Macau casino operator SJM Holdings Ltd says the group has reached an agreement for new syndicated loan facilities of up to HKD19 billion (US$2.42 billion), representing a HKD9-billion term loan facility and a HKD10-billion revolving loan facility.
The agreement is with a syndicate of banks led by Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Macau) Ltd, the casino firm said in a filing on Thursday to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
SJM Holdings opened its new HKD39-billion Cotai resort, Grand Lisboa Palace (pictured), in July last year.
A substantial portion of the new loan facilities “will be used to repay the existing syndicated loan facilities” under SJM Resorts Ltd, the unit that holds the Macau gaming concession.
“After the refinancing, SJM Resorts will have an additional HKD6 billion of liquidity,” added the parent company.
The new loan facilities have a maturity date of June 20, 2028, with an effective interest rate of the Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate (HIBOR) or the Macau Interbank Offered Rate (MAIBOR), plus a range between 1.25 percent to 2.25 percent.
“For the first six months the effective interest rate will be HIBOR or MAIBOR plus 1.65 percent,” said SJM Holdings, adding that the refinancing plan “has been approved by the Macau government.”
SJM Holdings’ chairman and executive director, Daisy Ho Chiu Fung, said earlier this month that the company should be able to draw from the new loan facility during the current month.
