UPDATE 1-Teck Cominco secures $9.81 bln debt for Fording deal
(Recasts, adds details, in U.S. dollars unless noted) Sept 30 (Reuters) - Canada's diversified miner Teck Cominco Ltd (TCKb.TO) said it signed definitive credit agreements totalling $9.81 billion, which it plans to use for funding the cash portion of its takeover of Fording Canadian Coal Trust FDG_u.TO.
The agreements include a fully underwritten $4 billion senior term loan and a $5.81 billion senior bridge loan and they come with certain conditions, including receipt of Fording unit holder and court approvals in respect of the transaction.
In July, Teck agreed to buy Fording in a cash and stock deal worth $14.1 billion but the deal value has gone down to $13.4 billion due to the decline in Teck's shares since then.
Doubts about whether Teck would be able to raise the debt amid a financial crisis in the United States prompted a 30-percent selloff in Fording's shares two weeks ago.
However, the stock rebounded quickly as the companies assured markets that raising the funds is not a problem. Shares of the Vancouver, British Columbia-based Teck were up 11 percent to at C$32.00, while Fording shares were up 10 percent at C$87.00 in morning trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange. ($1=1.048 Canadian Dollar) (Reporting by Amiteshwar Singh in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)
