Rating Action:
Moody's assigns Baa2 rating to Gazprom's proposed LPNs
13 Feb 2020
London, 13 February 2020 -- Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) has today assigned a Baa2 rating to the proposed senior unsecured US dollar-denominated loan participation notes (LPNs) to be issued by, but with limited recourse to, Gaz Finance Plc, a public company with limited liability incorporated in England and Wales. Gaz Finance Plc will in turn on-lend the proceeds to Gazprom, PJSC (Baa2 stable), which will use them for general corporate purposes. Therefore, the noteholders will rely solely on Gazprom's credit quality to service and repay the debt. Moody's has also assigned a stable outlook to Gaz Finance Plc, in line with Gazprom's outlook.
LPNs will be issued as Series 1 under the existing EUR30 billion multicurrency medium-term note programme (unrated) for issuing loan participation notes. The notes will be issued for the sole purpose of financing a loan to Gazprom on the terms of an amended and restated facility agreement dated 26 December 2019 between Gaz Finance Plc and Gazprom.
RATINGS RATIONALE
The Baa2 rating assigned to the notes is the same as Gazprom's long-term issuer rating, which reflects Moody's view that the proposed notes will rank pari passu with other outstanding unsecured debt of Gazprom.
The noteholders will have the benefit of certain covenants made by Gazprom, including a negative pledge and restrictions on mergers. The cross-default clause embedded in the bond documentation will cover, inter alia, a failure by Gazprom or any of its principal subsidiaries to pay any of their financial indebtedness in the amount exceeding $250 million.
Gazprom's Baa2 issuer rating is on par with Russia's country ceiling for foreign-currency debt. The rating factors in the company's vast natural gas reserves, strong business profile as Russia's largest producer and monopoly exporter of pipeline gas, owner and operator of the world's largest gas transportation and storage system, and Europe's largest gas supplier. Gazprom benefits from a high level of government support resulting from the company's economic, political and reputational importance to the Russian state. Gazprom's rating also takes into account Moody's expectation that the company's credit metrics will weaken in 2020 because of lower gas prices in Europe amid the growing supply of liquefied natural gas. The company remains exposed to Russia's macroeconomic, regulatory and operating environment, despite its high volume of exports, because most of its production facilities are in Russia.