16 October 2014, Lagos – The International Finance Corporation has bought almost 13 per cent of the debt sold by Seven Energy International Limited, a Nigerian oil and gas company, with some proceeds earmarked for a pipeline in Africa’s biggest economy.
Seven Energy raised $400 million in bonds, of which the IFC bought $50 million, Bloomberg quoted the Washington-based lending unit of the World Bank to have said in an e-mailed statement.
This month’s sale of 2021 debt included $300 million senior secured notes and the remainder were private bonds, according to a statement from Standard & Poor’s yesterday.
Companies in Nigeria are selling debt to boost operations in an economy set to expand seven per cent this year, faster than the sub-Saharan African average of 5.1 per cent, according to the International Monetary Fund.
The IFC invested $105 million in equity in Seven Energy earlier this year to support the World Bank’s Nigeria Energy Business Plan to double power capacity within five years, according to the statement.
Seven Energy would use some of the debt proceeds for the Oron-Calabar pipeline to carry gas for power projects in southeastern Nigeria, the IFC said.
Yields on Seven Energy’s $300 million of notes, issued at a 10.25 per cent coupon, rose 19 basis points to 10.26 per cent in Lagos yesterday.
– This Day