Moody's limits issuer ratings to sovereign ceiling

Moody's Investors Service said it is revising the foreign currency issuer ratings or corporate family ratings such that they remain constrained by the relevant sovereign foreign currency ceilings after publishing a corporate sector ratings examination.

Under the methodology for piercing the country ceiling, only bonds issued under foreign law may be rated higher than the sovereign foreign currency ceiling. As such, while individual debt instruments may be allowed to "pierce" the ceiling, issuer ratings should remain constrained at the level of the sovereign foreign currency ceiling, the agency said.

Where debt instruments are publicly rated, Moody's said it affirmed the ratings assigned to the debt instruments.

Importantly, where Moody's has only assigned issuer ratings or corporate family ratings, any future senior unsecured obligations of these issuers sold under foreign law would remain eligible to pierce the sovereign foreign currency ceilings and would be rated at the rating level and outlook previously indicated by the issuer ratings or corporate family ratings.

Revisions include Kazakhstan Electricity Grid Operating Co.'s local currency long-term issuer rating assigned at Baa1/positive, foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa2/positive to Baa3/positive; Intergas Central Asia's corporate family rating corrected from Baa2/stable to Baa3/positive, foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa2/stable to Baa3/positive, $250 million global bonds due 2011, issued by Intergas Finance BV, affirmed at Baa2/stable; JSC KazTransOil's corporate family rating corrected from Baa2/stable to Baa3/positive, $150 million global notes due 2006 affirmed at Baa2/stable; Kazakhstan Temir Zholy's foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa1/positive to Baa3/positive;

OJSC Gazprom's foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa2/positive to Baa3/positive, senior unsecured loan participation notes affirmed at Baa2/positive; Russian Railways' foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa2/stable to Baa3/positive; OAO AK Transneft's foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from Baa1/positive to Baa3/positive, local currency long-term issuer rating affirmed at Baa1/positive; NJSC Naftogaz's corporate family rating corrected from Ba2/stable to B1/stable, $500 million in senior unsecured loan participation notes due 2009 affirmed at Ba2/stable and Telkom SA Ltd.'s local currency long-term issuer rating assigned at A3/stable and foreign currency long-term issuer rating corrected from A3/stable to Baa1/stable.

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