American container carrier Matson has been issued with the $75m debt facility it announced in July.
The loan has been issued in 30-year final maturity senior unsecured notes, which will have a weighted average life of approximately 13 years and will bear 3.92% interest, payable semi-annually.
The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, which Matson said may include paying down its revolving credit facility.
In July, the company announced it was to raise $100m using the notes and by increasing its existing $375m unsecured revolving credit facility to $400m. The credit facility will be extended for a new five-year term, maturing July 2020.
“We are pleased to have closed this private placement transaction. This financing strengthens Matson’s balance sheet and, combined with the significant cash flow generated by our core businesses, provides ample liquidity to execute our new vessel construction program, pay down debt, and return capital to shareholders,” said Joel Wine, Matson’s senior vice-president and CFO, in a statement.
Matson currently has two 3,600-teu panamax containerships under construction at the Aker Philadelphia shipyard, the largest ships ever ordered for the US Jones Act trade. The dual-fuel vessels will be able to run off LNG and diesel when they are delivered in 2018.
Matson also said in July it plans to invest more than $30m in the Alaskan container business it acquired from Horizon Lines in May, and will buy new boxes and container handling equipment for its Alaskan container terminals.
