SES has secured an E523m export credit funding facility from the French export agency COFACE for the financing of its recently announced package of four new satellites.
COFACE has granted a guarantee for a facility of E522.89m, which is due to mature on…
SES has secured an E523m export credit funding facility from the French export agency COFACE for the financing of its recently announced package of four new satellites.
COFACE has granted a guarantee for a facility of E522.89m, which is due to mature on October 16, 2022. The total project amount is understood to be approximately E605m. BNP Paribas and Société Générale are mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners on the facility, while ING Belgium is also a bookrunner.
The four new satellites, ASTRA 2E, ASTRA 2F, ASTRA 2G and ASTRA 5B, are being manufactured by EADS Astrium. SES recently revealed that ASTRA 5B will contain a hosted payload for EGNOS, the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (see EMEA operators for more details on this deal).
SES CFO Mark Rigolle said: “This facility further develops SES’ diversified funding base, and significantly extends our maturity profile based on the design lifetimes of these four satellites.”
France leads rise in export credit
This facility, and the support offered to Avanti announced in the same week, highlights the increased prominence of COFACE as the main export credit source of backing for satellite projects.
A common thread united other high profile projects that received COFACE backing in 2009, such as Globalstar and O3B, in that Thales Alenia Space is the main contractor for both companies.
Now, the agency has provided backing for the Astrium-built SES package and the Orbital-built Avanti HYLAS-2 satellite, which reflects how the rest of the industry has acknowledged the opportunity for this kind of support in entering the otherwise turbulent waters of the debt markets.
However, one banker told SatelliteFinance that he thought that COFACE may start putting limits on pricing and offer more stringent terms on its guarantees, although this will still be addressed on a company-by-company basis.
From a banking side, though, the rise in export credit has played a major role in their agreeing to back a number of these project-related financings. “There are not many banks that are able to provide this type of service independently for this kind of large project. Not many are willing to play a leading role, with more seeking a niche position,” commented the banker.
While COFACE has so far led the way, the banker expects the Export-Import Bank of the United States will be increasingly active this year, remarking: “Particularly with respect to companies established in the US or where there’s a strong US company involved, there is a willingness of the US agency and government to see big contracts stay in the US instead of going to Europe.”
