PLA refunds bonds to save US$16.5m

“Because of the prudent and careful planning of the Port’s financial team and its advisors, we were able to use the bond refunding process to take advantage of current, historically-low interest rates,” said Harbour Commission President Cindy Miscikowski. “That translated into significant costs savings for the Port.”

Port financial staff and its advisory team began exploring bond refunding late last year, the process by which new bonds are issued at lower interest rates to replace outstanding higher interest rated bonds, thereby resulting in significant cost savings.

The PLA, which maintains an “AA” bond rating – the highest of any US port without taxing authority, issues bonds to finance capital improvements. The bonds refunded this month were initially issued by in 1995, in part to pay for capital improvements at Piers 300 and 400. These bonds were refunded in 2001 with a 10-year “call” option.