(4) Long-Term Debt

The following table summarizes our long-term debt:



	Interest Rates	Maturities	March 31, 2018			December 31, 2017
			(Dollars in millions)
Level 3 Parent, LLC
Senior notes⁽¹⁾	5.750%	2022	$	600		600
Subsidiaries
Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Senior notes⁽²⁾	5.125% - 6.125%	2021 - 2026	5,315			5,315
Term loan⁽³⁾	LIBOR + 2.25%	2024	4,611			4,611
Capital Leases	Various	Various	177			179
Total long-term debt, excluding unamortized premiums			10,703			10,705
Unamortized premiums, net			178			185
Total long-term debt			10,881			10,890
Less current maturities			(9		)	(8		)
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities			$	10,872		$	10,882

⁽¹⁾The notes are not guaranteed by any of Level 3 Parent, LLC's subsidiaries.

⁽²⁾ The notes are fully and unconditionally guaranteed on an unsubordinated unsecured basis by Level 3 Parent, LLC and Level 3 Communications, LLC.

⁽³⁾ The Tranche B 2024 Term Loan is a secured obligation and is guaranteed by Level 3 Parent, LLC and certain other subsidiaries. The Tranche B 2024 Term Loan had an interest rate of 4.111% as of March 31, 2018 and 3.557% as of December 31, 2017. The interest rate on the Tranche B 2024 Term Loan is set with a minimum LIBOR of zero percent.

Capital Leases

As of March 31, 2018, we had $177 million of capital leases. We lease property, equipment, certain dark fiber facilities and metro fiber under non-cancelable IRU agreements that are accounted for as capital leases. The weighted average interest rate on these capital leases approximated 5.8% as of March 31, 2018.

Issuances

On February 22, 2017, we completed the refinancing of all of our then outstanding $4.611 billion senior secured term loans through the issuance of a new Tranche B 2024 Term Loan in the principal amount of $4.611 billion. The term loans refinanced were our Tranche B-III 2019 Term Loan, Tranche B 2020 Term Loan, and the Tranche B-II 2022 Term Loan. The new Tranche B 2024 Term Loan bears interest at LIBOR plus 2.25 percent, with a zero percent minimum LIBOR, and will mature on February 22, 2024. The Tranche B 2024 Term Loan was priced to lenders at par, with the payment to the lenders at closing of an upfront 25 basis point fee. We recognized a charge of approximately $44 million for modification and extinguishment in the first quarter of 2017 related to this refinancing.

Long-Term Debt Maturities

Set forth below is the aggregate principal amount of our long-term debt and capital leases (excluding unamortized premiums) maturing during the following years:



	(Dollars in millions)
2018 (remaining nine months)	$	9
2019	8
2020	10
2021	651
2022	1,726
2023 and thereafter	8,299
Total long-term debt	$	10,703

Covenants

The senior notes of Level 3 Parent, LLC and term loan and senior notes of Level 3 Financing, Inc. contain extensive affirmative and negative covenants. Such covenants include, among other things and subject to certain significant exceptions, restrictions on their ability to declare or pay dividends, repay certain other indebtedness, create liens, incur additional indebtedness, make investments, engage in transactions with their affiliates including CenturyLink and its other subsidiaries, dispose of assets and merge or consolidate with any other person. Also, Level 3 Parent, LLC, as well as Level 3 Financing, Inc., will be required to offer to purchase certain of its long-term debt securities under certain circumstances in connection with a "change of control" of Level 3 Parent, LLC.

Certain of CenturyLink's and our debt instruments contain cross acceleration provisions. When present, these provisions could have a wider impact on liquidity than might otherwise arise from a default or acceleration of a single debt instrument.

Compliance

At March 31, 2018, we believe we were in compliance with the financial covenants contained in their respective material debt agreements.

For additional information on our long-term debt, see Note 4—Long-Term Debt to our consolidated financial statements in Item 8 of Part II of our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.