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Noble Group’s loan deadline looms amid restructuring talks

Bloomberg Published on Wed, Dec 20, 2017 / 8:24 AM GMT+8

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SINGAPORE (Dec 20): Noble Group Ltd., the embattled commodities trader, faces a key deadline on Wednesday that could complicate its negotiations with creditors as it wrestles with a US$3.5 billion debt restructuring.

Lenders had agreed to waive certain rights under terms Noble Group committed to for its US$1.1 billion revolving credit facility until Dec. 20. The company is talking to creditors about a restructuring that includes a debt-for-equity swap, according to people familiar with the negotiations. The big question is whether lenders will agree to extend the waiver.

In the latest sign of strains as Noble Group fights for survival, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday that the company plans to defer a coupon payment on its perpetual bonds again. Once Asia’s largest commodity trader, Noble’s decline since 2015 has been marked by losses, concern it won’t pay its debt and claims from long-time foe Iceberg Research including that it inflated the value of some contracts. While Noble has consistently rejected the claims, some have been validated as Noble has been forced to make writedowns.