IRISH PAY TV broadcaster Setanta Sports is faced with having to pay back €225 million in loan notes in November 2010, according to accounts just filed here for its holding company.
Setanta is currently seeking to raise up to £159 million to fund the English Premier League rights it won last week. It was granted rights to 23 live games for three years from August 2010.
However, it failed to retain a second package of games, which has placed a dark cloud over its financial viability.
The €225 million payment-in-kind (PIK) loan notes date from December 2006 and carry a hefty coupon – or interest payment – of 12 per cent. It is not clear how Setanta might repay this, while refinancing that loan could be tricky given the global credit crunch.
Setanta’s accounts illustrate the cash-hungry nature of the business. It was contracted to spend £666 million on sports rights at the end of 2007. It also negotiated a £12.5 million three-year revolving credit facility with Barclays Bank in the UK in January 2008 for working capital purposes.
The accounts show that Setanta had accumulated losses of €165 million at the end of 2007.
The broadcaster’s losses last year are believed to have been of a similar level to the 2007 figure of £114.9 million, pushing it further into the red. Its net debt stood at €164.6 million at the end of December 2007. Its 2007 revenues rose to £118.7 million from £42 million a year earlier.
