Belgian cableco Telenet has issued two new term loans with a combined total of €1.357bn (US$1.88bn) to refinance debt.
The issue consists of a €474.1m (US$656.17m) eight-year loan carrying a margin of 3.25% over Euribor, and a €882.9m (US$1.22bn)…
Belgian cableco Telenet has issued two new term loans with a combined total of €1.357bn (US$1.88bn) to refinance debt.
The issue consists of a €474.1m (US$656.17m) eight-year loan carrying a margin of 3.25% over Euribor, and a €882.9m (US$1.22bn) nine-year loan carrying a margin of 3.5% over Euribor (term loans W and Y respectively).
Telenet noted that it is the first European cableco to successfully issue a term loan with a nine-year tenor. The new loans come under the existing 2010 amended credit facility.
Net proceeds together with available cash and cash equivalents will be used to fully redeem the outstanding amounts under existing term loans Q, R and T as well as €100m (US$138.4m) of 5.3% senior secured notes due 2016.
Telenet said it consequently has no debt amortisations before November 2020.
As part of the refinancing, lenders under a 2.75% €158m (US$218.14m) revolving credit facility maturing on 31 December 2016 have renewed and extended their commitments under a new revolver. The new facility X matures on 30 September 2020 and carries a margin of 2.75% over Euribor. The first revolver (facility S) now totals €35.4m (US$48.99m), while facility X totals €286m (US$395.82m).
BNP Paribas Fortis, RBS and Scotiabank led the refinancing.
Telenet launched an offer to extend term loans Q, R and T under a new term loan in late March, inviting facility S lenders to extend the size and tenor of the revolver at the same time. The Brussels-listed company said then that the loan would be worth at least €500m (US$690.3m).
Telenet reported net debt of €3.87bn as of 31 December 2013, of which €1.4bn is owed under the 2010 amended senior credit facility. This equated to a net debt to consolidated annualised EBITDA ratio of 4x.
