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Italcementi to launch bond on Monday

Mar, 12 2010

Italian cement maker Italcementi is expected to launch on Monday a six to 10-year bond of between 750 million euros ($1 billion) and 1 billion, sources close to the operation said on Thursday.

The bond would be the first in a 2 billion euro bond programme announced last Friday aimed at extending debt maturities and widening funding sources.

"The roadshow tomorrow will reach Paris and for the second time London. The intentions are, market conditions permitting, to launch the operation already on Monday," one of the sources told Reuters.

The length of the bond will depend on the interest of investors in the roadshow, another source said.
"It could be a six year, a seven-year bond would be difficult seeing that (Italcementi's) unit Ciments Francais already has a 2017 bond. But it is possible the bond could be for 10 years," the second source said.

He said the size of the bond could start at 750 million euros but could also reach 1 billion depending on market conditions.

Italcementi, the world's fifth largest cement group by production capacity, intends to oversee all the group's funding activities which to date have been handled by Ciments Francais.
Proceeds from the bond will be used in part to buy back about $300 million out of a total of $500 million of Ciments Francais notes while the rest will go on debt reorganisation, a source said.
In December, a 350 million euro, seven-year bond from Italian cement peer Buzzi Unicem was covered 2.2 times.