TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canadian diversified miner Teck Resources intends to launch an offering of senior secured notes, and will use the proceeds to repay borrowings under its bridging credit facility, the company announced on Monday.

Last year, Vancouver-based Teck took on $9,8-billion in debt – a $5,8-billion bridging loan and a $4-billion term facility – to fund its acquisition of the assets of Fording Canadian Coal Trust.

The firm reached an agreement last month with lenders to defer $4,4-billion in payments due this year, including $3,5-billion on the bridging facility, which comes due in October.

Part of the deal is that the company must reduce the $5,2-billion left on the bridging facility to $3,5-billion by October.

The notes will be priced on Tuesday, Teck spokesperson Greg Waller said on Monday afternoon.

He declined to comment on how much the firm was looking to raise, although Reuters reported earlier in the day that the company wants to raise at least C$1-billion.

Waller said the response from investors to the planned bond issue "seems to be positive".

Teck shares gained 12,22% on Monday, to C$15,70 apiece by 16:15 in Toronto.

Dow Jones Newswires reported on Monday that the miner was planning to sell the bonds in three parts, comprising notes maturing in five, seven and ten years. The report cited unnamed investors which were looking at the deal.

When it structured the Fording acquisition last year, Teck had originally planned to sell bonds to refinance the bridging facility, so that the payments were staggered over a longer period of time, but was thwarted by the sudden freeze in financial markets in the latter half of last year.

The company has moved swiftly to sell noncore assets and cut costs by slashing jobs, curtailing production and suspending dividend payments, but with the bridging loan coming due as soon as October, investors were worried that the firm would not be able to come up with the money to refinance the debt.

Last month, shareholders responded with relief to the news that lenders had agreed to amend the terms of the credit agreements, pushing Teck's shares up by almost one third on the day of the announcement.

When announcing the debt restructuring on April 21, CEO Don Lindsay said that Teck would immediately begin a process towards refinancing the bridge facility.

Last week, the company also announced it will sell its 40% share of the Pogo gold mine, in Alaska, to Sumitomo Metal Mining, which, with Sumitomo Corp, owns the balance of the asset, for $245-million.

Teck has already agreed to sell its 50% in the Hemlo gold operations to Barrick for $65-million, and sold its 60% interest in the Lobo Marte gold property, in Chile, to Kinross in January, for 5,6-million Kinross shares, $40-million in cash and a net smelter returns royalty.

The firm is also planning to sell a stake in its coal assets to a strategic partner, and CEO Don Lindsay said on April 21, that discussions had entered an advanced stage with potential buyers, for gold exploration assets in Turkey.

Earlier this month, the company also announced that it would sell a portion of the gold produced at the Andacollo mine, in Chile, to Royal Gold for $300-million.

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