Satellite operator Eutelsat has raised €300m through the issue of 10-year senior unsecured notes. Proceeds are to be used to for general corporate purposes.
The bonds carry a coupon of 3.125% and priced at 99.148 to yield 3.152%. Credit Agricole CIB…
Satellite operator Eutelsat has raised €300m through the issue of 10-year senior unsecured notes. Proceeds are to be used to for general corporate purposes.
The bonds carry a coupon of 3.125% and priced at 99.148 to yield 3.152%. Credit Agricole CIB and Société Générale were joint bookrunning managers on the deal.
The financing was a somewhat opportunistic one with Eutelsat stating that it was “able to take advantage of the very competitive current market environment to raise long-term financing with a 10-year maturity at attractive conditions.”
To that end, the order book for the bonds reached more than €1.5bn, although the company had no plans to increase the size of the offering on the back of the demand.
Eutelsat, which is rated Baa2/BBB, last tapped the European bond market back in December 2011 when it raised €800m in 7-year senior unsecured notes. That placement was part of a wider €1.7bn refinancing which also comprised a €700m 5-year bullet senior unsecured term loan and a €200m 5-year senior unsecured revolving credit facility.
As with this latest financing, Crédit Agricole CIB and Société Générale led the transaction alongside Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The transaction comes shortly after Eutelsat revealed that it has completed its acquisition of the GE-23 satellite, associated customer contracts and orbital rights from GE Capital for US$228m.
Commenting on the acquisition, Eutelsat CEO Michel de Rosen, said: “We are delighted to announce finalisation of this acquisition that brings three key assets to Eutelsat: first, a high-quality satellite equipped with a flexible payload of C and Ku-band capacity in great demand over the Asia-Pacific region. Secondly, the transaction includes orbital rights at 172E, giving us an exceptional platform to serve dynamic markets in the region as well as headroom for further expansion. Thirdly, we are acquiring a portfolio of quality customer relationships that we are excited to serve.
“This satellite adds further ballast to Eutelsat’s organic growth initiatives, notably our Eutelsat-70B satellite which is equipped with a dedicated Asian beam and on track for launch later this year.”
Goldman Sachs advised Eutelsat on the deal while Trinity Advisers advised GE Capital.