UK communications infrastructure firm Arqiva plans to tap the investment grade bond market in January as part of a £3.4bn refinancing, TelecomFinance has learned.
A spokesman for the company confirmed it is being advised by HSBC and Rothschild on…
UK communications infrastructure firm Arqiva plans to tap the investment grade bond market in January as part of a £3.4bn refinancing, TelecomFinance has learned.
A spokesman for the company confirmed it is being advised by HSBC and Rothschild on refinancing the debt, which matures in 2014.
It has asked around 25 banks for refinancing proposals, and the new debt will include a combination of bonds and loans. It also anticipates an equity injection from existing shareholders, with £300m of new investment.
“Discussions with potential lenders have been positive with a strong interest in participating in our refinancing,” said the spokesman.
Arqiva has spent the last 18 months preparing to refinance the debt, which was arranged in 2007 by Barclays, Dresdner Kleinwort (now part of Commerzbank), HSBC and RBS. The facility was secured by Arqiva’s then-majority owner Macquarie and was connected to its transformational acquisition of National Grid Wireless for £2.5bn.
Last August, Arqiva told TelecomFinance sister publication SatelliteFinance that it had begun preliminary discussions with interested parties, adding that, because the current facility does not expire for two years, it was “in a position to explore all options” to refinance it.
The debt itself comprises a dual-tranche £2.15bn senior loan, split between a £1.55bn seven-year term loan A1 and a £600m 7.5 year A2 tranche; a £700m seven-year cap-ex line; £475m in junior debt and a £75m revolving credit facility.
Arqiva, which provides television, radio, satellite and wireless communications infrastructure in the UK and also has operations in Ireland, mainland Europe and the US, is owned by a consortium of seven shareholder groups. The largest is Canada Pension Plan Investment Board with a 48% stake, followed by Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 2 with 25%.
The company could end up refinancing more than £3.4bn because the existing 2007 facility is reportedly tied to expensive long-dated interest swaps.
