UK-based PetroLatina has secured an up to $100m 4-year revolving credit facility through BNP Paribas, it says. The loan will be used to repay an existing facility with Macquarie and help fund its oil and gas operations in Colombia. PetroLatina has already secured $36m, $29m of which went towards existing facility repayment and Macquarie price hedging contracts. Interest will be paid at Libor plus 4.5%. UK-listed PetroLatina operates in Guatemala and Colombia.
Category: Regions
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Rusoro, Venezuela Extend Compensation Talks
Venezuela has decided to extend a 90-day period for talks with gold miner Rusoro as it decides how much to pay the company for its nationalized assets. The size and form of compensation remain unclear at this stage, but a person familiar with the situation tells LatinFinance that depending on the gold price used, the company values its assets at roughly $1bn. Rusoro and Venezuelan officials could not immediately be reached for comment. The parties have agreed so far to extend the talks to March 14 to decide on a way forward. So far discussions have revolved around the possibility of Rusoro selling all of its assets to the state with a second option of keeping a 45% stake in a new venture controlled by the government. Negotiations hinge on Venezuela’s decision to pay compensation based on unamortized book value for assets that Rusoro acquired gradually at fair market prices. Venezuela’s government passed a law in September to keep gold extraction in the hands of the state. As such, all mining companies must transfer assets to a new entity and accept a minority interest of as much as 45% of the new business, with the government in control. Rusoro is a mining vehicle founded by Vladimir Agapov and his son Andre, two Russian businessmen who spent years acquiring mining properties in Venezuela under the administration of President Hugo Chavez. In recent weeks Venezuela has moved to finalize compensation agreements with a number of companies affected by the president’s nationalization campaign.
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Banco Multiva Preps MXP Issue
Mexico’s Banco Multiva has filed a shelf to issue up to MXP5bn ($361m) in bonds It does not give details about the timing or exact amount of the first sale. Proceeds of the deal will be used to fund bank operations. The issuances under the program will be self-led.
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BBVA Chile Sees MXP Bond in 2012
BBVA Chile is now targeting early next year for its entrance into the Mexican bond market, a deal it had aimed to do this month, says a banker on the deal. The bank hopes to raise MXP1.5bn ($111m) in 3-year floating rate bonds, targeting pricing of around TIIE+60bp. Chilean peer Banco de Chile recently priced a MXP1.5bn 3-year at the same level. BBVA Chile would become the fourth Chilean issuer to tap Mexico’s domestic market, and is looking for an alternative source to raise funding for the bank’s operations. BBVA Bancomer is leading the transaction, rated AAA on a national scale.
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Mexico’s Sare Plans Asset Divestment
Mexican homebuilder Sare plans a MXN1.6bn ($115.9m) sale of non-core assets over the coming two years in a bid to pay off debt and finance ongoing projects. Sare shareholders approved a plan that entails selling MXN800m ($58m) in undeveloped lands and unfinished residential projects in 2012, as well as an additional MXN800m in assets the following year, a Sare investor relations officer tells LatinFinance. “We are selling assets that won’t affect our growth going forward,” the official says. Sare is approaching the sale through several fronts. It will rely on real-estate service firms CB Richard Ellis and Cushman & Wakefield as well as LaSalle Investment Management and a number of local real-estate firms to sell a portion of the assets. Some will also be divested through the banks that hold them as guarantees. Half of the MXN1.6bn raised from the sale will be used to finance ongoing projects with the rest devoted to paying off debt. In the company’s bid to deal with outstanding debt, shareholders also agreed to extend the maturities of MXN2.44bn in debt.
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Mexichem Still Pursuing Dutch Pipemaker
Mexican chemical company Mexichem intends to continue its pursuit of Dutch pipemaker company Wavin, just days after the target rejected an improved acquisition offer. Mexichem plans to request an approval from Dutch regulatory authorities for its non-binding offer for Wavin sometime during the coming four weeks. On December 6, Mexichem improved an unsolicited offer for Wavin by offering EUR9 in cash per ordinary share or an implied EV/Ebitda multiple of 7.5x. The company first approached Wavin in late November with an offer of EUR8.5 per ordinary share. Wavin officials have rejected both offers, arguing the company is worth far more.
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Banco de Bogota Closes $500m Loan
Banco de Bogota has closed a $500m 3-year bullet facility, bringing on board a total of 12 banks and wrapping up a take-out for a bridge used to finance the acquisition of Central America’s BAC-Credomatic. Coming late in the year and at a time when European banks are retrenching, the transaction perhaps moved slower than initially expected, but leads Citi, HSBC and JPMorgan eventually brought in an eclectic group of 9 banks. Banco de Credito del Peru, Commercebank, Bank of Tokyo, Wells Fargo and Standard Chartered participated as MLAs, while Helm Bank, Corpbanca, Mercantil Commercebank and the Israel Discount Bank signed up as managers. The loan pays a margin of Libor plus 225bp, and fees ranged between 35bp to 100bp.
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DF Brings MXP1.77bn 5-Year
Mexico City’s government has raised MXP1.77bn ($128m) through a sale of a domestic bond. The 5-year floating rate notes priced at TIIE+30bp, flat to talk and tight to quasi-sovereign CFE’s MXP1.358bn 4-year notes that came last week at TIIE+35bp. Deutsche Bank managed the sale, rated AAA on a national scale. This bond represents the sixth issuance under Mexico City mayor Marcelo Ebrard’s administration. Demand topped MXP2.5bn with participation coming from mutual funds, private banking, Afores, banks, and insurance companies. Proceeds will help fund public works. It last raised MXP2bn through a 2.1x oversubscribed dual-tranche re-opening in 2010. The MXP500m floating rate tranche paid TIIE flat, while the fixed-rate tranche for MXP1.5bn paid Mbonos+105bp The bonds have maturities of 4 years 8 months and 9 years 8 months, respectively.
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Inbursa Sells Peso Paper
Mexico’s Banco Inbursa has sold a MXP3bn ($216m) floater in the domestic bond market. The 2-year notes priced at TIIE +20bp, in line with TIIE+15bp-25bp price talk. The bond was oversubscribed by 1.18x with participation seen mostly from mutual funds and bank treasuries. Proceeds will be used to increase liquidity and grow the bank’s credit portfolio. The bank is considering issuing an additional MXP2bn in 2-year floating rate paper in the domestic market next week. Banamex and Inbursa are managing the proposed new transaction, which is still pending authorization. On this occasion, HSBC and Inbursa led the transaction, rated AAA on a local scale. Inbursa last issued in July, pricing a MXP4.9bn 2014 bond at TIIE +20bp via Actinver, BAML, Inbursa and Santander.
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Telmex to Delist from NYSE, NASDAQ and Latibex
Telmex has decided to delist its ADRs from the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq stock market and its L shares from Spain’s Latibex market, in a reorganization that follows Telmex’s acquisition by America Movil. The telecom company’s shareholders approved the move, and it now plans to inform the various stock markets of its decision to pull the listing, which also involves terminating the ADR program in the US. Telmex shares, however, will continue to trade in the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores. With the Telmex acquisition by AMX, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim has sought to unify his telecom assets under a single roof.