Kazakhstan’s Eastcomtrans seeks to amend 7¾% notes, extend until 2022

By Susanna Moon

Chicago, March 6 – Eastcomtrans LLP began another consent solicitation to amend its $100 million of 7¾% senior secured notes due April 22, 2018.

The proposed amendments would ease the issuer's debt repayment schedule and help the company avoid default under the notes, which would result as a result of a breach of financial covenants, according to a company announcement.

A meeting has been set for 5 a.m. ET on April 5 in London.

This time, the company is seeking to push out the maturity of the notes by four years to April 22, 2022.

Eastcomtrans also is asking to revise the redemption schedule, with the notes to be redeemed in installments rather than in one bullet repayment at maturity: Half of the par amount would be redeemed at par on April 22, 2021; and the remainder would be redeemed at par on April 22, 2022.

In return, the issuer is offering to increase the coupon to 8% beginning April 22.

Eastcomtrans is looking to amend the notes because of “significant foreign exchange losses, which have affected its financial covenants,” according to a company announcement.

To form a quorum, there must be two or more persons representing at least 75% of the principal amount of the notes. To pass, the extraordinary resolution requires votes from holders of at least three-quarters of the notes represented at the meeting.

Noteholders who vote for the extraordinary resolution before the early instruction deadline on March 24 will receive the early consent fee of $17.50 per $1,000 principal amount. Those who vote for the measure after the early instruction deadline will receive $5 per $1,000 principal amount.

The consent solicitation will end on April 3.

U.S. Bank Trustees Ltd. is the trustee.

The tabulation agent is Bank of New York Mellon, London Branch (+44 1202 689644, fax +44 207 9642728 or debtrestructing@bnymellon.com).

As announced Nov. 25, 2016 the company previously failed to achieve a quorum in the most recent consent solicitation to amend its 7¾% notes.

The company had begun the solicitation on Nov. 2, saying it was looking to extend the maturity of the notes by five years until April 22, 2023.

Eastcomtrans is a railway network operator based in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.