HONG KONG (Reuters) – The operator of Hong Kong’s main airport has sold bonds for $1.5 billion to fund development of a third runway, its first deal offering U.S. based investors the opportunity to participate.
Airport Authority Hong Kong said in a statement it had raised $900 million in 10 year notes and $600 million in 30 year bonds, the longest paper it has issued.
The transaction was the second aviation deal in Hong Kong this week after Cathay Pacific raised $870 million in five year convertible bonds to help the airline shore up liquidity.
Demand for the 10 year notes reached $4.4 billion and the 30-year demand was $4.1 billion, the statement said. At those levels, the deal was 4.9 times and 6.8 times oversubscribed.
Final pricing was set with a yield of 1.71% for the 10 year note and 2.64% for the longer date bond, respectively 35 and 40 basis points tighter than initial guidance given by bookrunners earlier this week.
Construction of the airport’s third runway is expected to be finished in 2022 and should be fully operational by 2024, according to the airport’s website.
The project is estimated to cost HK$141.5 billion ($18.3 billion).
(Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Hong Kong; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
