A unit of Saudi Arabian Mining Co has approached banks to seek the refinancing of $3.2bn of debt, according to four people with knowledge of the matter, Bloomberg reported. The company hired Verus Partners, a boutique investment firm established by ex-Citigroup bankers, to advise on the 2008 loan used to fund a phosphates project, the people said, asking not to be identified as the plans aren’t public. Maaden, as the mining company is known, plans to extend the length of the debt and remove some covenants, three of the people said. Lenders have been asked to give price expectations and suggest options for replacing bank and export credit agency loans with new bank loans and sukuk, the people said.
