Macquarie Atlas Roads announces refinancing of APRR
Macquarie Atlas Roads (MQA), which holds a 20.1% interest in French motorway network Autoroutes Paris-Rhin-Rhône (APRR), has announced that Eiffarie SAS, the holding company for the APRR, has signed a refinancing agreement.
Specifically, the firm has signed a €1.5 billion (US$1.7 billion) term loan with a syndicate of 18 international banks. The loan has an initial term of five years with two available extensions of one year each and carries an interest margin of 100bps above Euribor.
The syndicate includes:
- Banking Syndicate Mandated Lead Arrangers, Bookrunners and Underwriters: Banco Santander, BBVA, BNP Paribas, BTMU, Credit Agricole Group, Natixis, Société Générale
- Mandated Lead Arrangers: Banco Sabadell, Bank of China, CM-CIC Group, Intesa Sanpaolo, Mediobanca, Mizuho, Unicredit
- Lead Arrangers: Commerzbank, ING
- Arrangers: CaixaBank, China Construction Bank
Proceeds of the new loan, together with the proceeds of a distribution from APRR, will be applied towards the full repayment of Eiffarie's existing €2.5 billion (US$2.84 billion) debt facility, due to mature in February 2017.
In addition, APRR has signed a €1.8 billion (US$2.05 billion) revolving credit facility which will replace its existing undrawn €720 million (US$819 million) credit facility.
APRR is the fourth largest tolled motorway network in Europe and consists of 2,264 km of operating motorway, with only 18 km to be constructed and opened by 2016. APRR comprises four separate concessions: the APRR network, the AREA network, ADELAC and the Maurice Lemaire tunnel.
The APRR motorway network is located in the heart of Western Europe and serves major business centres, including the Paris-Lyon corridor that links France's two largest metropolitan areas, as well as Northern Europe (the UK, Benelux and Germany), Switzerland and Southern Europe, including Italy and the Iberian peninsula via the Rhône Valley or the Massif Central mountain range. The network also serves as a gateway to Central and Eastern Europe.
Macquarie Atlas Roads (MQA) is a global toll road developer and operator. MQA was created out of the portfolio reorganisation of Macquarie Infrastructure Group into two separate ASX-listed toll road groups, MQA and Intoll.
