As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 13, 2011

Registration Statement No. 333-      

­ ­

 

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

 

 

FORM F-3

 

 

 

 

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

 

 

TEEKAY OFFSHORE PARTNERS L.P.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

 

 

 

4th Floor, Belvedere Building,

69 Pitts Bay Road,

Hamilton HM 08, Bermuda

Telephone: (441) 298-2530

Fax: (441) 292-3931

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of Registrant’s principal executive office)

 

 

Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP

Attention: Daniel C. Rodgers

1133 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10036

(212) 922-2200

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

 

 

 

 

Copy to:

 

David S. Matheson and M. Christopher Hall

Perkins Coie LLP

1120 N.W. Couch Street, Tenth Floor

Portland, OR 97209-4128

(503) 727-2048

 

 

 

 

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public:  From time to time after this registration statement becomes effective, as determined by market conditions.

 

If the only securities being registered on this form are being offered pursuant to dividend or interest reinvestment plans, please check the following box. o

 

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, check the following box. þ

 

If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o

 

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. o

 

If this Form is a registration statement pursuant to General Instruction I.C. or a post-effective amendment thereto that shall become effective upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) under the Securities Act, check the following box. þ

 

If this Form is a post-effective amendment to a registration statement filed pursuant to General Instruction I.C. filed to register additional securities or additional classes of securities pursuant to Rule 413(b) under the Securities Act, check the following box. o

 

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

 

The Registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

 

PROSPECTUS

 

$750,000,000

 

 

Teekay Offshore Partners L.P.

 

 

Common Units Representing Limited Partner Interests

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We may offer from time to time common units, which represent limited partnership interests in Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. The common units offered by this prospectus will have an aggregate offering price of up to $750,000,000.

 

We may offer these securities directly or to or through underwriters, dealers or other agents. The names of any underwriters or dealers will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. Our common units are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TOO.”

 

This prospectus provides you with a general description of the securities we may offer. Each time we offer to sell securities we will provide a prospectus supplement that will contain specific information about those securities and the terms of that offering. The prospectus supplement may also add, update or change information contained in this prospectus. This prospectus may be used to offer and sell securities only if accompanied by a prospectus supplement. You should read this prospectus and any prospectus supplement carefully before you invest. You should also read the documents we refer to in the “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation of Documents by Reference” sections of this prospectus for information about us and our financial statements.

 

Limited partnerships are inherently different than corporations. You should carefully consider each of the factors described or referred to under “Risk Factors” beginning on page 5 of this prospectus before you make an investment in our securities.

 

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

 

 

 

May 13, 2011

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus, any prospectus supplement and the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone else to give you different information. If anyone provides you with additional, different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. We are not offering these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement, as well as the information we previously filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (or SEC) that is incorporated by reference into this prospectus, is accurate as of any date other than its respective date. We will disclose material changes in our affairs in an amendment to this prospectus, a prospectus supplement or a future filing with the SEC incorporated by reference in this prospectus.

 

This prospectus is part of a registration statement on Form F-3 that we have filed with the SEC using a “shelf” registration process. Under this shelf registration process, we may sell the common units described in this prospectus in one or more offerings up to an aggregate offering price of $750,000,000. This prospectus generally describes us and the securities we may offer. Each time we offer securities with this prospectus, we will provide this prospectus and a prospectus supplement that will describe, among other things, the specific amounts and prices of the securities being offered and the terms of the offering. The prospectus supplement may also add to, update or change information in this prospectus. If information varies between this prospectus and any prospectus supplement, you should rely on the information in the prospectus supplement.

 

Unless otherwise indicated, references in this prospectus to “Teekay Offshore Partners,” “we,” “us” and “our” and similar terms refer to Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. and/or one or more of its subsidiaries, except that those terms, when used in this prospectus in connection with the common units described herein, shall mean specifically Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. References in this prospectus to “Teekay Corporation” refer to Teekay Corporation and/or any one or more of its subsidiaries.

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all references in this prospectus to “dollars” and “$” are to, and amounts are presented in, U.S. Dollars, and financial information presented in this prospectus is prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (or GAAP).

 

You should read carefully this prospectus, any prospectus supplement, and the additional information described below under the headings “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation of Documents by Reference.”

 

All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included in or incorporated by reference into this prospectus and any prospectus supplements are forward-looking statements. In addition, we and our representatives may from time to time make other oral or written statements that are also forward-looking statements. Such statements include, in particular, statements about our plans, strategies, business prospects, changes and trends in our business, and the markets in which we operate. In some cases, you can identify the forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “forecast,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “propose,” “potential,” “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology.

 

Forward-looking statements are made based upon management’s current plans, expectations, estimates, assumptions and beliefs concerning future events affecting us. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those risks discussed in “Risk Factors” set forth in this prospectus and those risks discussed in other reports we file with the SEC and that are incorporated into this prospectus by reference, including, without limitation, our Annual Report on Form 20-F. The risks, uncertainties and assumptions involve known and unknown risks and are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies, many of which are beyond our control. We caution that forward-looking statements are not guarantees and that actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements.

 

We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which such statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of these factors. In addition, we cannot assess the effect of each such factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to be materially different from those contained in any forward-looking statement.

 

Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. is an international provider of marine transportation, oil production and storage services to the offshore oil industry. We were formed in August 2006 by Teekay Corporation (NYSE:TK), a leading provider of marine services to the global oil and gas industries, to further develop its operations in the offshore market. Our growth strategy focuses on expanding our fleet of shuttle tankers, floating storage and offtake (or FSO) units and floating production, storage and offloading (or FPSO) units under long-term, fixed-rate time charters or contracts. We intend to continue our practice of acquiring shuttle tankers, FSO units and FPSO units as needed for approved projects only after the long-term charters for the projects have been awarded, rather than ordering vessels on a speculative basis. We may enter into joint ventures and partnerships with companies that may provide increased access to these opportunities or we may engage in vessel or business acquisitions. We seek to leverage the expertise, relationships and reputation of Teekay Corporation and its affiliates to pursue these growth opportunities in the offshore sectors and may consider other opportunities to which our competitive strengths are well suited. We view our conventional tanker fleet primarily as a source of stable cash flow. Teekay Corporation indirectly owns and controls our general partner and beneficially owns a substantial interest in us, including a 2% general partner interest.

 

Our operations are conducted through, and our operating assets are owned by, our subsidiaries. Most of our fleet is indirectly owned through our 100% ownership interest in our operating company, Teekay Offshore Operating L.P., a Marshall Islands limited partnership. Our general partner, Teekay Offshore GP L.L.C., a Marshall Islands limited liability company, has an economic interest in us and manages our operations and activities. Our general partner does not receive any management fee or other compensation in connection with its management of our business, but it is entitled to be reimbursed for all direct and indirect expenses incurred on our behalf. Pursuant to services agreements between us and our subsidiaries, on the one hand, and other subsidiaries of Teekay Corporation, on the other hand, the Teekay Corporation subsidiaries provide to us substantially all of our administrative services and to our subsidiaries substantially all of their strategic consulting, advisory, ship management, technical and administrative services.

 

We are a limited partnership organized under the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands. Our principal executive offices are located at 4th Floor, Belvedere Building, 69 Pitts Bay Road, Hamilton HM 08, Bermuda, and our phone number is (441) 298-2530. Our principal operating office is located at Suite 2000, Bentall 5, 550 Burrard Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V6C 2K2, and our telephone number at such address is (604) 683-3529. Our website address is www.teekayoffshore.com. The information contained in our website is not part of this prospectus.

 

Before investing in our common units, you should carefully consider all of the information included or incorporated by reference into this prospectus. Although many of our business risks are comparable to those of a corporation engaged in a similar business, limited partner interests are inherently different from the capital stock of a corporation. When evaluating an investment in our common units, you should carefully consider the following risk factors together with all other information included in this prospectus, including those risks discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our latest Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC, which are incorporated by reference into this prospectus, and information included in any applicable prospectus supplement.

 

If any of these risks were to occur, our business, financial condition, operating results or cash flows could be materially adversely affected. In that case, we might be unable to pay distributions on our common units, the trading price of our common units could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

 

Risks Inherent in an Investment in Us

 

Our partnership agreement limits our general partner’s fiduciary duties to our unitholders and restricts the remedies available to unitholders for actions taken by our general partner.

 

Our partnership agreement contains provisions that reduce the standards to which our general partner would otherwise be held by Marshall Islands law. For example, our partnership agreement:

 

 

In order to become a limited partner of our partnership, a common unitholder agrees to be bound by the provisions in the partnership agreement, including the provisions discussed above.

 

Fees and cost reimbursements, which our general partner determines for services provided to us, are substantial and reduce our cash available for distribution to our common unitholders.

 

Prior to making any distribution on the common units, we pay fees for services provided to us and our operating subsidiaries by certain subsidiaries of Teekay Corporation, and we reimburse our general partner for all expenses it incurs on our behalf. These fees are negotiated on our behalf by our general partner, and our general partner also determines the amounts it is reimbursed. These fees and expenses include all costs incurred in providing certain advisory, ship management, technical and administrative services to us and our operating subsidiaries. The payment of fees to Teekay Corporation and reimbursement of expenses to our general partner could adversely affect our ability to pay cash distributions to our common unitholders.

 

Our general partner, which is owned and controlled by Teekay Corporation, makes all decisions on our behalf, subject to the limited voting rights of our common unitholders. Even if public unitholders are dissatisfied, they cannot remove our general partner without Teekay Corporation’s consent.

 

Unlike the holders of common stock in a corporation, unitholders have only limited voting rights on matters affecting our business and, therefore, limited ability to influence management’s decisions regarding our business. Unitholders did not elect our general partner or its board of directors and have no right to elect our general partner or its board of directors on an annual or other continuing basis. Teekay Corporation, which owns and controls our general partner, appoints our general partner’s board of directors. Our general partner makes all decisions on our behalf. If the unitholders are dissatisfied with the performance of our general partner, they have little ability to remove our general partner. As a result of these limitations, the price at which the common units trade could be diminished because of the absence or reduction of a takeover premium in the trading price.

 

The vote of the holders of at least 662/3% of all outstanding units voting together as a single class is required to remove the general partner. As of the date of this prospectus, Teekay Corporation owned a sufficient number of units to prevent the removal of the general partner.

 

In addition, unitholders’ voting rights are further restricted by our partnership agreement provision providing that any units held by a person that owns 20% or more of any class of units then outstanding, other than our general partner, its affiliates, their transferees, and persons who acquired such units with the prior approval of the board of directors of our general partner, cannot vote on any matter. Our partnership agreement also contains provisions limiting the ability of unitholders to call meetings or to acquire information about our operations, as well as other provisions limiting the unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management.

 

The control of our general partner may be transferred to a third party without unitholder consent.

 

On or after December 31, 2016, our general partner may transfer its general partner interest to a third party in a merger or in a sale of all or substantially all of its assets without the consent of the unitholders. In addition, our partnership agreement does not restrict the ability of the members of our general partner from transferring their respective membership interests in our general partner to a third party. In the event of any such transfer, the new members of our general partner would be in a position to replace the board of directors and officers of our general partner with their own choices and to control the decisions taken by the board of directors and officers.

 

Our partnership agreement restricts the voting rights of unitholders owning 20% or more of our common units.

 

Our partnership agreement restricts unitholders’ voting rights by providing that any units held by a person that owns 20% or more of any class of units then outstanding, other than our general partner, its affiliates, their transferees and persons who acquired such units with the prior approval of the board of directors of our general partner, cannot vote on any matter. The partnership agreement also contains provisions limiting the ability of unitholders to call meetings or to acquire information about our operations, as well as other provisions limiting the unitholders’ ability to influence the manner or direction of management.

 

In establishing cash reserves, our general partner may reduce the amount of cash available for distribution to unitholders.

 

Our partnership agreement requires our general partner to deduct from our operating surplus cash reserves that it determines are necessary to fund our future operating expenditures. These reserves affect the amount of cash available for distribution by us to our unitholders. Furthermore, our partnership agreement requires our general partner each quarter to deduct from operating surplus estimated maintenance capital expenditures, as opposed to actual expenditures, which could reduce the amount of available cash for distribution.

 

We can borrow money to pay distributions, which would reduce the amount of credit available to operate our business.

 

Our partnership agreement allows us to make working capital borrowings to pay distributions. Accordingly, we can make distributions on all our units even though cash generated by our operations may not be sufficient to pay such distributions. Any working capital borrowings by us to make distributions may reduce the amount of working capital borrowings we can make for operating our business.

 

Unitholders may have liability to repay distributions.

 

Under certain circumstances, unitholders may have to repay amounts wrongfully distributed to them. Under the Marshall Islands Limited Partnership Act (or Marshall Islands Act), we may not make a distribution to unitholders if the distribution would cause our liabilities to exceed the fair value of our assets. Marshall Islands law provides that for a period of three years from the date of the impermissible distribution, limited partners who received the distribution and who knew at the time of the distribution that it violated Marshall Islands law will be liable to the limited partnership for the distribution amount. Purchasers of units who become limited partners are liable for the obligations of the transferring limited partner to make contributions to the partnership that are known to the purchaser at the time it became a limited partner and for unknown obligations if the liabilities could be determined from the partnership agreement. Liabilities to partners on account of their partnership interest and liabilities that are non-recourse to the partnership are not counted for purposes of determining whether a distribution is permitted.

 

We may issue additional equity securities without unitholder approval, which would dilute their ownership interests.

 

Our general partner, without the approval of our unitholders, may cause us to issue an unlimited number of additional units or other equity securities of equal or senior rank. The issuance by us of additional common units or other equity securities will have the following effects:

 

 

Our general partner has a call right that may require common unitholders to sell their common units at an undesirable time or price.

 

If at any time our general partner and its affiliates hold more than 80% of the then-issued and outstanding partnership securities of any class, our general partner will have the right, which it may assign in whole or in part to any of its affiliates or to us, to acquire all, but not less than all, of the remaining partnership securities of the class held by unaffiliated persons as of a record date to be selected by our general partner, on at least 10 but not more than 60 days’ notice. The purchase price in this event is the greater of (x) the average of the daily closing prices of the partnership securities of such class over the 20 trading days preceding the date three days before notice of exercise of the call right is first mailed and (y) the highest price paid by our general partner or any of its affiliates for partnership securities of such class during the 90-day period preceding the date such notice is first mailed. As a result of our general partner’s right to purchase outstanding partnership securities, a holder of partnership securities may have the holder’s partnership securities purchased at an undesirable time or price. Common unitholders may also incur a tax liability upon a sale of their units.

 

Increases in interest rates may cause the market price of our common units to decline.

 

An increase in interest rates may cause a corresponding decline in demand for equity investments in general, and in particular for yield-based equity investments such as our common units. Any such increase in interest rates or reduction in demand for our common units resulting from other relatively more attractive investment opportunities may cause the trading price of our common units to decline.

 

We have been organized as a limited partnership under the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands, which does not have a well-developed body of partnership law.

 

Our partnership affairs are governed by our partnership agreement and by the Marshall Islands Act. The provisions of the Marshall Islands Act resemble provisions of the limited partnership laws of a number of states in the United States, most notably Delaware. The Marshall Islands Act also provides that it is to be applied and construed to make it uniform with the Delaware Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act and, so long as it does not conflict with the Marshall Islands Act or decisions of the Marshall Islands courts, interpreted according to the non-statutory law (or case law) of the courts of the State of Delaware. There have been, however, few, if any, court cases in the Marshall Islands interpreting the Marshall Islands Act, in contrast to Delaware, which has a fairly well-developed body of case law interpreting its limited partnership statute. Accordingly, we cannot predict whether Marshall Islands courts would reach the same conclusions as Delaware courts. For example, the rights of our unitholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our general partner under

Marshall Islands law are not as clearly established as under judicial precedent in existence in Delaware. As a result, unitholders may have more difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions by our general partner and its officers and directors than would unitholders of a limited partnership formed in the United States.

 

Because we are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands, it may be difficult to serve us with legal process or enforce judgments against us, our directors or our management.

 

We are organized under the laws of the Marshall Islands, and all of our assets are located outside of the United States. Our business is operated primarily from our offices in Bermuda, Norway and Singapore. In addition, our general partner is a Marshall Islands limited liability company and a majority of its directors and officers are non-residents of the United States, and all or a substantial portion of the assets of these non-residents are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individuals in the United States if you believe that your rights have been infringed under securities laws or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the laws of the Marshall Islands and of other jurisdictions may prevent or restrict you from enforcing a judgment against our assets or the assets of our general partner or its directors and officers. For more information regarding the relevant laws of the Marshall Islands, please read “Service of Process and Enforcement of Civil Liabilities.”

 

Tax Risks

 

U.S. tax authorities could treat us as a “passive foreign investment company,” which could have adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. holders.

 

A foreign entity taxed as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes will be treated as a “passive foreign investment company” (or PFIC) for U.S. federal income tax purposes if at least 75% of its gross income for any taxable year consists of certain types of “passive income,” or at least 50% of the average value of the entity’s assets produce or are held for the production of those types of “passive income.” For purposes of these tests, “passive income” includes dividends, interest, and gains from the sale or exchange of investment property and rents and royalties, other than rents and royalties that are received from unrelated parties in connection with the active conduct of a trade or business. By contrast, income derived from the performance of services does not constitute “passive income.”

 

There are legal uncertainties involved in determining whether the income derived from our time chartering activities constitutes rental income or income derived from the performance of services, including the decision in Tidewater Inc. v. United States, 565 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2009), which held that income derived from certain time chartering activities should be treated as rental income rather than services income for purposes of a foreign sales corporation provision of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (or the Code). However, the Internal Revenue Service (or IRS) stated in an Action on Decision (AOD 2010-001) that it disagrees with, and will not acquiesce to, the way that the rental versus services framework was applied to the facts in the Tidewater decision, and in its discussion stated that the time charters at issue in Tidewater would be treated as producing services income for PFIC purposes. The IRS’s statement with respect to Tidewater cannot be relied upon or otherwise cited as precedent by taxpayers. Consequently, in the absence of any binding legal authority specifically relating to the statutory provisions governing PFICs, there can be no assurance that the IRS or a court would not follow the Tidewater decision in interpreting the PFIC provisions of the Code. Nevertheless, based on our current assets and operations, we intend to take the position that we are not now and have never been a PFIC, and our counsel, Perkins Coie LLP, is of the opinion that it is more likely than not we are not a PFIC based on representations we have made to them regarding the composition of our assets, the source of our income and the nature of our activities and other operations following this offering. No assurance can be given, however, that the opinion of Perkins Coie LLP would be sustained by a court if contested by the IRS, or that we would not constitute a PFIC for any future taxable year if there were to be changes in our assets, income or operations.

 

If the IRS were to determine that we are or have been a PFIC for any taxable year, U.S. unitholders will face adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences. Under the PFIC rules, unless those U.S. unitholders timely make certain elections available under the Code, such unitholders would be liable to pay tax at ordinary income tax rates plus interest upon certain distributions and upon any gain from the disposition of our common units, as if such distribution or gain had been recognized ratably over the unitholder’s holding period. Please read “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations — United States Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders — Consequences of Possible PFIC Classification” beginning on page 22 of this prospectus.

 

The preferential tax rates applicable to qualified dividend income expire for tax years beginning after December 31, 2012, and the absence of legislation extending the term would cause our dividends to be taxed at ordinary graduated tax rates.

 

Certain of our distributions may be treated as qualified dividend income eligible for preferential rates of U.S. federal income tax to U.S. individual unitholders (and certain other U.S. unitholders). In the absence of legislation extending the term for these preferential tax rates or providing for some other treatment, all dividends received by such U.S. taxpayers in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012 will be taxed at ordinary graduated tax rates. Please read “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations — United States Federal Income Taxation of U.S. Holders — Distributions” beginning on page 21 of this prospectus.

 

Common unitholders may be subject to income tax in one or more non-U.S. countries, including Canada, as a result of owning our common units if, under the laws of any such country, we are considered to be carrying on business there. Such laws may require common unitholders to file a tax return with, and pay taxes to, those countries.

 

We intend that our affairs and the business of each of our subsidiaries is conducted and operated in a manner that minimizes foreign income taxes or which may be imposed upon you as a result of owning our common units. However, there is a risk that common unitholders will be subject to tax in one or more countries, including Canada, as a result of owning our common units if, under the laws of any such country, we are considered to be carrying on business there. If common unitholders are subject to tax in any such country, common unitholders may be required to file a tax return with, and pay taxes to, that country based on their allocable share of our income. We may be required to reduce distributions to common unitholders on account of any withholding obligations imposed upon us by that country in respect of such allocation to common unitholders. The United States may not allow a tax credit for any foreign income taxes that common unitholders directly or indirectly incur.

 

Unless we specify otherwise in any prospectus supplement, we will use the net proceeds from our sale of securities covered by this prospectus for general partnership purposes, which may include, among other things:

 

 

The actual application of proceeds from the sale of any particular offering of securities covered by this prospectus will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to the offering.

 

Our common units represent limited partner interests in us. The holders of units are entitled to participate in partnership distributions and exercise the rights and privileges available to limited partners under our partnership agreement. For a description of the relative rights and privileges of holders of common units and our general partner in and to partnership distributions, please read “Cash Distributions.”

 

The number of our common units outstanding, and those held by Teekay Corporation, which owns our general partner, are provided in our Annual Report on Form 20-F and in the quarterly reports we provide on Form 6-K. The common units represent an aggregate 98% limited partner interest and the general partner interest represents a 2% general partner interest in us.

 

Our partnership agreement authorizes us to issue an unlimited number of additional partnership securities and rights to buy partnership securities for the consideration and on the terms and conditions determined by our general partner without the approval of our unitholders.

 

We may fund acquisitions through the issuance of additional common units or other equity securities. Holders of any additional common units we issue will be entitled to share equally with the then-existing holders of common units in our distributions of available cash. In addition, the issuance of additional common units or other equity securities interests may dilute the value of the interests of the then-existing holders of common units in our net assets.

 

In accordance with Marshall Islands law and the provisions of our partnership agreement, we may also issue additional partnership securities interests that, as determined by the general partner, have special voting or other rights to which the common units are not entitled.

 

Upon issuance of additional partnership securities, our general partner will have the right, but not the obligation, to make additional capital contributions to the extent necessary to maintain its 2% general partner interest in us. In addition, our general partner and its affiliates have the right, which it may from time to time assign in whole or in part to any of its affiliates, to purchase common units or other equity securities whenever, and on the same terms that, we issue those securities to persons other than our general partner and its affiliates, to the extent necessary to maintain its and its affiliates’ percentage interest, including its interest represented by common units, that existed immediately prior to each issuance. Other holders of common units do not have similar preemptive rights to acquire additional common units or other partnership securities.

 

Unlike the holders of common stock in a corporation, the holders of our units have only limited voting rights on matters affecting our business. They have no right to elect our general partner (who manages our operations and activities), or the directors of our general partner, on an annual or other continuing basis. On those matters that are submitted to a vote of unitholders, each record holder of a unit may vote according to the holder’s percentage interest in us, although additional limited partner interests having special voting rights could be issued. However, if at any time any person or group, other than our general partner and its affiliates, or a direct or subsequently approved transferee of our general partner or its affiliates or a transferee approved by the board of directors of our general partner, acquires, in the aggregate, beneficial ownership of 20% or more of any class of units then outstanding, that person or group will lose voting rights on all of its units and the units may not be voted on any matter and will not be considered to be outstanding when sending notices of a meeting of unitholders, calculating required votes, determining the presence of a quorum, or for other similar purposes.

 

The common units held by our general partners or any of its affiliates are not entitled to vote on approval of the withdrawal of our general partner or the transfer by our general partner of its general partner interest or incentive distribution rights under some circumstances. Removal of our general partner requires:

 

 

Except as described above regarding a person or group owning 20% or more of any class of units then outstanding, unitholders as of the record date will be entitled to notice of, and to vote at, any meetings of our limited partners and to act upon matters for which approvals may be solicited. Any action that is required or permitted to be taken by the unitholders may be taken either at a meeting of the unitholders or without a meeting if consents in writing describing the action so taken are signed by holders of the number of units necessary to authorize or take that action at a meeting. Meetings of the unitholders may be called by our general partner or by unitholders owning at least 20% of the outstanding units of the class for which a meeting is proposed. Unitholders may vote either in person or by proxy at meetings. The holders of a majority of the outstanding units of the class or classes for which a meeting has been called, represented in person or by proxy, will constitute a quorum unless any action by the unitholders requires approval by holders of a greater percentage of the units, in which case the quorum will be the greater percentage.

 

Common units held in nominee or street name account will be voted by the broker or other nominee in accordance with the instruction of the beneficial owner unless the arrangement between the beneficial owner and his nominee provides otherwise.

 

If at any time our general partner and its affiliates hold more than 80% of the then-issued and outstanding partnership securities of any class, our general partner will have the right, which it may assign in whole or in part to any of its affiliates or to us, to acquire all, but not less than all, of the remaining partnership securities of the class held by unaffiliated persons as of a record date to be selected by our general partner, on at least 10 but not more than 60 days’ notice. The purchase price in this event is the greater of (x) the average of the daily closing prices of the partnership securities of such class over the 20 trading days preceding the date three days before notice of exercise of the call right is first mailed and (y) the highest price paid by our general partner or any of its affiliates for partnership securities of such class during the 90-day period preceding the date such notice is first mailed.

 

As a result of our general partner’s right to purchase outstanding partnership securities, a holder of partnership securities may have the holder’s partnership securities purchased at an undesirable time or price.

 

Our common units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange, where they trade under the symbol “TOO.”

 

BNY Mellon Shareowner Services serves as registrar and transfer agent for our common units. We pay all fees charged by the transfer agent for transfers of common units, except the following, which must be paid by unitholders:

 

 

There is no charge to unitholders for disbursements of our cash distributions. We will indemnify the transfer agent, its agents and each of their stockholders, directors, officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any liability due to any gross negligence or intentional misconduct of the indemnified person or entity.

 

By transfer of common units in accordance with our partnership agreement, each transferee of common units automatically shall be admitted as a limited partner with respect to the common units transferred when such transfer and admission is reflected in our books and records. Our general partner will cause any transfers to be recorded on our books and records no less frequently than quarterly. Each transferee automatically shall be deemed to:

 

 

 

We are entitled to treat the nominee holder of a common unit as the absolute owner. In that case, the beneficial holder’s rights are limited solely to those that it has against the nominee holder as a result of any agreement between the beneficial owner and the nominee holder.

 

Common units are securities and are transferable according to the laws governing transfer of securities. In addition to other rights acquired upon transfer, the transferor gives the transferee the right to become a limited partner in our partnership for the transferred common units.

 

Merger, Sale, or Other Disposition of Assets.  A merger or consolidation of us requires the consent of our general partner, in addition to the approval of the holders of units representing a unit majority. However, our general partner will have no duty or obligation to consent to any merger or consolidation and may decline to do so free of any fiduciary duty or obligation whatsoever to us or the limited partners, including any duty to act in good faith or in the best interests of us or the limited partners. In addition, our partnership agreement generally prohibits our general partner, without unitholder approval, from causing us to sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of all or substantially all of our assets. Our general partner may, however, mortgage, pledge, hypothecate, or grant a security interest in all or substantially all of our assets without unitholder approval. Our general partner may also sell all or substantially all of our assets under a foreclosure or other realization upon those encumbrances without unitholder approval. The unitholders are not entitled to dissenters’ rights of appraisal under our partnership agreement or applicable law in the event of a conversion, merger or consolidation, a sale of substantially all of our assets, or any other transaction or event.

 

Registration Rights.  Under our partnership agreement, we have agreed to register for resale under the Securities Act of 1933 and applicable state securities laws any common units or other partnership securities proposed to be sold by our general partner or any of its affiliates or their assignees if an exemption from the registration requirements is not otherwise available or advisable. These registration rights continue for two years following any withdrawal or removal of Teekay Offshore GP L.L.C. as our general partner. We are obligated to pay all expenses incidental to the registration, excluding underwriting discounts and commissions.

 

A copy of our partnership agreement is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. A summary of the important provisions of our partnership agreement and the rights and privileges of our unitholders is included in our registration statement on Form 8-A/A as filed with the SEC on May 13, 2011, including any subsequent amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description. In addition to the partnership agreement summary, the Form 8-A/A also describes (1) conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of the relationship between our general partner and its affiliates, including Teekay Corporation, on the one hand, and us and our unaffiliated limited partners on the other hand, and (2) the fiduciary duties our general partner owes us, and possible limitations on those duties. Please read “Where You Can Find More Information” and “Incorporation of Documents by Reference.”

 

 

General

 

Within approximately 45 days after the end of each quarter, we distribute all of our available cash to unitholders of record on the applicable record date.

 

Available Cash

 

Available cash generally means, for each fiscal quarter, all cash on hand at the end of the quarter (including our proportionate share of cash on hand of certain subsidiaries we do not wholly own):

 

 

 

 

Minimum Quarterly Distribution

 

Common unitholders are entitled under our partnership agreement to receive a quarterly distribution of $0.35 per unit, or $1.40 per unit per year, to the extent we have sufficient available cash from our operations after we establish cash reserves and pay fees and expenses, including payments to our general partner. Our general partner has the authority to determine the amount of our available cash for any quarter. This determination, as well as all determinations made by our general partner, must be made in good faith. There is no guarantee that we will pay the minimum quarterly distribution on our common units in any quarter, and we will be prohibited from making any distributions to our unitholders if it would cause an event of default, or an event of default is existing, under our credit facilities.

 

General

 

All cash distributed to unitholders is characterized as either “operating surplus” or “capital surplus.” We treat distributions of available cash from operating surplus differently than distributions of available cash from capital surplus.

 

Definition of Operating Surplus

 

Operating surplus, for any period, generally means:

 

 

 

If a working capital borrowing, which increases operating surplus, is not repaid during the 12-month period following the borrowing, it will be deemed repaid at the end of such period, thus decreasing operating surplus at such time. When such working capital borrowing is in fact repaid, it will not be treated as a reduction in operating surplus because operating surplus will have been previously reduced by the deemed repayment.

 

As described above, operating surplus includes a provision that enables us, if we choose, to distribute as operating surplus up to $15 million of cash we have received or will receive from non-operating sources since the time of our initial public offering, such as asset sales, issuances of securities and long-term borrowing, that would otherwise be distributed as capital surplus. In addition, the effect of including, as described above, certain cash distributions on equity securities or interest payments on debt in operating surplus would also be to increase operating surplus by the amount of any such cash distributions or interest payments. As a result, we may distribute as operating surplus up to the amount of any such cash distributions or interest payments of cash we receive from non-operating sources.

 

Capital Expenditures

 

For purposes of determining operating surplus, maintenance capital expenditures are those capital expenditures required to maintain over the long term the operating capacity of or the revenue generated by capital assets, and expansion capital expenditures are those capital expenditures that increase the operating capacity of or the revenue generated by capital assets. To the extent, however, that capital expenditures associated with acquiring a new vessel increase the revenues or the operating capacity of our fleet, those capital expenditures would be classified as expansion capital expenditures.

 

Investment capital expenditures are those capital expenditures that are neither maintenance capital expenditures nor expansion capital expenditures. Investment capital expenditures largely consist of capital expenditures made for investment purposes.

 

Examples of investment capital expenditures include traditional capital expenditures for investment purposes, such as purchases of securities, as well as other capital expenditures that might be made in lieu of such traditional investment capital expenditures, such as the acquisition of a capital asset for investment purposes.

 

Examples of maintenance capital expenditures include capital expenditures associated with drydocking a vessel or acquiring a new vessel to the extent such expenditures are incurred to maintain the operating capacity of or the revenue generated by our fleet. Maintenance capital expenditures also include interest (and related fees) on debt incurred and distributions on equity issued to finance the construction of a replacement vessel and paid during the construction period, which we define as the period beginning on the date of entry into a binding construction contract and ending on the earlier of the date that the replacement vessel commences commercial service or the date that the replacement vessel is abandoned or disposed of. Debt incurred to pay or equity issued to fund construction period interest payments, and distributions on such equity, are also considered maintenance capital expenditures.

 

Because maintenance capital expenditures may be very large and vary significantly in timing, the amount of actual maintenance capital expenditures may differ substantially from period to period, which could cause similar fluctuations in the amounts of operating surplus, adjusted operating surplus, and available cash for distribution to our unitholders if we subtracted actual maintenance capital expenditures from operating surplus each quarter. Accordingly, to eliminate the effect on operating surplus of these fluctuations, our partnership agreement requires that an amount equal to an estimate of the average quarterly maintenance capital expenditures necessary to maintain the operating capacity of or the revenue generated by our capital assets over the long term be subtracted from operating surplus each quarter, as opposed to the actual amounts spent. The amount of estimated maintenance capital expenditures deducted from operating surplus is subject to review and change by the board of directors of our general partner at least once a year, provided that any change must be approved by the board’s conflicts committee. The estimate is made at least annually and whenever an event occurs that is likely to result in a material adjustment to the amount of our maintenance capital expenditures, such as a major acquisition or the introduction of new governmental regulations that will affect our fleet. For purposes of calculating operating surplus, any adjustment to this estimate is prospective only.

 

The use of estimated maintenance capital expenditures in calculating operating surplus has the following effects:

 

 

Definition of Capital Surplus

 

Capital surplus generally is generated only by:

 

 

Characterization of Cash Distributions

 

We treat all available cash distributed as coming from operating surplus until the sum of all available cash distributed since we began operations equals the operating surplus as of the most recent date of determination of available cash. We treat any amount distributed in excess of operating surplus, regardless of its source, as capital surplus. As described above, operating surplus does not reflect actual cash on hand that is available for distribution to our unitholders. For example, it includes a provision that enables us, if we choose, to distribute as operating surplus up to $15 million of cash we have received or will receive from non-operating sources since the time of our initial public offering, such as asset sales, issuances of securities and long-term borrowings that would otherwise be distributed as capital surplus. We do not anticipate that we will make any distributions from capital surplus.

 

We make distributions of available cash from operating surplus in the following manner:

 

 

The percentage interests set forth above assume that our general partner maintains its 2% general partner interest and has not transferred the incentive distribution rights and that we do not issue additional classes of equity securities.

 

Incentive distribution rights represent the right to receive an increasing percentage of quarterly distributions of available cash from operating surplus after the minimum quarterly distribution and the target distribution levels have been achieved. Our general partner currently holds the incentive distribution rights, but may transfer these rights separately from its general partner interest. Except for transfers of incentive distribution rights to an affiliate or another entity as part of our general partner’s merger or consolidation with or into, or sale of all or substantially all of its assets to such entity, the approval of a majority of our common units (excluding common units held by our general partner and its affiliates), voting separately as a class, generally is required for a transfer of the incentive distributions rights to a third party prior to December 31, 2016. Any transfer by our general partner of the incentive distribution rights would not change the percentage allocations of quarterly distributions with respect to such rights.

 

If for any quarter we have distributed available cash from operating surplus to the common unitholders in an amount equal to the minimum quarterly distribution, then we distribute any additional available cash from operating surplus for that quarter among the unitholders and our general partner in the following manner:

 

 

The percentage interests set forth above assume that our general partner maintains its 2% general partner interest and has not transferred the incentive distribution rights and that we do not issue additional classes of equity securities.

 

The following table illustrates the percentage allocations of the additional available cash from operating surplus between the unitholders and our general partner up to the various target distribution levels. The amounts set forth under “Marginal Percentage Interest in Distributions” are the percentage interests of the unitholders and our general partner in any available cash from operating surplus we distribute up to and including the corresponding amount in the column “Total Quarterly Distribution Target Amount,” until available cash from operating surplus we distribute reaches the next target distribution level, if any. The percentage interests shown for the unitholders and our general partner for the minimum quarterly distribution are also applicable to quarterly distribution amounts that are less than the minimum quarterly distribution. The percentage interests shown for our general partner include its 2% general partner interest and

assume our general partner has contributed any capital necessary to maintain its 2% general partner interest and has not transferred the incentive distribution rights.

 

 

How Distributions From Capital Surplus Are Made

 

We make distributions of available cash from capital surplus, if any, in the following manner:

 

 

The preceding paragraph is based on the assumption that our general partner maintains its 2% general partner interest and that we do not issue additional classes of equity securities.

 

Effect of a Distribution From Capital Surplus

 

Our partnership agreement treats a distribution of capital surplus as the repayment of the initial unit price from our initial public offering on December 19, 2006, which is a return of capital. Each time a distribution of capital surplus is made, the minimum quarterly distribution and the target distribution levels will be reduced in the same proportion as the distribution had to the fair market value of the common units prior to the announcement of the distribution. Because distributions of capital surplus will reduce the minimum quarterly distribution, after any of these distributions are made, it may be easier for our general partner to receive incentive distributions. However, any distribution of capital surplus before the minimum quarterly distribution is reduced to zero cannot be applied to the payment of the minimum quarterly distribution.

 

Once we distribute capital surplus on a unit issued in our initial public offering in an amount equal to the initial unit price, we will reduce the minimum quarterly distribution and the target distribution levels to zero. We will then make all future distributions from operating surplus, with 50% being paid to the holders of units and 50% to our general partner. The percentage interests shown for our general partner include its 2% general partner interest and assume the general partner maintains its 2% general partner interest and has not transferred the incentive distribution rights.

 

In addition to adjusting the minimum quarterly distribution and target distribution levels to reflect a distribution of capital surplus, if we combine our units into fewer units or subdivide our units into a greater number of units, we will proportionately adjust:

 

 

For example, if a two-for-one split of the common units should occur, the minimum quarterly distribution, the target distribution levels and the initial unit price would each be reduced to 50% of its initial level. We will not make any adjustment by reason of the issuance of additional units for cash or property.

 

If we dissolve in accordance with our partnership agreement, we will sell or otherwise dispose of our assets in a process called liquidation. We will apply the proceeds of liquidation in the manner set forth below.

 

If, as of the date three trading days prior to the announcement of the proposed liquidation, the average closing price of our common units for the preceding 20 trading days (or the current market price) is greater than the initial public offering unit price (less any prior capital surplus distributions and any prior cash distributions made in connection with a partial liquidation), then the proceeds of the liquidation will be applied as follows:

 

 

If, as of the date three trading days prior to the announcement of the proposed liquidation, the current market price of our common units is equal to or less than the initial public offering unit price (less any prior capital surplus distributions and any prior cash distributions made in connection with a partial liquidation), then the proceeds of the liquidation will be applied as follows:

 

 

The immediately preceding two paragraphs are based on the assumption that our general partner maintains its 2% general partner interest and that we do not issue additional classes of equity securities.

 

 

The following is a discussion of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations that may be relevant to prospective unitholders and, unless otherwise noted in the following discussion, is the opinion of Perkins Coie LLP, our U.S. counsel, insofar as it relates to matters of U.S. federal income tax law and legal conclusions with respect to those matters. The opinion of our counsel is dependent on the accuracy of representations made by us to them, including descriptions of our operations contained herein.

 

This discussion is based upon the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (or the Code), final and temporary regulations thereunder (or Treasury Regulations), court decisions and administrative interpretations, all as in effect on the date of this prospectus, and which are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect. Changes in these authorities may cause the tax consequences to vary substantially from the consequences described below. Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this section to “we,” “our” or “us” are references to Teekay Offshore Partners L.P.

 

This discussion is limited to unitholders who hold their common units as a capital asset for tax purposes. This discussion does not address all tax considerations that may be important to a particular unitholder in light of the unitholder’s circumstances, or to certain categories of unitholders that may be subject to special tax rules, such as:

 

 

If a partnership (including any entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds our common units, the tax treatment of a partner generally will depend upon the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. If you are a partner of a partnership holding our common units, you should consult your own tax advisor about the U.S. federal income tax consequences of owning and disposing the common units.

 

No ruling has been or will be requested from the Internal Revenue Service (or IRS) regarding any matter affecting us or our unitholders. Instead, we will rely on the opinion of Perkins Coie LLP. Unlike a ruling, an opinion of counsel represents only that counsel’s legal judgment and does not bind the IRS or the courts. Accordingly, the opinions and statements made herein may not be sustained by a court if contested by the IRS.

 

This discussion does not address any U.S. estate tax considerations or tax considerations arising under the laws of any state, local or non-U.S. jurisdiction. Each unitholder is urged to consult its own tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal, state, local and other tax consequences of the ownership or disposition of our common units.

 

We have elected to be taxed as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As such, unitholders are not directly subject to U.S. federal income tax on our income, but rather are subject to U.S. federal income tax on distributions received from us and dispositions of units as described below.

 

As used herein, the term U.S. Holder means a beneficial owner of our common units that is a U.S. citizen or U.S. resident alien, a corporation or other entity taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, that was created or organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia, an estate whose income is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source, or a trust that either is subject to the supervision of a court within the United States and has one or more U.S. persons with authority to control all of its substantial decisions or has a valid election in effect under applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations to be treated as a United States person.

 

Distributions

 

We have elected to be taxed as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Subject to the discussion of passive foreign investment companies (or PFICs) below, any distributions made by us with respect to our common units to a U.S. Holder generally will constitute dividends, which may be taxable as ordinary income or “qualified dividend income” as described in more detail below, to the extent of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions in excess of our earnings and profits will be treated first as a nontaxable return of capital to the extent of the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in its common units and thereafter as capital gain. U.S. Holders that are corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes generally will not be entitled to claim a dividends received deduction with respect to any distributions they receive from us. Dividends paid with respect to our common units generally will be treated as “passive category income” or, in the case of certain types of U.S. Holders, “general category income” for purposes of computing allowable foreign tax credits for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

 

Dividends paid on our common units to a U.S. Holder who is an individual, trust or estate (or an Individual U.S. Holder) will be treated as “qualified dividend income” that currently is taxable to such Individual U.S. Holder at preferential capital gain tax rates provided that: (i) our common units are readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States (such as the New York Stock Exchange on which our common units are traded); (ii) we are not a PFIC for the taxable year during which the dividend is paid or the immediately preceding taxable year (we intend to take the position that we are not now and have never been a PFIC, as discussed below); (iii) the Individual U.S. Holder has owned the common units for more than 60 days in the 121-day period beginning 60 days before the date on which the common units become ex-dividend; (iv) the Individual U.S. Holder is not under an obligation to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property; and (v) certain other conditions are met. There is no assurance that any dividends paid on our common units will be eligible for these preferential rates in the hands of an Individual U.S. Holder. Any dividends paid on our common units not eligible for these preferential rates will be taxed at ordinary graduated tax rates. In the absence of legislation extending the term of the preferential tax rates for qualified dividend income, all dividends received by a taxpayer in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012 will be taxed at ordinary graduated tax rates.

 

Special rules may apply to any “extraordinary dividend” paid by us. An extraordinary dividend is, generally, a dividend with respect to a share of stock if the amount of the dividend is equal to or in excess of 10% of a stockholder’s adjusted basis (or fair market value in certain circumstances) in such stock. If we pay an “extraordinary dividend” on our common units that is treated as “qualified dividend income,” then any loss derived by an Individual U.S. Holder from the sale or exchange of such common units will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of such dividend.

 

Certain U.S. Holders who are individuals, estates or trusts will be subject to a 3.8% tax on, among other things, dividends for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the effect, if any, of this tax on their ownership of our common units.

 

Sale, Exchange or Other Disposition of Common Units

 

Assuming we do not constitute a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize taxable gain or loss upon a sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized by the U.S. Holder from such sale, exchange or other disposition and the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in such units. Subject to the discussion of extraordinary dividends above, such gain or loss will be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. Holder’s holding period is greater than one year at the time of the sale, exchange or other disposition, and subject to preferential capital gain tax rates. Such capital gain or loss generally will be treated as U.S.-source gain or loss, as applicable, for U.S. foreign tax credit purposes. A U.S. Holder’s ability to deduct capital losses is subject to certain limitations.

 

Certain U.S. Holders who are individuals, estates or trusts will be subject to a 3.8% tax on, among other things, capital gains from the sale or other disposition of stock for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012. U.S. Holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the effect, if any, of this tax on their disposition of our common units.

 

Consequences of Possible PFIC Classification

 

A non-U.S. entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes will be a PFIC in any taxable year in which, after taking into account the income and assets of the corporation and certain subsidiaries pursuant to a “look through” rule, either: (i) at least 75% of its gross income is “passive” income; or (ii) at least 50% of the average value of its assets is attributable to assets that produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income. For purposes of these tests, “passive income” includes dividends, interest, and gains from the sale or exchange of investment property and rents and royalties other than rents and royalties that are received from unrelated parties in connection with the active conduct of a trade or business. By contrast, income derived from the performance of services does not constitute “passive income.”

 

There are legal uncertainties involved in determining whether the income derived from our time chartering activities constitutes rental income or income derived from the performance of services, including the decision in Tidewater Inc. v. United States, 565 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2009), which held that income derived from certain time chartering activities should be treated as rental income rather than services income for purposes of a foreign sales corporation provision of the Code. However, the IRS stated in an Action on Decision (AOD 2010-001) that it disagrees with, and will not acquiesce to, the way that the rental versus services framework was applied to the facts in the Tidewater decision, and in its discussion stated that the time charters at issue in Tidewater would be treated as producing services income for PFIC purposes. The IRS’s statement with respect to Tidewater cannot be relied upon or otherwise cited as precedent by taxpayers. Consequently, in the absence of any binding legal authority specifically relating to the statutory provisions governing PFICs, there can be no assurance that the IRS or a court would not follow the Tidewater decision in interpreting the PFIC provisions of the Code. Nevertheless, based on our and our subsidiaries’ current assets and operations, we intend to take the position that we are not now and have never been a PFIC, and our counsel, Perkins Coie LLP, is of the opinion that it is more likely than not that we are not a PFIC based on applicable law, including the Code, legislative history, published revenue rulings and court decisions, and representations we have made to them regarding the composition of our assets, the source of our income and the nature of our activities and other operations following this offering, including:

 

 

An opinion of counsel represents only that counsel’s best legal judgment and does not bind the IRS or the courts. Accordingly, the opinion of Perkins Coie LLP may not be sustained by a court if contested by the IRS. Further, no assurance can be given that we would not constitute a PFIC for any future taxable year if there were to be changes in our or our subsidiaries’ assets, income or operations.

 

As discussed more fully below, if we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder would be subject to different taxation rules depending on whether the U.S. Holder makes a timely and effective election to treat us as a “Qualified Electing Fund” (a QEF election). As an alternative to making a QEF election, a U.S. Holder should be able to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, as discussed below.

 

Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a Timely QEF Election. If a U.S. Holder makes a timely QEF election (an Electing Holder), the Electing Holder must report each taxable year for U.S. federal income tax purposes the Electing Holder’s pro rata share of our ordinary earnings and net capital gain, if any, for our taxable year that ends with or within the Electing Holder’s taxable year, regardless of whether or not the Electing Holder received distributions from us in that year. Such income inclusions would not be eligible for the preferential tax rates applicable to “qualified dividend income.” The Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units will be increased to reflect taxed but undistributed earnings and profits. Distributions of earnings and profits that were previously taxed will result in a corresponding reduction in the Electing Holder’s adjusted tax basis in common units and will not be taxed again once distributed. An Electing Holder

generally will recognize capital gain or loss on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units. A U.S. Holder makes a QEF election with respect to any year that we are a PFIC by filing IRS Form 8621 with the holder’s timely filed U.S. federal income tax return (including extensions).

 

If a U.S. Holder has not made a timely QEF election with respect to the first year in the holder’s holding period of our common units during which we qualified as a PFIC, the holder may be treated as having made a timely QEF election by filing a QEF election with the holder’s timely filed U.S. federal income tax return (including extensions) and, under the rules of Section 1291 of the Code, a “deemed sale election” to include in income as an “excess distribution” (described below) the amount of any gain that the holder would otherwise recognize if the holder sold the holder’s common units on the “qualification date.” The qualification date is the first day of our taxable year in which we qualified as a “qualified electing fund” with respect to such U.S. Holder. In addition to the above rules, under very limited circumstances, a U.S. Holder may make a retroactive QEF election if the holder failed to file the QEF election documents in a timely manner. If a U.S. Holder makes a timely QEF election for one of our taxable years, but did not make such election with respect to the first year in the holder’s holding period of our common units during which we qualified as a PFIC and the holder did not make the deemed sale election described above, the holder also will be subject to the more adverse rules described below.

 

A U.S. Holder’s QEF election will not be effective unless we annually provide the holder with certain information concerning our income and gain, calculated in accordance with the Code, to be included with the holder’s U.S. federal income tax return. We have not provided our U.S. Holders with such information in prior taxable years and do not intend to provide such information in the current taxable year. Accordingly, U.S. Holders will not be able to make an effective QEF election at this time. If, contrary to our expectations, we determine that we are or will be a PFIC for any taxable year, we will provide U.S. Holders with the information necessary to make an effective QEF election with respect to our common units.

 

Taxation of U.S. Holders Making a “Mark-to-Market” Election. If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and, as we anticipate, our units were treated as “marketable stock,” then, as an alternative to making a QEF election, a U.S. Holder would be allowed to make a “mark-to-market” election with respect to our common units, provided the U.S. Holder completes and files IRS Form 8621 in accordance with the relevant instructions and related Treasury Regulations. If that election is made for the first year a U.S. Holder holds or is deemed to hold our common units and for which we are a PFIC, the U.S. Holder generally would include as ordinary income in each taxable year that we are a PFIC the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the U.S. Holder’s common units at the end of the taxable year over the holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units. The U.S. Holder also would be permitted an ordinary loss in respect of the excess, if any, of the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units over the fair market value thereof at the end of the taxable year that we are a PFIC, but only to the extent of the net amount previously included in income as a result of the mark-to-market election. A U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the holder’s common units would be adjusted to reflect any such income or loss recognized. Gain recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our common units in taxable years that we are a PFIC would be treated as ordinary income, and any loss recognized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of the common units in taxable years that we are a PFIC would be treated as ordinary loss to the extent that such loss does not exceed the net mark-to-market gains previously included in income by the U.S. Holder. Because the mark-to-market election only applies to marketable stock, however, it would not apply to a U.S. Holder’s indirect interest in any of our subsidiaries that were also determined to be PFICs.

 

If a U.S. Holder makes a mark-to-market election for one of our taxable years and we were a PFIC for a prior taxable year during which such holder held our common units and for which (i) we were not a QEF with respect to such holder and (ii) such holder did not make a timely mark-to-market election, such holder would also be subject to the more adverse rules described below in the first taxable year for which the mark-to-market election is in effect and also to the extent the fair market value of the U.S. Holder’s common units exceeds the holder’s adjusted tax basis in the common units at the end of the first taxable year for which the mark-to-market election is in effect.

 

Taxation of U.S. Holders Not Making a Timely QEF or Mark-to-Market Election. If we were to be treated as a PFIC for any taxable year, a U.S. Holder who does not make either a QEF election or a “mark-to-market” election for that year (a Non-Electing Holder) would be subject to special rules resulting in increased tax liability with respect to (i) any excess distribution (i.e., the portion of any distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder on our common units in a taxable year in excess of 125% of the average annual distributions received by the Non-Electing Holder in the three preceding

taxable years or, if shorter, the Non-Electing Holder’s holding period for the common units), and (ii) any gain realized on the sale, exchange or other disposition of the units. Under these special rules:

 

 

If we were treated as a PFIC for any taxable year and a Non-Electing Holder who is an individual dies while owning our common units, such holder’s successor generally would not receive a step-up in tax basis with respect to such common units. In addition, a U.S. Holder is required to file an annual report with the IRS for each taxable year after 2010 in which we are treated as a PFIC with respect to the U.S. Holder’s common units.

 

U.S. Holders are urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the applicability, availability and advisability of, and procedure for, making QEF, Mark-to-Market Elections and other available elections with respect to us, and the U.S. federal income tax consequences of making such elections.

 

Consequences of Possible Controlled Foreign Corporation Classification

 

If CFC Unitholders (generally, U.S. Holders who each own, directly, indirectly or constructively, 10% or more of the total combined voting power of our outstanding units entitled to vote) own directly, indirectly or constructively more than 50% of either the total combined voting power of our outstanding units entitled to vote or the total value of all of our outstanding units, we generally would be treated as a controlled foreign corporation, or a CFC.

 

CFC Unitholders are treated as receiving current distributions of their shares of certain income of the CFC without regard to any actual distributions and are subject to other burdensome U.S. federal income tax and administrative requirements but generally are not also subject to the requirements generally applicable to owners of a PFIC. In addition, a person who is or has been a CFC Unitholder may recognize ordinary income on the disposition of units of the CFC. Although we do not believe we are or will become a CFC, U.S. persons owning a substantial interest in us should consider the potential implications of being treated as a CFC Unitholder in the event we become a CFC in the future.

 

The U.S. federal income tax consequences to U.S. Holders who are not CFC Unitholders would not change in the event we become a CFC in the future.

 

U.S. Return Disclosure Requirements for Individual U.S. Holders

 

Individual U.S. Holders that hold certain specified foreign financial assets, including stock in a foreign corporation that is not held in an account maintained by a financial institution, will be subject to additional U.S. return disclosure obligations if the aggregate value of all such assets exceeds $50,000 (and related penalties for failure to disclose). Investors are encouraged to consult with their own tax advisors regarding the possible application of this disclosure requirement to their investment in our common units.

 

A beneficial owner of our common units (other than a partnership, including any entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) that is not a U.S. Holder is a Non-U.S. Holder.

 

Distributions

 

Distributions we make to a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax or withholding tax if the Non-U.S. Holder is not engaged in a U.S. trade or business. If the Non-U.S. Holder is engaged in a U.S. trade or business, distributions we make will be subject to U.S. federal income tax to the extent those distributions constitute income effectively connected with that Non-U.S. Holder’s U.S. trade or business. However, distributions made to a Non-U.S. Holder that is engaged in a trade or business may be exempt from taxation under an income tax treaty if the income represented thereby is not attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment maintained by the Non-U.S. Holder.

 

Sale, Exchange or Other Disposition of Common Units

 

The U.S. federal income taxation of Non-U.S. Holders on any gain resulting from the disposition of our common units generally is the same as described above regarding distributions. However, an individual Non-U.S. Holder may be subject to tax on gain resulting from the disposition of our common units if the holder is present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year in which such disposition occurs and meets certain other requirements.

 

In general, payments of distributions or the proceeds of a disposition of common units to a non-corporate U.S. Holder will be subject to information reporting requirements. These payments to a non-corporate U.S. Holder also may be subject to backup withholding if the non-corporate U.S. Holder:

 

 

Non-U.S. Holders may be required to establish their exemption from information reporting and backup withholding on payments within the United States, or through a U.S. payor, by certifying their status on IRS Form W-8BEN, W-8ECI or W-8IMY, as applicable.

 

Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Rather, a unitholder generally may obtain a credit for any amount withheld against its liability for U.S. federal income tax (and a refund of any amounts withheld in excess of such liability) by accurately completing and timely filing a return with the IRS.

 

 

The following discussion is based upon the opinion of Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP, our counsel as to matters of the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands, and the current laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands and is applicable only to persons who do not reside in, maintain offices in or engage in business in the Republic of The Marshall Islands.

 

Because we, OPCO and our respective subsidiaries do not, and we do not expect that we, OPCO or our respective subsidiaries will, conduct business or operations in the Republic of The Marshall Islands, and because all documentation related to this offering will be executed outside of the Republic of The Marshall Islands, under current Marshall Islands law you will not be subject to Marshall Islands taxation or withholding on distributions, including upon a return of capital, we make to you as a unitholder. In addition, you will not be subject to Marshall Islands stamp, capital gains or other taxes on the purchase, ownership or disposition of common units, and you will not be required by the Republic of The Marshall Islands to file a tax return relating to the common units.

 

It is the responsibility of each unitholder to investigate the legal and tax consequences, under the laws of pertinent jurisdictions, including the Marshall Islands, of its investment in us. Accordingly, each unitholder is urged to consult its tax counsel or other advisor with regard to those matters. Further, it is the responsibility of each unitholder to file all state, local and non-U.S., as well as U.S. federal, tax returns that may be required of him.

 

The following discussion is a summary of the material Canadian federal income tax considerations under the Income Tax Act (Canada) (or the Canada Tax Act ), as of the date of this prospectus, that we believe are relevant to holders of common units who, for the purposes of the Canada Tax Act and the Canada-United States Tax Convention 1980 (or the Canada-U.S. Treaty ) are, at all relevant times, resident in the United States and entitled to all of the benefits of the Canada-U.S. Treaty and who deal at arm’s length with us and Teekay Corporation (or U.S. Resident Holders ). This discussion takes into account all proposed amendments to the Canada Tax Act and the regulations thereunder that have been publicly announced by or on behalf of the Minister of Finance (Canada) prior to the date hereof and assumes that such proposed amendments will be enacted substantially as proposed. However, no assurance can be given that such proposed amendments will be enacted in the form proposed or at all.

 

A U.S. Resident Holder will not be liable to tax under the Canada Tax Act on any income or gains allocated by us to the U.S. Resident Holder in respect of such U.S. Resident Holder’s common units, provided that (a) we do not carry on business in Canada for purposes of the Canada Tax Act and (b) such U.S. Resident Holder does not hold such common units in connection with a business carried on by such U.S. Resident Holder through a permanent establishment in Canada for purposes of the Canada-U.S. Treaty.

 

A U.S. Resident Holder will not be liable to tax under the Canada Tax Act on any income or gain from the sale, redemption or other disposition of such U.S. Resident Holder’s common units, provided that, for purposes of the Canada-U.S. Treaty, such common units do not, and did not at any time in the twelve-month period preceding the date of disposition, form part of the business property of a permanent establishment in Canada of such U.S. Resident Holder.

 

In this regard, we believe that our activities and affairs and the activities and affairs of OPCO, a Marshall Island limited partnership in which we own a 100% limited partnership interest, are conducted in a manner that both we and OPCO are not carrying on business in Canada and that U.S. Resident Holders should not be considered to be carrying on business in Canada for purposes of the Canada Tax Act or the Canada-U.S. Treaty solely by reason of the acquisition, holding, disposition or redemption of their common units. We intend that this is and continues to be the case, notwithstanding that Teekay Shipping Limited (a subsidiary of Teekay Corporation that is resident and based in Bermuda) provides certain services to Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. and OPCO and obtains some or all such services under subcontracts with Canadian service providers, as described below.

 

Our election to be treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes has no effect for purposes of the Canada Tax Act. Therefore, we are treated as a partnership for Canadian federal income tax purposes. Under the Canada Tax Act, a resident of Canada (which may include a foreign corporation the central management and control of which is in Canada) is subject to Canadian tax on its world-wide income, subject to any relief that may be provided by any relevant

tax treaty. A non-resident corporation or individual that carries on a business in Canada directly or through a partnership, including through a partnership that owns an interest in another partnership, is subject to tax in Canada on income attributable to its business (or that of the partnership or the partnership’s interest in another partnership, as the case may be) carried on in Canada. The taxation under the Canada Tax Act is subject to the provisions of any relevant tax treaty.

 

The Canada Tax Act contains special rules that provide that qualifying international shipping corporations will not be considered to be resident in Canada even if they are, in whole or in part, managed from Canada. Further, the Canada Tax Act and many of the tax treaties to which Canada is a party also contain special exemptions for profits derived from international shipping operations.

 

We and OPCO have entered into agreements with Teekay Shipping Limited for the provision of administrative services. Certain of OPCO’s operating subsidiaries have entered into agreements with Teekay Shipping Limited for the provision of advisory, technical, ship management and administrative services. Certain of the services that Teekay Shipping Limited provides to us, to OPCO and to OPCO’s operating subsidiaries under the services agreements are and may in the future be obtained by Teekay Shipping Limited under subcontracts with a Canadian subsidiary of Teekay Corporation.

 

The special rules in the Canada Tax Act and various relevant tax treaties relating to qualifying international shipping corporations and income from international shipping operations may provide relief to OPCO’s operating subsidiaries to the extent that the services provided to them by Canadian entities would otherwise result in such operating subsidiaries being considered to be resident in Canada or to be taxable in Canada on certain income from such operations by virtue of carrying on business in Canada. However, such rules would not apply to us or OPCO, as holding limited partnerships, or to our general partner or U.S. Resident Holders. While we do not believe it to be the case, if the arrangements we have entered into result in our being considered to carry on business in Canada for purposes of the Canada Tax Act, U.S. Resident Holders would be considered to be carrying on business in Canada and may be required to file Canadian tax returns and, subject to any relief provided under the Canada-U.S. Treaty, would be subject to taxation in Canada on any income that is considered to be attributable to the business carried on by us in Canada. The Canada-U.S. Treaty contains a treaty benefit denial rule which may have the effect of denying relief thereunder from Canadian taxation to U.S. Resident Holders in respect of any income attributable to a business carried on by us in Canada and any other Canadian source income earned by us.

 

We believe that we and OPCO can each conduct our respective activities and affairs in a manner so that U.S. Resident Holders should not be considered to be carrying on business in Canada solely as a consequence of the acquisition, holding, disposition or redemption of our common units. Consequently, we believe that U.S. Resident Holders should not be subject to tax filing or other tax obligations in Canada under the Canada Tax Act. However, although we do not intend to do so, there can be no assurance that the manner in which we and OPCO carry on our respective activities will not change from time to time as circumstances dictate or warrant in a manner that may cause U.S. Resident Holders to be carrying on business in Canada for purposes of the Canada Tax Act. Further, the relevant Canadian federal income tax law may change by legislation or judicial interpretation and the Canadian taxing authorities may take a different view than we have of the current law.

 

It is the responsibility of each U.S. Resident Holder to investigate the legal and tax consequences, under the laws of pertinent jurisdictions, including Canada, of an investment in us. Accordingly, each prospective U.S. Resident Holder is urged to consult, and depend upon, such unitholder’s tax counsel or other advisor with regard to those matters. Further, it is the responsibility of each U.S. Resident Holder to file all state, local and non-U.S., as well as U.S. federal, tax returns that may be required of such unitholder.

 

 

We may sell the securities offered by this prospectus and applicable prospectus supplements:

 

 

If underwriters are used to sell securities, we will enter into an underwriting agreement or similar agreement with them at the time of the sale to them. In that connection, underwriters may receive compensation from us in the form of underwriting discounts or commissions and may also receive commissions from purchasers of the securities for whom they may act as agent. Any such underwriter, dealer or agent may be deemed to be an underwriter within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933.

 

The applicable prospectus supplement relating to the securities will set forth, among other things:

 

 

If underwriters or dealers are used in the sale, the securities will be acquired by the underwriters or dealers for their own account and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions in accordance with the rules of the New York Stock Exchange:

 

 

The securities may be offered to the public either through underwriting syndicates represented by one or more managing underwriters or directly by one or more of such firms. Unless otherwise set forth in an applicable prospectus supplement, the obligations of underwriters or dealers to purchase the securities will be subject to certain conditions precedent and the underwriters or dealers will be obligated to purchase all the securities if any are purchased. Any public offering price and any discounts or concessions allowed or reallowed or paid by underwriters or dealers to other dealers may be changed from time to time.

 

Securities may be sold directly by us from time to time, at prevailing market prices or otherwise. From time to time, Teekay Holdings Limited, a subsidiary of Teekay Corporation, may sell common units representing limited partnership interests in us, at prevailing market prices or otherwise. Securities may also be sold through agents designated by us from time to time, at prevailing market prices or otherwise. Any agent involved in the offer or sale of the securities in respect of which this prospectus and a prospectus supplement is delivered will be named, and any commissions payable by us to such agent will be set forth, in the prospectus supplement. Unless otherwise indicated in the prospectus supplement, any such agent will be acting on a best efforts basis for the period of its appointment.

 

If so indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will authorize underwriters, dealers or agents to solicit offers from certain specified institutions to purchase securities from us at the public offering price set forth in the prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a specified date in the future. Such contracts will be subject to any conditions set forth in the prospectus supplement and the prospectus supplement will

set forth the commissions payable for solicitation of such contracts. The underwriters and other persons soliciting such contracts will have no responsibility for the validity or performance of any such contracts.

 

Underwriters, dealers and agents may be entitled under agreements entered into with us to be indemnified by us against certain civil liabilities, including liabilities under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, or to contribution by us to payments which they may be required to make. The terms and conditions of such indemnification will be described in an applicable prospectus supplement.

 

Underwriters, dealers and agents may be customers of, engage in transactions with, or perform services for us in the ordinary course of business.

 

Any underwriters to whom securities are sold by us for public offering and sale may make a market in such securities, but such underwriters will not be obligated to do so and may discontinue any market making at any time without notice. No assurance can be given as to the liquidity of the trading market for any securities.

 

Certain persons participating in any offering of securities may engage in transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of the securities offered. In connection with any such offering, the underwriters or agents, as the case may be, may purchase and sell securities in the open market. These transactions may include over-allotment and stabilizing transactions and purchases to cover syndicate short positions created in connection with the offering. Stabilizing transactions consist of certain bids or purchases for the purpose of preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of the securities and syndicate short positions involve the sale by the underwriters or agents, as the case may be, of a greater number of securities than they are required to purchase from us in the offering. The underwriters may also impose a penalty bid, whereby selling concessions allowed to syndicate members or other broker-dealers for the securities sold for their account may be reclaimed by the syndicate if such securities are repurchased by the syndicate in stabilizing or covering transactions. These activities may stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the market price of the securities, which may be higher than the price that might otherwise prevail in the open market, and if commenced, may be discontinued at any time. These transactions may be effected on the New York Stock Exchange, in the over-the-counter market or otherwise. These activities will be described in more detail in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

 

Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. is organized under the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands as a limited partnership. Our general partner is organized under the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands as a limited liability company. The Republic of The Marshall Islands has a less developed body of securities laws as compared to the United States and provides protections for investors to a significantly lesser extent.

 

Most of the directors and officers of our general partner and those of our subsidiaries are residents of countries other than the United States. Substantially all of our and our subsidiaries’ assets and a substantial portion of the assets of the directors and officers of our general partner are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for United States investors to effect service of process within the United States upon us, our general partner, our subsidiaries or the directors and officers of our general partner or to realize against us or them judgments obtained in United States courts, including judgments predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States. However, we have expressly submitted to the jurisdiction of the U.S. federal and New York state courts sitting in the City of New York for the purpose of any suit, action or proceeding arising under the securities laws of the United States or any state in the United States, and we have appointed Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP to accept service of process on our behalf in any such action.

 

Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP, our counsel as to Marshall Islands law, has advised us that there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Republic of The Marshall Islands would (1) recognize or enforce against us, our general partner or our general partner’s directors or officers judgments of courts of the United States based on civil liability provisions of applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws or (2) impose liabilities against us, our general partner or our general partner’s directors and officers in original actions brought in the Republic of The Marshall Islands, based on these laws.

 

 

Unless otherwise stated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the validity of the securities and certain other legal matters with respect to the laws of the Republic of The Marshall Islands will be passed upon for us by our counsel as to Marshall Islands law, Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP. Certain other legal matters will be passed upon for us by Perkins Coie LLP, Portland, Oregon, who may rely upon the opinion of Watson, Farley & Williams (New York) LLP, for all matters of Marshall Islands law. Any underwriter will be advised about other issues relating to any offering by its own legal counsel.

 

 

The consolidated financial statements of Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. included in its Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2010, and the effectiveness of Teekay Offshore Partners L.P.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2010, have been audited by Ernst & Young LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their reports thereon included therein, and incorporated herein by reference. Such financial statements are, and audited financial statements to be included in subsequently filed documents will be, incorporated herein in reliance upon the reports of Ernst & Young LLP pertaining to such financial statements and the effectiveness of our internal control over our financial reporting as of December 31, 2010 (to the extent covered by consents filed with the SEC) given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

 

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form F-3 regarding the securities covered by this prospectus. This prospectus does not contain all of the information found in the registration statement. For further information regarding us and the securities offered in this prospectus, you may wish to review the full registration statement, including its exhibits. In addition, we file annual, quarterly and other reports with and furnish information to the SEC. You may inspect and copy any document we file with or furnish to the SEC at the public reference facilities maintained by the SEC at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20549. Copies of this material can also be obtained upon written request from the Public Reference Section of the SEC at that address, at prescribed rates, or from the SEC’s website on the internet at www.sec.gov free of charge. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on public reference rooms. You can also obtain information about us at the offices of the New York Stock Exchange, Inc., 20 Broad Street, New York, New York 10005.

 

As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (or the Exchange Act) from, among other things, certain rules prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our executive officers, directors and principal unitholders are exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we are not required under the Exchange Act to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. companies whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act, including the filing of quarterly reports or current reports on Form 8-K. However, we intend to make available quarterly reports containing our unaudited interim financial information for the first three fiscal quarters of each fiscal year.

 

 

The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” into this prospectus information that we file with the SEC. This means that we can disclose important information to you without actually including the specific information in this prospectus by referring you to other documents filed separately with the SEC. The information incorporated by reference is an important part of this prospectus. Information that we later provide to the SEC, and which is deemed to be “filed” with the SEC, automatically will update information previously filed with the SEC, and may replace information in this prospectus.

 

We incorporate by reference into this prospectus the documents listed below:

 

 

These reports contain important information about us, our financial condition and our results of operations.

 

You may obtain any of the documents incorporated by reference in this prospectus from the SEC through its public reference facilities or its website at the addresses provided above. You also may request a copy of any document incorporated by reference in this prospectus (excluding any exhibits to those documents, unless the exhibit is specifically incorporated by reference in this document), at no cost, by visiting our internet website at www.teekayoffshore.com, or by writing or calling us at the following address:

 

Teekay Offshore Partners, L.P.

4th Floor, Belvedere Building,

69 Pitts Bay Road

Hamilton HM 08, Bermuda

Attn: Corporate Secretary

(441) 298-2530

 

You should rely only on the information incorporated by reference or provided in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement. We have not authorized anyone else to provide you with any information. You should not assume that the information incorporated by reference or provided in this prospectus or any prospectus supplement is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of each document. The information contained in our website is not part of this prospectus.

 

 

The following table sets forth costs and expenses, other than any underwriting discounts and commissions, we expect to incur in connection with the issuance and distribution of the common units covered by this prospectus. All amounts are estimated except the SEC registration fee.

 

 

PART II

 

INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS

 

ITEM 8.  Indemnification of Directors and Officers

 

Under its partnership agreement, in most circumstances, Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. will indemnify the following persons, to the fullest extent permitted by law, from and against all losses, claims, damages or similar events:

 

 

Any indemnification under these provisions will only be out of the assets of Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. Unless it otherwise agrees, Teekay Offshore Partners L.P.’s general partner will not be personally liable for, or have any obligation to contribute or lend funds or assets to Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. to enable it to effectuate, indemnification. Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. may purchase insurance against liabilities asserted against and expenses incurred by persons for its activities, regardless of whether Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. would have the power to indemnify the person against liabilities under the partnership agreement.

 

Teekay Offshore Partners L.P. is authorized to purchase (or to reimburse its general partners for the costs of) insurance against liabilities asserted against and expenses incurred by its general partner, its affiliates and such other persons as the general partner may determine and described in the paragraph above, whether or not it would have the power to indemnify such person against such liabilities under the provisions described in the paragraphs above. The general partner has purchased insurance covering its officers and directors against liabilities asserted and expenses incurred in connection with their activities as officers and directors of the general partner or any of its direct or indirect subsidiaries.

 

ITEM 9.  Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules

 

 

 

 

 

All supplemental schedules are omitted because of the absence of conditions under which they are required or because the information is shown in the financial statements or notes thereto.

 

 

The following reports, opinions, and appraisals are included herein: None.

 

ITEM 10.  Undertakings

 

The Registrant hereby undertakes:

 

1. To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

 

a. To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;

 

b. To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20 % change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement;

 

c. To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;

 

provided, however, that paragraphs 1(a), 1(b) and 1(c) of this section do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the Registrant pursuant to section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement, or is contained in a form of prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) that is part of the registration statement.

 

2. That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

3. To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

 

4. To file a post-effective amendment to the registration statement to include any financial statements required by Item 8.A. of Form 20-F at the start of any delayed offering or throughout a continuous offering. Financial statements and information otherwise required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act need not be furnished, provided that the registrant includes in the prospectus, by means of a post-effective amendment, financial statements required pursuant to this paragraph 4 and other information necessary to ensure that all other information in the prospectus is at least as current as the date of those financial statements. Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to registration statements on Form F-3, a post-effective amendment need not be filed to include financial statements and information required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act or Rule 3-19 of this chapter if such financial statements and information are contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the Form F-3.

 

5. That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser:

 

a. Each prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and

 

b. Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date.

 

6. That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities, the undersigned registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser:

 

a. Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the Registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424;

 

b. Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the Registrant or used or referred to by the Registrant;

 

c. The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the Registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the Registrant; and

 

d. Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the Registrant to the purchaser.

 

The Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to section 13(a) or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form F-3 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Southport, State of Connecticut, United States of America on May 13, 2011.

 

TEEKAY OFFSHORE PARTNERS L.P.

 

By: Teekay Offshore GP LLC, its General Partner

 

Name: Peter Evensen

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement has been signed on May 13, 2011 by the following persons in the following capacities:

 

INDEX TO EXHIBITS