MGM Amends $7B Loan Agreement

LAS VEGAS-MGM Mirage has amended and restated its $7-billion loan agreement. The locally based casino operator said Tuesday that the fifth amended and restated loan agreement gives the company a maximum borrowing capacity of $8 billion.

The agreement reallocates $1.0 billion from the existing revolving credit facility such that the amended senior credit facilities will consist of a $4.5 billion senior revolving credit facility and a $2.5 billion senior term loan facility. It also extends the maturity date to October 2011 and revises the terms of the maximum total leverage ratio and interest charge coverage ratio covenants and reduces pricing across the grid.

The senior credit facilities include an increase option where MGM may solicit either existing lenders or new lenders to raise additional commitments to the senior revolving credit facility, the senior term loan facility, or both of them, thereby increasing the maximum borrowing capacity under these facilities to $8.0 billion. MGM officials say that between the credit facility and the company’s internally generated cash flow the company will have with the necessary capital to finance its growth initiatives.

MGM is developing CityCenter on the Las Vegas Strip. At $7 billion, the 66-acre project is the largest privately financed development in the US. Shares of MGM closed trading today at $41.30, off $0.48 from Tuesday’s close. The company’s 52-week range is $34.20-$46.15. The high occurred on May 9, 2006, the low on Aug. 10, 2006.