REG - Digital 9 Infrastr. - Divestment of interests in EMIC-1 for $42m(c.£33m)

Digital 9 InfrastructureAnnouncement

31/12/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 6611R  Digital 9 Infrastructure PLC  31 December 2024

31 December 2024

 

DIGITAL 9 INFRASTRUCTURE PLC

 

("D9" or the "Company" and, together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")

 

Divestment of interests in EMIC-1 for $42m (c. £33m)

 

The Board is pleased to announce that D9 has entered into a binding agreement
for the divestment of its interests in EMIC-1 (the "Project"), with completion
expected by March 2025.

 

The $42m consideration, which is net of $2.6m of transaction costs, represents
a 15% discount (approximately 0.7p per share) to the latest valuation of
$49.6m as at 30 June 2024. The Project continues to be impacted by ongoing
conflicts in the Red Sea area, which have led to an indefinite delay to its
final construction completion. The transaction also releases the Group from
$10m of additional construction commitments.

 

Transaction costs are predominantly an allocation of substantial fees payable
on the completion of the divestment of the Company's Subsea cable assets,
which were committed to at the commencement of the sales process in early
2024. These fees will become payable following the completion of a sale of
AquaComms.

 

The net proceeds will allow the Company to further deleverage its balance
sheet by reducing the Revolving Credit Facility ("RCF") balance of £53m. The
Company is discussing options with the RCF lenders, to extend the remaining
balance of the RCF beyond the current maturity date of 31 March 2025.  The
remaining balance of the RCF is expected to be repaid through proceeds from
other live sale initiatives that are progressing in parallel.

 

The Company is also in advanced discussions on the sale of the remainder of
the subsea cable business, AquaComms, and expects to report on further
progress in due course. The valuation process has commenced in respect of the
wider investment portfolio for the year ending 31 December 2024. InfraRed and
the Board look forward to further engagement with shareholders as part of a
roadshow in early 2025.

 

Eric Sanderson, Chairman of Digital 9 Infrastructure plc, commented: "The sale
of EMIC-1 represents a key milestone for progressing the wind-down of the
Company and deleveraging the balance sheet, on behalf of shareholders,
achieving what the Board believes is an acceptable value outcome in a
challenging environment. We remain focused on taking every action possible to
realise shareholder value over time, seeking to achieve a balance between
maximizing the value from our assets and making timely capital returns to
shareholders."

 

 

ENDS.

 

 

Contacts

 Digital 9 Infrastructure plc                                                via FTI Consulting

 Eric Sanderson
 InfraRed Capital Partners Limited            +44 (0) 207 484 1751

 James O'Halloran

 Mohammed Zaheer
 Panmure Liberum Limited (Financial Adviser)  +44 (0) 203 100 2222

 Chris Clarke

 Darren Vickers
 J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Corporate Broker)      +44 (0) 20 7742 4000

 William Simmonds

 Jérémie Birnbaum
 FTI Consulting (Communications Adviser)      dgi9@fticonsulting.com (mailto:dgi9@fticonsulting.com)

 Mitch Barltrop                               +44 (0) 7807 296 032

 Maxime Lopes                                 +44 (0) 7890 896 777

 

LEI Code: 213800OQLX64UNS38U92

 

About Digital 9 Infrastructure plc

 

Digital 9 Infrastructure plc (DGI9) is an investment trust listed on the
London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE All-Share, with the ticker
DGI9. The Company's investment objective is to undertake a Managed wind-down
of the Company and realise all existing assets in the Company's portfolio in
an orderly manner. For more information, please visit www.d9infrastructure.com
(http://www.d9infrastructure.com) .

 

 

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