Plaza Centers N.V.
09 January 2008
9 January 2008
PLAZA CENTERS AWARDED Aa3 RATING
TO RAISE UP TO $330 MILLION OF NEW DEBT BY MIDROOG LTD,
AN AFFILIATE OF MOODY'S INVESTORS SERVICE
Plaza Centers N.V. ('Plaza' or the 'Company'), a leading emerging markets
property developer, today announces that MIDROOG ltd., The Israeli Credit Rating
Agency and an affiliate of Moody's Investors Service, has approved a rating of
'Aa3' on Moody's scale for Plaza to raise new debt up to the amount of US$330
million, on top of the current US$70 million which were raised in July 2007 and
is also rated Aa3 by MIDROOG ltd.
As announced on 13 December 2007, Plaza's Board of Directors has authorized the
filing of a draft prospectus with the Israeli Securities Authority and the Tel
Aviv Stock Exchange ('TASE') in connection with a potential offering to the
public in Israel of unsecured non-convertible Series B Notes ('Series B Notes')
and their listing on the TASE. The prospectus will also be used to list
approximately New Israeli Shekels ('NIS') 305 million (approximately EUR 53.3
Million) of unsecured non-convertible Series A Notes for trade on the TASE.
These were originally issued by Plaza to investors in Israel in a private
transaction in July 2007 ('Series A Notes'). The Series A Notes bear an annual
interest rate of 5%, which will be reduced to 4.5% once they are listed for
trade on the TASE.
Plaza now has the financial flexibility to issue additional corporate bonds in
order to finance its continued growth, as an alternative to raising funds
through the equity markets. In the event that the Company decides to proceed
with an offer of further corporate bonds, it anticipates that its bonds would be
linked to the Israeli Consumer Price Index, while the exact rate of interest
would be determined at tender.
As the Company's functional currency is the Euro, if bonds are raised the
Company intends to hedge the future obligation to correlate with the Euro.
A full copy of MIDROOG's report is available at
http://www.plazacenters.com/financial_reports.html
(Currently in Hebrew; an English translation will be available shortly.)
Should an offering of Series B Notes be made, it will be made to persons in
Israel only.
Commenting on the rating, Ran Shtarkman, President and CEO of Plaza Centers,
said:
'We are very pleased to have been rated Aa3 by MIDROOG ltd., the Israeli
affiliate of Moody's and one of the two leading recognised rating agencies in
Israel. This rating reaffirms the continued confidence shown by a neutral
international rating agency in Plaza's performance and successful track record
which has been built up over more than eleven years.
'During this period, the Company has developed and let a total of 26 shopping
and entertainment centres and successfully sold these assets to major
international investors.
'If the bonds are issued, we expect it to be at a very favourable interest rate.
The Aa3 rating enhances Plaza's ability to achieve its future objectives, and to
further diversify and enrich the Company's portfolio through the development of
high quality shopping and entertainment centres and other mixed used projects
both in the Central and Eastern Europe and India.'
For further details please contact:
Plaza Centers N.V.
Mordechay Zisser, Chairman +972 3 6086000
Ran Shtarkman, President and CEO +36 1 462 7221
Roy Linden, CFO +36 1 462 7105
Financial Dynamics
Stephanie Highett/ Laurence Jones +44 20 7831 3113
Notes to Editors
• Plaza Centers N.V. (www.plazacenters.com) is a leading emerging markets
developer of shopping and entertainment centres. It focuses on
constructing new centres and, where there is significant redevelopment
potential, redeveloping existing centres in both capital cities and important
regional centres. The Company is dual listed on the Main Board of the London
Stock Exchange and, as of 19 October 2007, the Warsaw Stock Exchange
(LSE:'PLAZ', WSE: 'PLZ/PLAZACNTR'). Plaza Centers N.V. is an indirect
subsidiary of Elbit Imaging Ltd. ('EIL'), an Israeli public company whose
shares are traded on both the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in Israel and the
NASDAQ Global Market in the United States.
• Plaza Centers is a member of the Europe Israel Group of companies which is
controlled by its founder, Mr Mordechay Zisser. It has been active in
real estate development in emerging markets for over 11 years.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange