Mapletree Industrial Trust's private placement 3.1 times covered

Mapletree Industrial Trust's (MIT) private placement of 190.3 million new units was around 3.1 times covered, its manager said yesterday.

The issue price was fixed at $2.696 per new unit, the top end of the price range.

This represents a discount of 2.3 per cent on the volume-weighted average price of $2.7596 per unit for trades done on Wednesday, the last trading day before the underwriting agreement was signed.

Its new units are expected to be issued on or around June 1.

Meanwhile, the issue price for MIT's non-renounceable preferential offering has been fixed at $2.64 per new unit, a 4.3 per cent discount on the trust's volume-weighted average price of $2.7596 for trades done on Wednesday.

A further 117.6 million new units will be issued under the preferential offering at a ratio of five new units for every 100 existing ones.

Gross proceeds from the fund-raising will be an estimated $823.3 million - $512.9 million from the private placement and $310.4 million from the preferential offering.

About $726.5 million will partly finance MIT's intended US$1.32 billion (S$1.76 billion) acquisition of 29 data centres in the United States announced on Thursday.

Another $62.2 million will repay MIT debt, with the rest going to expenses incurred from the fund-raising exercise, as well as for acquisitions or working capital.

DBS Bank, OCBC Bank, Merrill Lynch (Singapore) and UBS' Singapore branch were the joint global coordinators and bookrunners for the equity fund raising.

To ensure fairness to holders of existing MIT units, an advanced distribution will be paid for the period from April 1 to just before the placement units are issued to ensure that distributions for the period go only to existing investors.

The distribution amount is estimated to range between 2.11 cents and 2.31 cents.

The actual quantum of the payout will be announced later.

THE BUSINESS TIMES