Bermuda-registered Sea Containers Ltd. is scheduled to ask the US Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware, for authority to obtain $176.5 million in secured financing provided by three of the five members of its official unsecured creditors' committee.

Sea Containers has a non-bankrupt unit, Sea Containers SPC Ltd., whose assets are threatened with foreclosure by the secured lenders, Wachovia Capital Markets LLC and Ableco Finance LLC. The lenders demanded payment on $141 million in debt, contending Sea Containers violated loan agreement covenants. Sea Containers didn't agree about the default. The company did conclude paying off the loan was the best business decision to preserve the value of the unit's assets.

The new lenders would be Caspian Capital Partners LP, Dune Capital LP and Trilogy Capital LLC. The new financing would consist of a $151.5 million term loan and a $25 million revolving credit. The term loan will pay interest of at least 3.5 percent above London interbank offered rate while the spread on the revolving credit would be 4 percent.

The Chapter 11 filing last October by Sea Containers was one of the three largest reorganisations begun last year in the US. The company filed to reorganise after losing the licence from the British government to operate a passenger train from London to Scotland known as the GNER.

Sea Containers continues to operate the train line under an interim agreement with the British government until a new operator is selected.

The petition listed assets of $1.7 billion and debt of $1.6 billion. Sea Containers has more than 100 subsidiaries that aren't in bankruptcy protection.

Sea Containers lists a head office in Bermuda where it is incorporated. The executive offices are in London. Most of its operations are in the UK.