LatinNews Regional Monitor: Andean Group - 29 April 2020

* Ecuador’s economy & finance minister Richard Martínez has confirmed that state-owned oil company Petroamazonas has requested consent from its private bondholders to defer US$175m of principal repayments until 2021, in order to free up funds for emergency spending in response to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. The proposal, which requires the approval of 75% of creditors by 4 May, would maintain this year’s payment of US$5.4m in interest on these bonds, but suspend principal repayments until January 2021, to be paid in lower instalments than previously agreed. The Ecuadorean government reached an agreement with another set of bondholders on 17 April to defer interest repayments until August 2020, but this latest request involves a more substantial reprofiling, reflecting the government’s gradual concession to public pressure to prioritise emergency spending over debt servicing.

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