Welcome Break boosts liquidity

Welcome Break has boosted its liquidity after repurposing £25m of a dedicated capital expenditure facility in into a revolving credit facility.

Lenders to Welcome Break have also relaxed or remove covenant conditions for tests up to and including June 2021.

Parent company Applegreen said it thanked the lenders for their “ongoing support for Welcome Break and the confidence they have demonstrated” in its business model.

It said its Welcome Break subsidiary had now reopened a “significant number” of its food and beverage outlets as travel restrictions started to ease from early June.

It said motorway traffic is now back to over 65% of 2019 volumes and said it expected to see further increases from 4 July.

The business said at 26 June 2020, Welcome Break had “over £30m in available cash in addition to the new undrawn facilities of £25m. The Welcome Break business has substantial liquidity and is expected to be cashflow positive in June, leaving the business well positioned ahead of the important summer season.

“Our absolute focus at present is navigating the various challenges associated with covid-19 and to ensure we are looking after our people whilst continuing to deliver the essential service we provide to our customers.

“The ultimate course of the pandemic remains unclear at this stage, but we are following the relevant guidance from the authorities and taking definitive steps to ensure the Group remains well positioned as market conditions recover.”