A syndicate of primary banks approved the provision of funding for euro 30 million
18 December 2015Price sensitive | Press releases
Retelit S.p.A. (MTA: LIT.MI) hereby communicates that a syndicate consisting of Banca Popolare di Milano Soc. Coop. a.r.l., MPS Capital Services Banca per le Imprese S.p.A. and Unicredit S.p.A. approved the provision in favour of its subsidiary e-via S.p.A. of two lines of credit, amounting respectively to a maximum of Euro 21 million and Euro 9 million, therefore for a total amount of Euro 30 million. The lines of credit, with a duration of five years, envisage conditions, commitments and contractual terms in line with the standards for the bank credit market.
The financing transaction, the finalization of which is expected by the end of February at the latest, is part of the strategic plan for future development of the Group and in particular aims to hedge the investments planned by the participation in the international consortium AAE-1 for the laying and management of the world’s first underwater cable in high-capacity and low-latency fibre optic, located between the Mediterranean and Hong Kong. The commissioning of the cable is scheduled for the end of 2016 and at the moment, work is proceeding on schedule, both as regards the construction of the landing stations of the various countries, including the landing station in Bari for Italy, and as regards the underwater laying. The total amount of the investment in the AAE-1 project is estimated at Euro 57.6 million, which includes both the commitment to the Consortium and the upgrade of the national infrastructure, of which Euro 20.3 million invested at 30 September 2015.
The Chairman of Retelit Dario Pardi commented: “We are satisfied with the trust placed in us by these primary lending banks for the financing of a strategic project for the Group’s growth, confirming the credibility of Retelit on the market and in the financial system and the support of the latter to its development and growth plans. This result is due to the profound commitment made by the new administration to return the management to the business cornerstones and is in line with the objectives of the 2015-2019 Business Plan approved in March. In particular, with the medium/long-term loan approved today and operating cash flow, the Group ensured the total coverage of future commitments related to the investment in the AAE-1 submarine cable project in full compliance with the provisions of the business plan”.
