EEB Heard Mandating Banks

Colombian utility Empresa de Energia de Bogota (EEB) is heard mandating Deutsche Bank and Santander for an international bond to help fund an upcoming call on its $610m 8.75% 2014s. The NC4 senior unsecured notes were issued in 2007 to partially pay down a bridge loan used to finance the $1.5bn acquisition of natural gas distributor Ecogas. The bonds are callable in October at 104.375, at 102.88 in 2012 and at par in 2013 and after. The bond also carries a make-whole call prior to year four at 75bp and a change of control put at 101.00. EEB bonds were trading Tuesday afternoon at 2.81% on yield-to- worst basis and at a price of 104.35-105.5. ABN AMRO, now RBS, was the sole bookrunner on the last issue with BBVA, Caylon and Mizuho working as joint lead managers.