Renewal of the Revolving Credit Facility and update on the refinancing plan
Paris, 3 May 2024 - Clariane (CLARIA.PA - ISIN FR0010386334) announced today that it has renewed the drawdown of its RCF (Revolving Credit Facility) for a period of 6 months (expiring on 3 November 2024) for an amount of €492.5 million, in accordance with the terms of the contract signed in 2019 and extended on 25 July 2023.
In addition to the usual conditions, the Group points out that the drawdown and renewal of its RCF line are subject to a minimum liquidity level of 300 million euros on the day of the drawdown or renewal, which includes the RCF drawn down.
As indicated in its press release of 14 November 2023, Clariane points out that following the publication on 24 October 2023 of the press release relating to sales for the third quarter of 2023, the sharp fall in the share price, linked to the revision of its leverage target at 31 December 2023 from 3.5x to 3.8x, has caused concern among certain financial partners, jeopardising the finalisation of the two real estate partnership projects currently under negotiation and scheduled to be completed by the end of 2023. Against this backdrop, on 3 November 2023 the Group drew down its RCF lines for an amount of 500 million euros for 6 months.
As indicated in the Universal Registration Document (Chapter 2 - Section 2.4.1.2 Management of liquidity risk, covenant breach risk and cross-default risk) which was filed with the AMF on 30 April 2024 under no. D.24-0380, the Group's liquidity is ensured by:
(i) the financing structure currently in place, including in particular the syndicated loan for which the early renegotiation of an "amend & extend" was fi-nalised in July 2023 (the term tranche of 500 million euros was due to expire in May 2024), and the drawdown by the Group on 3 November 2023 of its RCF (Revolving Credit Facility) for an amount of 500 million euros for a period of six months, in a context of deteriorated market conditions and access to financing;
(ii) the €1.5 billion refinancing plan announced on 14 November 2023, which includes a €300 million capital increase and a €1 billion asset disposal plan.
The capital increase is scheduled to take place before the end of the third quarter of 2024, on the basis of the resolution passed by the General Meeting of Shareholders on 26 March, subject to the lifting of the conditions precedent mentioned below, while the asset disposals in progress have enabled 25% of the expected target to be covered to date.
These factors determine the Group's ability over the next 12 months to honour its financing commitments and comply with its covenant ratios, in particular the financial debt ratios at 30 June 2024 and 31 December 2024, as well as the minimum liquidity required at each RCF renewal date.
Disclaimer :
This press release does not constitute, and shall not be deemed to constitute, an offer to the public or an offer to buy or the solicitation of public interest in an offer to the public, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful absent registration or approval under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. The distribution of this document may be subject to specific restrictions in certain countries. Persons in possession of this document are required to inform themselves of and to observe any such local restrictions. A prospectus relating to the capital increase will be submitted by Clariane S.E. to the Autorité des marchés financiers for approval prior to the effective launch of the capital increase. All forward-looking statements included in this document speak only as of the date of this press release. Clariane S.E. undertakes no obligation and assumes no responsibility to update the information contained herein beyond what is required by applicable regulations. In this press release, unless otherwise indicated, all changes are expressed on a year-on-year basis (2023/2022), and at constant scope and exchange rates. The main alternative performance indicators (APIs), such as EBITDA, EBIT, net debt and financial leverage, are defined in the Universal Registration Document available on the company's website at www.clariane.com.
