Global Ports Regulatory News (GPH)

Global Ports Holding Plc

Completes project financing and begins cruise operations at San Juan Cruise Port, Puerto Rico

Global Ports Holding Plc ("GPH" or "Group"), the world's largest independent cruise port operator, is pleased to announce that its wholly-owned subsidiary San Juan Cruise Port LLC (“SJCP”) has successfully reached financial closing of the PPP Agreement and simultaneously concluded the debt financing for the initial phase of its investment in San Juan Cruise Port and has now taken over cruise operations at San Juan Cruise Port for GPH.

The successful long-term project financing was achieved through the issuance, by San Juan Cruise Port, of two bonds totalling USD 187 million. USD 110 million has been raised through the issuance of a Series A bond due 2045 and underwritten by Barclays Capital Inc, which will now be placed in the US municipal bond market at an average coupon rate of 6.6%. USD 77 million was raised through the issuance of a Series B bond due 2039 to US institutional investors at a fixed coupon of 7.21%.

The bonds have received an investment grade credit of BBB- from S&P. The Series A bond will fully amortize 21 years, with a weighted average duration of c19 years. The Series B bond will fully amortize over 15 years, with a weighted average duration of c12 years.

Port investment

San Juan Cruise Port is currently a popular transit port and homeport. However, the cruise port infrastructure needs significant investment to ensure continued operations over GPH’s 30-year concession term and to meet the needs of the modern and fast-growing cruise industry.

Under the terms of the concession agreement, SJCP will pay the Puerto Rico Ports Authority an upfront concession fee of USD 77 million. During the initial investment phase, SJCP will invest approximately USD 100 million, primarily focused on critical infrastructure at Pier 4 and Pan American Piers together with upgrades to the terminal buildings and the walkway in front of the Old San Juan piers. In addition, the investment includes transaction expenses, reserve accounts customary for a project-financing of this nature and other incidental uses of proceeds.

As well as investing in the port's infrastructure, as part of this initial investment, SJCP will invest in modernising the cruise port experience for cruise passengers, cruise lines and local vendors and will use GPH’s global expertise and operating model to improve the management of the cruise port operations. GPH will also invest in systems, equipment, and technology to enhance the cruise port's operational performance and ensure environmental protection, safety, and security.

The management approach of GPH will ensure that the port is integrated into Old San Juan and Puerto Rico's thriving tourism sector as a whole, creating significant opportunities for local businesses to benefit directly from the improved facilities and the expected growth in cruise passenger volumes.

The second investment phase will commence subject to certain pre-agreed criteria, including cruise passenger volumes recovering to pre-pandemic levels. In this phase, SJCP will invest an estimated USD 250m in expanding the capacity of the San Juan Cruise Port by building a completely new cruise pier and state-of-the-art homeport terminal capable of handling the world's largest cruise ships at Piers 11 and 12. The financing for this second phase is expected to come from the US municipal bond market and North American based financial institutions.

Network expansion

The addition of San Juan Cruise Port is a significant development in GPH's strategic ambitions in the Caribbean. San Juan Cruise Port, which welcomed 1.8m unique passengers in 2019 (including c. 0.4m homeport passengers, representing 2.2m passenger movements), is the third-largest cruise port in GPH's global network.

San Juan Cruise Port is a strategically important port in the Caribbean cruise market, perfectly positioned to be included in both Eastern Caribbean and Southern Caribbean itineraries. In addition to its airport and hotel infrastructure, Puerto Rico is a US territory, making it an attractive homeport destination for Eastern and Southern Caribbean itineraries.

The addition of San Juan Cruise Port takes the total number of ports in GPH’s network to 29, with annual passenger volumes of close to 20 million expected for the 12 months to 31 March 2025, which is expected to rise to 30 ports and over 20 million passengers when St Lucia joins the network before the end of the current financial year.

Global Ports Holding, Americas Regional Director, Mike Maura, said:

"We are delighted to welcome San Juan Cruise Port into the world's largest cruise port network. As well as being a fantastic destination, San Juan is a strategically important port that is perfectly positioned to play a pivotal role in Eastern and Southern Caribbean itineraries for decades to come.

Our investment into this port will see hundreds of millions of US dollars invested into San Juan Cruise Port, transforming the port infrastructure and significantly improving the cruise port experience for passengers while creating significant opportunities for local businesses to benefit from the expected growth in cruise passenger volumes.

I would like to thank the Government of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Port Authority for their support throughout the process. We look forward to delivering a world-class cruise port that can benefit Puerto Ricans for many years to come.”