Heidelberg presents creditors with refinancing plan
HeidelbergCement presented its creditors with a refinancing plan to help the company avoid breaching loan covenants.
Germany’s biggest cement maker proposed consolidating existing loans and credit lines under a single new borrowing facility and adjusting debt covenants to reflect the current market slump. In return, the Heidelberg-based company would offer a “significantly higher” margin and earlier repayment, it said in a statement today.
The company, which ran up debt in the US$12bn takeover of Hanson Plc, is focusing on refinancing after posting a first- quarter loss, chief executive officer Bernd Scheifele said today. He plans to sell as much as EUR2bn of assets, cut costs and reduce investment to retrieve cash. Total liabilities increased to EUR19.2bn the company said.
“HeidelbergCement is working intensively on the comprehensive reorganisation of its financing structure and is continuing to examine all options on the shareholders’ equity and debt capital sides,” the company said.
Published under Cement News
