Trucker YRC Pledges Real Estate To Pension Fund

YRC also said Thursday it has inked a deal to amend its credit agreement with lenders, which allows the company to direct $73 million in funds from previous real estate deals to repay some of the debt under its revolving credit facility.

The company has closed about $94 million in real estate sale and leaseback deals since the quarter began, and it forecasts it will close another $77 million in these deals currently under contract. A sale and leaseback transaction is an agreement where one company sells a property to a buyer and the buyer then leases the property back to the seller. In this case, it lets YRC get cash quickly to pay its debts while still using the properties.

"These transactions are especially critical as we continue to face substantial headwinds from the global economic recession," Chairman, President and CEO Bill Zollars said in a statement. "Today's announcement marks important milestones, which are part of our overall strategy to provide us with greater financial flexibility during the economic recession, giving us additional liquidity and the ability to use our cash to support the business."

The company's pension obligations are estimated at about $2 billion. Zollars has claimed the pension obligations are unfair because YRC must now pay for employees who never worked for the company.