OREANDA-NEWS. On March 20, 2007 EuroChem Mineral and Chemical Company announced that on 21 March 2007 it is completing its debut Eurobond issue. The issue of Reg S Loan Participation Notes, which is joint-lead by Citigroup, ING and UBS, raised $300 million with a five-year maturity offering a 7,875% coupon.  The issue has been more than four times oversubscribed, reported the press-centre of  EuroChem Mineral and Chemical Company.

The Eurobond attracted strong international demand and was placed among a high quality and well diversified list of 135 investors in 20 countries.  Fund managers and financial institutions took 69% of the issue, with hedge funds accounting for 20% and retail investors taking the remaining 11%.  More than half the issue was subscribed by investors in the UK, with the balance coming from Europe, Asia, and US offshore areas. The Eurobonds are expected to be listed on the Irish Stock Exchange.

The deal followed the road-shows held from February 26 – March 7, 2007 in London, Hong Kong, Singapore, Frankfurt, Munich and Zurich.
Commenting on the issue, Nikolay Pilipenko, Chief Financial Officer of EuroChem, said, "This is our first deal in the international capital markets and we are very satisfied that in the midst of market volatility, the issue has been heavily oversubscribed and able to attract a high quality investor base. The money raised will be mostly used to refinance our existing short term debt, and to a lesser extent to fund current capital expenditure projects and to invest in working capital. The deal gives us strong prospects should we need to return to the international capital markets to support our growth plans. For now our major focus is on increasing efficiency, production and profits and consolidating our position as one of the world’s leading fertiliser producers.”

EuroChem Mineral and Chemical Company OJSC is rated BB- by Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s.