Singapore, October 23, 2017 -- Moody's Investors Service has assigned a Ba3 rating to Chandra Asri
Petrochemical Tbk (P.T.)'s (Ba3 stable) proposed $300
million senior unsecured notes.
The proposed notes will be issued by Chandra Asri, the largest petrochemical
producer in Indonesia (Baa3 positive), and guaranteed by its subsidiaries,
PT Styrindo Mono Indonesia and PT Petrokima Butadiene Indonesia.
Proceeds from the notes issuance will be used for the funding of its ongoing
capacity and plant expansion capital expenditure programs.
RATING RATIONALE
"The issuance of the notes will improve Chandra Asri's liquidity
profile by partially pre-funding planned capital expenditures of
$375 million in 2018 and $513 million in 2019,"
says Brian Grieser, a Moody's Vice President and Senior Credit Officer.
Chandra Asri has identified five key committed and pipeline projects which
will cost a combined $370 million during 2018-2019:
1) increasing capacity at its butadiene plant, 2) constructing a
new polyethylene plant, 3) revamping its naphtha cracker,
4) debottlenecking its polypropylene plant, and 5) constructing
a methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) plant and a Butene-1 plant.
The balance of Chandra Asri's likely capital expenditures are related
to a planned feasibility study to build and operate a second petrochemical
complex and other turnaround maintenance projects on existing plants.
Proceeds from the notes will bolster an already solid liquidity profile,
which benefits from cash on hand of $212 million at 30 June 2017.
The company completed a rights issue in August 2017, raising $372
million. As such, Moody's expects that Chandra Asri's
cash balance — proforma for the notes issuance — will total
between $800 million and $900 million.
The Ba3 rating on the notes reflects Moody's expectation that the
unsecured notes will represent the majority of the company's total
debt over the 2-3 years. Post issuance, secured debt
will account for less than 15% of total assets.
Chandra Asri's Ba3 corporate family rating reflects: (1) its
leading position in the Indonesian petrochemicals market, (2) an
increasingly diversified product portfolio, (3) its low leverage
(debt/EBITDA) of 0.7x as of 30 June 2017 (1.2x proforma
for the notes issuance), (4) its strong cash flow generation,
and (5) an excellent liquidity profile.
The rating is constrained by the company's: (1) volatile operating
margins due to its exposure to commodity petrochemical products,
(2) asset concentration on the Indonesian island of Java, and (3)
substantial growth in capital spending over the next 3-5 years.
The stable ratings outlook reflects Moody's expectation that Chandra Asri's
operating performance and cash flow from operations will remain strong
over the next 12-18 months. Moody's expects capital spending
to ramp up over the next two years, as the company executes its
expansion projects, resulting in negative free cash flow.
Chandr Asri's rating could be upgraded if its planned capacity expansion
is executed on time and on budget, and its free cash flow generation
remains positive through the cycle. Specific credit metrics that
Moody's would consider in upgrading the rating include a debt-to-EBITDA
below 2.0x, with an EBITDA margin of around 25%-30%
on an ongoing basis, given the cyclical nature of the petrochemicals
industry.
The company's rating could be downgraded if: (1) its credit metrics
deteriorate such that its leverage is maintained at 3.0x over an
extended period, (2) its liquidity deteriorates such that its cash
balance falls below $100 million, or (3) it initiates large
incremental debt-funded expansion projects.
The principal methodology used in this rating was Global Chemical Industry
Rating Methodology published in December 2013. Please see the Rating
Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this
methodology.
Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk (P.T.) — listed on
the Jakarta Stock Exchange — is an integrated petrochemical company
operating the only naphtha cracker in Indonesia.
It has a production capacity of 860 thousand tonnes per annum (ktpa) for
ethylene, 470 ktpa for propylene, 400 ktpa for py-gas,
315 ktpa for mixed C4, 336 ktpa for polyethylene, and 480
ktpa for polypropylene. Chandra Asri also has an annual styrene
monomer production capacity of 340 ktpa and the capacity to produce 100
ktpa of Butadiene.
The company was established in January 2011 through the merger of PT Chandra
Asri and PT Tri Polyta Indonesia Tbk.
Chandra Asri is owned by PT Barito Pacific Tbk (46.26%),
the Siam Cement Group — through its subsidiary, SCG Chemicals
Co., Ltd. (one of the largest integrated petrochemical
companies in Thailand) — (30.57%), and Prajogo
Pangestu (14.11%), with the remaining shares held
by public investors (9.06%).
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
For ratings issued on a program, series or category/class of debt,
this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation
to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series
or category/class of debt or pursuant to a program for which the ratings
are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's
rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider,
this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation
to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to
each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their
credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating.
For provisional ratings, this announcement provides certain regulatory
disclosures in relation to the provisional rating assigned, and
in relation to a definitive rating that may be assigned subsequent to
the final issuance of the debt, in each case where the transaction
structure and terms have not changed prior to the assignment of the definitive
rating in a manner that would have affected the rating. For further
information please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page for the
respective issuer on www.moodys.com.
For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit
support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action,
and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action,
the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity.
Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures,
if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure
to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity.
Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit
rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating
review.
Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to
the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued
the rating.
Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com
for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating.
Brian Grieser
VP - Senior Credit Officer
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service Singapore Pte. Ltd.
50 Raffles Place #23-06
Singapore Land Tower
Singapore 48623
Singapore
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Laura Acres
MD - Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077
Releasing Office:
Moody's Investors Service Singapore Pte. Ltd.
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Singapore 48623
Singapore
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077