RESTRICTED
SUBSIDIARY GUARANTEE
by
THE RESTRICTED
SUBSIDIARIES OF
AMERIGAS PROPANE, L.P.
as Guarantors,
for the benefit
of
WACHOVIA BANK,
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
AND THE BANKS,
Dated as of
April 17, 2009
1
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
Page
RESTRICTED
SUBSIDIARY GUARANTEE
RESTRICTED SUBSIDIARY GUARANTEE,
dated as of April 17, 2009 (as amended, modified or
supplemented from time to time, the “Guarantee
Agreement”) made by the undersigned Restricted Subsidiaries
(each a “Guarantor” and collectively, the
“Guarantors”) of AmeriGas Propane, L.P., a Delaware
limited partnership (the “Company”) for the benefit of
Wachovia Bank, National Association, as administrative agent (the
“Agent”) and the other financial institutions party to
the Credit Agreement dated as of April 17, 2009 by and among
the Company, the General Partner, as guarantor, Petrolane, as
guarantor, the financial institutions party thereto (each a
“Bank” and together the “Banks”), the Agent
and the other parties thereto. All capitalized terms used herein
and not otherwise defined herein shall have the respective meanings
provided in Credit Agreement hereto.
W I T N E S S E T H
:
WHEREAS, each of the Company,
Petrolane and the General Partner has entered into the Credit
Agreement with the Banks and the Agent;
WHEREAS, it is a condition precedent
to the financial accommodations provided under the Credit Agreement
that the Company shall have caused its Restricted Subsidiaries
(other than AEPLP and any subsidiary of AEPLP) to execute and
deliver this Guarantee Agreement to the Agent and the Banks;
WHEREAS, each Guarantor desires to
execute this Guarantee Agreement to satisfy the conditions
described in the preceding paragraph;
WHEREAS, each Guarantor is a
Restricted Subsidiary of the Company; and
WHEREAS, the board of directors or
equivalent governing body of each Guarantor has determined that it
is in the best interest of such Guarantor to execute this Guarantee
Agreement;
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of
the benefits accruing to each Guarantor, the receipt and
sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, each Guarantor hereby
makes the following representations and warranties to the Agent and
the Banks and hereby covenants and agrees with the Agent and the
Banks as follows:
Section 1. Guaranteed
Obligations . Each Guarantor, jointly and severally,
irrevocably and unconditionally guarantees the Obligations;
provided , however , that each Guarantor shall be
liable under this Guarantee Agreement for the maximum amount of
such liability that can be hereby incurred without rendering this
Guarantee Agreement, as it relates to such Guarantor, voidable
under applicable law relating to fraudulent conveyance or
fraudulent transfer, and not for any greater amount. Each Guarantor
understands, agrees and confirms that the Agent and the Banks may
enforce this Guarantee Agreement up to the full amount of the
Obligations against each Guarantor, subject as aforesaid, without
proceeding against the Company, against any security for the
Obligations, or under any other Guaranty covering the
Obligations.
All payments made by any Guarantor
under this Guarantee Agreement shall be made to the Agent for the
account of the Banks and be applied as provided in Section 9.4
of the Credit Agreement. All payments shall be made no later than
12:00 noon (New York time) on the date when due and shall be made
in Dollars and in immediately available funds to the Agent at the
Agent’s Payment Office or at such other place as the Agent
shall notify the Guarantors. All payments made by any Guarantor
hereunder shall be without setoff, counterclaim or other
defense.
Section 2. Obligations
Exclusive . The liability of each Guarantor hereunder is
exclusive and independent of any security for or other guaranty of
the Obligations whether executed by such Guarantor, any other
Guarantor, any other guarantor or by any other party, and the
liability of each Guarantor hereunder shall not be affected or
impaired by (a) any direction as to application of payment by
the Company or by any other party, or (b) any other continuing
or other guaranty, undertaking or maximum liability of a Guarantor
or of any other party as to the Indebtedness of the Company, or
(c) any payment on or in reduction of any such other guaranty
or undertaking except to the extent such payment is applied to the
Obligations or such reduction results from application of a payment
to the Obligations, or (d) any dissolution, termination or
increase, decrease or change in personnel by the Company, or
(e) any payment made to any Bank or the Agent on the amounts
which the Banks or the Agent repay the Company pursuant to a court
order in any bankruptcy, reorganization, arrangement, moratorium or
other debtor relief proceeding, and each Guarantor waives any right
to the deferral or modification of its obligations hereunder by
reason of any such proceeding.
Section 3. Obligations
Independent . The obligations of each Guarantor hereunder are
independent of the obligations of any other Guarantor, any other
guarantor or the Company, and a separate action or actions may be
brought and prosecuted against each Guarantor whether or not action
is brought against any other Guarantor, any other guarantor or the
Company and whether or not any other Guarantor, any other guarantor
or the Company be joined in any such action or actions. Each
Guarantor waives, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the
benefit of any statute of limitations affecting its liability
hereunder or the enforcement thereof. Any payment by the Company or
other circumstance which operates to toll any statute of
limitations as to the Company shall operate to toll the statute of
limitations as to each Guarantor.
Section 4. Waiver of
Notice . Each Guarantor hereby waives notice of acceptance of
this Guarantee Agreement and notice of any liability to which it
may apply, and waives promptness, diligence, presentment, demand of
payment, protest, notice of dishonor or nonpayment of any such
liabilities, suit or taking of other action by the Agent or any
Bank against, and any other notice to, any party liable thereon
(including such Guarantor or any other guarantor).
Section 5. Guarantee of
Payment . This Guarantee Agreement is a guarantee of payment
and not of collection. The Agent or any Bank may at any time and
from time to time without the consent of, or notice to, any
Guarantor, without incurring responsibility to such Guarantor,
without impairing or releasing the obligations of such Guarantor
hereunder, upon or without any terms or conditions and in whole or
in part:
(a) change the manner, place or
terms of payment of, and/or change or extend the time of payment
of, renew or alter, any of the Obligations, any security therefor,
or any liability incurred directly or indirectly in respect
thereof, and the guarantee made in this Guarantee Agreement shall
apply to the Obligations as so changed, extended, renewed or
altered;
(b) sell, exchange, release,
surrender, realize upon or otherwise deal with, in any manner and
in any order, any property by whomsoever at any time pledged or
mortgaged to secure, or howsoever securing, the Obligations or any
liabilities (including any of those hereunder) incurred directly or
indirectly in respect thereof or hereof, and/or any offset
thereagainst;
(c) exercise or refrain from
exercising any rights against the Company or any Guarantor or
others or otherwise act or refrain from acting;
(d) settle or compromise any of
the Obligations, any security therefor or any liability (including
any of those hereunder) incurred directly or indirectly in respect
thereof or hereof, and may subordinate the payment of all or any
part thereof to the payment of any liability (whether due or not)
of the Company to creditors of the Company;
(e) apply any sums by
whomsoever paid or howsoever realized to any liability or
liabilities of the Company to the Obligations regardless of what
liabilities of the Company remain unpaid;
(f) consent to or waive any
breach of, or any act, omission or default under the Credit
Agreement, any other Loan Document or any of the instruments or
agreements referred to therein, or otherwise amend, modify or
supplement the Credit Agreement, any other Loan Document or any of
such other instruments or agreements; and/or
(g) fail to perfect any Lien
granted to the Agent or to or for the benefit of any Bank to secure
any of the Obligations.
Section 6. Obligations
Unconditional . (a) The obligations of each Guarantor
under this Guarantee Agreement are absolute and unconditional and
shall remain in full force and effect without regard to, and shall
not be released, suspended, discharged, terminated (except in
accordance with the terms hereof) or otherwise affected by, any
circumstance or occurrence whatsoever, including without
limitation: (i) any action or inaction by the Agent or any
Bank as contemplated in Section 5 of this Guarantee Agreement;
(ii) any invalidity, irregularity or unenforceability of all
or part of the Obligations or of any security therefor; or
(iii) to the extent permitted by applicable law, any other act
or circumstance that might otherwise constitute a legal or
equitable discharge or defense of a surety or a guarantor. This
Guarantee Agreement is a primary obligation of each Guarantor.
(b) The obligations of each
Guarantor hereunder shall be automatically reinstated if and to the
extent that for any reason any payment by or on behalf of the
Company in respect of the Obligations is rescinded or must be
otherwise returned by any holder of any of the obligations, whether
as a result of any proceedings in bankruptcy or reorganization or
otherwise.
Section 7. Continuing
Guarantee . This Guarantee Agreement is a continuing one and
all liabilities to which it applies (or may apply) under the terms
hereof shall be conclusively presumed to have been created in
reliance hereon. No failure or delay on the part of the Agent or
any Bank in exercising any right, power or privilege hereunder
shall operate as a waiver thereof; nor shall any single or partial
exercise of any right, power or privilege hereunder preclude any
other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other
right, power or privilege. The rights and remedies herein expressly
specified are cumulative and not exclusive of any rights or
remedies which the Agent or any Bank would otherwise have. No
notice to or demand on any Guarantor in any case shall
(i) entitle such Guarantor to any other further notice or
demand in similar or other circumstances except for any notice or
demand required hereunder or (ii) constitute a waiver of the
rights of the Agent or any Bank to any other or further action in
any circumstances without notice or demand. It is not necessary for
the Agent or any Bank to inquire into the capacity or powers of the
officers, directors, partners or agents acting or purporting to act
on behalf of any Guarantor or the Company, and any Obligations made
or created in reliance upon the professed exercise of such powers
shall be guaranteed hereunder.
Section 8. Subordination
. Any Indebtedness of the Company now or hereafter held by any
Guarantor, whether arising by subrogation, contribution or
otherwise, is hereby subordinated to the Obligations as provided
for below; and such Indebtedness of the Company to any Guarantor,
if the Agent, after an Event of Default has occurred and is
continuing, so requests, shall be collected, enforced and received
by such Guarantor as trustee for the Agent and the Banks and be
paid over to the Agent on account of the Obligations, but without
affecting or impairing in any manner the liability of such
Guarantor under the other provisions of this Guarantee Agreement.
Prior to the transfer to any non-Affiliate by any Guarantor of any
note or negotiable instrument evidencing any Indebtedness of the
Company to such Guarantor, such Guarantor shall mark such note or
negotiable instrument with a legend, acceptable to the Agent, that
the same is subject to this subordination.
Section 9. Exhaustion of
Remedies . (a) Each Guarantor waives any right (except as
shall be required by applicable statute and cannot be waived) to
require the Agent or the Bank to (i) proceed against the
Company, any other Guarantor or any other Person, (ii) proceed
against or exhaust any security held from the Company, any other
Guarantor or any other Person or (iii) pursue any other remedy
in the Agent’s or the Banks’ power whatsoever. Each
Guarantor waives any defense based on or arising out of any defense
of the Company, any other Guarantor or any other Person other than
payment in full of the Obligations, including without limitation
any defense based on or arising out of the disability of the
Company, any other Guarantor or any other party, or the
unenforceability of the Obligations or any part thereof from any
cause, or the cessation from any cause of the liability of the
Company other than payment in full of the Obligations. The Agent on
behalf of the Banks may, at its election, foreclose on any security
held by the Agent or the Banks by one or more judicial or
nonjudicial sales, whether or not every aspect of any such sale is
commercially reason