Recently, we successfully issued new money and refunding bonds, selling $251.7 million in Refunding (2020 A/2020B) bonds and $85.4 million in New Money Utilities Systems Improvement Revenue (2020C) bonds.
“We are extremely pleased with the pricing and refunding savings achieved for our customers,” said Chief Financial Officer Scott Shewey. “This will help tremendously to lower customer rate pressure as we enter a high capital expenditure period for the next five years.”
The New Money Utilities Systems Improvement Revenue (2020C) bonds will support several capital projects, including an automated metering infrastructure system and power generators to enable the retirement of the Martin Drake Power Plant by 2023.
In July, two of the nation’s bond rating agencies S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s Investor Service reaffirmed our AA+ and Aa2 bond ratings, respectively, with a stable outlook. The high ratings reflect strong fiscal planning and ability to manage significant capital projects in the recent past, while maintaining competitive rates. The agencies also noted our ability to manage through the impact of the coronavirus.
In total, we had $1.8 billion in orders for the tax-exempt municipal bonds. The high investor interest enabled us to significantly lower interest rates across nearly all bond maturities.
The bonds were sold to 63 high-quality investors, including new and current investors with Springs Utilities. The top five investors for the 2020 bond issue are Vanguard, 16th Amendment, UBS (SMA), Gannet Welsh & Kotler and Old Orchard Capital. The aggregate True Interest Cost of bonds sold was 2.26%, with an overall net present value savings of $60.6 million (18.3%) on the refunded bonds.
