Moody’s assigns ACEA program Baa2

Moody's Investors Service said it assigned a provisional Baa2 rating to ACEA SpA's €1.5 billion euro medium-term note program.

The outlook is stable.

ACEA's Baa2 rating is driven by: (a) The company's improved liquidity profile, following the extension of its debt maturities and the increase in the size of its committed facilities; and (b) the favorable regulatory developments on Italian water networks and the recent determination issued by the Italian Authority (AEEG), which confirms the transitory period full cost recovery principle, while completing the regulatory framework with overall positive provisions from a credit perspective.

Moody's rating takes into account ACEA's low business risk profile and the diversified portfolio of its regulated activities, which accounts for approximately 80% of the company's consolidated EBITDA.

However, the rating also recognizes (a) ACEA's vulnerability to still negative domestic macroeconomic trends, which are affecting the company's operating environment; and (b) its limited, albeit significant, exposure to unregulated businesses (waste management and energy supply).

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