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Noble's next battle will be over $4.1 billion in debt

Bloomberg Published on Tue, Oct 24, 2017 / 9:04 AM GMT+8

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(Oct 24): Noble Group Ltd.’s sale of its oil business to Vitol Group probably buys the embattled commodity trader time. But even if it survives long enough to complete the deal, there’s still an almighty struggle ahead: the near-inevitable restructuring of over US$3 billion ($4.1 billion) in debt.

Analysts at BNP Paribas SA, Nomura Holdings Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and iFast Corp. all predicted after the sale was announced on Monday that the Hong Kong-based company would be forced to restructure its debt.

"The next few months will be critical," said Jean-Francois Lambert, a consultant and former head of global commodity trade finance at HSBC Holdings Plc. "The business whilst shrinking is still bleeding and this becomes very worrisome."