CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre advises NGE on the Optimisation of its Financial Structure

CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre was advisor to NGE, the French multi-disciplinary public works group, for a threefold transaction designed to optimise its financial structure. The transaction involved the reorganisation of a syndicated loan taken out in 2015, the expansion of its 2013 securitisation programme and the establishment of a Negotiable European Commercial Paper (NEU CP) programme.

As a result of the reorganisation of its syndicated loan, the group will benefit from an additional 50 million euros in resources in the form of another tranche of its Credit Revolving Facility covering all its cash requirements. This reorganisation, signed on 13 July 2016, also provided an opportunity to adjust certain legal clauses.

The 2013 securitisation programme has thus been extended from 60 million euros to 100 million euros with the integration of TSO, a subsidiary specialising in railway works, as a new assignor.

NGE has also set up a 150 million euro NEU CP programme (formerly known as commercial papers), dedicated to short-term seasonal cash requirements.

Five dealers were selected to manage this programme: BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Crédit Industriel et Commercial, NATIXIS (also domiciliary agent) and Société Générale. NGE successfully completed its inaugural issues on Monday, 3 October 2016.

The CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre team advising NGE consisted of Benjamin Guilleminot (counsel) and Benoît Fournier for financing matters, Magali Béraud for securitisation matters and Christophe Lefaillet (partner), Isabelle Prodhomme (counsel) and Matthieu Rollin for corporate matters.

Other advisors were:

• Redbridge Debt & Treasury Advisory as financial advisors to NGE on the Syndicated Loan and the NEU CP programme;
• for the financial institutions (amendment of syndicated loan): De Pardieu Brocas Maffei (Christophe Gaillard, Thibaut Lechoux and Steeve Jaskierowicz);
• for Eurotitrisation and the financial institutions (securitisation): Allen & Overy (Julien Roux, Jean Morice and Adrien Repiquet).