Clifford Chance advises bank syndicate on EUR 3.75bn sustainability linked revolving credit facility for TRATON SE

International law firm Clifford Chance has advised a bank syndicate on a new EUR 3.75 billion sustainability linked three-year revolving credit facility for TRATON SE – with two one-year extension options. The proceeds from the facility will be used for general corporate purposes.

Bank of America, Crédit Agricole CIB (“CACIB”), Mizuho Bank (“Mizuho”) and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (publ) Frankfurt Branch (“SEB”) arranged this inaugural facility and acted as coordinators for the syndication. CACIB and Mizuho act as documentation and sustainability agents and SEB as facility agent. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, Banco Santander, Bank of America, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citibank, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole CIB, Danske Bank, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley, Nordea, SEB, Société Générale, Swedbank and Unicredit are bookrunners and mandated lead arrangers for the facility. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Landesbank Baden-Württemberg and Standard Chartered joined the facility as mandated lead arrangers.

In order to highlight TRATON’s commitment to sustainability, the documentation includes margin adjustments tied to the company’s ESG rating, while offering the possibility for a replacement by internal sustainability targets, once defined by the company and the sustainability agents.

The facility attracted a strong level of interest during syndication and was significantly oversubscribed, highlighting the broad support that TRATON enjoys from its newly defined relationship bank group and allowing the company to increase the facility to EUR 3.75 billion from EUR 3 billion at launch of syndication.

TRATON, with its headquarters in Munich, is a majority-owned entity of Volkswagen AG and a leading commercial vehicle manufacturer worldwide with its brands MAN, Scania, Volkswagen Caminhões e Ônibus, and RIO. Clifford Chance has also advised the banks in connection with the IPO of TRATON SE in the summer last year.

The Clifford Chance team advising the bank syndicate comprised partner Barbara Mayer-Trautmann (Munich), senior associate Christoph Nensa and transaction lawyer Jessica Lang (both Frankfurt) (all Acquisition Finance).