Höegh LNG Holdings Ltd. announced that it has received commitment letters for a USD 230 million debt financing for its eighth floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), currently under construction.
The facility comprises a 12-year export credit agency (ECA) term loan of up to USD 150 million backed by Garantiinstituttet for Eksportkreditt (GIEK) and Eksportkreditt of Norway, and a 5 year non-amortising commercial bank loan of up to USD 80 million funded by ABN AMRO Bank, Danske Bank, Nordea and Swedbank.
As explained, the facility is available to fund 65% of the delivered cost of the FSRU with no employment requirement, increasing to 75% upon securing long-term employment. The interest rate will be swapped from floating to fixed, and at the current market conditions the fixed interest rate is expected to come in at around 4.1%. The facility is subject to final documentation.
Sveinung J.S. Støhle, President & CEO of Höegh LNG, stated: “With this transaction, Höegh LNG is executing on its financial strategy of diversifying funding sources, while obtaining a flexible and competitive debt financing structure that supports the company’s growth strategy.”
