Leed Petroleum Agrees To Higher Interest Rate After Default

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Gulf of Mexico-focused oil and gas company Leed Petroleum PLC (LDP.LN) said Thursday it agreed to pay its bank higher interest rates after production problems hurt earnings and put it in breach of its loans. Leed Petroleum said it told its bank there was a technical default on its credit facility at June 30 relating to certain earnings requirements caused by problems with a well at Eugene Island, off the coast of Louisiana. Leed said its bank waived the default in exchange for higher interest payments. The company said net attributable production for the three months to June 30 was 1,391 barrels of oil equivalent a day, a 45% improvement on the previous quarter. -By Jason Douglas, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-20-7842-9272; jason.douglas@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 01, 2010 03:35 ET (07:35 GMT)