Bankers were still awaiting a mandate decision last week from Brazil’s Grupo Votorantim on a $2.65bn dual-tranche loan facility after submitting proposals ahead of the June 9 deadline. Terms have yet to be determined, but more details about the structure have emerged. Votorantim is looking for a $1.5bn 5-year revolving credit facility and an export prepayment facility comprising 2018, 2019 and 2020 tranches for a total of $1.15bn, according to the company. The revolver will replace an existing $400m facility and the export prepayment loan will be used to prepay export prepayment agreements. Bankers expect aggressive pricing, given the success of the Vale and America Movil transactions. America Movil priced a $4bn dual-tranche deal in April, made up of a $2bn 3.5-year tranche, priced at Libor+50bp and a $2bn EUR equivalent 5-year tranche priced at Libor + 60bp. Vale also closed its syndicated loan in April, a $3bn 5-year revolver, priced at L+60bp.
Category: Loans
EPM Plots Debut International Syndication
Colombian energy company, Empresas Publicas de Medellin (EPM) is preparing a $275m A/B loan, marking its first foray into the international syndicated loan market, say market participants. The company will hold bank meetings in New York on Monday and Tuesday and will launch this week. The A loan from the IFC is for $25m, while the B loan will have a $250m size and comprise 5 and 7-year tranches. The company has yet to mandate international banks on the B portion. The loan is rated AA3 by Moody’s and BBB- by Fitch. Proceeds will go towards investments in energy and water distribution. EPM in January raised COP1.25trn ($679m) through a global 10-year peso bond priced to yield 8.5% after generating some $1bn in orders.
Bladex to Return with $150m 3-Year
Latin American supranational bank Bladex is poised to launch a $150m 3-year loan at the end of June. Mizuho is acting as lead and the proceeds are going to refinance an existing facility that pays around 200bp over Libor. The borrower is expected to achieve tighter pricing this time, shaving off at least 50bp from prior levels.
Itau Preps Bank Meetings
Brazilian banking giant Itau is plotting a new $500m 3-year loan, with bank meetings scheduled on Monday in Asia and on June 29 in New York. Proceeds are going toward refinancing an existing $400m facility taken out in 2008 through leads BNP Paribas and Unicredit. That loan paid around Libor plus 95bp, but the borrower is not expected to achieve such tight pricing on this occasion. BNP Paribas, HSBC and Mizuho are acting as underwriters and global coordinators, though some other banks may also join at this level.
CFE Seeks Tighter Margins
Mexico’s CFE, the federal electricity commission, wants to re-finance a $2bn 3.5-year term loan after seeing the attractive spreads recently achieved by Mexican telecom America Movil and Brazilian mining company Vale, say market participants. Bankers have not received RFPs, but the company is sounding them on pricing levels. The loan that closed in December was priced at 130bp over Libor, with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Bank of Tokyo, Citi, Intesa, RBS and Santander acting as bookrunners. The transaction pre-financed a $1.7bn revolver which matured in May. CFE is following in the footsteps of oil company Pemex, which is also looking to re-finance a $3.25bn dual-tranche loan that closed last December. Both state-owned credits are thought to have been inspired by attractive spreads seen on America Movil and Vale’s recent syndications. Vale priced its $3bn 5-year at 65bp over Libor. America Movil priced a $4bn dual-tranche deal, with a $2bn 3.5-year tranche coming at 50bp over Libor and a $2bn euro-equivalent loan at 60bp over Euribor.
St. Kitts and Nevis Get Emergency Funding
IMF staff and St. Kitts and Nevis authorities have reached a broad agreement on key elements for an emergency funding arrangement of $84m over 36 months. The IMF executive board will assess the emergency funding arrangement at the end of July following IMF management review. Declines in tourism and significant increases in public debt levels were listed as triggers to economic decline in both regions. To obtain the funding, St. Kitts and Nevis are required to follow the IMF’s economic plan, involving a public debt reduction and a restructuring plan to achieve a sustainable debt service profile. St. Kitts and Nevis became members of the IMF in August 2004.
CAF Hits Japan Retail Buyers
CAF has raised JPY10bn ($123m) in the Samurai bond market. The Venezuela-based supranational lender priced the 2015 bond at par with a 1.0% coupon to yield Yen Libor+49bp, in line with 0.8%-1.1% guidance. Unlike most other Latin Samurais, the bond was sold primarily to retail investors, though was not the same type as the Eurobond retail Uridashi that CAF did last year. “This was the first retail samurai after the earthquake, and the first ever retail samurai by a Latin American issuer,” CAF’s international director Gabriel Felpeto tells LatinFinance. Daiwa managed the sale, rated A+. A planned benchmark USD bond could be next for the perennial multi-currency borrower. “We are looking at the market. The past few weeks have been difficult, but we are not in a rush,” Felpeto says. Domestic market issuance in the region is also a possibility. After raising $40m in Panama in May, CAF is also considering a Chilean market issue, among others, this year.
CAF Upsizes Syndicated Loan
CAF, the Andean multilateral, has upsized a 3-year syndicated loan it was seeking from Asian lenders after the deal was oversubscribed, according to a banker on the transaction. The multilateral has upsized the deal to $163m, from the $150m it had planned to borrow, to accommodate demand. The deal was priced at Libor+ 95bp. The mandated lead arranger, SMBC, took a $100m ticket and 5 others participated in the transaction, with ticket sizes ranging from $3m to over $10m. Bank of Taiwan, Megan International Commercial Bank, LAN Bank Taiwan were the banks that participated from Taiwan. The Development Bank of Japan also participated in the deal, which was the first time it has acted as a lender to a LatAm multilateral, says a banker on the deal. Proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes.
Eldorado Gets BNDES Loan
Paper and pulp producer Eldorado, has been a BRL2.7bn ($1.7bn) loan from Brazilian development bank BNDES. A spokesperson for the bank declines to say what rate the loan pays. Proceeds will be used to finance the construction of a pulp and paper plant in Tres Lagos, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The plant will be completed by the end of 2012 and is expected to be the biggest in the world upon completion. The loan is expected to cover around half of the cost of the first phase of the project, which is expected to cost around BRL5.1bn. The remainder is expected to be financed by credit lines.
Mexico Airport Group Gets Loan
Mexico’s Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico (GAP) has received a credit line for MXP551.37m ($46.89m) from Banamex. The funds will be used to finance capital investments in 2011 and 2012 for its airports in Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, Hermosillo and Guanajuato. The 7-year loan will pay a spread of 135bp over TIIE for funds disbursed in 2011 and 143bp over TIIE for funds disbursed in 2012. The structuring commission is 75bp on the total amount of the loan and the commitment fees are 25bp in 2011 and 2012. This follows the announcement that they received a line of credit from HSBC for MXP1.02bn for the same purposes last week.