Glencore finds refinancing a breeze, bank's $540m African financing, Namibia's sensible' mining policies

摘要

A HORDE OF BANKS have seemingly rushed in eagerly to grant an eventual $15.25-billion worth of revolving credit facilities to diversified mining and marketing major Glencore, as part of a refinancing exercise. Initially launched at $14-billion, the credit facilities of the London-, Hong Kong- and Johannesburg-listed company ultimately closed substantially oversubscribed at $17-billion, after Glencore's broad group of relationship banks showed strong support. The company, headed by CEO Ivan Glasenberg, did well to have 60 banks, embracing 34 mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners, commit to the facilities, which refinance Glencore's $8.7-billion one-year revolving credit facilities and amend and extend the $6.6-billion five-year revolving credit facility, both signed in June last year. Investec Securities speculates that Glencore must have secured attractive rates, with the highly successful exercise also allaying any concerns investors may have had about its gearing. Even with net end-2014 debt of $31-billion and gross debt of $50-billion, Glencore had clearly found refinancing a breeze. Glencore simultaneously announced in South Africa that it is funding a R2.76-million project in Mpumalanga to provide 200 secondary Phola community students with a video mentoring facility, which is seen as a breakthrough in education for previously disadvantaged pupils.