Shearman & Sterling advised Barclays, J.P. Morgan and UBS on the refinancing of nearly all the existing indebtedness of Aguila S.A. and its subsidiaries (the Swissport Group) in connection with the acquisition of the Swissport Group by HNA Group Co. Ltd. HNA Group intends to continue operating the Swissport Group as a stand-alone business.

The refinancing involved an offering of €400 million 6.750% Senior Secured Notes due 2021, €290 million 9.750% Senior Notes due 2022, and a €660 million Term Loan B bank credit facility made available to the Swissport Group.

Shearman & Sterling represented Barclays, J.P. Morgan and UBS as initial purchasers on the offering of the Notes.  In connection with the Term Loan B bank credit facility, Shearman & Sterling represented Barclays and J.P. Morgan as joint lead arrangers and bookrunners, and UBS as co-manager.  The net proceeds from the offering of the Notes and the drawdown of the Term Loan B bank facility were used to refinance existing debt obligations of the Swissport Group.

HNA Group is a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Beijing, Haikou, Shanghai and Hong Kong with interests encompassing aviation, airport management, financial services, real estate, retail, tourism and logistics.

Swissport is the world´s largest provider of ground and cargo handling services in the aviation industry.  The company provides ground services for around 230 million passengers and handles 4.1 million tonnes of cargo a year on behalf of some 835 client-companies in the aviation sector.

The Shearman & Sterling team of lawyers in the firm’s London, Frankfurt, New York, and Washington D.C. offices included Capital Markets partner Apostolos Gkoutzinis, counsel Rebecca Marques and associates Morgan Hill and Yaw Asare who advised on the offering of Notes.  Finance partners Steve Sherman, Esther Jansen, Iain Goalen and Peter Hayes, counsel Luke Jaggar, and associates Odilo Wallner, Hadrien Servais, Lisseth Rincon and Miles Muirhead advised on the Term Loan B credit facility. Partners Kristen Garry, Doug McFadyen and associate Eric Grosshandler advised on US tax matters, and partner Simon Letherman and associate Lois Howarth advised on UK tax matters.  Counsel Mehran Massih advised on environmental matters.