SES provides $3.21 billion in financing for Intelsat acquisition

SES announced the successful syndication of a $3.21 billion acquisition financing package to support its earlier agreement to acquire Intelsat SA. Prior to the announcement of the transaction, Deutsche Bank AG and Morgan Stanley jointly guaranteed a $3.21 billion bridge loan to meet SES’ financing requirements for the Intelsat acquisition. This bridge facility was successfully syndicated, receiving a significant surplus level of commitments from an international group of existing and new banks. The syndicate resulted in a $2.25 billion bridge loan and a $1 billion term loan, which was increased due to strong interest from the banking group.

The bridge facility provides SES with funding certainty and flexibility in bond issuance. The loan has a period of 12 months with the option of extending it twice by six months, while the term loan has a five-year amortization period from the moment of taking out. Term loan financing diversifies SES’s funding sources at an attractive interest rate and provides flexibility to deleverage over time. Additionally, SES has agreed to a two-year extension of its $1.28 billion revolving credit facility (signed on June 26, 2019), maintaining a fully committed backup liquidity facility until June 26, 2028 across the group of 19 banks.

Sandeep Jalan, SES Chief Financial Officer, said: “We are delighted to have received tremendous support from our banking partners in financing this important and transformational transaction for SES. The Bridge Facility provides SES with financing flexibility from a capital markets issuance perspective, while the Term Loan serves as a source of long-term financing.