver" and the following provisions of the indenture described above under the caption "—Covenants":

Events of Default and Remedies

        Each of the following is an Event of Default:


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