Polish mobile operator Polkomtel has signed an agreement to refinance its entire PLN7.95bn (US$2.5bn) senior debt load with three term loans and a revolver.
The Warsaw-based company said in a statement that the agreement follows several months of…
Polish mobile operator Polkomtel has signed an agreement to refinance its entire PLN7.95bn (US$2.5bn) senior debt load with three term loans and a revolver.
The Warsaw-based company said in a statement that the agreement follows several months of negotiations with financial institutions, resulting in a “high level” of oversubscription.
Polkomtel, which operates under the brand name Plus, said the agreement will enable it to cut interest costs by more than PLN100m (US$31.6m) a year and have a positive impact on its future results.
Specifically, the refinancing consists of a PLN2.65bn (US$838m) four-and-a-half year term loan, a PLN3.3bn (US$1bn) five-year term loan, a PLN1.7bn (US$537.6m) six-year term loan and a PLN300m (US$94.9m) revolving credit facility for potential use in future.
Interest for the Polish zloty-denominated refinancing is based on the variable Warsaw Interbank Offered Rate (WIBOR) plus a margin.
Polkomtel expects to draw on the funds this month.
CFO Joanna Nieckarz noted that the lower debt financing costs will enable the company to invest more in things such as LTE-based superfast internet.
The refinancing agreement was arranged and coordinated by Trigon Brokerage House. The global coordinating banks were Bank Pekao and PKO Bank Polski.
The largest lenders and senior mandated lead arrangers were PZU Group, Bank Pekao, PKO Bank Polski and Bank Zachodni WBK.
Mandated lead arrangers were Nordea, DnB Bank, Bank DnB Nord Polska, ING Bank, HSBC Bank Polska, BNP Paribas, RBS, BRE Bank, Bank Millennium, Raiffeisen Bank, Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking and Credit Agricole Bank Polska.
Nieckarz told reporters in March that Polkomtel was in talks with banks about refinancing zloty-denominated loans used to support its 2011 buyout.
Media tycoon Zygmunt Solarz-Zak’s Spartan Capital Holdings finalised its acquisition of Polkomtel for PLN18.1bn (US$5.6bn) in November 2011. Credit Agricole and Deutsche Bank were global coordinators of the US$4.35bn loan package to support the buyout.
Nieckarz said in March that the company paid back more than PLN1bn (US$310.9m) of its credit facility last year, stressing that “debt reduction is our priority”.
In its latest statement, Polkmotel said the new refinancing agreement and an earlier prepayment of PLN800m (US$253m) form part of its debt reduction strategy.
Polkomtel reported revenues of PLN7.133bn (US$2.2bn) for 2012, down from PLN7.312 (US$2.3bn) in 2011. EBITDA stood at PLN2.795bn (US$869m), down from PLN2.827 (US$879m) the previous year.
