SES COMPLETES EUR 908.8 MILLION CAPITAL RAISING TO FUND MOVE TO 100% OF O3B NETWORKS AND ACCELERATION OF COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL SYNERGIES
Luxembourg, 27 May 2016 – SES S.A. (Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) announces the completion of the capital raising to fund the acquisition of the remaining shares in O3b Networks, as announced 26 May 2016. The total gross proceeds from the capital raising amounts to EUR 908.8 million.
SES will issue 39,857,600 million new Fiduciary Depositary Receipts (FDRs) at a price of EUR 19.0. The number of new FDRs represents 11.6% of the existing number of total Class A shares. The Private Placement (“The Placement”) is part of a capital increase in which the existing Class B shareholders (Banque et Caisse d’Epargne de l’Etat, Société Nationale de Crédit et d'Investissement and Etat du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg) have agreed to subscribe for 19,928,800 newly-issued Class B shares, pro rata to their existing holding of Class B shares, as is necessary to maintain the ratio of 1:2 with the Class A shares, as provided in SES’s articles of association.
These new shares will rank pari passu with the existing A-shares and B-shares. Class B shares have 40% of the economic rights of Class A shares. As a result of the capital raising, the total number of shares will increase from 515.40 million to 575.19 million, and the total number of economic shares will increase from 412.32 million to 460.15 million.
SES will use the proceeds raised to fund the total consideration of USD 730 million to increase its ownership of O3b to 100%. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals which are expected to be completed during H2 2016. SES will also use around USD 300 million to repay O3b’s most expensive debt facilities, leading to a reduction in annual financing costs after initially covering any repayment charges.
The settlement-delivery and the admission of the new FDRs on Euronext Paris and the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (on the same line as SES’s existing shares, ISIN Code: LU0088087324) is expected to take place on 31 May 2016. A Listing Prospectus is expected to be approved by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) in advance of settlement.
For further information:
Mark Roberts
Investor Relations
Tel. +352 710 725 490
[email protected]
Markus Payer
Corporate Communications
Tel. +352 710 725 500
[email protected]
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