The City of Calgary is set to save millions over the next 10 years through its first Municipal Bond.
The City closed its first Municipal Bond in the Canadian debt capital markets on March 15, 2024 obtaining a lower interest rate than its traditional borrowing option through the Province. Lower borrowing costs help reduce City costs, making Calgary more affordable and enabling additional capital project investments in the community.
Highlights:
· $180M Canadian dollar 10-year municipal bond at 4.20% coupon.
· This represents a hard interest savings of approximately $1.6M annually for 10 years.
· Current 10 year borrowing rates from the Province are 4.86%.
· Investors’ interest was significant, with orders of almost two times the size.
· Investors were mostly large Canadian municipalities, investment managers, and investment funds.
· View Inaugural Issuance Case Study * for additional information.
“I would like to recognize the work of Chief Financial Officer Carla Male and her team in seeking out an innovative way to reduce costs for The City of Calgary,” said Mayor Jyoti Gondek. “Leveraging municipal bonds as an opportunity to reduce interest rates paid on borrowing reflects strong financial leadership and fiscal prudence on behalf of Calgarians.”
Council approved the new capital debt borrowing option on October 17, 2023, which uses The City’s strong financial position to add Municipal Bonds as another capital borrowing option to fund future capital projects.
“We’re always looking for ways to be more innovative and explore opportunities that can deliver greater service value or savings for Calgarians,” said City of Calgary Chief Administrative Officer David Duckworth. “Administration is focused on Council’s guiding principle of Financing our future, and the addition of Municipal Bond as a capital debt option will help us secure better interest rates for Calgarians.”
The City’s strong financial standing, recognized by three global rating agencies, DBRS Morningstar, S&P Global, and now Moody’s Analytics, made Calgary’s use of Municipal Bonds a feasible option when sourcing capital debt.
The City estimated in 2023 that up to $175 million in interest could be avoided over the next 10 years, based on expected borrowing and market conditions. This inaugural issuance represents the first step in achieving this cost avoidance estimate.
Calgary now joins other Canadian cities, including Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa, to source capital debt for the betterment of their communities.
The addition of Municipal Bonds as a capital debt option does not change the amount of capital debt The City is authorized to use or the processes by which Council authorizes and approves the use of this capital debt, which is currently managed through The City’s existing budgeting processes.
The City remains dedicated to responsible fiscal management, striving to finance future capital projects that are cost-effective and meet the needs and desires of Calgarians.
Learn more about The City’s Municipal Bond on calgary.ca/investors.
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