Kuwait’s Kufpec said to ink $750m loan deal

Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (Kufpec) has launched its first syndicated loan in five years with a $750m deal, two sources close to the deal said.

 The deal will be Kufpec’s largest ever syndicated loan, according to Thomson Reuters LPC data.

It comes at a welcome time for Middle East borrowers because lenders are eager for volume after sporadic activity in 2012.

Kufpec could not be immediately reached for comment.

Kufpec, which is owned by state oil firm Kuwait Petroleum Company, is paying 140 basis points over LIBOR, bankers added.

 National Bank of Kuwait and JP Morgan are joint coordinators, with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, HSBC, JP Morgan Chase, National Bank of Kuwait and Royal Bank of Scotland as arrangers.

Syndication of the deal has been launched to the oil company’s close local and international lenders. A bank meeting is being held in Dubai next week, with plans to sign the deal by the end of May.

Source: Arabian Business