February , 1997
EXCHANGE AGENT AGREEMENT
The Bank of New York
Corporate Trust Trustee Administration
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx--00xx Xxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Newport News Shipbuilding Inc. (the "Company") proposes to make an offer
(the "Exchange Offer") to exchange all of its outstanding $200,000,000 8 5/8%
Senior Notes due 2006 for its new $200,000,000 8 5/8% Senior Notes due 2006
and to exchange all of its outstanding $200,000,000 9 1/4% Senior Subordinated
Notes due 2006 for new $200,000,000 9 1/4% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2006.
The outstanding 8 5/8% Senior Notes due 2006 and the outstanding 9 1/4% Senior
Subordinated Notes due 2006 are referred to herein as the "Old Securities,"
and the new 8 5/8% Senior Notes due 2006 and the new 9 1/4% Senior
Subordinated Notes due 2006 are referred to herein as the "New Securities."
The terms and conditions of the Exchange Offer as currently contemplated are
set forth in a Prospectus, dated February 11, 1997 (the "Prospectus"),
proposed to be distributed to all record holders of the Old Securities. The
Old Securities and the new Securities are collectively referred to herein as
the "Securities."
The Company hereby appoints The Bank of New York to act as exchange agent
(the "Exchange Agent") in connection with the Exchange Offer. References
hereinafter to "you" shall refer to The Bank of New York.
The Exchange Offer is expected to be commenced by the Company on or about
February 11, 1997. The Letter of Transmittal accompanying the Prospectus (or
in the case of book-entry securities, the ATOP system) is to be used by the
holders of the Old Securities to accept the Exchange Offer and contains
instructions with respect to the delivery of certificates for Old Securities
tendered in connection therewith.
The Exchange Offer shall expire at 5:00 P.M., New York City time, on March
13, 1997 or on such later date or time to which the Company may extend the
Exchange Offer (the "Expiration Date"). Subject to the terms and conditions
set forth in the Prospectus, the Company expressly reserves the right to
extend the Exchange Offer from time to time and may extend the Exchange Offer
by giving oral (confirmed in writing) or written notice to you before 9:00
A.M., New York City time, on the business day following the previously
scheduled Expiration Date.
The Company will give oral (confirmed in writing) or written notice of any
amendment, termination or nonacceptance to you as promptly as practicable.
In carrying out your duties as Exchange Agent, you are to act in accordance
with the following instructions:
1. You will perform such duties and only such duties as are specifically set
forth in the section of the Prospectus captioned "The Exchange Offer" or as
specifically set forth herein; provided, however, that in no way will your
general duty to act in good faith be discharged by the foregoing.
2. You will establish an account with respect to the Old Securities at The
Depository Trust Company (the "Book-Entry Transfer Facility") for purposes of
the Exchange Offer within two business days after the date of the Prospectus,
and any financial institution that is a participant in the Book-Entry Transfer
Facility's systems may make book-entry delivery of the Old Securities by
causing the Book-Entry Transfer Facility to transfer such Old Securities into
your account in accordance with the Book-Entry Transfer Facility's procedure
for such transfer.
3. You are to examine each of the Letters of Transmittal and certificates
for Old Securities (or confirmation of book-entry transfer into your account
at the Book-Entry Transfer Facility) and any other documents delivered
or mailed to you by or for holders of the Old Securities to ascertain whether:
(i) the Letters of Transmittal and any such other documents are duly executed
and properly completed in accordance with instructions set forth therein and
(ii) the Old Securities have otherwise been properly tendered. In each case
where the Letter of Transmittal or any other document has been improperly
completed or executed or any of the certificates for Old Securities are not in
proper form for transfer or some other irregularity in connection with the
acceptance of the Exchange Offer exists, you will endeavor to inform the
presenters of the need for fulfillment of all requirements and to take any
other action as may be necessary or advisable to cause such irregularity to be
corrected.
4. With the approval of the President, Senior Vice President, Executive Vice
President, or any Vice President of the Company (such approval, if given
orally, to be confirmed in writing) or any other party designated by such an
officer in writing, you are authorized to waive any irregularities in
connection with any tender of Old Securities pursuant to the Exchange Offer.
5. Except as provided in the Section of the Prospectus captioned "The
Exchange Offer--Exchanging Book-Entry Old Notes," tenders of Old Securities
may be made only as set forth in the Letter of Transmittal and in the section
of the Prospectus captioned "The Exchange Offer--Procedures for Tendering,"
and Old Securities shall be considered properly tendered to you only when
tendered in accordance with the procedures set forth therein.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph 5, Old Securities which the
President, Senior Vice President, Executive Vice President, or any Vice
President of the Company shall approve as having been properly tendered shall
be considered to be properly tendered (such approval, if given orally, shall
be confirmed in writing).
6. You shall advise the Company with respect to any Old Securities received
subsequent to the Expiration Date and accept its instructions with respect to
disposition of such Old Securities.
7. You shall accept tenders:
(a) in cases where the Old Securities are registered in two or more names
only if signed by all named holders;
(b) in cases where the signing person (as indicated on the Letter of
Transmittal) is acting in a fiduciary or a representative capacity only
when proper evidence of his or her authority so to act is submitted; and
(c) from persons other than the registered holder of Old Securities
provided that customary transfer requirements, including any applicable
transfer taxes, are fulfilled.
You shall accept partial tenders of Old Securities where so indicated and as
permitted in the Letter of Transmittal and deliver certificates for Old
Securities to the transfer agent for split-up and return any untendered Old
Securities to the holder (or such other person as may be designated in the
Letter of Transmittal) as promptly as practicable after expiration or
termination of the Exchange Offer.
8. Upon satisfaction or waiver of all of the conditions to the Exchange
Offer, the Company will notify you (such notice if given orally, to be
confirmed in writing) of its acceptance, promptly after the Expiration Date,
of all Old Securities properly tendered and you, on behalf of the Company,
will exchange such Old Securities for New Securities and cause such Old
Securities to be cancelled. Delivery of New Securities will be made on behalf
of the Company by you at the rate of $1,000 principal amount of New Securities
for each $1,000 principal amount of the corresponding series of Old Securities
tendered promptly after notice (such notice if given orally, to be confirmed
in writing) of acceptance of said Old Securities by the Company; provided,
however, that in all cases, Old Securities tendered pursuant to the Exchange
Offer will be exchanged only after timely receipt by you of certificates for
such Old Securities (or confirmation of book-entry transfer into your account
at the Book-Entry Transfer Facility), a properly completed and duly executed
Letter of Transmittal (or facsimile thereof) with any required signature
guarantees and any other required documents. You shall issue New Securities
only in denominations of $1,000 or any integral multiple thereof.
9. Tenders pursuant to the Exchange Offer are irrevocable, except that,
subject to the terms and upon the conditions set forth in the Prospectus and
the Letter of Transmittal, Old Securities tendered pursuant to the Exchange
Offer may be withdrawn at any time prior to the Expiration Date.
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10. The Company shall not be required to exchange any Old Securities
tendered if any of the conditions set forth in the Exchange Offer are not met.
Notice of any decision by the Company not to exchange any Old Securities
tendered shall be given (and confirmed in writing) by the Company to you.
11. If, pursuant to the Exchange Offer, the Company does not accept for
exchange all or part of the Old Securities tendered because of an invalid
tender or otherwise, you shall as soon as practicable after the expiration or
termination of the Exchange Offer return those certificates for unaccepted Old
Securities (or effect appropriate book-entry transfer), together with any
related required documents and the Letters of Transmittal relating thereto
that are in your possession, to the persons who deposited them.
12. All certificates for reissued Old Securities, unaccepted Old Securities
or for New Securities shall be forwarded by (a) first-class certified mail,
return receipt requested under a blanket surety bond protecting you and the
Company from loss or liability arising out of the non-receipt or non-delivery
of such certificates or (b) by registered mail insured separately for the
replacement value of each of such certificates.
13. You are not authorized to pay or offer to pay any concessions,
commissions or solicitation fees to any broker, dealer, bank or other persons
or to engage or utilize any person to solicit tenders.
14. As Exchange Agent hereunder you:
(a) shall have no duties or obligations other than those specifically set
forth herein or as may be subsequently agreed to in writing by you and the
Company;
(b) will be regarded as making no representations and having no
responsibilities as to the validity, sufficiency, value or genuineness of
any of the certificates or the Old Securities represented thereby deposited
with you pursuant to the Exchange Offer, and will not be required to and
will make no representation as to the validity, value or genuineness of the
Exchange Offer;
(c) shall not be obligated to take any legal action hereunder which might
in your reasonable judgment involve any expense or liability, unless you
shall have been furnished with reasonable indemnity;
(d) may reasonably rely on and shall be protected in acting in reliance
upon any certificate, instrument, opinion, notice, letter, telegram or
other document or security delivered to you and reasonably believed by you
to be genuine and to have been signed by the proper party or parties;
(e) may reasonably act upon any tender, statement, request, comment,
agreement or other instrument whatsoever not only as to its due execution
and validity and effectiveness of its provisions, but also as to the truth
and accuracy of any information contained therein, which you shall in good
faith believe to be genuine or to have been signed or represented by a
proper person or persons;
(f) may rely on and shall be protected in acting upon written or oral
instructions from any officer of the Company;
(g) may consult with your counsel with respect to any questions relating
to your duties and responsibilities and the advice or opinion of such
counsel shall be full and complete authorization and protection in respect
of any action taken, suffered or omitted to be taken by you hereunder in
good faith and in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel;
and
(h) shall not advise any person tendering Old Securities pursuant to the
Exchange Offer as to the wisdom of making such tender or as to the market
value or decline or appreciation in market value of any Old Securities.
15. You shall take such action as may from time to time be requested by the
Company or its counsel (and such other action as you may reasonably deem
appropriate) to furnish copies of the Prospectus, Letter of Transmittal and
the Notice of Guaranteed Delivery (as defined in the Prospectus) or such other
forms as may be approved from time to time by the Company, to all persons
requesting such documents and to accept and comply with telephone requests for
information relating to the Exchange Offer, provided that such information
shall relate only to the procedures for accepting (or withdrawing from) the
Exchange Offer. The Company will furnish
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you with copies of such documents at your request. All other requests for
information relating to the Exchange Offer shall be directed to the Company,
Attention: Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx, Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary.
16. You shall advise by facsimile transmission or telephone, and promptly
thereafter confirm in writing to Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx, Vice President, General
Counsel and Secretary of the Company and such other person or persons as it
may request, daily (and more frequently during the week immediately preceding
the Expiration Date and if otherwise requested) up to and including the
Expiration Date, as to the number of Old Securities which have been tendered
pursuant to the Exchange Offer and the items received by you pursuant to this
Agreement, separately reporting and giving cumulative totals as to items
properly received and items improperly received. In addition, you will also
inform, and cooperate in making available to, the Company or any such other
person or persons upon oral request made from time to time prior to the
Expiration Date of such other information as it or he or she reasonably
requests. Such cooperation shall include, without limitation, the granting by
you to the Company and such person as the Company may request of access to
those persons on your staff who are responsible for receiving tenders, in
order to ensure that immediately prior to the Expiration Date the Company
shall have received information in sufficient detail to enable it to decide
whether to extend the Exchange Offer. You shall prepare a final list of all
persons whose tenders were accepted, the aggregate principal amount of Old
Securities tendered, the aggregate principal amount of Old Securities accepted
and deliver said list to the Company.
17. Letters of Transmittal and Notices of Guaranteed Delivery shall be
stamped by you as to the date and the time of receipt thereof and shall be
preserved by you for a period of time at least equal to the period of time you
preserve other records pertaining to the transfer of securities. You shall
dispose of unused Letters of Transmittal and other surplus materials by
returning them to the Company.
18. You hereby expressly waive any lien, encumbrance or right of set-off
whatsoever that you may have with respect to funds deposited with you for the
payment of transfer taxes by reasons of amounts, if any, borrowed by the
Company, or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates pursuant to any loan or
credit agreement with you or for compensation owed to you hereunder.
19. For services rendered as Exchange Agent hereunder, you shall be entitled
to such compensation as set forth on Schedule I attached hereto.
20. You hereby acknowledge receipt of the Prospectus and the Letter of
Transmittal and further acknowledge that you have examined each of them. Any
inconsistency between this Agreement, on the one hand, and the Prospectus and
the Letter of Transmittal (as they may be amended from time to time), on the
other hand, shall be resolved in favor of the latter two documents, except
with respect to the duties, liabilities and indemnification of you as Exchange
Agent, which shall be controlled by this Agreement.
21. The Company covenants and agrees to indemnify and hold you harmless in
your capacity as Exchange Agent hereunder against any loss, liability, cost or
expense, including attorney's fees and expenses, arising out of or in
connection with any act, omission, delay or refusal made by you in reliance
upon any signature, endorsement, assignment, certificate, order, request,
notice, instruction or other instrument or document reasonably believed by you
to be valid, genuine and sufficient and in accepting any tender or effecting
any transfer of Old Securities reasonably believed by you in good faith to be
authorized, and in delaying or refusing in good faith to accept any tenders or
effect any transfer of Old Securities; provided, however, that the Company
shall not be liable for indemnification or otherwise for any loss, liability,
cost or expense to the extent arising out of your gross negligence or willful
misconduct. In no case shall the Company be liable under this indemnity with
respect to any claim against you unless the Company shall be notified by you,
by letter or cable or by facsimile confirmed by letter, of the written
assertion of a claim against you or of any other action commenced against you,
promptly after you shall have received any such written assertion or notice of
commencement of action. The Company shall be entitled to participate at its
own expense in the defense of any such claim or other action, and, if the
Company so elects, the Company shall assume the defense of any suit brought to
enforce any such claim. In the event that the Company shall assume the defense
of any such suit, the Company shall not be liable for the fees and expenses of
any additional counsel thereafter retained by you so long as the Company shall
retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to you to defend such suit.
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22. You shall arrange to comply with all requirements under the tax laws of
the United States, including those relating to missing Tax Identification
Numbers, and shall file any appropriate reports with the Internal Revenue
Service. The Company understands that you are required to deduct 31% on
payments to holders who have not supplied their correct Taxpayer
Identification Number or required certification. Such funds will be turned
over to the Internal Revenue Service in accordance with applicable
regulations.
23. You shall deliver or cause to be delivered, in a timely manner to each
governmental authority to which any transfer taxes are payable in respect of
the exchange of Old Securities, your check in the amount of all transfer taxes
so payable, and the Company shall reimburse you for the amount of any and all
transfer taxes payable in respect of the exchange of Old Securities; provided,
however, that you shall reimburse the Company for amounts refunded to you in
respect of your payment of any such transfer taxes, at such time as such
refund is received by you.
24. This Agreement and your appointment as Exchange Agent hereunder shall be
construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of New York
applicable to agreements made and to be performed entirely within such state,
and without regard to conflicts of law principles, and shall inure to the
benefit of, and the obligations created hereby shall be binding upon, the
successors and assigns of each of the parties hereto.
25. This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of
which shall be deemed to be an original and all of which taken together shall
constitute one and the same agreement.
26. In case any provision of this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or
unenforceable, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining
provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.
27. This Agreement shall not be deemed or construed to be modified, amended,
rescinded, cancelled or waived, in whole or in part, except by a written
instrument signed by a duly authorized representative of the party to be
charged. This Agreement may not be modified orally.
28. Unless otherwise provided herein, all notices, requests and other
communications to any party hereunder shall be in writing (including facsimile
or similar writing) and shall be given to such party, addressed to it, at its
address or telecopy number set forth below:
If to the Company:
Newport News Shipbuilding Inc.
0000 Xxxxxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxx Xxxx, Xxxxxxxx 00000
Facsimile: (000) 000-0000
Attention: Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx, Esq.
If to the Exchange Agent:
The Bank of New York
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxx 00 Xxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000
Facsimile: (000) 000-0000
Attention: Corporate Trust Trustee
Administration
29. Unless terminated earlier by the parties hereto, this Agreement shall
terminate 90 days following the Expiration Date. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, Paragraphs 17, 19, 21 and 23 shall survive the termination of this
Agreement. Upon any termination of this Agreement, you shall promptly deliver
to the Company any certificates for Securities, funds or property then held by
you as Exchange Agent under this Agreement.
30. This Agreement shall be binding and effective as of the date hereof.
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Please acknowledge receipt of this Agreement and confirm the arrangements
herein provided by signing and returning the enclosed copy.
Newport News Shipbuilding Inc.
By: _________________________________
Name:
Title:
Accepted as the date
first above written:
The Bank of New York, as Exchange Agent
By: _________________________________
Name:
Title:
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SCHEDULE I
FEES
NEWPORT NEWS SHIPBUILDING, INC.
EXCHANGE OFFER FOR
$200MM--8 5/8% SENIOR NOTES DUE 12-1-06
$200MM--9 1/4% SENIOR SUBORDINATED NOTES DUE 12-1-06
I. ACCEPTANCE FEE Waived [/R]
Our Acceptance Fee includes review of all relevant documentation, closing of
transaction, setting up records and opening accounts.
II. ADMINISTRATIVE FEE $2,500 [/R]
Our administrative fee covers all duties of the Agent including distributing
exchange offer documents to DTC, reporting to company. Fees shall be billed
upon expiration of offer.
III. EXTENSIONS (IF APPLICABLE) $ 500 [/R]
IV. OUT OF POCKET EXPENSES
Fees quoted do not include any out-of-pocket expenses including, but not
limited to, travel, expenses of foreign depositaries, facsimile, stationery,
postage, telephone, overnight courier, and messenger costs. These expenses
will be billed, at our cost, when incurred. In the event the transaction
terminated before closing, all out-of-pocket expenses incurred, including our
counsel fees, if applicable, will be billed to the account.
V. EXTERNAL COUNSEL FEES
Fees quoted do not include external counsel fees. A xxxx for counsel fees
incurred up to closing will be presented for payment on the closing date.
VI. EXTRAORDINARY SERVICES
Charges for the performance of any service not of a routine administrative
nature or not contemplated at closing and specifically covered elsewhere in
this schedule of fees will be determined by appraisal in amounts commensurate
with the service rendered.
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