EBRD Lends to Bulgaria

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has invested €100mn ($114mn) in a new seven-year €550mn bond issue by state-owned Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH).

The bank said August 13 the bond will help BEH improve the long-term financial sustainability of Bulgaria’s power sector. It said the new bond will have the longest tenor issued by a Bulgarian corporate issuer and will be the largest bond listed on the Sofia exchange. BEH has pending investments in new gas infrastructure too, such as Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria and a planned second Greek LNG import facility.

To date, the EBRD has invested nearly €3.9bn into various sectors of Bulgaria’s economy in about 250 projects. Energy sector investment accounts for about a third of the bank’s portfolio in the country.

In under related news, UK firm Petrofac said that it has secured $300mn of new bank facilities with existing relationship banks. It said August 13 the new committed facilities, which will mature in 2020, provide additional liquidity and will reduce use of the company’s existing revolving credit facility.