Fitch: Grupo ICE notes BB+

Fitch Ratings said it assigned a BB+ rating to Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad's (Grupo ICE) senior notes reopening due Nov. 10, 2021 for up to $250 million.

These additional notes will form a single series with the 6.95% senior notes due 2021 that were originally issued in November 2011 and will have substantially the same terms and conditions as those of the existing notes.

The proceeds will be used to fund the Grupo ICE's capital investment plan, Fitch said.

The company has a long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating of BB+, long-term local-currency issuer default rating of BB+, long-term national scale (Costa Rica) rating of AAA(cri), long-term national scale (El Salvador) rating of AAA(slv), senior unsecured debt rating of BB+, senior unsecured domestic long-term debt (Costa Rica) rating of AAA(cri), senior unsecured domestic long-term debt (El Salvador) rating of AAA(slv) and senior unsecured domestic short-term debt rating of F1+(cri).

The ratings are supported by the company's linkage to the sovereign of Costa Rica, which has an ownership stake in the company, Fitch said.

The linkage between Grupo ICE and the government also reflects the company's political risk resulting from its tariff approval process and government mandated strategy, which tempers the ratings and aligns it with the sovereign, the agency said.

The ratings also reflect the government's implicit and explicit support as well as the company's diversified portfolio of assets and adequate financial profile, Fitch added.

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