France's Elior and Nord-Est in refinancings

Greg Gille
@unquotenews
01 May 2013

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Charterhouse's catering business Elior has tapped into the high-yield market to raise €350m, while Oaktree has been able to reap a dividend by leveraging its investment in packaging company Nord-Est, according to local reports.

Elior reportedly raised €350m on the high-yield market, issuing bonds maturing in 2020 with a 6.5% coupon, French publication Capital Finance reported. The company is also believed to have negotiated an amend-and-extend on €1.1bn's worth of senior debt, pushing the maturity to 2019.

Charterhouse took Elior private in 2005, a deal that valued the business at €2.5bn. French buyout house Chequers Capital also owns a stake in the company, which posted a €4.17bn turnover in the 2010/2011 financial year.

The GPs initiated a sale process for the business last year in the hope of attracting bids in the region of €3.5bn. The sale was understood to be stalling in April – tellingly, this latest financing package could be kept in place should a potential buyer be part of a pre-determined shortlist of private equity houses, Capital Finance added.

Meanwhile, Oaktree is understood to have arranged a dividend recap for packaging business Nord-Est, by leveraging its 2012 investment with a €190m senior facility. Oaktree had bought the company from 21 Centrale in a €300m all-equity transaction valuing Nord-Est at 6.5-7x EBITDA.

Neither Charterhouse nor Oaktree could be reached for comment.