Paragon Treasury PLC Statement re Coronavirus (4903I)
April 02 2020 - 7:00AM
UK Regulatory
TIDM60VT
RNS Number : 4903I
Paragon Treasury PLC
02 April 2020
Paragon Asra Housing Limited: Update on response to
Coronavirus
Paragon Treasury Plc's parent company, Paragon Asra Housing
Limited ('PA'), sets out below its response to the Coronavirus
situation and its current expectations in respect of financial
performance impacts.
Like all housing associations, PA has been working hard to
ensure continuation of essential services in this challenging
environment. Our priorities are to do all we can to support and
ensure the safety of our residents, our suppliers and our staff, in
line with the government guidance. We have implemented relevant
aspects of our business continuity plan and we are working closely
with stakeholders to maintain our priority services.
A number of measures have been taken since the situation began,
including the following:
Ø Enhanced support to residents facing financial challenges,
through our Tenancy Sustainment Team
Ø Welfare calls to our more vulnerable residents
Ø Release of additional hardship fund monies to provide targeted
support to residents with acute needs
Ø Appropriate changes to our repairs, maintenance and property
health and safety work programmes in accordance with government
expectations on provision of essential services only
Ø Accelerated payment of supplier invoices in order to support
their cash flow needs
Ø Closure of our main offices and mobilisation of full remote
working for non-essential staff
Ø Mothballing of new development schemes on site and deferral of
new site acquisitions
Ø Increased cash reserves as a contingency measure
The national picture continues to change rapidly but PA is well
placed to respond to the evolving operating environment.
We have performed cash flow and liquidity tests based on a
series of adverse assumptions relating to the ongoing situation.
This work has confirmed PA's ability to withstand the expected
short term cash flow shocks, with no threat to loan covenants
compliance. Our analysis indicates the following headlines:
Ø Operating cash flows will be relatively volatile until such
time as trading conditions return to a form of normality
Ø Operating results and adherence to some internal financial
golden rules may be adversely affected, but not to the extent that
financial viability and loan covenant compliance are under any
threat
Ø Payment of rent is the key risk to operating cash flows, and
in the short term PA fully accepts that a number of residents are
likely to face challenges in this respect. Our support mechanisms
will mitigate threats to rent collection in the longer term
Ø The overall cash flow impact is expected to be net positive
over the next few months, due to deferral of significant levels of
new build development spend. This in turn will push back future
debt requirements
Ø We are aware of and will closely monitor potential longer term
risks linked to macroeconomic factors, including availability and
price of future finance; a possible prolonged period of low rent
inflation; and a possible downturn in house prices and associated
risk to loan security valuations
As at 27 March 2020 PA had cash holdings of GBP40m. In addition,
PA completed on GBP185m of new bank loan facilities in March 2020,
GBP35m of which is immediately available for drawing. This adds to
the GBP152m of unutilised and immediately available loan and
overdraft facilities already in place, thus further bolstering PA's
financial resilience in a turbulent environment.
To conclude, we reiterate that we are absolutely focused on
keeping our residents, staff and service delivery partners as safe
and secure as possible during these worrying times. This will
necessitate some compromise to our previous financial plans but we
have moved quickly to put in place a robust alternative scenario
which prioritises expenditure in the areas which need it the
most.
For further information please contact Simon Hatchman, Executive
Director - Resources (simon.hatchman@pahousing.co.uk)
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END
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