ESB has signed a new €1.44 billion credit facility with a syndicate of fourteen banks. This facility is ESB’s main standby facility and extends to at least February 2020. The new five-year agreement, with an option to extend for a further two years, is an amendment and extension of an existing facility signed in 2013, which was due to expire in 2018. ESB’s early refinancing of this facility took advantage of positive financial market conditions.

The banks participating in the syndicate are Barclays, BBVA, BNP Paribas, Danske Bank, RBC, RBS/Ulster Bank, JP Morgan, HSBC, Societe Generale, AIB, Bank of Ireland, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi, Intesa SanPaola and Santander. RBS acted as co-ordinator for the transaction.

Commenting today, Donal Flynn, ESB Finance Director said: “This transaction represents a vote of confidence in ESB by the international banking sector. It ensures that ESB has access to the banking liquidity it needs into the next decade and will support its ongoing investment in Ireland’s energy infrastructure.”

Unlike a loan which must be drawn down in full upfront, this facility allows ESB to draw down from it as needed at any stage over its term.

Also, ESB Group Treasury has been awarded Corporate Treasury of the Year  by ‘Risk Magazine’. This award recognises the risk management and  refinancing work completed by ESB during the year, and in particular, the successful restructuring of the highly complex RPI Swap Derivatives which were acquired as part of the NIE acquisition. ESB work with fourteen International Investment Banks on a range of activities from funding in the financial markets to hedging risk in interest rates and foreign exchange. Risk Magazine, in making the award, noted how successfully ESB  manages its banking relationships, which was evident in bringing  fourteen individual banks through such a complex transaction.

Previous winners include Microsoft (USA), BMW (Germany), Google (USA), Tesco (UK) and Rolls-Royce (UK). The award ceremony took place in London at  the end of January 2015, with the award being presented to Cathal Marley, ESB Group Treasurer and Colm Moriarty, Group Funding Manager, who were representing ESB at the event. ESB are the first Irish winners of this award.

ENDS