Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On September 23, 2020, financial close was reached on a deal in which a syndicate of 11 banks — including the Bank of China (BOC), China Construction Bank Corporation (CCB), and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) — entered into a $736.20 million NZD ($486.68 million USD) syndicated loan agreement with First Gas Limited — a New Zealand-based natural gas transmission and distribution company owned by Australian asset management business First Sentier Investors (formerly First State Funds), itself owned by Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation — for the First Gas 2020 Refinancing Project. This loan consisted of five tranches: a $75.20 million NZD ($49.71 million USD) term loan tranche with a maturity period of two years and nine months (2.75 years) and a final maturity date of July 23, 2023, a $66.90 million NZD ($44.23 million USD) term loan tranche with a maturity period of two years and 10 months (2.833 years) and a final maturity date of July 31, 2023, a $126.10 million NZD ($83.36 million USD) term loan tranche with a maturity period of three years and 10 months (3.833 years) and a final maturity date of July 31, 2024, a $343.00 million NZD ($226.75 million USD) credit facility tranche with a maturity period of one year and eight months and a final maturity date of May 31, 2022, and a $125.00 million NZD ($82.63 million USD) credit facility tranche with a maturity period of three years and 10 months (3.833 years) and a final maturity date of July 31, 2024. The proceeds were to be used for the refinancing of First Gas, which owns a portfolio of 2,500 kilometers of gas transmission pipelines, the Ahuroa Gas Storage Facility, and Rockgas Limited. BOC contributed $7.00 million NZD ($4.63 million USD) to the $75.2 million NZD term loan as captured by Record ID#99499. CCB contributed $9.80 million NZD ($6.48 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99500. ICBC contributed $11.20 million NZD ($7.40 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99501. In addition to the three Chinese state-owned banks, the following lenders contributed to the $75.2 million NZD term loan tranche: Westpac Banking Corporation ($4.20 million NZD; $2.78 million USD), National Australia Bank Limited (NAB) ($7.00 million NZD; $4.63 million USD), MUFG Bank, Ltd. ($9.20 million NZD; $6.08 million USD), Mizuho Bank ($9.30 million NZD; $6.15 million USD), Société Générale S.A. (SocGen) ($8.40 million NZD; $5.55 million USD), and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) ($8.40 million NZD). BOC contributed $6.20 million NZD ($4.10 million USD) to the $66.9 million NZD term loan as captured by Record ID#99502. CCB contributed $8.70 million NZD ($5.75 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99503. ICBC contributed $10.10 million NZD ($6.68 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99504. In addition to the three Chinese state-owned banks, the following lenders contributed to the $66.9 million NZD term loan tranche: Westpac ($3.70 million NZD; $2.45 million USD), NAB ($6.20 million NZD; $4.13 million USD), MUFG ($8.70 million NZD; $5.75 million USD), Mizuho ($8.20 million NZD; $5.42 million USD), SocGen ($7.50 million NZD; $4.96 million USD), and RBC ($7.50 million NZD). BOC contributed $11.80 million NZD ($7.80 million USD) to the $126.1 million NZD term loan as captured by Record ID#99505. CCB contributed $16.50 million NZD ($10.91 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99506. ICBC contributed $18.90 million NZD ($12.49 million USD) to the term loan, as captured by Record ID#99507. In addition to the three Chinese state-owned banks, the following lenders contributed to the $126.1 million NZD term loan tranche: Westpac ($7.10 million NZD; $4.69 million USD), NAB ($11.80 million NZD), MUFG ($16.50 million NZD), Mizuho ($15.50 million NZD; $10.25 million USD), SocGen ($14.10 million NZD; $9.32 million USD), and RBC ($14.10 million NZD). Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) was the sole contributor to the $343 million NZD credit facility tranche. ICBC contributed $15.00 million NZD ($9.92 million USD) to the $125 million NZD credit facility tranche, as captured by Record ID#99508. In addition to the ICBC, the following lenders contributed to the tranche: Westpac ($35.00 million NZD; $23.14 million USD), Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) ($25.00 million NZD; $16.53 million USD), NAB ($10.00 million NZD; $6.61 million USD), and MUFG ($40.00 million NZD; $26.44 million USD).