Upstream oil company, Seplat today in a notice sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) announced the successful extension of its revolving credit facility. Here are details of the loan extension:
- The current three year revolving credit facility was due to expire at the end of 2017.
- The facility now expires in December 2018.
- The outstanding balance of $150 million will be paid down in equal installments commencing Q4 2017.
- Seplat’s total indebtedness has been reduced from its peak of $$1 billion in Q4 2015 to 635 million as at June 2017.
- The amended facility was provided by a consortium of local and foreign banks.
Here is a copy of the notice.
The deal gives Seplat leg room to finance working capital requirements and could help bring the company back to profitability. A combination of a sharp fall in crude oil prices, and the closure of the Forcados export terminal lead to the company making a loss of $172 million in 2016 from a profit after tax of $87 million in 2015. Seplat will also have less pressure to source for forex and can now comfortably enter into a swap agreement with the CBN when it is time to repay the loan. Seplat is listed on both the Nigerian and London stock exchanges. The company closed at N465 on the NSE, up 22.3% year to date.