ADMINISTRATIVEAGENCY AGREEMENT

 

Exhibit 10.6

THIS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCY AGREEMENT (the “Agreement”) is made as of March 5, 2007 by and among BROWN BROTHERS HARRIMAN & CO., a limited partnership organized under the laws of the State of New York (the “Administrator”), VICTORIA BAY ASSET MANAGEMENT, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “General Partner”) and UNITED STATES NATURAL GAS FUND, LP, a limited partnership organized under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Fund”).

WHEREAS, the Fund is a limited partnership that is registered as a commodity pool;

WHEREAS, the General Partner has exclusive responsibility for the management and control of the business and affairs of the Fund; and

WHEREAS, the Fund and the General Partner desire to retain the Administrator to render certain services to the Fund and/or the General Partner, as the case may be, and the Administrator is willing to render such services.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and mutual covenants herein contained, the parties hereto agree as follows:

1.            Appointment of Administrator.  The Fund and the General Partner hereby employ and appoint the Administrator to act as administrative agent on the terms set forth in this Agreement, and the Administrator accepts such appointment.

2.            Delivery of Documents.  The Fund and the General Partner will on a continuing basis provide the Administrator with:

2.1           properly certified or authenticated copies of resolutions of the General Partner’s Board of Directors (including Mr. Nicholas D. Gerber) authorizing the appointment of the Administrator as administrative agent of the Fund and approving this Agreement;

2.2           a copy of the Fund’s most recent registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended;

2.3           copies of all agreements between the Fund and its service providers, including without limitation, advisory, distribution and administration agreements and distribution and/or unitholder;

2.4           a copy of the Fund’s valuation procedures;

2.5           a copy of the Fund’s Limited Partnership Agreement, as may be amended from time to time;

 

 

2.6           a copy of the General Partner’s First Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Agreement, as may be amended from time to time;

2.7           any other documents or resolutions (including, but not limited to directions or resolutions of the General Partner’s Board of Directors, Management Directors, and/or Audit Committee) which relate to or affect the Administrator’s performance of its duties hereunder or which the Administrator may at any time reasonably request; and

2.8           copies of any and all amendments or supplements to the foregoing.

3.            Duties as Administrator.  Subject to the supervision and direction of the General Partner’s Board of Directors, Management Directors and Audit Committee, the Administrator will perform the administrative services described in Appendix A hereto.  Additional services may be provided by the Administrator upon the request of the Fund as mutually agreed from time to time.  In performing its duties and obligations hereunder, the Administrator will act in accordance with the General Partner’s instructions as defined in Section 5 (“Instructions”).  It is agreed and understood that the Administrator shall not be responsible for the Fund’s or the General Partner’s compliance with any applicable documents, laws or regulations, or for losses, costs or expenses arising out of the Fund’s or the General Partner’s failure to comply with said documents, laws or regulations or the Fund’s or the General Partner’s failure or inability to correct any non-compliance therewith.  The Administrator shall in no event be required to take any action, which is in contravention of any applicable law, rule or regulation or any order or judgment of any court of competent jurisdiction.

3.1           Records.  The Administrator will maintain and retain such records as required by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Rules of the American Stock Exchange, 17 C.F.R 4.23, and other applicable federal securities laws and created pursuant to the performance of the Administrator’s obligations under this Agreement.  The Administrator will maintain such other records as requested by the Fund or the General Partner and received by the Administrator.  The Administrator shall not be responsible for the accuracy and completeness of any records not created by the Administrator.  The Administrator acknowledges that the records maintained and preserved by the Administrator pursuant to this Agreement are the property of the Fund and will be, at the Fund’s expense, surrendered promptly upon reasonable request.  In performing its obligations under this Section, the Administrator may utilize micrographic and electronic storage media as well as independent third party storage facilities.

 

 

4.            Duties of the Fund and the General Partner.  The Fund and the General Partner shall notify the Administrator promptly of any matter affecting the performance by the Administrator of its services under this Agreement.  Where the Administrator is providing fund accounting services pursuant to this Agreement, the Fund and the General Partner shall promptly notify the Administrator as to the accrual of liabilities of the Fund and of liabilities of the Fund not appearing on the books of account kept by the Administrator, as well as to the existence, status and proper treatment of reserves, if any, authorized by the Fund or the General Partner.  The Fund and the General Partner agree to provide such information to the Administrator as may be requested under the banking and securities laws of the United States or other jurisdictions relating to “Know Your Customer” and money laundering prevention rules and regulations (collectively, the “KYC Requirements”).  For purposes of this subsection, and in connection with all applicable KYC Requirements, the Fund is the “client” or “customer” of the Administrator. The Fund and the General Partner further represent that each will perform all obligations required under applicable KYC Requirements with respect to the Fund’s “customers” (as defined in the KYC Requirements) and that, because these customers do not constitute “customers” or “clients” of the Administrator under such applicable rules and regulations, the Administrator is under no such similar obligations.

5.	Instructions.

5.1           The Administrator shall not be liable for, and shall be indemnified by the Fund against any and all losses, costs, damages or expenses arising from or as a result of, any action taken or omitted in reliance upon Instructions or upon any other written notice, request, direction, instruction, certificate or other instrument believed by it to be genuine and signed or authorized by the proper party or parties.  A list of persons so authorized by the General Partner (“Authorized Persons”) is attached hereto as Appendix B and upon which the Administrator may rely until its receipt of notification to the contrary by the General Partner.

5.2           Instructions shall include a written request, direction, instruction or certification signed or initialed on behalf of the Fund by one or more Authorized Persons.

5.3           Telephonic or other oral instructions or instructions given by telefax transmission may be given by any one of the above Authorized Persons and will also be considered Instructions if the Administrator believes them to have been given by a person authorized to give such Instructions with respect to the transaction involved.

5.4           With respect to telefax transmissions, the Fund and the General Partner hereby acknowledge that (i) receipt of legible instructions cannot be assured, (ii) the Administrator cannot verify that authorized signatures on telefax instructions are original, and (iii) the Administrator shall not be responsible for losses or expenses incurred through actions taken in reliance on such telefax instructions.  The Fund and the General Partner agree that such telefax instructions shall be conclusive evidence of the Fund’s/General Partner’s Instruction to the Administrator to act or to omit to act.

 

 

5.5           Instructions given orally will not be confirmed in writing and the lack of such confirmation shall in no way affect any action taken by the Administrator in reliance upon such oral Instructions.  The Fund and the General Partner authorize the Administrator to tape record any and all telephonic or other oral Instructions given to the Administrator by or on behalf of the Fund (including any of the Fund’s or the General Partner’s officers, directors, trustees, employees or agents or any investment manager or adviser or person or entity with similar responsibilities which is authorized to give Instructions on behalf of the Fund to the Administrator.)

6.            Expenses and Compensation.  For the services to be rendered and the facilities to be furnished by the Administrator as provided for in this Agreement, the Fund shall pay the Administrator rendered pursuant to this Agreement a fee based on such fee schedule as may from time to time be agreed upon in writing among the General Partner, Fund and the Administrator.  Additional services performed by the Administrator as requested by the Fund shall be subject to additional fees as mutually agreed from time to time.  In addition to any such fees, the Administrator shall bill the Fund separately for any out-of-pocket disbursements of the Administrator based on an out-of-pocket disbursement schedule as may from time to time be agreed upon in writing among the General Partner, the Fund and the Administrator.  The initial fee schedule and out of pocket disbursement schedule are attached as Appendix D to this Agreement.  The foregoing fees and disbursements shall be billed to the Fund by the Administrator and shall be paid promptly by wire transfer or other appropriate means to the Administrator.

 

7.            Standard of Care.  The Administrator shall be held to the exercise of reasonable care and diligence in carrying out the provisions of this Agreement, provided that the Administrator shall not thereby be required to take any action which is in contravention of any applicable law, rule or regulation or any order or judgment of any court of competent jurisdiction.

8.            General Limitations on Liability.  The Administrator shall incur no liability with respect to any telecommunications, equipment or power failures, or any failures to perform or delays in performance by postal or courier services or third-party information providers (including, without limitation those listed on Appendix C).

 

 

9.

Specific Limitations on Liability. In addition to, and without limiting the application of the general limitations on liability contained in Section 8, above, the following specific limitations on the Administrator’s liability shall apply to the particular administrative services set forth on Appendix A hereto.

9.1           Liability for Fund Accounting Services.   Without limiting the provisions in Section 8 hereof, the Administrator’s liability for acts, omissions, errors or delays relating to its fund accounting obligations and duties shall be limited to the amount of any expenses associated with a required recalculation of net asset value per unit (“NAV”) or any direct damages suffered by unitholders in connection with such recalculation.  The Administrator’s liability or accountability for such acts, omissions, errors or delays shall be further subject to clauses 9.1.1 through 9.1.4 below.

 

 

10.	Indemnification.

10.1             The General Partner and the Fund hereby agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Administrator, its partners, stockholders, members, directors, officers and employees and any subsidiary or affiliate of the foregoing (“Affiliate”), and the successors and assigns of all of the foregoing persons, against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including reasonable counsel fees and expenses) resulting from any act, omission, error or delay or any claim, demand, action or suit, in connection with or arising out of performance of its obligations and duties under this Agreement, not resulting from the willful malfeasance, bad faith or negligence of the Administrator in the performance of such obligations and duties.  The provisions of this Section 10 shall survive the termination of this Agreement.

10.1.1     If any action, suit or proceeding (each, a “Proceeding”) is brought against the Administrator or any such person in respect of which indemnity may be sought against the General Partner pursuant to the foregoing subsection, the Administrator or such person shall promptly notify the General Partner in writing of the institution of such Proceeding and the General Partner shall assume the defense of such Proceeding, including the employment of counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party and payment of all fees and expenses; provided, however, that the omission to so notify the General Partner shall not release the General Partner from any liability which it may have to the Administrator or any such person except to the extent that it has been materially prejudiced by such failure and has not otherwise learned of such Proceeding. The Administrator or such person shall have the right to employ its own counsel in any such case, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of the Administrator or of such person unless the employment of such counsel shall have been authorized in writing by the General Partner in connection with the defense of such Proceeding or the General Partner shall not have, within a reasonable period of time in light of the circumstances, employed counsel to have charge of the defense of such Proceeding or such indemnified party or parties shall have reasonably concluded that there may be defenses available to it or them which are different from, additional to or in conflict with those available to the General Partner (in which case the General Partner shall not have the right to direct the defense of such Proceeding on behalf of the indemnified party or parties), in any of which events such fees and expenses shall be borne by the General Partner and paid as incurred (it being understood, however, that the General Partner shall not be liable for the expenses of more than one separate counsel (in addition to any local counsel) in any one Proceeding or series of related Proceedings in the same jurisdiction representing the indemnified parties who are parties to such Proceeding).

 

 

10.1.2     The General Partner shall not be liable for any settlement of any Proceeding effected without the General Partner’s written consent but if settled with the General Partner’s written consent, the General Partner agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Administrator and any such person from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement.  Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second sentence of this subsection, then the indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any Proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 60 Business Days (defined as any day other than a day on which the American Stock Exchange (“AMEX”), the New York Mercantile Exchange (“NYMEX”) or the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is closed for regular trading (each a “Business Day”)), after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request, (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have fully reimbursed the indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement and (iii) such indemnified party shall have given the indemnifying party at least 30 Business Days’ prior notice of its intention to settle. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened Proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such Proceeding and does not include an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of such indemnified party.

10.2             Subject to Sections 7, 8 and 9 of this Agreement, the Administrator agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the General Partner and the Fund, its partners, stockholders, members, directors, officers and employees and any Affiliate of the foregoing, and the successors and assigns of all of the foregoing persons, against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including reasonable counsel fees and expenses) resulting from any act, omission, error or delay or any claim, demand, action or suit, in connection with or arising out of performance of its obligations and duties under this Agreement, resulting from the willful malfeasance, bad faith or negligence of the Administrator in the performance of such obligations and duties.  The provisions of this Section 10 shall survive the termination of this Agreement.

 

 

10.2.1     If any Proceeding is brought against the General Partner or any such person in respect of which indemnity may be sought against the Administrator pursuant to the foregoing subsection, the General Partner or such person shall promptly notify the Administrator in writing of the institution of such Proceeding and the Administrator shall assume the defense of such Proceeding, including the employment of counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party and payment of all fees and expenses; provided, however, that the omission to so notify the Administrator shall not relieve the Administrator from any liability which it may have to the General Partner or any such person except to the extent that it has been materially prejudiced by such failure and has not otherwise learned of such Proceeding. The General Partner or such person shall have the right to employ its own counsel in any such case, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of the General Partner or of such person unless the employment of such counsel shall have been authorized in writing by the Administrator in connection with the defense of such Proceeding or the Administrator shall not have, within a reasonable period of time in light of the circumstances, employed counsel to have charge of the defense of such Proceeding or such indemnified party or parties shall have reasonably concluded that there may be defenses available to it or them which are different from, additional to or in conflict with those available to the Administrator (in which case the General Partner shall not have the right to direct the defense of such Proceeding on behalf of the indemnified party or parties), in any of which events such fees and expenses shall be borne by the Administrator and paid as incurred (it being understood, however, that the Administrator shall not be liable for the expenses of more than one separate counsel (in addition to any local counsel) in any one Proceeding or series of related Proceedings in the same jurisdiction representing the indemnified parties who are parties to such Proceeding).

10.2.2     The Administrator shall not be liable for any settlement of any Proceeding effected without the Administrator’s written consent but if settled with the Administrator’s written consent, the Administrator agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the General Partner and any such person from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement.  Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second sentence of this subsection, then the indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any Proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 60 Business Days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request, (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have fully reimbursed the indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement and (iii) such indemnified party shall have given the indemnifying party at least 30 Business Days’ prior notice of its intention to settle. No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened Proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such Proceeding and does not include an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of such indemnified party.

 

 

11.          Reliance by the Administrator on Opinions of Counsel and Opinions of Certified Public Accountants.

The Administrator may consult with its counsel or the Fund/General Partner’s counsel in any case where so doing appears to the Administrator to be necessary or desirable.  The Administrator shall not be considered to have engaged in any misconduct or to have acted negligently and shall be without liability in acting upon the advice of its counsel or of the Fund’s/General Partner’s counsel.

The Administrator may consult with a certified public accountant or the Fund’s Treasurer (or persons performing such function) in any case where so doing appears to the Administrator to be necessary or desirable.  The Administrator shall not be considered to have engaged in any misconduct or to have acted negligently and shall be without liability in acting upon the advice of such certified public accountant or of the Fund’s Treasurer or persons performing such function.

12.          Termination of Agreement. This Agreement may be terminated by any of the parties in accordance with the provisions of this Section 12.

12.1         This Agreement shall have an initial term of two (2) years from the date hereof.  Thereafter, this Agreement shall automatically renew for successive one (1) year periods unless any party terminates this Agreement by written notice effective no sooner than seventy-five (75) days following the date that notice to such effect shall be delivered to the other parties at their address set forth herein.  Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, any party may terminate this Agreement at any time (a) for cause, which is a material breach of the Agreement not cured within sixty (60) days, in which case termination shall be effective upon written receipt of notice by the non-terminating parties, or (b) upon thirty (30) days’ written notice to the other parties in the event that a party is adjudged bankrupt or insolvent, or there shall be commenced against such party a case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, or other similar law now or hereafter in effect. In the event a termination notice is given by a party hereto, all expenses associated with the movement of records and materials and the conversion thereof shall be paid by the Fund for which services shall cease to be performed hereunder.  The Administrator shall be responsible for completing all actions in progress when such termination notice is given unless otherwise agreed.

 

 

12.2.        Upon termination of this Agreement in accordance with this Section 12, the Fund may request the Administrator to promptly deliver to the Fund or to any designated third party all records created and maintained by the Administrator pursuant to Section 3.1 of this Agreement, as well as any Fund records maintained but not created by the Administrator.  If such request is provided in writing by the Fund to the Administrator within seventy-five (75) days of the date of termination of the Agreement, the Administrator shall provide to the Fund a certification that all records created by the Administrator pursuant to its obligations under Section 3.1 of this Agreement are accurate and complete.  After seventy-five (75) days of the date of termination of this Agreement, no such certification will be provided to the Fund by the Administrator and the Administrator is under no further obligation to ensure that records created by the Administrator pursuant to Section 3.1 of this Agreement are maintained in a form that is accurate or complete.

13.          Confidentiality and Privacy.

13.1         The parties hereto agree that each shall treat confidentially the terms and conditions of this Agreement and all information provided by each party to the other regarding its business and operations.  All confidential information provided by a party hereto shall be used by any other party hereto solely for the purpose of rendering or obtaining services pursuant to this Agreement and, except as may be required in carrying out this Agreement, shall not be disclosed to any third party without the prior consent of such providing party.  The foregoing shall not be applicable to any information that is publicly available when provided or thereafter becomes publicly available other than through a breach of this Agreement, or that is required to be disclosed by or to any regulatory authority, any auditor of the parties hereto, or by judicial or administrative process or otherwise by applicable law.

13.2         In the course of carrying out its obligations under this Agreement, Administrator shall maintain physical, procedural and electronic safeguards to protect information regarding the Fund and its investors that Administrator has obtained or to which the Administrator has gained access.

14.          Tape-recording.   The parties consent to recording of any and all telephonic or other oral instructions.  This authorization will remain in effect until and unless revoked by the Fund, the General Partner or the Administrator in writing.  Each party further agrees to solicit valid written or other consent from any of its employees, officers, directors or agents with respect to telephone communications to the extent such consent is required by applicable law.

 

 

16.          Entire Agreement; Amendment.  This Agreement constitutes the entire understanding and agreement of the parties hereto and supersedes any other oral or written agreements heretofore in effect between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof.  No provision of this Agreement may be amended or terminated except by a statement in writing signed by the party against which enforcement of the amendment or termination is sought.

17.          Severability.  In the event any provision of this Agreement is determined to be void or unenforceable, such determination shall not affect the remainder of this Agreement, which shall continue to be in force.

18.          Headings.  The section headings in this Agreement are for the convenience of reference only and shall not modify, define, expand or limit any of the terms or provisions thereof.

19.          Governing Law.  This Agreement shall be governed by and construed according to the laws of the State of New York without giving effect to conflicts of law provisions thereof and each of the parties hereto irrevocably consents to the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York or if that court lacks or declines to exercise subject matter jurisdiction, the Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County.  The General Partner and the Fund irrevocably waive any objection each may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any action or proceeding in any of the aforesaid courts and any claim that any such action or proceeding has been brought in an inconvenient forum.  Furthermore, each party hereto irrevocably waives any right that it may have to trial by jury in any action, proceeding or counterclaim arising out of or related to this Agreement or the services contemplated hereby.

20.          Notices.  Notices and other writings delivered or mailed postage prepaid to the General Partner and Fund shall be addressed to the Fund/General Partner at Victoria Bay Asset Management, LLC, c/o Nicholas D. Gerber, P.O. Box 6919, Moraga, CA  94570, or such other address as the General Partner or the Fund may have designated to the Administrator in writing, or to the Administrator at 40 Water Street, Boston, MA  02109, Attention: Manager, Fund Administration Department, or to such other address as the Administrator may have designated to the General Partner and the Fund in writing, shall be deemed to have been properly delivered or given hereunder to the respective addressee.

 

 

21.          Binding Effect; Assignment.  This Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the General Partner, the Fund and the Administrator and their respective successors and assigns, provided that no party hereto may assign this Agreement or any of its rights or obligations hereunder without the written consent of the other parties.  Each party agrees that only the parties to this Agreement and/or their successors in interest shall have a right to enforce the terms of this Agreement.  Accordingly, no client of the General Partner, unitholder of the Fund or other third party shall have any rights under this Agreement and such rights are explicitly disclaimed by the parties.

22.          Counterparts.  This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts each of which shall be deemed to be an original. This Agreement shall become effective when one or more counterparts have been signed and delivered by each of the parties.  A photocopy or telefax of this Agreement shall be acceptable evidence of the existence of this Agreement and the Administrator shall be protected in relying on the photocopy or telefax until the Administrator has received the original of this Agreement.

23.          Exclusivity.  The services furnished by the Administrator hereunder are not to be deemed exclusive, and the Administrator shall be free to furnish similar services to others.

24.          Authorization.  The General Partner hereby represents and warrants that the Management Directors of its Board of Directors including Mr. Nicholas D. Gerber have authorized the execution and delivery of this Agreement and that Authorized Persons of the General Partner and the Fund have signed this Agreement, Appendices A, B and C and the fee schedule hereto.

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be duly executed and delivered by their duly authorized officers as of the date first written above.

 

The undersigned acknowledges that (I/we) have received a copy of this document.