(Bloomberg) -- Dollar bonds issued by Ukraine’s state-run railway company Ukrzaliznytsia fell on Tuesday after the company asked bondholders to delay some interest payments.
The 2026 note tumbled as much as 6 cents to 82 cents on the dollar on Tuesday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, the biggest one-day slide since June 2023, before trimming some of the losses. The security due 2028 also dropped by 0.46 cents to 77.4 cents.
The decline followed the company’s move to launch a consent solicitation to reschedule interest payments on both notes, which are due in January and July of next year. A representative for Ukrzaliznytsia said the proposal is to defer coupon payments for 12 months.
The company said in a statement that inflation and higher electricity and diesel costs are adding to pressure on liquidity. It also announced that it’s seeking to increase cargo tariffs by 37%, saying they haven’t been raised for two and a half years amid the country’s war against Russian invasion.
The company will hold a call with investors on Dec. 18, with voting on the request to delay payments set for Dec. 27, according to a copy of the solicitation of consent seen by Bloomberg. The total amount of payments requested to be moved is about $83 million, according to the company.
The results of the voting will be announced on Dec. 31. The company would need a quorum of 66% of the bondholders to go ahead with the vote, and then 75% of creditors agreeing to make changes in the terms of the notes to move forward with the deferral on coupon payments.
(Updates with details of the proposal in the third paragraph, voting thresholds in the sixth.)
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