New Fortress Energy receives notice from Nasdaq for non-compliance

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(Reuters) -U.S. LNG company New Fortress Energy on Tuesday said it received an expected notice from Nasdaq on non-compliance with the stock market’s listing rule for not submitting its quarterly reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Earlier this month, the company had flagged it would extend its quarterly filing with the U.S. securities regulator due to a delay in completing the previously announced sale of its business in Jamaica and the resignation of its accounting chief.

New Fortress Energy has 60 days from receiving the Nasdaq notice to submit a compliance plan. If approved, the company will have until November 11, or 180 days from the original due date, to file its Form 10-Q and regain compliance.

However, the company expects to file the Form 10-Q well ahead of the Nasdaq deadline.

Last year, the company began exploring options such as bringing in strategic partners or selling assets after deferring shareholder dividends to preserve cash and working out a deal with bondholders to push back maturities.

Its financial woes stem from its inability to secure long-term LNG agreements for its power-generation assets in Latin America due to its credit not being investment-grade, forcing the company to acquire the gas at higher prices.

New Fortress in May posted a quarterly loss due to weak performance across segments and announced the completion of its $1.06 billion Jamaica asset sale to Excelerate Energy.

The notice will not pose an immediate impact on the listing or trading of the company’s securities on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

(Reporting by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)