Egypt’s Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) has approved a two-tranche, five-year bond worth £E1.65bn ($289m), to finance general corporate purposes.  

“The proceeds from the approved bond will be used to finance general corporate purposes, including, but not limited to, capital expenditures, potential acquisitions and balance sheet restructuring,” OCI said in a statement on 20 September.  

It says 90 per cent of the bond will be offered in the first tranche via a private placement, with the rest to be offered to the public in a second tranche.

The bond will be divided into 16.5 million coupons with a nominal value of £E100 each. It has a fixed interest rate of 11.75 per cent which will be paid twice a year.

OCI also announced that it has been assigned an AA- grade rating with a stable outlook for both the newly-approved bond and the company by regional ratings agency Middle East Rating and Investor Service (Meris). An AA grade represents very strong creditworthiness and the +/- signs imply relative status within the category.

Orascom Hotels & Development, OCI’s sister company which specialises in real estate and hotels, will increase its capital by $183m to help finance projects in Switzerland, Oman, Morocco and elsewhere. The increase will be done through a discounted rights offering, the company said.