Latvenergo Lists Bonds on the NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market
Riga/Tallinn/Vilnius, Baltic Market, January 22, 2013 - The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:NDAQ) announces that as of January 23, 2013, the first issue of bonds of Latvenergo, Latvia’s state-owned energy utility, will be listed on the NASDAQ OMX Baltic Bond list* and investors will have a possibility to buy and sell Latvenergo bonds in the regulated Baltic Market.
Latvenergo AS whose core business is the generation and sale of electricity and thermal energy has completed the first issue of bonds raising 20 million Euro from investors in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The issue was oversubscribed by more than 4 times.
“We welcome Latvenergo, one of the largest companies in the Baltic States, entering the Baltic Market so successfully. The excellent result of Latvenergo bonds placement shows that our Baltic Market is going hand in hand with the European trend as we see a surge in the corporate bond market nowadays. We are convinced that the home market is the best place for Baltic companies to be listed and believe that the success of the placement of Latvenergo bonds will be a stimulus for other Baltic companies,” says Arminta Saladžienė, Head of NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market.
Latvenergo is the first state-owned company in Latvia to issue and lists bonds in domestic market. And it is the fourth company to list its bonds on the NASDAQ OMX Baltic Bond List during the last 12 month.
The issue of bonds is denominated in Euro, has annual fixed coupon rate 2.8% and matures December 15, 2017. Under the whole bond issuance program Latvenergo intends to issue bonds in the value of up to 50 million Lats (equivalent 70 million Euro ) and channel raised funds into maintenance and modernization of the generation, distribution and transmission network assets. Latvenergo bonds will be traded under the issuer ticker ELEK.
“Successful issuance of corporate bonds by Latvenergo is a perfect proof that capital markets provide a viable source of funding for performing, transparent and well-governed companies. Our regulated marked creates a distinct opportunity for foreign and local, private and institutional investors such as pension funds to invest in Latvenergo bonds and trade them in a fair and transparent environment,” states Daiga Auzina-Melalksne, Head of Exchange Services at NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market.
According to D. Auzina-Melalksne, a decision to attract financing by issuing bonds will allow the power company to draw on additional sources of funding, diversify its portfolio of lenders, and increase its recognition among investors.
“Issuance of notes is an essential process from the point of view of both good corporate governance and public communication – only a company with orderly and transparent operations is capable of issuing notes. The facts pertaining to the Group’s activities are publicly available on our website, introducing and proposing new requirements for exchange of information and public communication, confirming that Latvenergo AS is and remains state property which cannot be privatized, and its notes have aroused high interest among investors. We are thus assured about the public trust for the Group and its growth, and have reason to hope that further issues of notes will be just as successful”, - says Zane Kotāne, Latvenergo AS Management Board member.
* NASDAQ OMX Baltic Bond list consists of Bond lists of NASDAQ OMX Tallinn, NASDAQ OMX Riga and NASDAQ OMX Vilnius.
About Latvenergo
The Latvenergo Group is the largest power supply merchant in the Baltics, engaging in electricity generation and trade as well as providing electricity distribution and management of transmission system assets. Latvenergo holds one-third of the entire Baltic electricity market. Latvenergo AS has been acknowledged as the most valuable company in Latvia for several years in a row. International credit rating agency Moody’s has assigned Latvenergo AS an investment-grade credit rating of Baa3/stable. The Latvenergo Group includes the parent company Latvenergo AS (electricity generation and trade, thermal energy generation) and its subsidiaries Latvijas elektriskie tīkli AS (management of transmission system assets), Sadales tīkls AS (electricity distribution), Elektrum Eesti OÜ (electricity trade in Estonia), Elektrum Lietuva UAB (electricity trade in Lithuania) and Liepājas enerģija SIA (thermal energy generation and trade, electricity generation), as well as Elektrum Latvija SIA, a subsidiary of Elektrum Eesti OÜ.
About NASDAQ OMX
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For more information:
Ott Raidla, Communications Manager, NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market
Phone: +372 64 08862, Mobile: +372 55524824, ott.raidla@nasdaqomx.com
Āris Dreimanis, Communications Manager, NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market
Phone: +371 67 212 431, Mobile: +371 261242824, aris.dreimanis@nasdaqomx.com
Audronė Ranonytė, Head of Marketing and Communications, NASDAQ OMX Baltic Market
Phone: +370 5272 3458, Mobile: +370 682 37411, audrone.ranonyte@nasdaqomx.com
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