Olam offers 364 Basis-Point Rate for Loan
According to a person familiar with the matter Olam International Ltd. is offering to pay as much as 364 basis points more than the London interbank offered rate for a $1.25 billion loan facility. The person (asking not to be identified because the details are private) said the supplier of food commodities which based in Singapore, has given banks until July 4 to respond. The person told Olam is offering an all-in payment of 364 basis points more than Libor on a five-year portion of the $1.25 billion loan.
The person added a three-year portion will pay an all-in rate of 258 basis points more than Libor. Olam, which is building a $1.3 billion fertilizer plant in the Republic of Gabon, is expanding its assets with, sugar refineries, palm-oil plantations and wheat milling to meet Asian and African demand for commodities. Today, three people with direct knowledge of the transaction said it plans to raise $600 million in a share sale to fund acquisitions.
The three people said the company is offering another $200 million to part-owner Temasek Holdings Pte., Singapore’s state-owned investment company at S$2.60 ($2.12) apiece and $200 million of new shares, at the same price. According to data compiled by Bloomberg Olam has $2.2 billion of loans maturing before the end of 2017.