Story ID: 
Bombardier Further Eases Debt Burden 
By: Kerry Lynch
Caption: Bombardier redeemed $500 million in principal amount of notes due in 2025, a move that continues to deleverage the debt-ladened company.
Word Count: 236
Bombardier continues to chip away at its debt burden with the announcement that it had redeemed $500 million in principal amount of its 7.5 percent senior notes due in 2025. The move comes as the company has reduced its debt by more than $4.5 billion over the past two years, marking a 45 percent reduction since 2020, according to Bart Demosky, executive v-p and CFO, who added these steps translate into a “significantly improved" credit risk profile.
"This debt repayment marks another important milestone in our deleveraging journey and demonstrates our continued commitment to strengthening our balance sheet,” Demosky said, adding the average maturity of its long-term debt is now 4.7 years and annual interest charges are now $330 million less than in 2020, before it became a pure-play business aviation company in early 2021.
The announced redemption comes ahead of Bombardier’s investor day scheduled on Thursday when the company is anticipated to provide a more complete update of its financial performance and plans for its future structure.
Bombardier entered the year with momentum, anticipating a 12-percent bump in deliveries in 2023. to 138 aircraft, and a 10 percent jump in revenues, to $7.6 billion, according to the company's latest earnings report. In addition, Bombardier president and CEO Éric Martel said the company’s $14.8 billion backlog—which grew by $2.6 billion in 2022—is “super solid.”