DALLAS, Feb. 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Alon USA Partners, LP (NYSE: ALDW) ("Alon Partners") today announced that the Board of Directors of Alon USA Partners GP, LLC, the general partner of Alon Partners, declared a distribution of $0.08 per unit payable in cash on February 29, 2016 to common unitholders of record at the close of business on February 22, 2016. Cash available for distribution for the three months ended December 31, 2015 totaled $5.0 million.

This release serves as qualified notice to nominees under Treasury Regulation Section 1.1446-4(b). Please note that 100% of Alon Partners' distributions to foreign investors are attributable to income that is effectively connected with a United States trade or business. Accordingly, all of Alon Partners' distributions to foreign investors are subject to federal income tax withholding at the highest effective tax rate for individuals or corporations, as applicable. Nominees, and not Alon Partners, are treated as the withholding agents responsible for withholdings on the distributions received by them on behalf of foreign investors.

Alon USA Partners, LP is a Delaware limited partnership formed in August 2012 by Alon USA Energy, Inc. ("Alon Energy") (NYSE: ALJ). Alon Partners owns and operates a crude oil refinery in Big Spring, Texas, with a crude oil throughput capacity of 73,000 barrels per day. Alon Partners refines crude oil into finished products, which are marketed primarily in Central and West Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona through its integrated wholesale distribution network to both Alon Energy's retail convenience stores and other third-party distributors.

- Tables to follow -

The preliminary financial results for the three months ended December 31, 2015 presented below, and utilized for the determination of cash available for distribution, are forward-looking statements based on preliminary estimates. These results reflect the best judgment of our management but involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in our estimates and from past results or performance. Such preliminary results are subject to finalization of our financial closing process for the three months ended December 31, 2015. Consequently, there can be no assurances that the preliminary estimates set forth below will be the actual financial results for the three months ended December 31, 2015, and any variation between the estimates and our actual results set forth below may be material.




                            ALON USA PARTNERS, LP

                       CASH AVAILABLE FOR DISTRIBUTION

                                 (unaudited)

                 (dollars in thousands, except per unit data)

                                                               For the Three
                                                               Months Ended

                                                               December 31,
                                                                    2015
                                                              -------------


    Net sales                                                                $437,872

    Operating costs and expenses:

    Cost of sales                                                    369,896

    Direct operating expenses                                         27,092

    Selling, general and administrative
     expenses                                                          7,699

    Depreciation and amortization                                     13,831
                                                                      ------

      Total operating costs and expenses                             418,518

    Operating income                                                  19,354

    Interest expense                                                (11,942)

    Other income, net                                                     26
                                                                         ---

    Income before state income tax expense                             7,438

    State income tax expense                                             192
                                                                         ---

    Net income                                                                 $7,246

    Adjustments to reconcile net income to
     Adjusted EBITDA:

    Interest expense                                                  11,942

    State income tax expense                                             192

    Depreciation and amortization                                     13,831

    Adjusted EBITDA                                                           $33,211

    Adjustments to reconcile Adjusted EBITDA to
     cash available for distribution:

    less: Maintenance/growth capital
     expenditures                                                     11,458

    less: Turnaround and catalyst replacement
     capital expenditures                                              2,770

    less: Major turnaround reserve for future
     years                                                             1,500

    less: Principal payments                                             625

    less: State income tax payments                                      377

    less: Interest paid in cash                                       11,462

    Cash available for distribution                                            $5,019
                                                                               ======


    Common units outstanding (in 000's)                               62,510


    Cash available for distribution per unit                                    $0.08
                                                                                =====

Non-GAAP Financial Measure

Adjusted EBITDA represents earnings before state income tax expense, interest expense and depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is not a recognized measurement under GAAP; however, the amounts included in Adjusted EBITDA are derived from amounts included in our consolidated financial statements. Our management believes that the presentation of Adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors because it is frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties in the evaluation of companies in our industry. In addition, our management believes that Adjusted EBITDA is useful in evaluating our operating performance compared to that of other companies in our industry because the calculation of Adjusted EBITDA generally eliminates the effects of state income tax expense, interest expense and the accounting effects of capital expenditures and acquisitions, items that may vary for different companies for reasons unrelated to overall operating performance.

Adjusted EBITDA has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation, or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. Some of these limitations are:


    --  Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect our cash expenditures or future
        requirements for capital expenditures or contractual commitments;
    --  Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect the interest expense or the cash
        requirements necessary to service interest or principal payments on our
        debt;
    --  Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect changes in or cash requirements for our
        working capital needs; and
    --  Our calculation of Adjusted EBITDA may differ from Adjusted EBITDA
        calculations of other companies in our industry, limiting its usefulness
        as a comparative measure.

Because of these limitations, Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered a measure of discretionary cash available to us to invest in the growth of our business. We compensate for these limitations by relying primarily on our GAAP results and using Adjusted EBITDA only supplementally.



    Contacts:                     Stacey Hudson, Investor Relations
                                  Manager

                                 Alon USA Partners GP, LLC

                                 972-367-3808


                                  Investors: Jack Lascar/Stephanie
                                  Zhadkevich

                                 Dennard § Lascar Associates, LLC

                                 713-529-6600


                                 Media: Blake Lewis

                                 Lewis Public Relations

                                 214-635-3020

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SOURCE Alon USA Partners, LP