The UTC construction and engineering company seeking US $ 100 million to restore the liquidity of its cash and ensure continuity of operations while reorganizing its finances and is renegotiating with creditor banks the maturity of its debt.
Yesterday, as anticipated by PRO Value, a real-time information service value, financial consultancy RK Partners, Ricardo Knoepfelmacher company, took over the restructuring of the company, which closed the year with R $ 1.59 billion in gross debt to a cash position of R $ 268.5 million.
Of this amount, R$ 777 million matures this year. In December, the balance sheet still showed R$ 323.4 million in commitments with suppliers to be paid this year.
In March, the six creditor banks – Bradesco, Itaú, Santander, Banco do Brazil, HSBC and Banco ABC – organized and united all the maturities that they have with the company, a R $ 1.2 billion package, for a renegotiation. Later that month, they signed with the company a memorandum of understanding to allow the term debts (stand still) to be extended. The “stand still” won on Tuesday, but will be extended by 60 days. In the package, are R$ 620 million in debentures.
The RK, as a representative of UTC, has among the goals to ensure the negotiation of working capital lines and the resumption of granting letters of guarantee by banks, for projects in progress.
R$ 100 million are needed to maintain normal business within the new pace – the company laid off half of the 30,000 employees it had in its frame before the crisis caused by the contractor’s involvement in Operação Lava-Jato of the Ministério Público Federal (MPF) .
The strategy for the recovery of liquidity of UTC, a company that historically kept its cash close to R$ 500 million, also has a portfolio of assets. The two largest projects of UTC currently are Viracopos Airport (Campinas-SP) and Line 6 (consortium Move SP) of the São Paulo Metro. At the airport consortium, the contractor has a share of 23%, valued between R$ 400 million and R$ 500 million. In line 6, the share is 19%, but there is still all the investment to be done.
Regarding the Metro, the controller consortium is formed by UTC, Galvão Engenharia and led by Odebrecht. This is the group that took over the public-private partnership (PPP) with the Government of the State of São Paulo for the project in the amount of R$ 9 billion, in which each put R$ 4.5 billion. Besides being one of the partners, the Constran, controlled by UTC, is among the contractors for the construction of the line. This activity generates recurring revenue to the business.
However, the airport is seen by creditor banks as the most attractive assets of the company. Are already available the necessary resources for the completion of the expansion this year, R$ 100 million or so. In addition to these operations in infrastructure, that UTC would like to keep, in an ideal scenario, there are large positions on land that can be sold whole or in part, totaling close to R$ 400 million.
The company has been making a severe cut program of costs and expenses and has already achieved a 40% saving. Still, net revenues this year should suffer double-digit fall, as well as earnings of interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). The expectation is that in 2015, net revenues will be slightly higher than R$ 3 billion, and EBITDA, down from R$ 150 million. In 2014, was R$ 3,8 billion and in the previous year, at R$ 4,1 billion.
Between credit institutions, the understanding is that from 2016 EBITDA of UTC must be at least R$ 150 million, which brings comfort to renegotiate debts, especially combined with the sale of assets. It is ensured that a significant part of the sales that are made will be used to shoot down the debt. But the goal of the RK is to avoid the rush for these transactions.
The company’s current project portfolio indicates that it is possible to maintain a revenue between R$ 3 billion and R$ 4 billion over the next four years.
It is not unlikely that instead of selling the overall standings, UTC seek financial partners for projects that still require large investments.
Creditor banks have accepted as part of the guarantee, Petrobras receivables by Refap refinery in south of Brazil, around R$ 600 million.
Another effort of RK will be to negotiate, besides the extension of the debt, the grace period of principal and interest over the coming years. Only the debt service would compromise R$ 150 million a year in cash.
One of the concerns of UTC is to be fit and strong for a possible scenario of leniency agreement, re-hire projects with Petrobras. Several companies involved in or affected by Lava-Jato are facing financial difficulties. Some of them have adopted bankruptcy as a strategy, which this time will not be done by UTC.
Seja o primeiro a comentar