The board of Argentina’s state-controlled energy firm YPF has approved a bond issue of up to $1bn, according to a regulatory filing.
The company, however, does not have any immediate plans to issue new debt, a YPF official told LatinFinance.
“The board’s decision was an ‘omnibus’ approval in the event an opportunity arises in the coming months,” the official said. “And if it does, the issuance will be used to refinance debt.”
In an interview last month, YPF Chief Financial Officer Daniel Gonzålez said the company plans in 2017 to prioritize refinancing its existing debt and lowering its interest payments, after selling benchmark bonds this year in pesos, dollars and Swiss francs.
The transactions helped the company to prefund its 2017 financing needs, he said.
YPF’s investment plan next year will focus largely on oil and gas exploration and production and downstream activities, but at a “slower pace” compared to this year, Gonzålez said.