Sale of the cathodes, furnace linings and carbon electrodes (CFL/CE) business to Triton completed

Closing on November 2, 2017 marks the completion of the sale of the former business unit Performance Products

Proceeds of the sale will be used to redeem the convertible bond with an original nominal of 240 million euros at maturity in January 2018

Early redemption of the 250 million euros corporate bond was completed on October 30, 2017 with the proceeds of the sale of the graphite electrode business and the proceeds of the December 2016 rights issue

Wiesbaden, November 2, 2017. The sale of SGL Group's cathodes, furnace linings and carbon electrodes (CFL/CE) business to funds advised by Triton ( Triton ) will close today following the approval of the relevant authorities. This completes the sale of the former business unit Performance Products (PP), which comprised the graphite electrode and CFL/CE businesses.

On August 8, 2017, SGL Group signed a sale and purchase agreement to sell its CFL/CE business to Triton. The two parties have agreed on an enterprise value (cash and debt free) of 250 million euros, which, after deduction of standard debt-like items (mainly pension provisions) as well as other customary adjustments, results in cash proceeds of more than 230 million euros. The final proceeds will be determined based on the balance sheet as of October 31, 2017.

The convertible bond with an original nominal of 240 million euros will be redeemed at maturity in January 2018 with the proceeds from the sale of the CFL/CE business. It had been issued in 2012 with a coupon of 2.75 percent. The redemption of this convertible bond will result in savings of around 12 million euros from 2018 onwards due to the absence of interest expenses, imputed interest components, and refinancing costs.

250 million euros corporate bond (2013/2021) redeemed early

The closing of the sale of SGL Group's graphite electrode business to the Japanese company Showa Denko was already completed on October 2, 2017. SGL Group used the proceeds of this sale and the proceeds of the December 2016 rights issue to prematurely redeem the corporate bond with a nominal value of 250 million effective October 30, 2017. The bond was issued in 2013 with a coupon of 4.875 percent and an original maturity in 2021.

All in all, SGL Group sold its former business unit PP at a total enterprise value of 600 million euros and more than 130 million euros above its book value on June 30, 2016, the date of which the business was classified as held for sale. The sales proceeds and the redemption of the two bonds will reduce interest expenses from 2018 onwards, significantly lower the net debt position and improve the balance sheet ratios.

LINK:	http://www.sglnewsroom.com/en/reports/report-detail-page.21632.php...
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