Stockholm (NordSIP) – On April 17th, Swedish healthcare equipment provider Getinge borrowed SEK1 billion in COVID-19 themed commercial paper maturing on October 21st, 2020.
The funds will be channelled to increase the production of ventilators and other equipment to meet rising demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Getinge will temporarily increase its production of advanced ICU-ventilators by 160% in 2020, to 26,000 ventilators in total. In 2019, Getinge produced approximately 10,000 advanced ICU-ventilators at its production site in Solna, Sweden.
“We are doing our utmost to support the courageous hospital staff around the world, in their fight against the global pandemic, COVID-19”, says Lars Sandström, Chief Financial Officer at Getinge. “Hospitals are in need of key equipment for critically ill patients in the Intensive Care Units. We will increase our production of ventilators, and other life-supporting equipment, to help caregivers saving as many lives as possible during the pandemic”.
Although the COVID-19 Financing Framework underlying this instance of Getinge’s borrowing is consistent with the ICMA Social Bond Principles, “due to the urgency of the situation and the transient nature of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Framework lacks a Second Party Opinion.
Key investors in the transaction are Ramsbury Invest, Familjen Erling Persson Stiftelse, LKAB, Spiltan Fonder, Svenskt Näringsliv, Nordkinn Asset Management AB and Swedbank Robur.
“We are proud to be able to support Getinge in scaling up production to meet the challenges of COVID-19 and to enable our investors to contribute”, says Joachim Alpen, Co-Head of SEB’s Large Corporates & Financial Institutions Division.
Image of Getinge Headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden Courtesy of Getinge