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Dolphin Energy Mandates 5 Bks For Planned Dlr Bond -Sources

Tuesday, Jun 14, 2011

(This story was originally published Monday.)

DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Abu Dhabi-based Dolphin Energy , in which Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY) and Total S.A. (TOT) are shareholders, has mandated five banks on a planned bond issue that aims to raise more than $1 billion to refinance existing debt, two people familiar with the situation said Monday.

A roadshow for the bond issue is planned to kick off by the end of the week, the people, who declined to be named, said.

One banker familiar with the deal said meetings are scheduled to take place in London on Thursday and Friday, Abu Dhabi and Dubai on June 19 and 20 and in the U.S. on June 21 and 22.

"The bonds may be issued in bullet or amortising form or a combination thereof and the ultimate size may vary but will not exceed $1.93 billion," he added.

The five banks mandated by Dolphin Energy , which imports natural gas to the U.A.E. via a pipeline from Qatar, are: BNP Paribas, Royal Bank of Scotland, Societe Generale, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, the people added.

RBS and SocGen couldn't be reached immediately for comment. BNP Paribas, ADCB and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi declined to comment. Dolphin Energy referred inquiries to Mubadala Development Co., which declined to comment.

Abu Dhabi government investment firm Mubadala owns 51% in Dolphin , with Total and Occidental each holding 24.5% stakes.

Dolphin Energy in 2009 raised a total $4.1 billion to refinance debt, fund the construction of its Taweelah-Fujairah pipeline project, and pay for refinancing-related fees. The funds were raised via $1.25 billion bond, $1.4 billion bank debt and a $218 million facility insured by Italian export credit agency Sace. Total and Occidental co-lent $1.2 billion at the time.

Dolphin in July 2007 started gas deliveries from Qatar's North Field through a 364-kilometer pipeline to a receiving terminal at Taweelah in Abu Dhabi, the largest of the United Arab Emirates. The company presently pumps about 2 billion cubic feet a day of gas--equivalent to about 360,000 barrels a day of crude oil--which is sold to customers across the U.A.E. and to Oman.

Gas demand in Persian Gulf states has risen rapidly in recent years amid rising power and industrial requirements driven by strong demographics and aggressive infrastructure plans.

News of Dolphin 's plans come at a time when the Dubai government is meeting investors to test credit market sentiment for a dollar-denominated bond.

Dubai's department of finance has appointed UBS, RBS and Emirates NBD for the planned bond issue under its EMTN program. Proceeds will be used for general budgetary purposes, the government said last week. Fixed-income investor meetings will take place in London on Monday and Tuesday, with the bond expected to launch and price thereafter.

This follows a five-year, $1 billion bond issue by Dubai's flagship carrier Emirates Airline earlier in June, which received high levels of investor interest in a sign that confidence in Dubai's economic fundamentals is slowly returning.

Separately, Abu Dhabi government-owned International Petroleum Investment Co., or IPIC, on Sunday announced plans for a non-deal investor update roadshow.

-By Mirna Sleiman, Dow Jones Newswires; +9714 446-1698; mirna.sleiman@dowjones.com

(Nour Malas in Abu Dhabi contributed to this report.)

Copyright (c) 2011 Dow Jones & Co.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

14-06-11 0353GMT