HK PCCW Cyberport Loan Financing Not Ready Yet-Bankers
Updated: Tuesday, October 30, 2001 05:51 AM ET
HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--Pacific Century CyberWorks Ltd. (PCW, news, msgs) isn't ready to seek the US$200-US$300 million in financing for its CyberPort development in Pokfulam yet, banking sources said Tuesday.
"There's no way they can do it in this kind of market," a banking source said. "They're targeting at something bigger, in December maybe," he said.
According to the Oct. 27 issue of the debt market newsletter Basis Point, the company's PCCW Ltd. unit or PCCW-HKT Telephone Ltd. unit is expected to borrow US$200-300 million and provide a guarantee for the tech-focused real estate project.
PCCW, Hong Kong's dominant telecommunications company, was expected to seek up to HK$7 billion for the project in July 2000, Basis Point said. Given current market sentiment toward the telecom and information technology sectors, banks are likely to ask for a recourse deal - under which the guarantor is liable for the debt if the borrower defaults, it added.
"I wouldn't take the report too seriously. It's too early to say anything," another banker said.
The Cyberport project, located in the Pokfulam district of Hong Kong island, is to comprise a commercial development slated for completion in 2003 and a residential complex expected to be finished in 2007.
PCCW said earlier it would invest US$300 million in the project.
-By Sonia Tsang, Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2802-7002; sonia.tsang@dowjones.com DOW JONES NEWS 10-30-01 05:51 AM |
