Seplat Raises $350m Bond, Refinances $300m Debt

Seplat

Leading Nigerian indigenous oil and gas company listed on both the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Seplat Petroleum Development Company (Seplat) Plc, has announced the successful pricing of its $350 million senior notes due for 2023 offered at 9.25 percent.

The firm, in a statement issued yesterday, explained that the “notes will be issued by the company and guaranteed by certa in of its subsidiaries.

In the statement signed by its Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Mr Roger Brown, the gross proceeds of the notes would be “used to repay and cancel existing indebtedness.”

It was disclosed that the exercise attracted investors majorly from the European region with those in Nigeria and the United States excluded from the process.

In another statement issued yesterday by Mr Brown, Seplat announced successfully refinancing its existing $300 million revolving credit facility due December 2018 with a new four year $300 million revolving credit facility due June 2022 (the RCF).

It explained that the RCF carries initial interest of Libor +6 percent payable semi-annually.

“In conjunction with the issuance of the $350 million 9.25 percent senior notes due 2023, the pricing of which was announced separately today, the company envisages its pro forma gross debt post-closing of both the notes and the RCF (expected to occur on March 21, 2018 ) will be $550 million,” Mr Brown said.

The CFO noted that, “This successful re-financing reflects the confidence that the market has continued to show in our business and ability to proactively manage our balance sheet even through challenging times.”

“Our debut bond issuance further diversifies our capital base and along with the new RCF strengthens our liquidity position which will allow us to scale up our work programme and focus on delivering our growth strategy,” he added.