Bank of China contributes to a $1.44 billion AUD syndicated loan for the Asciano 2011 Refinancing Project (Linked to Record ID#97551 and #97552)

Project narrative

Between June 16 and 22, 2007, a syndicate of 30 banks — including the Bank of China (BOC) and China Construction Bank Corporation (CCB) — signed a $5.2 billion AUD multi-tranche syndicated loan with Asciano Limited, an Australian freight logistics company. This loan consisted of four tranches: a $2.25 billion AUD tranche with a maturity period of three years and a final maturity date of May 2010, a $2.25 billion AUD tranche with a maturity period of five years and a final maturity date of May 2012, a $550 million AUD capital expenditure facility with a maturity period of three years and a final maturity date of May 2010, and a $150 million AUD working capital facility tranche with a maturity period of one year. This loan was secured by (i.e. collateralized against) the assets of various members of Asciano Limited. This loan came on the occasion of Asciano's imminent separation from its parent company Toll Holdings; Asciano would control Toll Holdings' rail and port business, Pacific National and Patrick Ports. BOC contributed $165 million AUD and CCB contributed $108.7 million AUD to the loan syndicate. BOC's contribution is captured by Record ID#97551. CCB's contribution is captured by Record ID#97552. In addition to the two Chinese state-owned banks, the following lenders contributed the respective amounts to the loan syndicate: BNP Paribas S.A. ($300 million AUD), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) ($300 million AUD), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) ($300 million AUD), Westpac Banking Corporation ($300 million AUD), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) ($250 million AUD), National Australia Bank Limited (NAB) ($250 million AUD), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) ($250 million AUD), ABN AMRO Bank ($225 million AUD), Calyon ($200 million AUD), Citibank N.A. ($200 million AUD), WestLB AG ($200 million AUD), Société Générale S.A. (SocGen) ($150 million AUD), DBS Bank ($144.9 million AUD), DEPFA Bank ($144.9 million AUD), Dexia Bank ($144.9 million AUD), DnB NOR Bank ($144.9 million AUD), HSH Nordbank ($144.9 million AUD), HypoVereinsbank (HVB) ($144.9 million AUD), Mizuho Corporate Bank (MHCB) ($144.9 million AUD), Rabobank ($144.9 million AUD), Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) ($144.9 million AUD), United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB) ($144.9 million AUD), Allied Irish Bank p.lc. (AIB), Deutsche Bank ($108.7 million AUD), DZ Bank AG ($108.7 million AUD), Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU) ($100 million AUD), Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, Limited (OCBC Bank) ($75 million AUD), and Fortis ($60 million AUD). NAB, Citibank, RBS, and Westpac were the original mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners. ABN Amro, ANZ, BNP Paribas, Calyon, CBA, SocGen, SMBC, and WestLB joined equal-status mandated lead arrangers and all, excepting SMBC, also joined as bookrunners. With the exception of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp, all the banks also served as bookrunners. BOC, DBS Bank, DEPFA Bank, Dexia Bank, DnB NOR Bank, HSH Nordbank, HVB, MHCB, RBC, UOB, and AIB joined as sub-writers. CCB, Deutsche Bank, DZ Bank, BTMU, OCBC Bank, and Fortis joined as arrangers. As of June 30, 2008, both the three-year and five-year $2.250 billion AUD tranches had been fully drawn down and $154 million AUD under the $550 million AUD capital expenditure facility had been drawn down. Then, in late October 2011, financial close was reached on a deal in which a syndicate of banks — including BOC — entered into a $1.44 billion AUD ($1.51 billion USD) for the Asciano 2011 Refinancing Project. This loan consisted three tranches: a $150 million AUD revolving working capital facility with a maturity period of two years, a $650 million AUD revolving credit tranche with a maturity period of three years, a $650 million AUD revolving credit tranche with a maturity period of four years. The proceeds of this loan were used by the borrower for the refinancing purposes. Record ID#97553 captures BOC's contribution. In addition to BOC, the following lenders were believed to have participated in the syndicate: ANZ, BNP Paribas, CBA, DnB NOR Bank, MHCB, NAB, SocGen, SMBC, UOB, and WestLB. As of October 25, 2011, $93 million AUD had been drawn down under the $150 million AUD tranche and $150 million AUD had been drawn under the $650 million AUD four-year tranche.