SINGAPORE - Sats on Jan 17 priced US$500 million (S$672 million) in fixed-rate senior unsecured notes due Jan 23, 2029 at 4.828 per cent.

The inaugural Series 001 notes are the first to be issued under the in-flight caterer and ground handler’s US$3 billion multicurrency debt issuance programme established in November 2023.

The notes have been “very well-received” by global investors and were 3.6 times subscribed, said Sats chief financial officer Manfred Seah.

The group expects to issue the notes on Jan 23, 2024. Proceeds will be used to refinance part of the group’s existing €1 billion (S$1.46 billion) bridge loans maturing in May.

The notes will be immediately converted into euros via a cross-currency swap to achieve a fixed rate of 3.498 per cent a year to match the currency of the existing bridge loans, helping to hedge Sats’ foreign currency exposure.

The group expects the refinancing exercise to result in an “all-in” interest saving of around $8.8 million.

“The purpose of the debut issuance is primarily aimed at accessing a broader investor base and spreading our debt maturity profile while lowering the group’s overall cost of borrowing,” Mr Seah said.

Moody’s Investors Service assigned a senior unsecured rating of A3 to the Series 001 notes and a (P)A3 rating to the debt issuance programme. These ratings mirror Sats’ issuer rating of A3 with a stable outlook.

BNP Paribas, DBS Bank, MUFG Securities EMEA, OCBC Bank and HSBC’s Singapore branch are the joint lead managers and joint book runners for the issuance.

Shares of Sats closed 0.7 per cent or two cents lower at $2.87 on Jan 17. THE BUSINESS TIMES