Last checked at 26 Apr 2019 13:41
This announcement contains inside information
26 April 2019 | LSE: PDL |
Petra Diamonds Limited
("Petra", "the Company" or "the Group")
Amendment to Covenant Measurement for South African Banking Facilities
Petra Diamonds Limited announces that its lender group, including Absa Bank Limited (acting through its Corporate and Investment Banking division), FirstRand Bank Limited (acting through its Rand Merchant Bank division), Investec Asset Management Proprietary Limited and Nedbank Limited (acting through its Corporate and Investment Banking division) (together the "Lender Group"), has agreed to amend the EBITDA-related maintenance covenant levels for the respective measurement periods as follows:
12 months to 30 Jun 2019 | 12 months to 31 Dec 2019 | 12 months to 30 Jun 2020 | 12 months to 31 Dec 2020 | 12 months to 30 Jun 2021 | |
Consolidated Net Debt to Consolidated EBITDA: | |||||
- New covenant ratio: | ≤ 4.5x | ≤ 4.25x | ≤ 3.5x | ≤ 3.25x | ≤ 3.0x |
- Previous covenant ratio: | ≤ 2.5x | ≤ 2.5x | ≤ 2.5x | ≤ 2.5x | ≤ 2.5x |
Consolidated EBITDA to Consolidated Net Finance Charges: | |||||
- New covenant ratio: | ≥ 2.5x | ≥ 2.5x | ≥ 2.75x | ≥ 3.0x | ≥ 3.25x |
- Previous covenant ratio: | ≥4.0x | ≥4.0x | ≥4.0x | ≥4.0x | ≥4.0x |
Existing bank debt facilities remain unchanged as outlined below:
Lender | Type | Size ZARM | Size US$M1 | Interest Rate | Annual Commitment Fees on undrawn facilities | Repayment |
ABSA & Nedbank | ZAR Revolving Credit Facility | 1,000 | 69 | 1M JIBAR plus 5.0%2 | 1.35%2 | October 2021 |
ABSA & RMB | ZAR Working Capital facility | 500 | 35 | SA prime lending rate minus 1% | 0.85% | Subject to annual renewal |
Note 1: Converted to US$ using an exchange rate of ZAR14.40/US$1
Note 2: The ZAR Revolving Credit Facility will be subject to new margin and commitment fee ratchet mechanisms contingent on the Consolidated Net Debt: Consolidated EBITDA covenant levels at each measurement date.
The reworked ratchet mechanism is as follows:
Consolidated Net Debt to Consolidated EBITDA | Additional interest rate ratchet | Additional commitment fee ratchet |
≤ to 2.5:1 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
> 2.5:1 but ≤ 3.0:1 | +1.0% | 0.0% |
> 3.0:1 but ≤ 3.5:1 | +2.0% | +0.225% |
> 3.5:1 but ≤ 4.0:1 | +3.0% | +0.450% |
> 4.0:1 | +4.0% | +0.675% |
The distribution covenants related to Petra's banking facilities are unchanged. The Company's maintenance and distribution covenants can be found at:
https://www.petradiamonds.com/investors/fixed-income-investors/banking-covenants/
Richard Duffy, Chief Executive Officer, commented:
"The agreement of our Lender group to amend the financial covenant levels relating to our banking facilities demonstrates their continued support of Petra's business and strategy, to deliver consistent production from our diversified portfolio of assets in order to drive free cash flow generation and reduce our net debt."
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For further information, please contact:
Petra Diamonds, London Telephone: +44 20 7494 8203
Marianna Bowes investorrelations@petradiamonds.com
Salisha Ilyas
Buchanan Telephone: +44 20 7466 5000
(PR Adviser) pdl@buchanan.uk.com
Bobby Morse
Chris Judd
Ariadna Peretz
About Petra Diamonds Limited
Petra Diamonds is a leading independent diamond mining group and a consistent supplier of gem quality rough diamonds to the international market. The Company has a diversified portfolio incorporating interests in three underground producing mines in South Africa (Finsch, Cullinan and Koffiefontein) and one open pit producing mine in Tanzania (Williamson). Petra also conducts a limited exploration programme in Botswana and South Africa, which is currently under review.
Petra's strategy is to focus on value rather than volume production by optimising recoveries from its high-quality asset base in order to maximise their efficiency and profitability. The Group has a significant resource base of ca. 290 million carats, which supports the potential for long-life operations.
Petra conducts all operations according to the highest ethical standards and will only operate in countries which are members of the Kimberley Process. The Company aims to generate tangible value for each of its stakeholders, thereby contributing to the socio-economic development of its host countries and supporting long-term sustainable operations to the benefit of its employees, partners and communities. Petra is quoted with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker 'PDL' and is a constituent of the FTSE4Good Index. For more information, visit www.petradiamonds.com.