Mexico’s Construtora Planigrupo has raised MXP2.475bn ($179m) through the sale of certificados de capital de desarrollo (CCD), it says, a final amount under the MXP2.75bn it had been estimating. The 2021 transaction creates a fund to acquire and develop new commercial centers throughout Mexico. As is customary in CCD transactions, the certificates priced at a nominal value of MXP100 each. About 60% of the funds raised are for developing centers, with the remainder to be used in acquiring new ones. Investors are to receive a return equal to 100% of their initial investment plus a 10% preferred return, with further proceeds divided 80% to investors and 20% to the manager. The transaction had originally been intended for the Fibra, or domestic REIT, market, but was moved to the CCD space on a technicality, without altering it significantly. Ixe managed the deal, with Goldman Sachs as structuring agent. US real estate-focused private equity investor Walton Street is co-investing $28m, according to the documents. Planigrupo’s is the second CCD of the year, following a MXP5bn raise by Mexico Retail Properties, a unit of US-based private equity manager Black Creek, for a fund targeting commercial and service-related real estate assets.
Category: Equity
Mining Project Looks to Bovespa
Manabi, a pre-operational Brazilian iron ore miner, is planning to IPO, it says. The company founded last year is seeking funds in an all-primary share offer to develop its Morro Pilar and Morro Escuro projects in the state of Minas Gerias. The size and timing remain to be defined, though a filing this week suggests a launch as soon as late June. Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Itau are managing the sale.
Fibra-Turned-CCD Set to Close
Mexico’s Construtora Planigrupo is set to close a MXP2.75bn ($199m) certificado de capital de desarrollo (CCD) transaction, according to regulatory documents. The 2021 transaction created a fund to acquire and develop new commercial centers throughout Mexico. As is customary in CCD transactions, the certificates price at a nominal value of MXP100 each. About 60% of the funds raised are for developing centers, with the remainder to be used in acquiring new ones. Investors are to receive a return equal to 100% of their initial investment plus a 10% preferred return, with further proceeds divided 80% to investors and 20% to the manager. The transaction had originally been intended for the Fibra, or REIT, market, but was moved to the CCD space on a technicality, without altering it significantly. Ixe managed the deal, with Goldman Sachs as structuring agent. US real estate-focused private equity investor Walton Street is co-investing $28m, according to the documents. Planigrupo’s is the second CCD of the year, following a MXP5bn raise by Mexico Retail Properties, a unit of US-based private equity manager Black Creek, for a fund targeting commercial and service-related real estate assets.
JBS Gets Spinoff OK
Regulators have approved JBS’ proposed BRL1.19bn ($596m) spinoff of its Vigor Alimentos dairy unit, JBS says. The Brazilian beef company plans to offer a 1-for-1 share exchange for up to 149.7m shares of Vigor at a minimum price of BRL7.96 each. Further details are expected within 10 days. Bradesco is advising JBS in the process. JBS shares closed at BRL6.09 Wednesday.
Suzano Launches Follow-on
Suzano Papel e Celulose plans to raise about BRL1.5bn ($750m) in an equity follow-on, it says. The Brazilian pulp and paper company is scheduled to start marketing June 11 and price June 27. The all-primary share offer is to include 80.0m ordinary shares and 164.9m preferred shares. Such a sale would raise BRL1.56bn at Wednesday’s BRL6.36 preferred share close, if the use of a 15% greenshoe is assumed. Suzano is raising funds to strengthen its capital structure. BTG Pactual, Itau and JPMorgan are managing the sale. Separately, Suzano has taken out a BRL2bn 2018 standby facility with BTG.
Iochpe Plots FO
Brazilian commercial and light vehicle parts producer Iochpe-Maxion is planning a primary equity follow-on, the company says, without giving additional details. “The realization and conclusion of the offer, as well as its exact structure, are subject to the approval by the company’s board and the conditions of the domestic and international capital markets,” the company says. Ichope needs fund for its international expansion plans. In November, it spent $195m on Mexican Grupo Galaz, and $725m on the acquisition of US-based auto-parts supplier Hayes Lemmerz. Iochpe shares closed Tuesday at BRL27.25.
Petroperu Confident on Project Funding
With the $1.7bn upgrade to the Talara refinery on the horizon, Petroperu’s president is confident the markets will be available for funds. “We believe that we will be able to raise capital regardless of the format that is chosen. Peru has a strong economy and is highly attractive to investors,” Humberto Campodonico tells LatinFinance. The official adds that the final decisions should come as soon as later in the second quarter. A portion is expected to come from the sale of as much as 20% of the company on the Bolsa. Petroperu lists on the Bolsa, which requires it to adhere to the standards of the local regulatory commission, but does not trade. Originally expected by midyear, the deal has been delayed until at least the fourth quarter, finance ministry officials have said. The government had wanted to increase the valuation of the company, seen at around $1bn. Other spending could also be in the cards for the state-owned oil producer, including participation in the construction of a $3.8 billion southern gas pipeline running from the Camisea fields 1,000km south to the port city of Ilo, built by Brazil’s Odebrecht. Campodonico says the company’s potential commitment could be close to $800m. Not all are convinced that spending should go beyond Talara. “The state should not be involved in construction of the new pipeline. It is a project initiated by the private sector and should remain wholly in the private sector,” Cecilia Blume, an energy expert and top executive in the finance ministry during the government of former President Alejandro Toledo, tells LatinFinance. Petroperu could be overextending itself at a time when it should be concentrating on Talara, she says. The Talara upgrade is aimed at reducing levels of sulfur and allowing the facility to refine the heavy crude that will be extracted in the future in northern Peru. The government wants to upgrade production to 95,000 barrels per day from 65,000. Bank loans, export-import funds, and multilateral financ
Corpbanca Details Acquisition Funding
Corpbanca plans to raise CLP269bn ($549m) through the sale of 43bn shares at CLP6.25 each, to finance the acquisition of Santander’s Colombian assets. The capital increase was approved in April, for up to $650m-equivalent. The Chilean bank agreed to buy Santander’s Colombia unit in December for $1.16bn, a transaction with an implied multiple of about 2.7x book value. Corpbanca is aiming to complete the share sale by the end of June.
LDC Bioenergia Joins IPO Lineup
LDC Bioenergia, the Brazilian sugar, ethanol and bioenergy unit of Louis Dreyfus Commodities, has filed for an IPO, according to the CVM. It plans the sale of primary shares and of secondary shares owned by an investment vehicle tied to Louis Dreyfus. It does not indicate the specific amount to be raised, or the timing, though a filing this week would imply a launch in mid to late June. LDC is raising funds for its expansion plan and to repay debt. The issuer has 13 plants in operation, with 40m tons of processing capacity and 1,000 megawatts electric generation capacity, and plans to grow in the areas of sugar and ethanol production and energy generation. Bradesco and JPMorgan are global coordinators on the sale, and Banco do Brasil, Banco Votorantim, Itau and Santander are bookrunners. Starting operations in 2000, the issuer has grown through acquisitions, most recently that of Santelisa Vale in 2009.
Markets, Governments Challenge Agribusiness
With demand pushing farmland prices higher, and in some cases spooking politicians, LatAm agribusiness operators are broadening their geographies. Though fundraising hasn’t been easy, some – including Brazil’s LDC Bioenergia, which made initial IPO filings Thursday – are planning to give the markets a try. Farmland plays have pushed land prices in Brazil and Argentina to new heights, and large operations such as Adecoagro, BrasilAgro, and SLC Agricola have been challenged by governments worried about purchases by large international players and sovereign wealth funds. “The Chinese and Arab interests would have to hire locals to work the land and pay export taxes for the products they send overseas just like everyone else,” Julio Piza, CEO of BrasilAgro, tells LatinFinance. BrasilAgro is controlled by Argentina’s Cresud, and has been forced to suspend all land purchases in Brazil. However, the company still has plenty of land for future transformation that can continue to generate returns over the next 2 years without having to increase its land stock, he says. “That’s not to say we wouldn’t like to buy more, but 2 years gives us time to adapt to new legislation,” Piza adds. Argentina passed a law late last year banning foreign-controlled companies or individuals from holding more than 1,000 hectares in the country’s agriculture-rich areas, and Brazil also limits foreign-owned land holdings to no more than 15% of the national territory. “Adecoagro can’t buy any more land in Argentina. In Brazil, when rules are finally clarified, even a new restriction will be better than what we have today,” Alessandro Baldoni, analyst at Deutsche Bank, tells LatinFinance. The legal obstacles have piled on top of the European financial struggles, fears of slower economic growth in Asia, and a drought in Argentina and Brazil, as one more issue giving equity investors second thoughts about the sector. Future growth will have to come from other countries in South America. The company ha