UralChem ready to consider future Eurobond placement
MOSCOW. Nov 24 (Interfax) - Russian chemicals holding UralChem is prepared to consider the possibility of placing Eurobonds when the market settles down, the UralChem management company's financial director, Maxim Bakov, said at a conference in Moscow.
"We view Eurobonds with interest," Bakov said, and they are a "matter of interest" for the company since more than half of its profits are generated in foreign currency.
The Eurobond market is not as stable as UralChem would like, so the company will be holding off placement for a little while, Bakov said. "We will be working carefully with creditors for now," he said, adding that he meant the banks with which UralChem already has relations.
As for the prospects of a public placement, Bakov said, "For us right now, London is option number one, if we were to make a public placement attempt." "We are technically ready for an IPO. We'll be watching the market. As soon as the opportunity arises, we will be placing," he said.
The company views Eurobonds as its second option for raising funds to be used for debt-refinancing and business-development, Bakov said. "Eurobonds are a secondary option," he said.
UralChem is now engaged in talks with its market partners about the possibility of organizing project financing, Bakov said. "Projects [are being discussed] in the joint development of deposits we hold the licenses to," he said. A number of banks stand ready to organize targeted programs, he added.
A UralChem representative said this summer that the company was not at the time planning a Eurobond placement because it needed to secure ratings, and that it was looking at the possibility of refinancing its debts with the aid of ruble-denominated bonds or a syndicated credit.