Lenders grant Capital & Regional further waivers on borrowing
Capital & Regional has won further covenant waiver extensions from lenders against most of its shopping centres.
The REIT has agreed an extension of existing covenant waivers on a £265m facility linked to four of its mall assets until October, and is in talks with lenders over a “longer-term modification” of the facility.
In Ilford, covenants on a £39m loan against the Exchange site will also be waived until October, pushing the date out from July. Work is continuing on a new healthcare facility planned for the site, which the company said will be funded partially from its central cash.
Capital & Regional has won further covenant waiver extensions from lenders against most of its shopping centres.
The REIT has agreed an extension of existing covenant waivers on a £265m facility linked to four of its mall assets until October, and is in talks with lenders over a “longer-term modification” of the facility.
In Ilford, covenants on a £39m loan against the Exchange site will also be waived until October, pushing the date out from July. Work is continuing on a new healthcare facility planned for the site, which the company said will be funded partially from its central cash.
The REIT is also in talks to extend waivers for its £96.5m loan against its Luton site for a further quarter beyond July, although an agreement has yet to be reached.
In a trading update, chief executive Lawrence Hutchings said 99% of the company’s retailers are now open and trading again as Covid-19 restrictions lift, adding that footfall has been “robust”. The REIT has now collected 70% of 2021 rent due to date, and the 2020 collection stands at 84%. Talks with potential occupiers for three former Debenhams stores are “progressing well”, Hutchings said.
“We continue to support both our smaller and our independent retailers as necessary, while seeking to ensure that larger, well-capitalised retailers honour their commitments,” Hutchings said.
Away from the company’s retail assets, Capital & Regional said it is making “considerable progress” on a residential project in Walthamstow, where principal terms of the section 106 planning obligations package have been agreed and a recommendation to grant planning consent has been ratified by the Greater London Authority.
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