Transnet plans USD 2bn bond sale in US and Europe

Wednesday 10th February 2010
By Mike Jones

South African state-owned transport company Transnet plans to sell US $2billion of international debt to help fund infrastructure spending.

A global medium-term note program set up on the London Stock Exchange will allow Transnet to issue bonds in the US or European debt markets without "explicit" government guarantees, the Johannesburg-based company said.

The program will help Transnet diversify its funding sources by adding to its 30 million-rand (US $3.9billion) domestic debt program, the statement said.

"It’s not a big amount by international standards and the appetite is certainly there offshore to accommodate the placement," said Simon Howie, a Credit Portfolio Manager at Investec Asset Management.

"A lot of liquidity is flowing back into credit markets now that the worst of the financial crisis is over so we’re seeing tremendous demand for any kind of yield."

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