Moody's raises Vedanta Resources rating driven by efforts to access funding

Moody's Ratings on Friday said it has upgraded the ratings on bonds of Vedanta Resources Ltd (VRL) driven by the company's efforts to access funding.

The rating agency has revised Vedanta's corporate family rating to B3 from Caa1, and also upgraded rating on senior unsecured bonds sold by VRL and VRL's wholly-owned arm Vedanta Resources Finance II Plc to Caa1 from Caa2.

It has maintained 'stable' outlook on the ratings.

"The upgrade to B3 is driven by VRL's demonstrated access to funding, reflected by the successful tap of USD 300 million of its 10.875 per cent senior notes due in September 2029. The tap and the company's USD 900 million issuance last month were oversubscribed by investors," it said.

VRL, the parent firm of Mumbai-based mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd, has raised USD 300 million by exercising the tap option on the existing bond issue.

A tap issue is a procedure that allows companies to issue bonds or other short-term debt instruments from past issues.

The rating outlook is stable on expectation that the company will address its debt maturities, in particular its next bond maturity in April 2026, in a timely manner, especially given its recent track record of tapping the USD bond markets, Moody's said.