Bulletin: Fortescue Metals Group's Material Debt Repayment Supports Resilience To Low Iron Ore Prices; Ratings Unaffected

MELBOURNE (S&P Global Ratings) Sept. 13, 2016--S&P Global Ratings today said that its ratings on Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (BB/Stable/--) are not immediately affected by the company's intention to repay US$700 million of its senior secured facility due 2019. We continue to consider that Fortescue is sensitive to volatility in iron ore prices, despite the significant debt repayment. Any further material repayment of debt could provide positive rating momentum if we believed Fortescue would maintain its funds from operations to debt above 30% and debt to EBITDA below 3x under periods of increased commodity price pressure.

...MELBOURNE (S&P Global Ratings) Sept. 13, 2016--S&P Global Ratings today said that its ratings on Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. (##/Stable/--) are not immediately affected by the company's intention to repay US$700 million of its senior secured facility due 2019. We continue to consider that Fortescue is sensitive to volatility in iron ore prices, despite the significant debt repayment. Any further material repayment of debt could provide positive rating momentum if we believed Fortescue would maintain its funds from operations to debt above 30% and debt to EBITDA below 3x under periods of increased commodity price pressure. Only a rating committee may determine a rating action and this report does not constitute a rating action. AUSTRALIA Standard & Poor's (Australia) Pty. Ltd. holds Australian financial services licence number 337565 under the Corporations Act 2001. Standard & Poor's credit ratings and related research are not intended for and must not be distributed to any person in Australia...

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