RLPC-Abu Dhabi's IPIC signs increased $5 bln loan -bankers

LONDON, June 29 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) has signed a $5 billion syndicated loan, increased from a launch amount of $3.5 billion, banking sources close to the deal said on Monday.

Co-ordinating bookrunners Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, HSBC and Santander invited banks to join the deal with commitments of $400 million and despite the increased final amount, lenders have been scaled back by around 30 percent, the sources said.

The loan, which will be used to finance IPIC's recent acquisitions, as well as for general corporate purposes, was launched in May. [ID:nLT144665]

It is the first major new money loan in the Gulf this year and its success bodes well for international banks' appetite for sovereign corporate loans in the region, bankers said.

The loan is split between a one-year bridge loan A that will later be refinanced by a bond, and a two-year facility B that is extendable for one year at the lenders' discretion.

The margin on the A loan is 250 basis points (bps) over LIBOR for the first six months, rising to 350 bps for the next three months and 400 bps thereafter. The margin on the B loan is 350 bps.

At the same time, National Bank of Abu Dhabi has been arranging a separate $1.2 billion-equivalent dirham deal for IPIC to local banks, which will also be used for acquisition purposes. The margin on that deal is 250 bps.

Proceeds of the $5 billion loan backs IPIC's $500 million takeover of Canada-based raw plastics manufacturer Nova Chemicals Corp (NCX.TO), which was approved by shareholders in April, in a deal worth $2.3 billion including Nova's debt.

The loan also funds the borrower's increased stake in Spanish oil company Cepsa (CEP.MC). IPIC raised its stake in March to 47 percent by buying shares from Santander Group and Fenosa (UNF.MC) in a deal worth around $4.4 billion. [ID:nLV293177].

IPIC invests in oil-related projects for the government of Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, which is the world's third-largest oil exporter.

In April, IPIC was assigned an 'AA' rating by Standard and Poor's and by Fitch, and a 'Aa2' rating by Moody's. [ID:nWLA2611] [ID:nWLA2627]. (Reporting by Christopher Mangham and Alasdair Reilly, editing by Will Waterman)