If funding had not been an issue for Chargeurs, which had wisely accumulated excess resources to this end through a combination of private debt placings (Euro PP), today’s story is quite different. The Group’s net debt position rose from €174.7m at the end of 2022 to €194.4m in H1-2023, increasing the leverage ratio from 2.6x to 3.5x. In addition, the rising interest rate environment with hyperinflation in Argentina resulted in an increase in the Group’s financial expenses in H1-23 to €12.4m. Despite the deterioration in the Group’s financial leverage position, Chargeurs still has ample credit lines, with total available financial resources (cash and undrawn lines) of €271m in H1-23. The Holding company intends to maintain a controlled leverage level, with a target debt/ebitda ratio of less than 3x.
