LGV SEA (Tours-Bordeaux High Speed Rail - HSR) reaches financial close - another success for CBR's Project Finance department.

CBR was advising MaPPP (acting for the French State) in relation to the Euro 1.4 bn state guarantee to be extended to commercial banks and EIB as well as to RFF in its capacity of guarantor of the debt tranche provided the DFE (French savings funds).

In its financial advisor role, CBR demonstrated once again its ability to advise independently and efficiently key parties to the project. Indeed the French State and RFF guarantees are quite sophisticated instruments designed to support debt liquidity for large infrastructure projects (as part of the French "Plan de Relance"/ "Grenelle de l'Environnement) following the effects of the subprimes crisis of 2008-2009 on the bank debt market. Such instruments were key to the successful financial closing of such a large and complex project. CBR's team's dedication and creativity over the last twelve months were praised by both MaPPP and RFF.

Such achievement reinforces CBR's significant and leading role as financial advisor to the State/ public parties or private consortia for the large PPP rail infrastructure projects in France over the past years. Indeed since 2006, we also acted as financial advisor to:

• the State (MEDDTL) for the Charles de Gaulle Express airport rail link project (Euro 1 bn), a difficult project still on-going;
• RFF as delegated granting authority for the Euro 1.5 bn GSM-R project which closed in February 2010. It consists in the roll-out of a mobile security network alongside the French railway network;
• Eiffage for the Brittany - Pays de Loire HSR project (LGV BPL - Euro 3 billion). CBR is currently working alongside Eiffage to reach financial close by the summer 2011.

The above references demonstrate that CBR has been involved in most rail PPPs tendered in France, establishing itself as a sector leader.

It is also worth mentioning that SIACI Saint Honoré acted as insurance advisor to the Vinci-led consortium.