The Ukrainian Railways joint-stock company (Ukrzaliznytsia) intends to pay the coupons due on its Eurobonds in January 2025.
The company announced this in a statement, the CFTS portal reports.
On December 16, 2024, Ukrzaliznytsia asked bondholders to capitalize approximately USD 160 million and defer future coupon payments for another 12 months (the second support period), with the option to capitalize them to enable the company to preserve liquidity in the difficult financial conditions created by Russia's military aggression.
"This was because of a decline in freight transportation volumes in the second half of 2024, a sharp increase in the company's costs because of inflation caused by the escalation of military aggression, and the high degree of uncertainty regarding the potential approval of a freight tariff increase," the company said in the statement.
The company has decided to make the Eurobond coupon payments due in January 2025 to maintain a constructive relationship with Eurobond holders. This decision will also provide additional time to prepare a more comprehensive decision on the Eurobonds.
As the CFTS portal reported earlier, on 23 December 2024, the international rating agency Standard & Poor's recently downgraded Ukrzaliznytsia's long-term issuer credit rating from "CCC+" to "CC" (negative Outlook) because of the company's proposal to defer payments on two Eurobond issues for one year from January this year.
