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Global Ports Holding PLC (GPH)
Completes project financing and begins cruise operations at San Juan
Cruise Port, Puerto Rico
15-Feb-2024 / 07:00 GMT/BST
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Global Ports Holding Plc
Completes project financing and begins cruise operations at San Juan
Cruise Port, Puerto Rico
Global Ports Holding Plc ("GPH" or "Group"), the world's largest
independent cruise port operator, is pleased to announce that its
wholly-owned subsidiary San Juan Cruise Port LLC (“SJCP”) has successfully
reached financial closing of the PPP Agreement and simultaneously
concluded the debt financing for the initial phase of its investment in
San Juan Cruise Port and has now taken over cruise operations at San Juan
Cruise Port for GPH.
The successful long-term project financing was achieved through the
issuance, by San Juan Cruise Port, of two bonds totalling USD 187 million.
USD 110 million has been raised through the issuance of a Series A bond
due 2045 and underwritten by Barclays Capital Inc, which will now be
placed in the US municipal bond market at an average coupon rate of 6.6%.
USD 77 million was raised through the issuance of a Series B bond due 2039
to US institutional investors at a fixed coupon of 7.21%.
The bonds have received an investment grade credit of BBB- from S&P. The
Series A bond will fully amortize 21 years, with a weighted average
duration of c19 years. The Series B bond will fully amortize over 15
years, with a weighted average duration of c12 years.
Port investment
San Juan Cruise Port is currently a popular transit port and homeport.
However, the cruise port infrastructure needs significant investment to
ensure continued operations over GPH’s 30-year concession term and to meet
the needs of the modern and fast-growing cruise industry.
Under the terms of the concession agreement, SJCP will pay the Puerto Rico
Ports Authority an upfront concession fee of USD 77 million. During the
initial investment phase, SJCP will invest approximately USD 100 million,
primarily focused on critical infrastructure at Pier 4 and Pan American
Piers together with upgrades to the terminal buildings and the walkway in
front of the Old San Juan piers. In addition, the investment includes
transaction expenses, reserve accounts customary for a project-financing
of this nature and other incidental uses of proceeds.
As well as investing in the port's infrastructure, as part of this initial
investment, SJCP will invest in modernising the cruise port experience for
cruise passengers, cruise lines and local vendors and will use GPH’s
global expertise and operating model to improve the management of the
cruise port operations. GPH will also invest in systems, equipment, and
technology to enhance the cruise port's operational performance and ensure
environmental protection, safety, and security.
The management approach of GPH will ensure that the port is integrated
into Old San Juan and Puerto Rico's thriving tourism sector as a whole,
creating significant opportunities for local businesses to benefit
directly from the improved facilities and the expected growth in cruise
passenger volumes.
The second investment phase will commence subject to certain pre-agreed
criteria, including cruise passenger volumes recovering to pre-pandemic
levels. In this phase, SJCP will invest an estimated USD 250m in expanding
the capacity of the San Juan Cruise Port by building a completely new
cruise pier and state-of-the-art homeport terminal capable of handling the
world's largest cruise ships at Piers 11 and 12. The financing for this
second phase is expected to come from the US municipal bond market and
North American based financial institutions.
Network expansion
The addition of San Juan Cruise Port is a significant development in GPH's
strategic ambitions in the Caribbean. San Juan Cruise Port, which welcomed
1.8m unique passengers in 2019 (including c. 0.4m homeport passengers,
representing 2.2m passenger movements), is the third-largest cruise port
in GPH's global network.
San Juan Cruise Port is a strategically important port in the Caribbean
cruise market, perfectly positioned to be included in both Eastern
Caribbean and Southern Caribbean itineraries. In addition to its airport
and hotel infrastructure, Puerto Rico is a US territory, making it an
attractive homeport destination for Eastern and Southern Caribbean
itineraries.
The addition of San Juan Cruise Port takes the total number of ports in
GPH’s network to 29, with annual passenger volumes of close to 20 million
expected for the 12 months to 31 March 2025, which is expected to rise to
30 ports and over 20 million passengers when St Lucia joins the network
before the end of the current financial year.
Global Ports Holding, Americas Regional Director, Mike Maura, said:
"We are delighted to welcome San Juan Cruise Port into the world's largest
cruise port network. As well as being a fantastic destination, San Juan is
a strategically important port that is perfectly positioned to play a
pivotal role in Eastern and Southern Caribbean itineraries for decades to
come.
Our investment into this port will see hundreds of millions of US dollars
invested into San Juan Cruise Port, transforming the port infrastructure
and significantly improving the cruise port experience for passengers
while creating significant opportunities for local businesses to benefit
from the expected growth in cruise passenger volumes.
I would like to thank the Government of Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico
Port Authority for their support throughout the process. We look forward
to delivering a world-class cruise port that can benefit Puerto Ricans for
many years to come.”
CONTACT
For investor, analyst and financial For media enquiries:
media enquiries:
Global Ports Holding, Investor Global Ports Holding
Relations
Martin Brown Ceylan Erzi
Telephone: +44 (0) 7947 163 687 Telephone: +90 212 244 44 40
Email: Email:
1 martinb@globalportsholding.com 2 ceylane@globalportsholding.com
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ISIN: GB00BD2ZT390
Category Code: AGR
TIDM: GPH
LEI Code: 213800BMNG6351VR5X06
Sequence No.: 303815
EQS News ID: 1837605
End of Announcement EQS News Service
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References
Visible links
1. mailto:martinb@globalportsholding.com
2. mailto:ceylane@globalportsholding.com
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