Length of Negotiations On another board, we were discussing the negotiations, now that we know it's potentially about leasing, and it all started to make so much more sense why the process has been drawn out.
Consider the things they had to discuss and negotiate:
Price of product
Discount on price (for volume / # of units)
Term of lease (5 years, 10, 10?)
Currency hedging (long leases over years allow for adjustments to overall cost, as currency fluctuates during that time)
APR
Payment schedule
Downpayment
Early payment terms and penalties
Etc etc.
During all that, both sides are trying to eke out more margin, going back and forth on tiny or large percentages and combinations.
They also likely brought in equipment lease specialists and lawyers, as it's so complex.
They also negotiated delivery timelines, install, maintenance, etc.
Insurance, actual ownership (whether PYR still owns the product during leasing, etc).
A service agreement.
A buyout, if any.
Whether it's a pure lease and return, or a lease to own.
A roll-over clause, after lease term 1 has ended, replacing old tech with new tech and new terms.
Most importantly, they had to do all of this WITH TWO COMPANIES:
1/ the client
2/ the equipment leasing / vendor financing company (there's no way PYR will finance this; a third party will do it, like ENC, Meridian OneCap, BDC, RBC, etc.).
The variations are almost infinite. It's a hell of a process and helps to understand why this has taken as long as it has.
The good news is, future contracts will take less time, having gone through the process once.
Patience my friends, it's very close.