Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
In May 2014, a syndicate of seven banks — including the Export-Import Bank of China — entered into a $288 million USD syndicated term loan agreement with Prosafe AS — a Norway-incorporated company that owns and operates semi-submersible accommodation vessels wholly-owned by Cyprus, Prosafe SE which is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange — for the Semi-Submersible Accommodation Unit Project. This loan carried a maturity period of seven years, a final maturity period in the second quarter of 2021, and an interest rate of 3-month USD LIBOR plus a margin of 2.25% (depending on the leverage ratio, leading to 2.75% if above 5.50 if the leverage ratio was above 5.50). This loan was divided into two tranches of $144 million USD each, to be drawn upon the delivery of two newbuilds semi-submersibles, with the availability under each tranche reduced quarterly with $3 million USD, beginning three months of the tranche security. The proceeds were to be used for the post-delivery financing of two semi-submersibles }. China Eximbank contributed $144 million USD to the loan syndicate. Record ID#101872 captures China Eximbank's contribution. In addition to China Eximbank, the following banks contributed to the loan syndicate: Nordea Bank AB (publ), DNB ASA, ABN AMRO Bank NV, Danske Bank A/S, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (SEB), and Swedbank. The first $144 million USD tranche was drawn upon delivery of Safe Notos in February 2016. In September 2016, the lenders entered into an amendment agreement with the borrower for the $288 million USD syndicated loan; 90% of the originally schedule repayment for the Safe Noto tranches from January 1, 2017 until June 30, 2019 were postponed and to be repaid on the final maturity date, while 70% of the scheduled repayments from July 1, 2019 to December 31, 2020 were postponed until the final maturity date; if and when Prosafe took delivery of Safe Eurus, the tranches would follow the same amortization and relief as the Safe Notos tranche. Record ID#104910 captures China Eximbank's contribution to this debt rescheduling. In 2018, the borrower cancelled the unused $144 million USD tranche for Safe Eurus, when COSCO agreed to new financing for Eurus. In January 2016, COSCO (Qidong) Offshore Co. Ltd. issued a $29 million USD seller's credit to Prosafe as a reduction on the final delivery instalment of the Safe Notos. This loan carried a maturity period of approximately four years and an interest rate of an estimated 6%. Record ID#104911 captures this seller's credit. Then, in August 2016, COSCO (Qidong) and Prosafe amended the seller's credit; the first instalment of $2.3 million USD would be paid in October 2016 and thereafter $300,000 USD would be paid monthly until December 2019, while the remaining payment would be repaid in a single payment on or before December 2019. The proceeds of this loan were to used by the borrower to finance the acquisition of two GustoMSC Ocean 500 design semi-submersible accommodation vessels (known as Safe Notos and Safe Eurus) constructed by COSCO (Qidong) Offshore Co., Ltd. as contracted in 2013. Each of these vessels had a deck area of 1,500 square meters plus, power generation of 31,328 kW, gangways of 38 meters +/- 7.5 meters, 10-point wire winches for mooring, DP3 for station keeping, 6 x 3.7 MW Azimuth thrusters, a 50-ton port-side Liebherr electro-hydraulic crane and a 300-ton starboard-side Liebherr electro-hydraulic crane, and a maximum number of beds of 500 The two semi-submersible accommodation rigs were originally scheduled to become operational in 2016. Steel cutting of the Safe Noto took place in March 2014. Prosafe took delivery of the Safe Notos on February 14, 2016; it was scheduled to begin a three-year and 222-day-long contract with Petrobras in Brazil beginning in Q1 2017. Prosafe took delivery of Safe Eurus on July 4, 2019; it was scheduled to begin a three-year contract with Petrobas in Brazil beginning in Q4 2019.