13th Nov 2013 14:21
13 NOVEMBER 2013
INTU PROPERTIES PLC
INTU ANNOUNCES LAUNCH AND PRICING OF £485 MILLION TEN YEAR BOND SECURED ON INTU METROCENTRE
Intu Properties plc ("Intu") announces today a £485m bond issue for Intu Metrocentre Finance plc, the issuance vehicle for The Metrocentre Partnership. The issue is a single tranche £485m, ten year, 4.125 per cent bond, priced at a spread of 137 basis points over the relevant reference gilt. This represents an initial loan to value ratio of c. 55% based on a valuation prepared for the purposes of the bond issue of £881m at 28 October 2013.
The bond will be rated Asf by Fitch and BBB+(sf) by Standard & Poor's. HSBC and Lloyds Bank acted as joint bookrunners. Rothschild provided independent debt advice to The Metrocentre Partnership.
The bond will be secured on intu Metrocentre, the prime super-regional shopping centre and retail park in Gateshead and the largest covered shopping and leisure centre in Europe.
The proceeds of the issue will be used to repay the existing debt facilities secured on intu Metrocentre, with a small net receipt to Intu. The cost of borrowing of the new bond represents a saving of some 160 basis points compared to the existing debt facilities and will reduce the Group's average cost of borrowing to 4.9 per cent.
Intu's share of the costs of terminating the swaps associated with the existing financing is estimated to be around £20 million and will be accounted for as a one-off exceptional charge to the income statement and will reduce diluted adjusted net asset value by the same amount.
Matthew Roberts, Finance Director of Intu Properties plc, commented:
"I am delighted with the successful launch of this bond secured on intu Metrocentre and by the level of demand shown by investors at this competitive rate. Building on the well over-subscribed inaugural bond issue of our secured group structure in March 2013, this transaction demonstrates the continuing attractiveness of our prime assets to debt investors. The issue further extends our debt maturity profile and we now have no significant maturities until 2016."
ENQUIRIES
Intu Properties plc | ||
Matthew Roberts | Finance Director | +44 (0)20 7960 1353 |
Kate Bowyer | Head of Investor Relations | +44 (0)20 7960 1250 |
Public relations | ||
UK: | Michael Sandler/Wendy Baker, Hudson Sandler | +44 (0)20 7796 4133 |
SA: | Frédéric Cornet/Cara White, College Hill | +27 (0)11 447 3030 |
NOTES FOR EDITORS
Intu Properties plc (formerly Capital Shopping Centres Group PLC) is the UK's market-leading developer, owner and manager of prime regional shopping centres. Intu owns and operates some of the very best shopping centres, in the strongest locations right across the UK, including ten of the country's top 25. Every one of the UK's top 20 retailers is in Intu's shopping centres, alongside some of the world's most iconic global brands.
With over 17 million sq ft of retail space valued at over £7 billion, Intu's 16 centres attract some 350 million customer visits a year and two thirds of the UK population live within a 45 minute drive time of one of the centres.
At the forefront of UK shopping centre evolution since the 1970s Intu's focus is on creating compelling destinations for consumers with added theatre.
On 15 January this year, the company announced the creation of a nationwide consumer facing shopping centre brand - intu - and the transformation of the Group's digital proposition including a transactional website, to provide the UK's leading shopping centre experience on and off-line.
Intu has a UK investment programme of £1 billion over the next ten years on active management projects and major extensions at most of the centres. Funding for this programme will include recycling of existing assets as well as the possible introduction of partners into major assets.
Intu also has interests outside the UK including an effective interest of 9 per cent in Equity One, a US retail REIT, a 32 per cent interest in Prozone, an Indian shopping centre developer, and a joint venture in Spain for pre-development activity on three major sites under option, in Malaga, Valencia and Vigo. In October 2013 Intu acquired, with a partner, a regional shopping centre in Northern Spain for €162 million.
Over 80,000 people are employed at Intu centres across the UK and the company is fully committed to supporting local communities and the wider environment through meaningful and hands-on initiatives.
For further information see www.intugroup.co.uk
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