Qtel secures US$1.5 billion credit facility

Qtel has secured a US$1.5 billion credit facility, which has already been oversubscribed in the initial phase.  The Qatari operator secured the support of its relationship banks, including The Bank of Tokyo – Mitsubishi UFJ, Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas, DBS Bank and The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), as initial mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners, with Qatar National Bank as the initial mandated lead arranger and general financial advisor to Qtel.

Chairman of Qtel, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, at the award of the US$1.5 billion credit facility

These banks were joined by other relationship banks including International Bank of Qatar, JP Morgan Chase, Arab Bank, Doha Bank and Housing Bank for Trade and Finance.

Qtel’s success in launching the first stage of the facility – which is one of the largest credit facilities, and the first Forward Start Facility, executed in the GCC region so far in 2009 – provides the company with enhanced capacity to continue to execute on its strategic vision to become one of the world’s top 20 telecommunications companies by 2020. This first stage will be followed by a second General Syndication phase.

“With the successful completion of the first stage and launch of the general syndication, Qtel raised more than US$10 billion in the international bank loan markets in just over two years. This achievement marks the largest corporate financing for any corporate in the MENA region and one of the largest in the world,” commented Scott Barton, head of global banking and markets Middle East and Africa at RBS.

“The facility amplifies the strong credit story of Qtel and Qatar, as demonstrated by the strong investment grade rating assigned to Qtel by Moody’s, S&P and Fitch Ratings,” Barton added.

The Qtel Group has diversified internationally into 17 countries, with established operations in Gulf neighbors including Kuwait and Oman, and growth potential in major emerging markets including Indonesia, Iraq, Algeria, and Tunisia.