The Plenary Session of the Municipal Corporation of Priego approved on August 14th the authorization for Aguas de Priego, S.L. to formalize a long-term credit operation with Unicaja Banco, S.A. The maximum amount is €2,414,853.65 and will be exclusively used to cancel the debt currently held by the municipal company with FCC Aqualia, S.A.
This refinancing will substantially improve the debt's financial conditions, generating an estimated annual saving of €86,699.20. According to the economic-financial analysis, this reduction in financing costs will boost Aguas de Priego's liquidity and treasury generation capacity.
One of the key factors for this saving is the improvement in the interest rate. While the current financing with Aqualia has a fixed rate of 5%, Unicaja's proposal establishes a variable rate of Euribor at three months plus 0.297 points, which, based on analyzed data, stands around 2.621%.
The new operation will have a term of 180 months (15 years) and will be amortized through 60 quarterly installments. The funds obtained will be directly and exclusively used to cancel the outstanding capital with Aqualia. Expenses related to early cancellation and corresponding interest will be covered by Aguas de Priego's own resources.
The Plenary's approval also includes a new municipal guarantee required by Unicaja, conditional upon the cancellation of the debt with Aqualia and the simultaneous release of the municipal guarantee in effect since August 2022. The initial maximum liability for the guarantee is set at €2,897,824.38 (120% of the outstanding capital) and will automatically decrease as the principal is amortized.
The reports from the Secretariat and Comptroller's Office are favorable, and the economic-financial analysis concludes that there is an objective, prior, and verifiable justification for replacing the current financing with this new operation, as it is more beneficial for the economic position of the City Council as the sole shareholder of Aguas de Priego.
The mayor of Priego, Juanra Valdivia, stated that this operation represents the final milestone of the share acquisition agreement reached four years ago in August 2022, which set April 2027 as the maximum deadline to fully annul the credit operation the City Council had maintained since 2010.
With this approval, the City Council optimizes Aguas de Priego's financial structure, transferring the company's entire business volume, including bills, payroll, and taxation, to the entity.
