Tulsa office building makes up for loss of oil company

TULSA — Even before Samson Resources Corp.’s abbreviated lease expires, a new tenant has been lined up for much of the already-vacated space in Tulsa’s Williams Center Towers, the building’s Tulsa-based leasing agent said Monday.

The Tulsa-based oil and natural gas producer’s lease was set to expire in 2025 until a bankruptcy judge allowed the company to scale the lease to 30,000 square feet from 200,000 square feet previously and to negotiate for a lower rate, said Bill Daniels, co-owner at Daniels Greer Properties LLC. Daniels Greer is the leasing agent for Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Real Estate Investors LLC, which owns Williams Center Towers.

Samson announced in February that it is relocating to 60,000 square feet in nearby First Place Tower. The company already has left Williams Center Towers, even though the lease now runs through the end of March.

Analysts at Morningstar Credit Ratings LLC on Monday said that the loss of its largest tenant reduced the value of Williams Center Towers by 42 percent and put the building owner in danger of defaulting on its $45.5 million securitized loan.

Daniels, however, said 140,000 square feet of Samson’s space already has been leased, with the new occupier set to move in by August.

“I’ve had extensive contact with the lenders. There’s no problem with” (the loan), Daniels said.

Morningstar’s Edward Dittmer said he was unaware of the new lease.

“If that’s the case, it’s certainly good news for the borrower,” said Dittmer, Morningstar’s senior vice president of commercial mortgagebacked securities analytical services.

“I’m surprised they were able to get that lease up so quickly. That’s excellent news. It looks like they were pretty proactive in looking for a tenant while Samson was going through bankruptcy.

Samson emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization as Samson Resources II on March 1 after shedding $4 billion in debt and nearly $300 million in annual interest expenses.