(The following statement was released by the ratings agency)
Dec 1 - Standard & Poor's Credit Market Services said today that Avista
Corp.'s (BBB-/Stable/A-3) announcement that it has successfully closed a $200
million, 364-day credit facility adequately addresses the company's liquidity
constraints. Our expectation that Avista would be able to execute on a
short-term credit facility is reflected in the stable outlook we have
maintained.
The company faces as much as $108.7 million in potential maturities this
month -- $83.7 million in secured pollution control bonds that are subject to
remarketing Dec. 30, 2008, and that the company must purchase if the
remarketing fails -- and $25 million of secured medium-term notes due Dec. 31.
If the company has to meet the entire $108.7 million in obligations at the end
of this month, its existing $320 million secured credit line provides
insufficient headroom, in our view, to support working capital requirements
going into 2009. As of Sept. 30, 2008, the company had borrowings and letters
of credit totaling $122 million.
For a utility of its size, Avista has a large capital program and will need
to rely on external financing at a time when credit markets continue to be in
turmoil. For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2008, the company had spent $150
million on capital additions with year-end investment expected to be about $200
million, rising in 2009 and 2010. The facility provides a temporary bridge,
allowing the company to push out long-term financing to meet these maturities.
After this month, Avista Corp. has no maturities due until 2010; the newly
executed facility expires Nov. 24, 2009.
(New York Ratings Team)
