Korea National Oil Corp.'s Proposed Swiss Franc 100 Million Senior Unsecured Notes Rated 'AA'

HONG KONG (S&P Global Ratings) Dec. 13, 2022--S&P Global Ratings today assigned its 'AA' long-term issue rating to the Swiss franc (CHF) 100 million senior unsecured notes due 2024 that Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC) plans to issue. The company plans to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including refinancing debt obligations. The rating on the notes is subject to our review of the final documentation. We equalize our ratings on KNOC (AA/Stable/--) with the sovereign credit ratings on South Korea (AA/Stable/A-1+). This is because we expect an almost certain likelihood of extraordinary government support if the national oil and gas company were to suffer financial distress. KNOC is wholly owned by the government and plays a critical role

...December 13, 2022 HONG KONG (S&P Global Ratings) Dec. 13, 2022--S&P Global Ratings today assigned its '##' long-term issue rating to the Swiss franc (CHF) 100 million senior unsecured notes due 2024 that Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC) plans to issue. The company plans to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including refinancing debt obligations. The rating on the notes is subject to our review of the final documentation. We equalize our ratings on KNOC (##/Stable/--) with the sovereign credit ratings on South Korea (##/Stable/A-1+). This is because we expect an almost certain likelihood of extraordinary government support if the national oil and gas company were to suffer financial distress. KNOC is wholly owned by the government and plays a critical role as the sole policy arm for managing the country's petroleum reserves and improving its oil self-sufficiency. KNOC's capital structure consisted of about Korean won (KRW) 13.1 trillion of unsecured debt at the parent level...

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