乌克兰电网运营商Ukrenergo接近完成获美国DFC支持的债务重组

Ukraine’s electricity grid operator is close to finalizing a debt restructuring that could unlock funding needed to rebuild its war-ravaged network.

NPC Ukrenergo has secured a guarantee from the US International Development Finance Corporation that will enable the state-owned utility to raise new money to buy back bonds that have been in default for nearly two years, a spokesperson for the company said. Exiting default would make it easier for the company to tap sources of funding for reconstruction, the spokesperson added.

Citigroup Inc. is helping to arrange the sale of at least $445 million in new bonds, backed by the DFC, to “market investors,” according to the spokesperson. The guarantee should allow Ukrenergo to raise debt at a much lower cost than it would otherwise be able to.

Spokespeople for the DFC and Citigroup declined to comment on the new financing or Ukrenergo’s restructuring.

Ukrenergo has been struggling to service its debt since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It began deferring payments that year before suspending interest on its $825 million Eurobond in late 2024. An initial effort to restructure the debt stalled in July 2025 after the company said conditions for securing the necessary financing had not been met.

The delay reflected the “complex financing structure” of the transaction, the Ukrenergo spokesperson said.

Offer to Bondholders

Its latest proposal includes an offer to repurchase the Eurobonds, due to mature in 2028, for between 60% and 65.125% of face value, or to swap them 1:1 for new debt. The new bonds, which will not be guaranteed by the DFC, will bear an interest rate of 8.5%. They will amortize in eight equal installments starting in June 2028 and make an interest payment shortly after the deal settles to cover the period running from July 2025, the Ukrenergo spokesperson said.

The buyback offer is capped at $445 million and contingent on the new DFC-backed financing being raised. To proceed, the restructuring plan also needs the consent of bondholders at a virtual meeting to be held on Oct. 1.

The DFC was established during Donald Trump’s first term as US president and is the vehicle through which the US government makes international investments to advance its foreign policy goals. Its activities in Ukraine include providing seed capital to the US-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, formed as part of a mineral resources deal between the US and Ukraine.

Ukrenergo is heavily reliant on funding from development finance institutions to help pay for the reconstruction and maintenance of its infrastructure, which has been the subject of intensifying attacks this year. Being in default has made it difficult for the company to access new money.