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Vallehermoso’s Days Numbered As Sacyr Transfers €448 Mn in Its Assets to Sareb

15/12/2014 – El Economista, Economia Digital

Sacyr has just closed conveyance of the second pool of mortgage-collateral assets of Vallehermoso División Promoción (VdP), allowing it to cut in the overall net debt owed to the bad bank of Spain by 448 million euros.

In a statement provided to the Stock Exchange Market Regulator (CNMV) the builder informed the package includes blocks of apartments, shops and add-on elements (finished product).

Following the transaction, VdP has tackled its debt with financial entites by 601 million euros year-to-date.

In turn, Sacyr has broken even with liquidation of its real estate arm, operating on the Spanish market over the last 60 years.

Precisely, the group chaired by Manuel Manrique planned to allocate thousands of dwelling units and millions of square meters of land to the creditors and Sareb in exchange for a progressive reduction of its 2.73 billion in the red. Today, thanks to the two operations with the bad bank, the company owes ‘only’ 130 million.

Five Years in Liquidation

The liquidation of Vallehermoso has practically been its destiny since 2009, although Sacyr kept assuring some third parties had shown huge interest about the firm.

A financial reorganization agreement permitted a three-year prolongation of the payments, until 2013, for finished housing developments and a five years’ term for the rest of the liabilities, mainly land.

However, together with expiration, Sacyr started to swap the properties for debt. The transactions amounted to 400 million euros.

Sareb

The bad bank of Spain became the majority stakeholder in the property manager after receiving non-performing or doubtful loans (50% from Bankia, and the rest from Novagalicia and Catalunya Caixa) worth 580 million euros in total.

After difficult negotiations, the parties agreed on swapping the debt for assets in two phases. First included housing developments under construction and plots jointly valued at 409 million, while in the other Vallehermoso had to transfer another 39 million euro amount in finished products (the homes and shops).

Now, the bad bank will face selling the land for which the company paid tremendous amounts in 2006. For instance, Vallehermoso spent 185 million euros on a 1.38 million square meter piece of rural land in Navalcarnero, Madrid. Although the use was changed, the plot has never seen the 5.000 homes which supposedly were going to stand thereon.

 

Original stories: El Economista, Economía Digital (by Juan Carlos Martínez)

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