Dubai’s Port & Free Zone said to be raising $850 million loan

Port & Free Zone World FZE, the holding company for Dubai-based ports operator DP World Ltd., is raising $850 million from a syndicated loan to refinance debt, three bankers familiar with the plan said, Bloomberg reports.The five-year loan has conventional and Islamic portions and pays a margin of 350 basis points, or 3.5 percentage points, over benchmark rates, one of the bankers said. The payment rises to about 375 basis points after including fees, he said. The loans are backed by shares of DP World, the world’s fourth- biggest port operator, the bankers said.
HSBC Holdings Plc, Standard Chartered Plc, Deutsche Bank AG and Citigroup Inc. are managing the conventional loan, two of the three bankers said. Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC, the United Arab Emirates’ biggest bank complying with Shariah-compliant banking rules, is managing the Islamic portion, they said.
A spokeswoman for Dubai World, Port & Free Zone’s parent, declined to comment. Officials at HSBC, Standard Chartered, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank declined to comment. They didn’t wish to be identified because of company policies. A spokesman for Dubai Islamic Bank didn’t immediately comment.
Port & Free Zone controls DP World and Economic Zones World, which owns Jebel Ali Free Zone, the business park in Dubai adjoining DP World’s flagship Jebel Ali port. The company raised an $853 million and a 551 million-dirham conventional loan in 2008 which matures in September, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.