President Energy, an international energy company, is pleased to announce the issue of a Corporate Bond by the Company's Argentine subsidiary, President Petroleum S.A.
Highlights
• President Petroleum S.A. has issued an oversubscribed US$8,950,000 Corporate Dollar Denominated Bond which has been successfully publicly placed with qualified investors in Argentina
• This is the first time that any member of the President Group has issued a Corporate Bond
• The Bond has been rated A- local investment grade by the Argentine affiliate of the respected worldwide credit rating agency Fitch
• Covenant lite with an interest rate of 1.24% p.a. and a term of 2 years solely secured on 60% of the sales proceeds of oil from the Company's Puesto Flores field, Río Negro Province , Argentina
• Proceeds to be mainly used for capital investment purposes in Argentina as well as working capital
• The Bond will list on the Bolsa y Mercados Argentinos ("BYMA"), the Main Argentine exchange will trade on the Mercado Abierto Electrónico (MAE)
Corporate Bond
The Argentine subsidiary of the Company, President Petroleum S.A. , a dollar based business, has successfully issued and placed a US$8,950,000 Dollar denominated Corporate Bond. This is the first time that any member of the Group has issued a Corporate Bond.
The issue, which was oversubscribed nearly three times, was successfully placed by a line-up of local institutions led by BACS Banco de Crédito y Securitización S.A. and Banco Hipotecario S.A. on behalf of the Company with the Bond carrying an interest rate of 1.24% p.a. and having a term of two years (with four quarterly amortization payments during the second year). The covenant lite Bond is solely secured on 60% of the sales proceeds from oil sales of the Puesto Flores Concession, Río Negro Province , Argentina . Production from all other Río Negro fields and the Puesto Guardian field in Salta as well as all gas production in Argentina are not subject to nor affected by this security.
Of particular note is that the Bond has given the credit rating of A- local investment grade by the Argentine affiliate of the worldwide credit rating agency Fitch, Fix SCR.
The proceeds from the Bond will be mainly used for capital expenditures of the Argentine operations through the whole of next year including the drilling and seismic operations at the long term Puesto Guardian Concession as well as working capital.
The Bond is expected to list on BYMA and to trade on the Mercado Abierto Electrónico (MAE)
Peter Levine , Chair, commented as follows:
"The issue of the Bond is a first for our Group. It is a matter of taking the opportunity for low cost capital available to us on attractive terms in the local Argentine market through our dollar-based business, President Petroleum S.A. It provides flexibility and allows us to take advantage of better terms and prices.
"The fact that this covenant lite Bond issued with an interest rate of 1.24% p.a. has received a local investment grade rating of A- from Fix SCR, the affiliate of the world-renowned Fitch Group credit rating agency, is reflective of the standing of President in Argentina
"It is furthermore a clear message to equity investors as to the strength of and value attributed to our Group
"The proceeds will be mainly used for capital expenditures in Argentina as well as working capital supplementing our free cash generation from existing operations as we move into an intensive investment period to expand our oil production to take advantage of higher prices and economies of scale in our production assets in Salta Province
"In the meantime the various important strategic workstreams continue in other parts of the Group including the forthcoming IPO of Atome Energy and the Paraguay farm out of our significant prospective exploration acreage to be concluded now within a matter of a week
"Whilst it may seem to investors that many things are happening in succession, President has been working away on all these initiatives for a considerable period of time and they are in no way happenstance. All is under control."
