| Fri 1 Apr 2011, 8:00 | | SAB - SABMiller plc - Bavaria S.A. - Bond and Commercial Paper Programme and |
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SAB
SOSAB
SAB - SABMiller plc - Bavaria S.A. - Bond and Commercial Paper Programme and
Exchange offer
SABMiller plc
JSEALPHA CODE: SAB
ISSUER CODE: SOSAB
ISIN CODE: GB0004835483
SABMiller PLC
1 April 2011
Bavaria S.A. - Bond and Commercial Paper Programme and Exchange Offer
On 30 March 2011, SABMiller plc announced that its subsidiary, Bavaria S.A., a
leading producer of lager and other beverages in the Republic of Colombia, had
established a COP$ 2,500,000,000,000 (approximately US$1,325,000,000) bond and
commercial paper programme, to be used primarily to refinance Bavaria S.A.`s
existing COP$1,910,320,000,000 (approximately US$1,012,000,000) bonds by means
of an exchange offer under which bondholders would be offered new securities,
in the form of bonds and commercial paper, in exchange for the existing bonds.
The exchange offer was accepted by bondholders representing approximately
92.66% of the aggregate face amount of the existing bonds and, on 31 March
2011, Bavaria S.A. issued new securities with an aggregate face amount of COP$
1,881,190,700,000 (approximately US$1,006,000,000). The new securities have
been registered for trading in the secondary market of the Colombian Stock
Exchange (Bolsa de Valores de Colombia) and admitted to the official list of
the Cayman Islands Stock Exchange.
The new securities benefit from a guarantee by SABMiller plc, which places
bondholders in a pari passu position with the holders of other unsecured debt
obligations of SABMiller plc in the circumstances described in the programme
documents. This reflects SABMiller plc`s policy of reducing the level of
priority debt in the group. The programme will also be available to fund
working capital and for other purposes, although no further issues are
contemplated at this time.
Correval S.A. acted as local structuring and placement agent in relation to
the exchange offer and Bank of America Merrill Lynch acted as international
structuring agent and financial advisor to SABMiller plc. Deceval acted as
information agent and exchange agent.
Malcolm Wyman, Chief Financial Officer of SABMiller plc, said "We are
delighted with the response received from Bavaria`s bond investors to this
transaction, which is the first of its kind in the Colombian market.
Bavaria`s bonds represented our single largest amount of priority debt and
this transaction results in a significant reduction in the overall level of
structural subordination in the group."
ENDS
Notes to editors:
About SABMiller plc
SABMiller is one of the world`s largest brewers with brewing interests and
distribution agreements across six continents. The group`s wide portfolio of
brands includes premium international beers such as Pilsner Urquell, Peroni
Nastro Azzurro, Miller Genuine Draft and Grolsch, as well as leading local
brands such as Aguila, Castle, Miller Lite, Snow and Tyskie. SABMiller is
also one of the world`s largest bottlers of Coca-Cola products.
In the year ended 31 March 2010, the group reported US$3,803 million in
adjusted pre-tax profit and group revenue of US$26,350 million. SABMiller plc
is listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges.
Legal Advisers
The legal advisers to SABMiller plc and Bavaria S.A. in relation to the
programme and the exchange offer were Brigard & Urrutia Abogados (Colombian
law), Harney Westwood & Riegels (Cayman Islands law) and Hogan Lovells
International LLP (English law). The legal advisers to Correval S.A. and
Bank of America Merrill Lynch were Prieto & Carrizosa (Colombian law).
This announcement is available on the company website: www.sabmiller.com.
High resolution images are available for the media to view and download free
of charge from the News and media section of www.sabmiller.com or
www.newscast.co.uk.
This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or issue or the
solicitation of an offer to buy or acquire securities of SABMiller plc or any
of its affiliates in any jurisdiction or an inducement to enter into
investment activity.
Date: 01/04/2011 08:00:11 Produced by the JSE SENS Department.
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