Irish dairy cooperative, Ornua announced today (Wednesday, December 15) that it has secured a new five-year syndicated bank facility of €580 million, replacing its existing 2017 facility.
The new facility will extend to December 2026 and incorporates sustainability key performance indicators that address emissions, waste and diversity targets.
The refinanced facility comprises of two parts:
- €200 million committed syndicated Revolving Credit Facility (RCF) to fund Ornua’s working capital requirements and its global growth strategy via strategic capital investment and acquisition;
- €380 million committed syndicated Reverse Invoice Discounting Facility (RID) to fund the working capital requirements of Ornua’s member suppliers, Ireland’s dairy processors.
In addition, a further €100 million is available, if required over the five-year period, under the facility (€50 million under the RCF and €50 million under the RID), by way of an uncommitted tranche of funding, which would bring the total RCF to €250 million and the total RID to €430 million.
Participating banks
The participant banks are: Allied Irish Banks p.l.c (acting as RCF agent); Bank of Ireland; Bank of America – Europe; HSBC Continental Europe (acting as RCF sustainability coordinator); Rabobank Dublin (acting as RID sustainability coordinator and agent); and BayernLB.
Commenting on the refinancing, Donal Buggy, group finance director, Ornua said: “The successful refinancing ensures that Ornua retains access to the banking liquidity it needs to deliver strategic growth initiatives and strong product price returns for our members and Irish dairy farming families.
“Not only does the €580 million facility strengthen our capital structure, but it also provides increased working capital support to our members and ultimately the dairy community across Ireland.
“We are very pleased that the deal was again oversubscribed – a clear indicator of our banking partners’ continued support of Ornua’s ambitious growth strategy,” he added.
Ornua said that it has continued to deliver strong growth across global markets in 2021.
Recent highlights it references include the expansion of its U.S cheese ingredients business with the acquisition of Wisconsin-based cheese business, Whitehall Specialties, maintaining continuity of supply during the global shipping crisis, and the sale of over 10 million packets of Kerrygold each week.
Ornua
Ornua is a dairy cooperative which sells dairy products on behalf of its members, Ireland’s dairy processors and, in turn, Irish dairy farmers.
Headquartered in Dublin, the company said it has annual sales of over €2.5 billion and a global team of 2,900 employees and exports to 100 countries worldwide.
Ornua operates from 16 business units worldwide, including 16 production facilities, and has sales and marketing teams working in-market across the globe.
The group is structured across two divisions: Ornua Foods and Ornua Ingredients.
Ornua Ingredients is responsible for the procurement of Irish and non-Irish dairy products, and for the sale of dairy ingredients to food manufacturing and foodservice customers across the world.
Ornua Foods is responsible for the marketing and sales of Ornua’s consumer brands including Kerrygold and Dubliner.