Avanti Communications Raises GBP70M For Third Satellite

12th Jul 2010 07:56

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Broadband-by-satellite company Avanti Communications Group PLC (AVN.LN) said Monday it has raised GBP70 million through a placing which will fund its third satellite and repay bank loans that financed its first satellite. Avanti, which sells broadband services to telecoms companies across Europe, allowing them to deliver broadband to inaccessible rural areas, said it wants to buy a third satellite, called HYLAS 3, to take advantage of possible new business development opportunities. The company said it has started developing a relatively low-cost strategy to begin the procurement with a relatively small cost commitment with the aim of negotiating sufficient customer commitments to support long-term financing. Avanti raised the GBP70 million by placing more than 16 million shares with existing and new institutional shareholders. It priced the shares at 430 pence each, a 13% discount to the 495 pence closing price of its shares Friday. The company will repay the GBP32 million it borrowed to finance HYLAS 1. The loan is also being used to provide additional resources for the company to re-domicile its HYLAS 2 assets offshore. Avanti said the placing is conditional, among other things, on the passing of certain resolutions at a general meeting on July 28. -By Hannah Benjamin, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-20-7842-9298; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 12, 2010 02:56 ET (06:56 GMT)