International credit rating agency Moody’s has announced that it has affirmed the credit rating of Australian iron ore miner Fortescue at Ba3 and changed its outlook to stable from negative.
According to Moody’s statement, the change in Fortescue's rating outlook to stable follows the announcement that the company has issued a $500 million repayment notice for its 2019 senior secured term loan facility, bringing total debt repayments in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2016 to around $2.9 billion and reducing interest payments by $186 million per year. The stable outlook on Fortescue's rating is also underpinned by the significant progress that the company has achieved in reducing its unit costs. Moody's expects that Fortescue will continue to work to drive down cash costs, while maximizing the throughput of its existing operations.