French cable operator Numericable plans to issue €350m of senior secured notes to repay about half of more than €1bn bank debt maturing in 2014, Moody’s said.
The agency gave the issue a B2 rating to the notes, which will be issued by special…
French cable operator Numericable plans to issue €350m of senior secured notes to repay about half of more than €1bn bank debt maturing in 2014, Moody’s said.
The agency gave the issue a B2 rating to the notes, which will be issued by special purpose vehicle Numericable Finance & Co and will mature in 2019. The agency’s outlook for the ratings is stable.
The notes will be used to prepay part of existing bank debt, Moody’s said. Numericable will extend the maturity profile of part of its bank debt by two years and reset existing financial covenants via an ‘amend and extend’ process, thereby reducing the level of bank debt due in 2014 from more than €1bn to about €500m.
Moody’s said Numericable will also benefit from a new €75m revolving credit facility which will be undrawn at the closing of the transaction.
The agency added Numericable will lend the proceeds on to the company as an additional ‘C’ facility to the existing bank agreement.
Bloomberg quoted an unnamed banker as saying JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole and HSBC are managing the deal.
