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       T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                 L A T I N   A M E R I C A

          Friday, November 8, 2024, Vol. 25, No. 225

                           Headlines



B A R B A D O S

BARBADOS: Reaches Staff-Level Deal With IMF for US$57M Funding


B R A Z I L

ANDRE MAGGI: Moody's Affirms 'Ba3' CFR, Outlook Remains Stable
BRAZIL: To Expand Collaboration on Bioeconomy for Amazonia
JBS SA: Launches Registered Exchange Offers for Senior Notes
REFINARIA DE MATARIPE: Moody's Lowers CFR to B1, Outlook Negative


C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S

CANTERBURY SECURITIES: Seeks Chapter 15 Bankruptcy in New York


C U B A

CUBA: Mexican Shipment to Relieve Energy Crisis in Country


T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O

TRINIDAD GENERATION: S&P Affirms 'BB+' ICR & Alters Outlook to Neg.

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B A R B A D O S
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BARBADOS: Reaches Staff-Level Deal With IMF for US$57M Funding
--------------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that a delegation from the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) has reached a staff-level agreement with the Barbados
government that could result in US$57 million in funding.

RJR News relates that the delegation discussed the implementation
of the island's Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT 2022)
plan, supported by the IMF under the Extended Fund Facility, and
the implementation of reform measures under the Resilience and
Sustainability Facility arrangement.

The agreement is subject to approval by the IMF Executive Board.

According to RJR News, the IMF said between January and September
this year, the Barbadian economy grew by an estimated 3.9 per cent
year-on-year, driven by dynamism in the tourism and construction
sectors.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on Nov.
7, 2024, S&P Global Ratings raised its long-term local and foreign
currency sovereign credit ratings on Barbados to 'B' from 'B-', and
affirmed its 'B' short-term ratings. The transfer and
convertibility assessment is 'B'.

The TCR-LA reported on Oct. 21, 2024, Fitch Ratings has upgraded
Barbados's Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to 'B+' from 'B'. The Rating Outlook is Stable.  In addition, Fitch
has upgraded Barbados's Country Ceiling to 'B+' from 'B'.




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B R A Z I L
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ANDRE MAGGI: Moody's Affirms 'Ba3' CFR, Outlook Remains Stable
--------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Ratings has affirmed Andre Maggi Participacoes S.A.'s Ba3
Corporate Family Rating. At the same time, Moody's affirmed the Ba3
rating of the $750 million senior unsecured notes due 2028 issued
by Amaggi Luxembourg International S.a r.l. The outlook remains
stable.

RATINGS RATIONALE

Amaggi's corporate family rating reflects its position as one of
the largest commodity trading companies in Brazil. The company is
also one of the largest agricultural producers in Brazil, with a
large and diversified domestic logistics footprint, and additional
revenue from small hydroelectric plants. The verticalization of the
business mitigates the volatile and low margins of the trading
segment. The sustained growth prospects for Brazilian agricultural
crops will benefit Amaggi because of its presence in the largest
soybean, corn and cotton producing state in Brazil, with favorable
weather patterns and stable yields. Amaggi has a conservative
financial policy, with the use of derivatives tied directly to its
physical positions.

Constraining the rating is the geographic concentration of Amaggi's
production and origination in Brazil, which increases the company's
susceptibility to agricultural event risks, including weather,
policy and trade constraints; supply-demand imbalances; and highly
volatile prices. The trading and agricultural businesses are highly
cyclical with strong working capital needs during the harvest
season, which require favorable access to export financing lines,
usually advance payment on foreign-exchange contracts (ACC) and
export prepayment (PPE). The high working capital needs and
extensive use of derivatives require Amaggi to have sound risk
management and a conservative cash position. Despite the volatility
in the sector, Amaggi's net debt/EBITDA has historically remained
below 4.0x.

LIQUIDITY

As of June 2024, Amaggi had a cash position of $1,088 million and a
marketable inventory of $892 million. The company has $1,025
million in debt coming due until June 2025, of which $494 million
is self-liquidating trade financing lines. Amaggi holds at least
$400 million in cash beyond its daily operational needs, and the
company's guidelines require maintaining 70% of its debt as long
term.

RATING OUTLOOK

The stable rating outlook incorporates Moody's view that Amaggi
will maintain adequate net leverage and liquidity even with its
organic growth projects and sector volatility. It also takes into
consideration that Amaggi will continue to roll over its exporting
financing lines, maintaining diverse funding availability and an
adequate debt maturity profile.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

A rating upgrade would require Amaggi to maintain a robust
liquidity profile through the harvest, with an adequate debt
maturity profile and a reduction in absolute debt. An expansion of
the company's business into other regions and segments could also
benefit the credit risk profile. Quantitatively, an upgrade would
require its Net debt/EBITDA to remain below 3.5x and funds from
operations (FFO)/debt to remain above 12%.

A rating downgrade could result from Amaggi's inability to maintain
an adequate debt maturity schedule and liquidity. An increase in
leverage or deployment of large investments leading to a
deterioration in credit metrics and liquidity could strain the
rating. Quantitatively, the rating could be downgraded if its Net
debt/EBITDA remains above 4.0x or FFO/debt remains below 7.5%.

COMPANY PROFILE

Headquartered in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso state, André Maggi
Participações S.A. (Amaggi) is one of Brazil's largest trading
companies and agricultural producers. Founded in 1977 as a soybean
seed company, Amaggi is a large-scale producer of agricultural
commodities; a grain originator, processor and trader; and one of
Brazil's largest grain logistics operators. Amaggi operates an
integrated agribusiness chain that includes production; river and
road transport; port operations; the origination, processing and
commercialization of grains and inputs; and the generation and
commercialization of electricity.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Trading
Companies published in June 2022.


BRAZIL: To Expand Collaboration on Bioeconomy for Amazonia
----------------------------------------------------------
The Inter-American Development Bank and Brazil's Ministry of
Environment and Climate Change announced two agreements at the UN
Conference on Biodiversity, COP16, to promote bioeconomy and
support communities in building new nature-based business ventures
in the context of the IDB's Amazonia Forever program.

The first cooperation, in partnership with nature-conservation
groups World Wildlife Fund, and Brazilian Fund for Biodiversity
(Funbio), will support the development and implementation of "ARPA
for Communities", one of the most important bioeconomy and
biodiversity conservation initiatives in the Amazon basin.

As part of the partnership, IDB will help design and put in place
innovative mechanisms to support local communities in building new
nature-based business ventures focused on non-timber forest
products, sustainable management, and agroforestry systems that
conserve the forest and offer economic alternatives for people
living and working in areas that are part of the ARPA (Amazon
Region Protected Areas) program.

"ARPA for Communities" builds on the very successful experience of
ARPA, considered the largest tropical forest protection initiative
in the world. Created in 2002 to support the consolidation of 60
million hectares of protected areas in the Amazon, it covers 120
conservation units for full protection and sustainable use. The
effort will receive a $1 million funding.

The second joint effort seeks to support the Environment Ministry
in implementing the National Bioeconomy Strategy, a cornerstone of
Brazil's efforts to promote sustainable economic development while
combating deforestation, particularly in the Amazon region.

The project will develop an intelligent system to organize and
promote scientific data and information on bioeconomy products and
processes, support implementation of the Payment for Environmental
Services Policy, and foster policy and financial solutions for
biobusinesses. The cooperation will also be funded by $1 million.
Both projects are financed by the Amazon Bioeconomy Fund, backed by
the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

"We are very pleased with this partnership that will support the
structuring of the National Bioeconomy Plan and the regulation of
our agenda of payments for environmental services, both very
important instruments of ecological transformation," said Carina
Pimenta, Secretary of Bioeconomy at the Ministry of Environment and
Climate Change.

"The sustainable use of biodiversity is the only way to forge a
more prosperous and resilient future," said Bonilla. "Amazonia
plays a key role in the world's environmental balance and is a
priority for the IDB. Creating sustainable economic alternatives
for those living in the region is a critical step to conserve the
forest."

Latin America and the Caribbean at COP16

The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are a nature
powerhouse and a critical part of the solution to biodiversity
loss. In its three pavilions, the IDB is hosting more than 50
events with international leaders and experts to showcase
initiatives on nature and biodiversity, and innovative approaches
to nature-positive investments aiming to restore and conserve
biodiversity. Journalists covering CO16 on site are welcome to
visit the pavilions, with no registration required.  

                         About Brazil

Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world and third largest
in the Americas. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva won the 2022 Brazilian
general election. He was sworn in on January 1, 2023, as the 39th
president of Brazil, succeeding Jair Bolsonaro.

Moody's credit rating for Brazil was last set at Ba2 with positive
outlook as of May 2024.  S&P Global Ratings raised on Dec. 19,
2023, its long-term global scale ratings on Brazil to 'BB' from
'BB-'.  Fitch Ratings affirmed on Dec. 15, 2023, Brazil's Long-Term
Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'BB' with a Stable
Outlook.  DBRS' credit rating for Brazil was last reported at BB
with stable outlook at July 2023.
`

JBS SA: Launches Registered Exchange Offers for Senior Notes
------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Eadie at Swineweb.com reports that JBS S.A., along with JBS USA
Food Company, has announced the commencement of registered exchange
offers for a variety of outstanding senior notes. These exchange
offers include several key notes with aggregate principal amounts
exceeding $1.5 billion, targeting improved financial flexibility
and alignment with corporate sustainability goals.

The exchange offers span multiple maturity dates, with the longest
running to 2053. Notably, JBS is offering 6.750% Senior Notes due
in 2034 for an equal principal amount of outstanding 6.750% Senior
Notes. This exchange covers a series of senior notes across various
interest rates and maturities, including registered
sustainability-linked notes. Sustainability-linked instruments
align with JBS's environmental objectives, featuring both 3.000%
and 3.625% rates on notes due in 2032. This aspect highlights JBS's
commitment to responsible growth in global protein production.

According to Swineweb.com, the company is also offering 7.250%
Senior Notes due in 2053, exchanging $900 million in principal for
equal outstanding amounts. The details of these exchanges
underscore JBS's objective to strengthen liquidity by modernizing
its existing debt structure with registered, tradable securities.

By converting a significant volume of outstanding debt into newly
issued registered notes, JBS aims to secure lower refinancing risks
and create a streamlined portfolio, Swineweb.com relays. Registered
exchange offers are known for allowing companies to replace
privately issued, non-tradable debt with SEC-registered, publicly
tradable notes, increasing market appeal and access to a broader
investor base.

As JBS expands in North America and globally, this move represents
both a strategy for financial resilience and a commitment to
environmental standards, Swineweb.com notes. The
sustainability-linked notes align interest rates with JBS's
environmental initiatives, incentivizing the company's commitment
to sustainable operations across its meat and food processing
divisions. These notes provide flexibility for market adaptation
and demonstrate JBS's strategy to appeal to investors focused on
environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria.

Swineweb.com adds that the exchange offer includes the following
key elements:

New Notes Offered: Ranging from 2.500% Senior Notes due 2027 to
7.250% Senior Notes due 2053, covering approximately $1.5 billion.
Exchange Terms: Each offer is for an equal principal amount between
existing and newly issued notes, retaining the same interest rates
and maturity dates.

Diverse Maturities and Interest Rates: With rates spanning from
2.500% to 7.250%, JBS's strategy reflects a tailored approach to
meet varying investor expectations and market conditions.

By leveraging registered notes that cater to both traditional and
sustainability-oriented investors, JBS is strengthening its
long-term financial outlook and commitment to sustainable growth.
This strategic decision may serve as a model for other companies
aiming to balance liquidity and ESG-focused financing within the
global protein sector.

                            About JBS SA

JBS S.A. is a Brazilian company that is a large meat processing
enterprise, producing factory processed beef, chicken, salmon,
pork, and also selling by-products from the processing of these
meats.  It is headquartered in Sao Paulo.  It was founded in 1953
in Anapolis, Goias.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America in
August 2021, S&P Global Ratings revised the global scale outlook on
JBS S.A. (JBS) and its fully owned subsidiary JBS USA Lux S.A. (JBS
USA) to positive from stable and affirmed its 'BB+' issuer credit
rating. The recovery expectations remain unchanged, and S&P
affirmed the 'BB+' ratings on the senior unsecured notes and the
'BBB' ratings on the secured term loans.


REFINARIA DE MATARIPE: Moody's Lowers CFR to B1, Outlook Negative
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Moody's Ratings has downgraded the corporate family rating of
Refinaria de Mataripe S.A. (Acelen) to B1 from Ba3. At the same
time, Moody's downgraded the rating of MC Brazil Downstream Trading
S.A.R.L.'s (MC Brazil) Backed Senior Secured Global Notes, fully
guaranteed by Acelen, to B1 from Ba3. The outlook for the issuers
remains negative.

RATINGS RATIONALE

The downgrade of Acelen's ratings to B1 from Ba3 reflects the
weaker than anticipated operating performance of the refinery since
the acquisition of the asset from Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. -
PETROBRAS (Ba1 positive), which has led to high gross leverage of
24.9x and weak interest coverage of -0.5x in the twelve months
ended June 2024. Despite Acelen's efforts to improve unit costs and
optimize its product mix, crack margins have declined since the
beginning of 2024 and the company continues to incur  higher prices
on domestic purchases of oil, which has hampered the asset's
profitability.

Acelen's B1 rating reflects the Mataripe refinery (RefMat)'s strong
asset features, its competitive position and strategic location in
Northeast of Brazil that have been key for the company to
successfully practice international parity prices (IPP). It also
considers the sponsor profile, with a long track record investing
in the refining and petrochemical business, and Acelen's management
team with solid industry expertise to execute on the company's
growth strategy. Finally, Acelen's good liquidity position is an
additional credit strength, which provides a leeway for the company
to finish its investment plans and fully collect the benefits of
its commercial strategy.

The rating remains constrained by Acelen's significant exposure to
merchant risk, volatility in crack spreads and low visibility into
the future offtake profile and fuel prices, leading to reduced
predictability of future cash flows. It is also limited by the
execution risk related to the achievement of additional targeted
efficiency savings, and by its concentration in a single asset.

After taking over the operations of the refinery in late 2021,
Acelen has conducted an extensive capital expenditure plan, with
over $260 million investment in 2022, over $160 million investment
in 2023 and additional $120 million expected for 2024. These
investments were directed to unclog production bottlenecks,
increase the production of higher margin products, improve
production mix (less negative unit crack margin products) and
reduce utilities, logistics and fixed costs. As a result of these
investments, Acelen expects to improve earnings before interests,
taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) by $3.0 per barrel;
some of which already reflected in the second quarter of 2024
results.

Acelen has recently faced a challenging operating environment which
has resulted in weaker than expected financial performance. In the
last quarter of 2022, the more severely affected quarter, the
company reported an adjusted EBITDA per barrel of $-5.9, a
combination of an adjusted crack margin of $6.4 and costs of $12.2
per barrel. Since then, investments made in the company have
gradually translated into improving margins and cash flow
generation. As of the first half of 2024, EBITDA have reached $+1.2
per barrel combining an adjusted crack margin of $7.5 and costs of
$6.7 per barrel. Despite the encouraging improvements, financial
performance has remained short of Moody's initial expectations,
that aimed at an EBITDA of $+6.1 per barrel for 2024, including an
adjusted crack margin of $12.1 and costs of $5.9 per barrel.

As of June 2024, the company had $311 million in cash, including
$98 million in the debt service reserve account (DSRA). The high
cash position is a result of monetization of tax credits, which
Moody's expect will continue through 2026, and an increase in the
tenor of oil purchases and related working capital liberalization,
which have increased interest expense. The company also has around
$1.0 billion in contracted credit lines to support crude oil
purchases, with $645 million committed with foreign banks, and $334
million committed with local banks. Acelen's strong liquidity
position provides a leeway while the company fully implements its
strategy and strengthen its cash generation profile, by completing
the ramp-up of its capex program and collecting the benefits of its
cost savings initiatives.

RATING OUTLOOK

The negative outlook reflects the remaining uncertainties around
the company's sustainable operational cash generation with low
market crack spreads and cost efficiency savings after the full
ramp-up of its investment and competitiveness plan and full
implementation of its commercial strategy.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATING

The rating could be upgraded if the company is able to increase its
cash flow generation and EBIT over total throughput barrels
stabilizing above $2 (-$1.8 in the twelve months ended June 2024)
on a sustainable basis and interest coverage ratio calculated as
EBIT over interest expense remains over 2.5x (-0.5x in the twelve
months ended June 2024).

Conversely, ratings could be downgraded upon exacerbation of
current credit risks, leading to a frustration in cash generation
such that EBIT over total throughput barrels and interest coverage
ratio remains, respectively below $1.5 and 2.0x on a sustainable
basis. The maintenance of the debt service coverage ratio (DSCR)
sustained below 2.0x (2.8x in the twelve months ended June 2024)
could also lead to a downgrade of the rating.

ISSUER PROFILE

Refinaria de Mataripe S.A. is a refinery cluster built in 1950,
with current operating processing capacity of 302,000 barrels per
day (bpd) of crude and storage capacity of 3.7 million for crude
and 6.2 million for refined products. The company also encompasses
a logistic infrastructure including 679 kilometers of oil pipelines
and the TEMADRE marine terminal. With total assets of $3.4 billion
and annual revenue of $8.7 billion as of June 2024, Acelen is the
primary supplier of oil-refined products in the northeast and north
regions in Brazil.

MC Brazil Downstream Trading S.A.R.L. (MC Brazil) is a private
limited liability company established under the laws of Luxembourg
and fully owned by Acelen.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Refining and
Marketing published in August 2021.




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CANTERBURY SECURITIES: Seeks Chapter 15 Bankruptcy in New York
--------------------------------------------------------------
Emily Lever of Law360 reports that the liquidators of Canterbury
Securities, an investment firm based in the Cayman Islands, have
filed for Chapter 15 recognition in New York bankruptcy court on
October 21, 2024.

This action comes after a dispute with another firm over a $20
million share sale that Canterbury is accused of misappropriating.

                    About Canterbury Securities

Canterbury Securities is an investment firm based in the Cayman
Islands.

Canterbury Securities sought relief under Chapter 15 of the U.S.
Bankruptcy Code (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Case No. 24-11814) on Oct. 21,
2024.

The Debtor is represented by John E. Jureller, Jr., of Klestadt
Winters Jureller.




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C U B A
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CUBA: Mexican Shipment to Relieve Energy Crisis in Country
----------------------------------------------------------
RJR News reports that a tanker carrying about 400,000 barrels of
oil departed from Mexico's Pajaritos port on Oct. 28 for Cuba,
where an acute energy crisis has left that country struggling to
keep the lights on, shipping data showed.

Cuba kept schools closed and non-essential workers home in
mid-October as it struggled to recover from the collapse of its
power grid and a hurricane in recent days, according to the
report.

The Cuba-flagged tanker, Vilma, was expected to arrive later last
week, according to data from financial firm LSEG, has exclusively
been covering Mexico-Cuba routes this year.

Mexico has been supplying Cuba with crude and fuel since last year,
complementing volumes sent by Venezuela, which is Cuba's main oil
supplier, RJR News notes.




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T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O
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TRINIDAD GENERATION: S&P Affirms 'BB+' ICR & Alters Outlook to Neg.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings revised its outlook on the Trinidadian power
generator Trinidad Generation Unlimited (TGU) to negative from
stable and affirmed the 'BB+' issuer credit and issue-level ratings
on it.

The negative outlook reflects the potential downgrade in the
upcoming six months if TGU does not take appropriate steps to
refinance its existing debt, improving its liquidity position and
extending its weighted-average debt maturity (WAM) beyond two
years.

TGU's $540 million bond will start amortizing in May 2025 with
semiannual payments of $90 million (every May and November). S&P
said, "In our view, the company's cash flow (that we estimate at
$35 million-$45 million per year) plus the existing cash balance of
$217 million as of June 30, 2024, won't be sufficient to fully
repay debt obligations and fund capital expenditure (capex) and
dividends. Our base-case scenario assumes the sources-to-uses ratio
of about 1.2x in the next 12 months, down from 1.5x in our previous
expectations, and a further drop going forward absent the
refinancing. Therefore, we revised our assessment of the company's
liquidity to adequate from strong. But we affirmed our ratings,
considering the track record of the company's handling of similar
refinancings and our expectation that, given its nature and
ownership structure, TGU should be able to access the market to
extend the maturity profile. Still, if we do not see a credible
plan in place in the upcoming six months, we'll cut our ratings,
indicating an increasing refinancing risk."

TGU is the most efficient power plant, measured by its heat rate,
in the country. Moreover, the company continues to account for 39%
of Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission's (T&TEC) total
contracted capacity and meets more than half of the country's
average electricity demand. This, combined with the government's
100% guarantee of the company's revenue through the power purchase
agreement (PPA), its full ownership of TGU, and a change-of-control
provision that would trigger a debt acceleration payment, leads us
to think there's a very high likelihood that the government would
provide extraordinary financial support to TGU under stressed
conditions.

Downside scenario

S&P said, "The negative outlook reflects our view that we could
lower our ratings on TGU if it's unable to refinance its bond
before May 2025, weakening its capital structure and liquidity
position. We could also downgrade TGU if we take a similar rating
action on the sovereign or if we perceive a lower likelihood of
extraordinary support from the government, which could occur if
other market participants are able to replace the company's
electricity output."



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S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America is a daily newsletter
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Chapman, Editors.

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