The inaugural EUR 500 million debt security issue launched by national gas company Romgaz under the Euro Medium Term Notes (EMTN) Program was a historic success, the Energy Ministry said in a release, pointing out that this transaction proves Romgaz’s ability to attract important investments from international markets and strengthens the company’s position as a strategic player in the Romanian and regional energy sector.
The first, EUR 500 million EMTN tranche was launched on September 30 and aroused massive interest from international investors, attracting a record demand of almost EUR 6 billion, which ranked the issue 5th worldwide and 1st in Central and Eastern Europe this year by the bid-to-cover ratio.
„The remarkable success of this issue, the first of its kind for a company with a majority of state-owned capital, represents a turning point for the Romanian energy sector. We encourage all companies in the ministry’s portfolio to attract such financing for their strategic projects. For Romgaz, this success is all the more important considering the importance of the Neptun Deep project, whereby Romania will become the largest natural gas producer in Europe. We also have the investment at Caragele, the largest onshore gas field, a project worth of over RON 1 billion, where we restarted deep drilling last year. These investments contribute to increasing Romania’s energy security and to the transition to cleaner energy, with gas having the potential to replace coal in the medium term,” Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja wrote, as cited in the release.
The securities carry a coupon of 4.75% per annum and have a 5-year maturity, falling due in October 2029. Approximately 80% of the raised funds come from renowned international investors, which proves the company’s attractiveness in the global capital markets.
The funds obtained will support projects that will contribute to reinforcing Romania’s energy independence, to diversifying the country’s energy sources and to ensuring an efficient energy transition, the release points out.
AGERPRES
