Ameren Illinois Announces Pricing of Senior Secured Notes Offering

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Dec 06, 2013, 07:30 ET

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Ameren Illinois Company, a subsidiary of Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE), announced today the pricing of a public offering of $280 million aggregate principal amount of 4.80% senior secured notes due 2043 at 99.464% of their principal amount. The transaction is expected to close on Dec. 10, 2013.

Ameren Illinois intends to use the net proceeds of the offering to repay at maturity $150 million aggregate principal amount of its 8.875% senior secured notes due Dec. 15, 2013 and to repay outstanding short-term debt.

BNP Paribas Securities Corp., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA), Inc. and RBC Capital Markets, LLC are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering.

The offering is being made only by means of a prospectus and related prospectus supplement. A prospectus supplement related to the offering will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus, when available, for the offering may be obtained on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov, or by contacting BNP Paribas Securities Corp., 787 Seventh Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, New York 10019, Attention: Syndicate Desk, Phone: (800) 854-5674; Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, 222 Broadway, 11^th Floor, New York, New York 10038, Attention: Prospectus Department, toll-free: 1-800-294-1322 or email: [email protected]; Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA), Inc., 1633 Broadway, 29th Floor, New York, New York 10019, Attention: Capital Markets Group, Phone: (877) 649-6848; or RBC Capital Markets, LLC Three World Financial Center, 200 Vesey Street, 8th Floor, New York, New York 10281, Attention: DCM Transaction Management, Phone: (866) 375-6829.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the notes or any other securities and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which, or to any person to whom, such an offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful.

About Ameren Illinois

Ameren Illinois delivers energy to 1.2 million electric and 806,000 natural gas customers in downstate Illinois, and its mission is to meet their energy needs in a safe, reliable, efficient and environmentally responsible manner. Ameren Illinois' service area covers more than 1,200 communities and 43,700 square miles. For more information, visit AmerenIllinois.com.

Forward-looking Statements

Statements in this release not based on historical facts are considered "forward-looking" and, accordingly, involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed. Although such forward-looking statements have been made in good faith and are based on reasonable assumptions, there is no assurance that the expected results will be achieved. These statements include (without limitation) statements as to future expectations, beliefs, plans, strategies, objectives, events, conditions, and financial performance. In connection with the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, we are providing this cautionary statement to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. The following factors, in addition to those discussed under Risk Factors in Ameren Illinois Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, and in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2013, and elsewhere in this release and in its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could cause actual results to differ materially from management expectations suggested in such forward-looking statements:

regulatory, judicial, or legislative actions, including changes in regulatory policies and ratemaking determinations, such as the outcome of Ameren Illinois' natural gas delivery service rate case filed in 2013; the court appeals of Ameren Illinois' electric rate order issued in 2012; Ameren Illinois' request for rehearing of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) July 2012 and June 2013 orders regarding the alleged inclusion of acquisition premiums in Ameren Illinois transmission rates; and future regulatory, judicial, or legislative actions that seek to change regulatory recovery mechanisms;
the effect of Ameren Illinois participating in a performance-based formula ratemaking process under the Illinois Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act (IEIMA), including the direct relationship between Ameren Illinois' return on common equity and the 30-year United States Treasury bond yields, the related financial commitments required by the IEIMA, and the resulting uncertain impact on the financial condition, results of operations and liquidity of Ameren Illinois;
changes in laws and other governmental actions, including monetary, fiscal, and tax policies;
the effectiveness of our risk management strategies and the use of financial and derivative instruments;
business and economic conditions, including their impact on interest rates, bad debt expense, and demand for our products;
disruptions of the capital markets, deterioration in Ameren Illinois' credit metrics, or other events that make Ameren Illinois' access to necessary capital, including short-term credit and liquidity, impossible, more difficult, or more costly;
Ameren Illinois' assessment of its liquidity;
actions of credit rating agencies and the effects of such actions;
the impact of weather conditions and other natural phenomena on Ameren Illinois and its customers;
the impact of system outages;
the impact of current environmental regulations on utilities and new, more stringent or changing requirements, including those related to greenhouse gases and energy efficiency, that are enacted over time and that could increase our costs, result in an impairment of our assets, result in sales of our assets, reduce our customers' demand for electricity or natural gas, or otherwise have a negative financial effect;
the inability of our counterparties and affiliates to meet their obligations with respect to contracts, credit agreements, and financial instruments;
legal and administrative proceedings; and
acts of sabotage, war, terrorism, cybersecurity attacks or intentionally disruptive acts.

Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements. Except to the extent required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future events.

SOURCE Ameren Corporation