---

       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, February 7, 2020, Vol. 21, No. 28

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Restructuring Debt Will Require IMF Support


B O L I V I A

BOLIVIA: Initiative Combats Hunger by Tackling Food Loss, Waste


B R A Z I L

ACHE LABORATORIOS: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LT Foreign Currency IDR
BRAZIL: Will Contribute to Fiscal Sustainability of Bahia
ODEBRECHT SA: Takes Peru to Arbitration Over Failed Investment
SANEPAR: Moody's Gives Ba2 Global Scale Rating to BRL350MM Debt


C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S

COMPASS CAYMAN: S&P Hikes ICR to 'BB-', Off CreditWatch


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN PETROLEUM: Refinery Shutdown Won’t Affect Fuel Supply


J A M A I C A

JAMAICA MERCHANT: Fitch Affirms BB+ Rating on Series 2015-1 Notes


P U E R T O   R I C O

BAHIA DEL SOL: Triangle Seeks Extension to Reply to Property Sale
STAR PETROLEUM: Case Summary & 6 Unsecured Creditors

                           - - - - -


=================
A R G E N T I N A
=================

ARGENTINA: Restructuring Debt Will Require IMF Support
------------------------------------------------------
Hector Torres at The Financial Times reports that the IMF is like a
hospital emergency room.  Countries abhor the fund's demands to
adjust their economic policies in return for loans, so they only
walk in when an accident makes them lose access to private capital,
according to The Financial Times.  The IMF imposes conditionality
because its interest rates are fixed and cannot reflect the
borrower's risk — it is lending the taxpayers' money of member
countries, the report notes.

The "injured" country is requested to reduce spending and raise
taxes, the report relays.  When fiscal changes cannot re-establish
debt sustainability, it is also asked to restructure its debt, the
report discloses.  Unfortunately, Argentina escaped this rule.

An early reprofiling of Argentina's public debt would have spared
the fund an embarrassing situation, the report relays.  Argentina
met all the fiscal and financial conditionality, the report notes.
But the biggest IMF programme in history did not deliver its two
most important objectives: curbing inflation and recovering access
to private capital markets, the report notes.

In June 2018, Mauricio Macri's government and the fund pretended
that Argentina needed only "precautionary" financial support, the
report says.  Less than two months later, the IMF had to increase
the lending from $50 billion to $57 billion and front-load
disbursements, the report notes.

As a result, Argentina's new government is saddled with "senior"
debt - the IMF has preferred creditor status.  The cost of the
fund's generous front-loaded financing ($44 billion has already
been disbursed), is an unpayable concentration of debt that can
neither be restructured nor defaulted on. Just to repay the fund
would cost Argentina about 25 per cent of income from exports in
2022 and 2023, the report relates.

While a dose of IMF support is deemed to have a catalytic effect,
too much of it crowds out private financing. Even if Argentina's
economy restarts growth after two years of recession, it will not
have enough dollars for the fund and private creditors, the report
notes.

These risks registered at the time but were ignored. Mr. Macri was
the US's darling and IMF managing director Christine Lagarde needed
US President Donald Trump's backing for a capital increase (in the
end she did not get it), the report discloses.

Not surprisingly, Argentina is now on the brink of a fresh default.
Alberto Fernandez, the new president, still needs to warm up
relations with Mr. Trump, the report relays.  Mr. Fernandez is
anything but ideological, but his pragmatism is curtailed by
dependence on the political support of his deputy, Cristina
Fernandez de Kirchner, the report relays.  With US presidential
elections ahead, Mr. Trump will need to ensure Latino community
support. Don't be surprised if he hardens US policy towards
Venezuela even more, the report relays.  Ending Nicolas Maduro's
dictatorship before the election could come in handy.
Repercussions will be felt at the IMF, the report notes.

Beyond politics, Argentina has published a road map for
debt-restructuring negotiations. Creditors will receive the offer
on March 15 and agreement is aimed for by March 31. That will be
difficult, the report discloses.  Horse-trading could extend
discussions way beyond the end of the month, the report notes.
However, Mr. Fernandez has ruled out borrowing more of the IMF
dollars remaining from the agreement signed by Mr. Macri and it is
unlikely that Argentina and the fund could agree a new program
before the country exhausts its dwindling reserves, the report
says.

Default may happen during the debt-restructuring negotiations and
the fund cannot provide financing when debt is "unsustainable"
(debt in default clearly meets that criteria), the report relates.
However, the IMF can continue to lend during arrears where the
member is making "a good-faith effort" to reach agreement with
private creditors, the report notes.

Granted, the IMF’s assessment of "good faith" can be open
political manipulation, the report relates.  But today the fund is
much less subject to the influence of private creditors, the report
notes.  In 2015, the IMF withheld its financial assistance to
Ukraine, forcing Kyiv to impose a haircut on private creditors, the
report discloses.  This primarily affected Franklin Templeton, an
investment fund based in California, which accepted a bond
write-off. The fund did not yield to the protests from Templeton
and a $40 billion support program was secured, the report notes.

But there is a more subtle and dangerous risk to Argentina. Private
creditors argue that a "friendly" debt-restructuring - one without
a major haircut and without interrupting payments during the
negotiations - would be rewarded by the financial community with
fresh financing at affordable interest rates, the report relays.
Argentina should mistrust these siren songs and secure IMF support
before engaging in "good faith" negotiations with private
creditors, the report says.

Deals always reflect the relative power of those sitting at the
table. If Argentina starts with no reserves and no IMF backing, it
may end up negotiating with a pack of wolves, the report adds.

                      About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of South
America.  It's capital is Buenos Aires. Alberto Angel Fernandez is
the current president of Argentina after winning the October 2019
general election. He succeeded Mauricio Macri in the position.

Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America.  The
country's economy is an upper middle-income economy for fiscal year
2019 according to the World Bank.  Historically, however, its
economic performance has been very uneven, with high economic
growth alternating with severe recessions, income maldistribution
and in the recent decades, increasing poverty.

Moody's credit rating for Argentina was last set at Caa2 from B2
with under review outlook. Moody's rating was issued on Aug. 30,
2019.  S&P Global Ratings, in December 2019, raised its foreign
currency sovereign credit ratings on Argentina to 'CC/C' from
'SD/D'.  S&P's outlook on the long-term sovereign credit ratings is
negative. Fitch Ratings, in December 2019, upgraded Argentina's
Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating to 'CC' from 'RD',
and its Short-Term Foreign-Currency IDR to 'C' from 'RD'.  DBRS,
Inc. meanwhile downgraded Argentina's Long-Term and Short-Term
Foreign Currency - Issuer Ratings to Selective Default (SD), from
CC and R-5, respectively, also in December 2019.




=============
B O L I V I A
=============

BOLIVIA: Initiative Combats Hunger by Tackling Food Loss, Waste
---------------------------------------------------------------
EFE News reports that the dual problem of hunger and food loss or
food waste is being addressed head-on in the central Bolivian city
of Cochabamba, where every day dozens of volunteers salvage edible
food that would otherwise be thrown away and distribute it to homes
for children and the elderly.

These volunteers are part of the Food Bank of Bolivia, an
initiative that is the only one of its kind in the Andean nation
and was launched by a group of university students concerned about
the malnutrition versus food waste paradox, that entity's founder
and executive director, Nicole Guerrero, told Efe.



===========
B R A Z I L
===========

ACHE LABORATORIOS: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LT Foreign Currency IDR
-------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Ache Laboratorios Farmaceuticos S.A.'s
Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'BB', Long-Term
Local Currency IDR at 'BBB' and National Scale Rating at
'AAA(bra)'. The Rating Outlook is Stable.

Ache's investment-grade LC IDR reflects the defensive nature of the
pharmaceutical industry, which translates into a low level of cash
flow volatility, and its strong business position in the Brazilian
pharmaceutical market, with leadership in the prescription segment.
Ache has higher margins than its Brazilian peers due to its
portfolio mix focused on the prescription segment, strong and
established brands with pricing premiums, as well as its
market-leading size, a condition that helps fixed-cost dilution.
Fitch views Ache's market position as sustainable, reinforced by
its large sales team, which gives it a key competitive advantage in
the outreach of the medical community and brand awareness.

The ratings incorporate Fitch's expectation that Ache will remain
committed to an unleveraged capital structure, while managing its
organic growth plans or small acquisitions with its resilient FCF
generation before dividends and access to funding lines at
competitive costs. Fitch expects net leverage ratios below 0.6x in
the next four years, and incorporates higher investments of about
BRL590 million during 2020 and 2021. Ache has had a
shareholder-friendly dividends policy, but Fitch believes that the
company has flexibility to adjust payouts if necessary to avoid
deterioration of its credit metrics, as its ownership is
concentrated in three families.

Ache's LC IDR is constrained at 'BBB' due to its lack of geographic
diversification. The company generates essentially all of its cash
flow in Brazil, which has high operating risk. Ache also has
limited scale and market position compared to its global peers
rated in the 'A' category, such as Pfizer Inc., Merck & Co., Inc.
and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Ache's FC IDR is capped by Brazil's
Country Ceiling of 'BB', as the company's operations are
essentially in Brazil and it does not have substantial assets or
cash held abroad to mitigate transfer and convertibility risk.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Positive Industry Fundamentals: In Fitch's view, the pharmaceutical
industry has positive long-term fundamentals, in light of the aging
of the world population and the greater access to health systems.
Historically, the sector has consistently outperformed the growth
of the economy. In the last five years, the Brazilian
pharmaceutical market has reported an average annual increase of
8%, above the Brazilian Gross Domestic Product (GDP), evidencing
the resilience of demand even in adverse macroeconomic scenarios.

The higher incidence of chronic diseases and the constant
investments in innovation for specialized treatments shall continue
to boost the consumption of medicines in the coming years.
Innovation in the oncology segment should contribute to growing
cash flow generation in the medium term. In longer time horizons,
increased competition and the maturing of patents may generate some
price pressures, as it occurs with generic drugs. Ache's ability to
maintain a sustainable volume of launches each year and to increase
the share of innovations in its portfolio are key factors to
preserve its competitive position in the industry.

Solid Business Profile: Ache has a solid and recognized brand in
the Brazilian pharmaceutical industry. Its diversified product
portfolio, leadership in the prescription drug segment, and
presence in the fast-growing over-the-counter (OTC), generics and
dermocosmetics segments support its sound business profile. Ache is
the fourth-largest pharmaceutical company in Brazil and has one of
the largest sales forces in the domestic market. This condition
gives the company a key competitive advantage over local and
international peers, as it allows for extensive outreach to the
medical community, thus a crucial demand driver for prescription
drugs.

Low Product Portfolio Risk: Ache's operating cash flow is not
significantly exposed to license renewals or patent expirations.
Similar to other emerging markets pharmaceutical companies, Ache
has a narrower R&D product pipeline than those of its multinational
competitors and has a weaker portfolio of patented products.
Positively, the company's exposure to licensing agreements is low,
representing less than 10% of revenue. Ache has consistently
increased efforts to innovate and renovate its product portfolio by
investing around 2.5% of revenue in R&D. For 2020, Fitch expects
product launches to reach about 20% of revenue, compared with 18%
expected for 2019 and an average of 21% between 2010 and 2018.

Increasing Competition Pressures Operating Margins: Competition
increased over the last few years, with local pharmaceutical
companies consolidating brands, expanding their product reach
across segments or therapeutic classes, and with aggressive
commercial conditions. Fitch expects Ache's operating margins to be
under pressure at the 24.5%-29.0% range from 2019 to 2023, from an
average of 30.0% between 2015 and 2018, but it remains adequate
compared with the industry average. Increased competition led to
higher product development and marketing expenses, as well as price
adjustments during 2019 in part of the prescription portfolio that
accounts for around 70% of net revenues. Ache is the fourth-largest
player in terms of net revenues in the Brazilian pharmaceutical
market, and is the largest player in prescription, its key segment.
Fitch believes that Ache's operating expertise in the Brazilian
market, its strong brand positioning and its strong distribution
system are key factors to mitigate the impact of increasing
competition.

CFFO to Remain Sound: Fitch expects Ache's cash flow generation to
remain robust, despite increased competition. Fitch forecasts
EBITDA of BRL963 million and CFFO of BRL706 million in 2020, and
BRL1.1 billion and BRL757 million, respectively, in 2021, with
operating margins below historical levels. These numbers compare
with BRL818 million and BRL635 million estimated for 2019. Lower
EBITDA generation in 2019, compared with BRL934 million reported in
2018, results from price adjustments below inflation for a few
products and higher costs due to competitive market. The company's
resilient operational cash flow generation capacity shall be backed
by increasing sales of products with innovation, the maintenance of
its leading position in the prescription segment and benefit of
cost efficiency initiatives.

Fitch projects strong FCF before dividends, despite Ache's higher
investments. Fitch projects capex in the 2019-2021 period to total
BRL933 million, mostly related to the new plant in Pernambuco,
which will lead to around 50% expansion in the company's production
capacity- a project with total estimated cost of BRL660 million. In
the LTM period ended Sept. 30, 2019, Ache generated BRL202 million
of FCF before dividends.

Ache has a track record of maintaining an aggressive
shareholder-friendly policy, which led to negative FCF since 2012,
with the exception of positive FCF of BRL26 million in 2017.
Dividend distributions averaged BRL440 million per year between
2015 and 2018, around 90% dividends payouts, and Fitch expects Ache
will keep reporting high dividend payouts, of around 75% of net
income. In a more challenging scenario, Fitch expects the company
would pursue a more conservative dividend policy in order to
increase its financial flexibility and sustain its strong capital
structure.

Unleveraged Capital Structure: Ache has maintained low leverage
ratios and strong credit metrics. Fitch's projections indicate net
debt/EBITDA below 0.6x in the next four years, and incorporates
expansionary investments for the new facility and high dividend
payouts. In the past four years, the company's average FFO-adjusted
leverage was 0.4x and net debt/EBITDA ratio was 0.2x. Net debt is
expected to remain between BRL450 million and BRL500 million during
2020-2021, and reduce to lower levels only after 2022, when the
investment cycle is concluded.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Ache's LC IDR and National Scale 'BBB'/'AAA(bra)' ratings reflect
the defensive nature of the pharmaceutical industry, the company's
leading position in the prescription drug segment and its low
product portfolio risk, with no exposure to patents or licenses.
Ache's lack of geographic diversification, lower business scale,
relatively narrow research portfolio and credit access/financial
flexibility compared with top pharmaceutical companies constrains
its 'BBB' LC IDR. Ache is well positioned in terms of leverage
compared with most of the top global pharmaceutical issuers that
are rated 'A'/'AA' by Fitch, with average net leverage of 1.5x.

Ache's rating is positioned two notches higher in the National
Scale rating than Blau Farmaceutica (Blau, National Scale
AA(bra)/Stable). Compared to Ache, Blau has a limited operational
scale, revenue concentration in a few products, with focus on the
non-retail segment, as well as high exposure to the public sector.
Both companies have a deleveraged capital structure, with similar
operating margins.

Compared with other Brazilian issuers in Fitch's rated universe,
Ache's business resilience to economic cycles, strong CFFO
generation, financial flexibility and unleveraged capital structure
stands out among its peers. Ache's capital structure has
consistently been stronger than Fitch's 'BBB' portfolio. Ache's
operations concentrated in Brazil and the lack of operating and
financial assets abroad caps its FC IDR at the Brazilian Country
Ceiling of 'BB'.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

Fitch's Key Assumptions Within Its Rating Case for the Issuer

  -- Revenue growth of 4.2% in 2019 and average growth of 6.0% from
2020 to 2023;

  -- Innovation to continue to represent around 20.0% of net
revenue, with R&D expenses ranging from 2.0% to 2.5% of net
revenue;

  -- EBITDA margin in the range of 24.5% to 29.0%, due to
short-term pricing adjustments and increasing SG&A expenses related
to diversification of the portfolio;

-- Capex of BRL933 million in the 2019-2021 period, which includes
investments in the new plant in Pernambuco;

-- Dividend pay-out of 75% of net income.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Developments That May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Positive Rating Action

  -- For the FC IDR, positive rating actions are limited by
Brazil's Country Ceiling of 'BB', while for the LC IDR of 'BBB', an
upgrade is unlikely in the medium term.

Developments That May, Individually or Collectively, Lead to
Negative Rating Action

  -- Ache's credit ratios are very strong at the current rating
level, but unexpected events that move the company's net
debt/EBITDA beyond 2.0x or FFO-adjusted leverage beyond 3.0x could
result in negative rating action for the LC IDR;

  -- Significant market-share or brand deterioration;

  -- A negative rating action on Brazil's sovereign ratings and
Country Ceiling could result in negative rating action on Ache's FC
IDR.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Strong Liquidity: Ache has historically maintained a robust
liquidity position. As of Sept. 30, 2019, Ache reported cash and
marketable securities of BRL139 million and short term debt was
BRL250 million. Fitch views the reduction of cash balance coverage
of short-term debt in September 2019 as temporary and should return
to more than 2.0x in the next three years, in line with the
historical average. On Sept. 30, 2019, Ache's total debt was BRL676
million, up about BRL290 million compared with YE 2018. Higher debt
was used to finance high investments in the period and Fitch does
not expect a significant increase in total debt in the near term.

Ache's debt was mainly comprised of Banco Nacional de
Desenvolvimento Economico e Social (BNDES) lines (57%), working
capital (24%), leasing (11%), an others (8%). As per Fitch
methodology, debt position includes financial leases (IFRS16
reporting criteria) and part of the reverse factoring.

SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL ADJUSTMENTS

These are the financial statement adjustments that depart
materially from those contained in the published financial
statements of the relevant rated entity or obligor:

  -- Fitch adjusted debt for reverse factoring from June 2019 on.

  -- Fitch removed from EBITDA non-recurring results (e.g. asset
sales and tax gains) and equity income.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of 3 - ESG issues are credit
neutral or have only a minimal credit impact on the entity, either
due to their nature or the way in which they are being managed by
the entity.


BRAZIL: Will Contribute to Fiscal Sustainability of Bahia
---------------------------------------------------------
The State of Bahia in Brazil will contribute to fiscal
sustainability with the management of public and tax expenditures
with a loan of $40 million approved by the Inter-American
Development Bank (IDB).

The program aims to improve management instruments and modernize
the technology infrastructure that will include Big Data solutions,
operations security center and the expansion of storage and
processing capacity.

In addition, will increase the tax authority's transparency with
society with an integrity and risk management program, a
transparency portal, internal control and operational audits,
enhancing the institutional performance of the Ministry of Finance
of the State of Bahia.

It will seek to increase the efficiency of tax collection, increase
revenues and simplify tax compliance. This will include the
financing of the implementation of the National Network for the
Simplification of the Registration and Legalization of Companies
and Businesses (REDESIM) and the simplification of the fulfillment
of the accessory obligations related to the Tax on the Circulation
of Goods and on the Provision of Inter-municipal Transport Services
and of Communication (ICMS) through the elimination of some monthly
declarations required from the taxpayer.

Likewise, in the area of fiscal discipline and the increase in the
efficiency and effectiveness of public spending, econometric model
processes will be mapped and reviewed to develop scenarios and new
functionalities for the Integrated System of Planning, Accounting
and Finance of the State of Bahia (FIPLAN). System of management of
judicial orders for payment and requisition of small securities
will also be integrated into the FIPLAN and the State Attorney
General's systems.

The IDB loan of $40 million has a repayment term of 25 years, a
grace period of five and a half years, an interest rate based on
LIBOR, and has a local counterpart of $4.5 million.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America, Fitch
Ratings in November 2019 affirmed Brazil's Long-Term Foreign
Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'BB-'. The Rating Outlook is
Stable.


ODEBRECHT SA: Takes Peru to Arbitration Over Failed Investment
--------------------------------------------------------------
Marcelo Rochabrun at Reuters reports that Odebrecht SA has taken
Peru to arbitration over a failed $2 billion investment in a gas
pipeline, arguing it needs to recoup the money to pay debtors in
order to navigate its own bankruptcy restructuring.

Odebrecht is in a precarious financial situation due to the
revelation of its participation in a complex scheme to exchange
bribes for public work contracts throughout Latin America,
according to Reuters.

The arbitration deals with a large gas pipeline project for which
Peru canceled Odebrecht’s contract in 2017, at a time of intense
political backlash against the company due to corruption
allegations, the report notes.

At its height, Odebrecht became Peru's top government contractor,
helping to develop some of the country's most ambitious engineering
projects, the report relays.  It achieved this in part by bribing
scores of public sector workers and politicians, actions the
company has admitted, the report relates.  Odebrecht is cooperating
with Peruvian prosecutors, the report notes.

In a letter submitted to prosecutors and reviewed by Reuters,
Odebrecht says its removal from the gas pipeline project was "a
very big blow" to the company and that given its current financial
situation, it is forced to "try to recoup" the money already spent,
the report says.

In a press release, Odebrecht said it remains "completely willing
to find a solution together with the (Peruvian) State that will
allow for the withdrawal of the arbitration," the report adds.

                           About Odebrecht SA

Odebrecht S.A. -- www.odebrecht.com -- is a Brazilian conglomerate
consisting of diversified businesses in the fields of engineering,
construction, chemicals and petrochemicals.  Odebrecht S.A. is a
holding company for Construtora Norberto Odebrecht S.A., the
biggest engineering and contracting company in Latin America, and
Braskem S.A., the largest petrochemicals producer in Latin America
and one of Brazil's five largest private-sector manufacturing
companies. Odebrecht controls Braskem, which by revenue is the
fourth largest petrochemical company in the Americas.

On June 17, 2019, Odebrecht filed for bankruptcy protection, aiming
to restructure BRL51 billion (US$13 billion) of debt.

The bankruptcy filing comes after years of struggles for Odebrecht,
the biggest of the Brazilian engineering groups caught in a
sweeping political corruption investigation that has rippled across
Latin America, Reuters relayed, as reported by The Troubled Company
Reporter - Latin America.

On August 28, 2019, the Troubled Company Reporter - Latin America,
citing The Wall Street Journal, reported that Odebrecht and its
affiliates filed for chapter 15 bankruptcy, seeking U.S.
recognition of the largest-ever bankruptcy in Latin America.
Odebrecht SA and several of its affiliates has filed for bankruptcy
protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District
of New York on Aug. 26.  The case is assigned to Hon. Stuart M.
Bernstein.


SANEPAR: Moody's Gives Ba2 Global Scale Rating to BRL350MM Debt
----------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's America Latina Ltda. has affirmed the Corporate Family
Ratings and senior unsecured debt ratings assigned to Companhia de
Saneamento do Parana -- SANEPAR at Ba2/Aa2.br (Global scale and
Brazilian national scale, respectively) and maintained the ba2
baseline credit assessment. The outlook is stable. At the same
time, Moody's has assigned Ba2/Aa2.br ratings to its proposed 10th
issuance of senior unsecured debentures in the amount of BRL350
million due 2027 and 2029. Proceeds of the issuance will be used to
support capital investments.

The ratings assigned to the proposed debentures are based on
preliminary documentation. Moody's does not anticipate changes in
the main conditions that the debentures will carry. Should issuance
conditions and/or final documentation deviate from the original
ones submitted and reviewed by the rating agency, Moody's will
assess the impact that these differences may have on the ratings
and act accordingly.

RATINGS RATIONALE

Sanepar's Ba2/Aa2.br corporate family ratings reflect: (i) the
company's attractive concession area, with long-term contracts
providing visibility over cash flow generation; (ii) its solid
operating performance relative to peers; and (iii) strong and
resilient credit metrics, with funds from operations (FFO) to net
debt and FFO interest coverage expected to be above 37% and 6.4x,
respectively.

The ratings also reflect the short track record of the applicable
regulatory framework, with a new tariff-setting mechanism approved
in 2017 that aims to compensate investments made by the company.
The company is still in the middle of its first tariff cycle, with
some exposure to political intervention as a differed portion of
the 2017 tariff increase will be applied on an annual basis over
the next 5 years. Moody's considers that 2018 and 2019 tariff
adjustments were in line with parameters set during the tariff
review process, despite some judicial disputes during the process.

Also incorporated in the ratings is Sanepar's large capital
expenditure program of BRL7.6 billion over the next 5 years, which
is expected to absorb a large portion of the company's operating
cash flow in the coming years, and the relatively high dividend
payouts historically when compared to national peers. Moody's notes
that Sanepar has a manageable debt schedule, with a long-dated
maturity profile, with 55% of debt maturing beyond 5 years, and a
good track record in accessing debt markets.

The Ba2/Aa2.br ratings for the proposed BRL350 million senior
debentures due 2027-2029, despite their unsecured nature, are in
line with Sanepar's CFR, reflecting Moody's view that the pledges
attached to the secured portion of the company's debt obligations
are reflective of relatively loose pledges on future flow
receivables that do not bring additional recovery prospects upon
default to their creditors relative to other debt instruments
within the company's capital structure. Some of Sanepar's debt is
backed by three-month reserve accounts or secured against future
receivables which are dependent of the company's ability to operate
as a going concern.

The proposed debentures will be senior unsecured debt obligations
of Sanepar. They will include standard debt acceleration clauses
among which a change of the company's control by the State of
Parana (Ba2/Aa2.br), and inability to comply, for two consecutive
quarters or two quarters within any four quarter period, with
financial covenants consisting of Net Debt to EBITDA and EBITDA to
Net financial expenses ratios set at 3.0x and 1.5x respectively.

RATING OUTLOOK

The stable outlook incorporates the view that Sanepar's credit
metrics will remain adequately positioned for the Ba2 category, as
reflected in FFO to Net Debt in the 37%-40% range and FFO interest
coverage of 6.2x-6.6x.

WHAT COULD CHANGE THE RATING UP/DOWN

The company's credit profile is linked to that of the Government of
Brazil (Ba2 stable), given the domestic nature of its operations,
links to the local regulatory environment and some exposure to
government interference. Therefore, positive rating pressure on the
global scale is unlikely. That said, a longer track record of
consistent application of a transparent and predictable regulatory
framework and maintenance of strong credit metrics, such that FFO
interest coverage and FFO/net debt remain above 6.5x and 40%,
respectively, could lead to an upgrade of the ratings on the
national scale.

On the other hand, a downgrade of the ratings could result from
Moody's perception of a material change in the regulatory framework
under which Sanepar operates or a disruptive political interference
in the normal course of its business. A sustained deterioration in
the company's credit metrics, such that FFO/net debt declines below
25% and FFO interest coverage moves toward 4.0x, or a deterioration
in Brazil's sovereign credit quality could also lead to a
downgrade.

Headquartered in Curitiba, in the State of Parana (Ba2/Aa2.br
stable), Brazil, Sanepar was founded in 1963. As of September 30,
2019, Sanepar had more than 3.2 million water connections and more
than 2.2 million sewage connections to provide treatment and
distribution of water to more than 10 million consumers and sewage
services to 346 municipalities. Of these municipalities, 345 are in
the State of Parana, representing around 86% of the State's total
municipalities, and one municipality in the State of Santa
Catarina. Sanepar is controlled by the State of Parana, which owns
60.01% of the company's voting shares, and the remaining portion is
in free float. In the twelve months ended in September 30, 2019,
Sanepar reported net sales of BRL4.5 billion and net profit of
BRL1.0 billion.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Regulated Water
Utilities published in June 2018.




===========================
C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S
===========================

COMPASS CAYMAN: S&P Hikes ICR to 'BB-', Off CreditWatch
-------------------------------------------------------
S&P Global Ratings raised its issuer credit rating on Compass
Cayman SPV Ltd.'s to 'BB-' from 'B+'. At the same time, S&P removed
the rating from CreditWatch, where S&P placed it with positive
implications on Dec. 19, 2019, following JS Global's completion of
its IPO. The outlook is stable.

S&P said, "Concurrent with raising the issuer credit rating, we are
raising our issue-level rating on the company's senior secured debt
to 'BB-' from 'B+'. The recovery rating on this debt remains '3'.

"Our upgrade reflects the improved leverage profile of the company
due to the extinguishment of the put option.   The upgrade reflects
the company's materially improved credit metrics following the
extinguishment of the put option following the IPO of its parent
company JS Global, resulting in leverage of about 4x for the 12
months ended Sept. 30, 2019. JS Global used half of the IPO and
over-allotment proceeds, about $180 million, to repay the term loan
related to the SharkNinja acquisition, reducing leverage to the
2x-3x range for the group. We now expect Compass' adjusted leverage
to be 3.5x-4x for fiscal 2019 and 3.0x-3.5x for fiscal 2020
compared with our previous expectation of 6x-7x, including the put
option. Debt at JS Global will continue to be serviced by Joyoung
dividends.

"The stable outlook reflects our expectation that the company will
continue to grow organically through new product innovation and
geographic expansion while maintaining leverage below 4x over the
next 12 months.

"We could lower the ratings if the company's EBITDA declined such
that leverage were maintained above 4x. This could happen if
macroeconomic conditions worsened such that consumer discretionary
spending declined or if the company suffered unsuccessful product
launches, resulting in market share losses and declining margins.
We could also lower the ratings if the company or its parent, JS
Global, adopted a more aggressive financial policy through
debt-financed acquisitions or dividends such that leverage were
sustained above 4x. We could also lower the ratings if we
reassessed JS Global's group credit profile downward or Compass'
strategic importance to the group.

"Although unlikely over the next 12 months, we could raise the
ratings if the company were able to substantially increase its
revenue base, geographic diversification, and cash flow generation,
or if we forecast sustained leverage comfortably below 3x. We
believe this could occur if the company had very successful new
product launches that could capture significant share and help
penetrate new markets internationally."




===================================
D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C
===================================

DOMINICAN PETROLEUM: Refinery Shutdown Won’t Affect Fuel Supply
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the Dominican Petroleum Refinery PDV
said that its refining operations are halted on shutdown due to
plant maintenance.

It said the measure was started Jan. 25 and will last 18 days,
according to Dominican Today. The shutdown is only for the refining
process.

"During maintenance work, the supply of fuel to its customers will
continue on a regular and uninterrupted basis," said PDV Chief
Executive Officer Felix Jimenez, the report relates.

He added that the shutdown aims to prolong the life of the refinery
and "guarantee the integrity of the facilities in order to
facilitate the continuous operation of fueling the country," the
report notes.

                    About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district.

The Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America reported on April 4,
2019 that the Dominican Today related that Juan Del Rosario of the
UASD Economic Faculty cited a current economic slowdown for the
Dominican Republic and cautioned that if the trend continues,
growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del Rosario said that if
that happens, "we'll face difficulties in meeting international
commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Standard & Poor's credit rating for Dominican Republic stands at
BB- with stable outlook (2015). Moody's credit rating for Dominican
Republic was last set at Ba3 with stable outlook (2017). Fitch's
credit rating for Dominican Republic was last reported at BB- with
stable outlook (2016).




=============
J A M A I C A
=============

JAMAICA MERCHANT: Fitch Affirms BB+ Rating on Series 2015-1 Notes
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings affirmed the issue-specific ratings assigned to all
outstanding series of notes issued by Jamaica Merchant Voucher
Receivables Limited and Jamaica Diversified Payment Rights Company.
The Rating Outlook has been revised to Positive from Stable
following the revision of National Commercial Bank Jamaica's Rating
Outlook on Feb. 3, 2020 to Positive from Stable.


RATING ACTIONS

Jamaica Merchant Voucher Receivables Limited

Series 2015-1 470170AB7; LT BB+ Affirmed; previously at BB+

Series 2016-1 470170AD3; LT BB+ Affirmed; previously at BB+

Jamaica Diversified Payment Rights Company (DPR) (NCB)

Series 2013-1 G5005FAC7; LT BB Affirmed; previously at BB

TRANSACTION SUMMARY

Jamaica Merchant Voucher Receivables Limited is backed by future
flows due from Visa International Service Association and
MasterCard International Incorporated related to international
merchant vouchers acquired by National Commercial Bank Jamaica Ltd.
in Jamaica.

Jamaica Diversified Payment Rights Co. is backed by existing and
future U.S. dollar-denominated diversified payment rights
originated by NCBJ. DPRs are defined as electronic or other
messages used by financial institutions to instruct NCBJ to make
payment to a beneficiary. The majority of DPRs are processed by
designated depository banks that have executed agreements
obligating them to send payments to accounts controlled by the
transaction trustee.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Originator's Credit Quality: The rating of this future flow
transaction is tied to the credit quality of the originator, NCBJ.
On Feb. 3, 2020, Fitch affirmed NCBJ's Long-Term Issuer Default
Rating (IDR) at 'B+' and revised the Rating Outlook to Positive
from Stable following the revision of Jamaica's Rating Outlook to
Positive from Stable on Jan. 29, 2020. The Jamaican operating
environment remains the principal constraint on NCBJ's ratings.

Going Concern Assessment (GCA): Fitch assigned NCBJ a GCA score of
'GC1' based on the bank's systemic importance. The 'GC1'
theoretically allows the maximum rating uplift from the bank's IDR
pursuant to Fitch's future flow methodology. However, the agency
limits the rating uplift for the future flow series due to factors
mentioned.

Future Flow Debt Size: NCBJ's total outstanding future flow debt
(FF) represented approximately 7.1% of the bank's total funding and
16.4% of non-deposit funding considering outstanding consolidated
program balances as of January 2020 and financials as of September
2019. Although Fitch considers the current ratios small enough to
allow the future flow ratings the maximum uplift at the aggregate
outstanding balance, Fitch considers the future flow programs will
continue to remain an active source of long-term funding for NCBJ.
Additionally, the agency limits the rating uplift for the future
flow programs to three notches for the MV program and two notches
for the DPR program due to factors mentioned, including Fitch
reserving the maximum uplift for originator's rated at the lower
end of the rating scale.

Merchant Voucher Program Strength and Notching Uplift: The uplift
for the MV program's series is currently limited to three notches:
NCBJ's market-leading and dominant credit card franchise has been
supporting strong levels of international Visa and Mastercard. As
of June 2019, NCBJ acquired over 50% of the total market value of
card transactions. The reported maximum debt service coverage ratio
(DSCR) has been close to 7x on average since the 2016 issuance, but
the tourism industry and related economic activities drive
international MV volumes and the transaction remains exposed to a
drop in tourism. Devaluation risk is also present. However, Fitch
considers it is somewhat mitigated because merchants generally
adjust Jamaican dollar prices according to U.S. dollars.

DPR Line's Moderate Strength and Notching Uplift: Fitch considers
the strength of the DPR flows as moderate and further tempers the
notching uplift for the Jamaican DPR program (JDPR). JDPR involves
top beneficiaries that are NCBJ affiliates as well as entities with
high domestically originated, government-related and/or capital
flows (which Fitch sees as more volatile than export-related
payments and remittances). Excluding 65% of flows from these
entities, reported quarterly DSCRs have been 49.5x on average since
the 2013 issuance. This is in line with Fitch's expectations at
closing. A two notch uplift is currently applied to the JDPR's
series.

Potential Redirection/Diversion Risk: The structure mitigates
certain sovereign risks by collecting cash flows offshore until
collection of periodic debt service amount. Fitch believes
diversion risk is partially mitigated by the consent & agreements
or acknowledgments signed by Visa and Mastercard (in the case of
JMVR) or DDBs (in the case of JDPR).

RATING SENSITIVITIES

The transaction's ratings are sensitive to changes in the credit
quality of National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited. The ratings
are sensitive to changes to the bank's IDR; the ability of the
credit card acquiring and DPR business line to continue operating,
as reflected by the GCA score; and changes in the sovereign
environment and ratings assigned to the Jamaican sovereign. Changes
in Fitch's view of the bank's GCA score can lead to a change in the
transaction's rating. Additionally, the MV program could also be
sensitive to significant changes in the credit quality of Visa or
Mastercard to a lesser extent. Any changes in these variables will
be analyzed in a rating committee to assess the possible impact on
the transaction ratings.

The transaction's ratings are sensitive to the performance of the
securitized business line. DSCRs have been 49.5x on average since
the 2013 issuance for the DPR program and over 7.0x for the MV
program since the 2016 issuance. Both programs should be able to
withstand a significant decline in cash flows in the absence of
other issues. Fitch performed sensitivity analysis on the strength
of collections. Severe reductions in coverage levels could result
in rating downgrades.




=====================
P U E R T O   R I C O
=====================

BAHIA DEL SOL: Triangle Seeks Extension to Reply to Property Sale
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Triangle Cayman Asset Co. 2, secured creditor of Bahia del Sol
Hotel Corp., asks the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of
Puerto Rico to grant an additional extension of time of 14 days to
state its position as to the Debtor's proposed sale of the real
property currently known as "Plaza Parguera Hotel" located at La
Parguera Ward, Road 304, Km. 3.2, Lajas, Puerto Rico, to Puerto
Rico Asset Management, LLC for $1.3 million, subject to overbid.

On Aug. 16, 2019, Triangle filed Proof of Claim 9 in the amount of
$1,141,306, which repayment is secured with, among other things,
property 15,629, located at Road 305, La Parguera, Lajas, where the
Debtor operates its hotel business ("Real Estate Property").

During the status conference held on Aug. 21, 2019, the Debtor
stated it would be filing a motion to sell the Real Estate Property
by Sept. 30, 2019.

On Sept. 27, 2019, the Debtor requested an extension to file the
motion to sell, which the Court granted, until Oct. 21, 2019.

On Oct. 21, 2019, the Debtor and Triangle jointly requested another
extension to file the motion to sell because good faith
negotiations for the consensual repayment of the Triangle Claim
were ongoing.  As a result, the Court granted such request until
Nov. 22, 2019.

On Nov. 22, 2019, the Debtor filed the Motion.  On Dec. 27, 2019,
after having sought an initial extension of time to respond to the
Motion, Triangle sought an additional 10 days due to the fact that,
on Dec. 24, 2019, Triangle circulated a draft of a proposed
agreement to the Debtor's counsel; the current timeframe to file
responses to the Motion expired.

In consideration of the above, Triangle needs additional time to
allow the Parties to discuss the proposed agreement, in order to
finalize and execute the same.  Thus, Triangle asks the Court to
grant it an additional extension of time of 14 days to allow the
Parties to finalize and execute a stipulation as to the repayment
of Triangle's claim, or in the alternative, for Triangle to
otherwise plead in connection with the Motion.

                 About Bahia Del Sol Corporation

Bahia Del Sol Hotel Corporation filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy
petition (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 19-03234) on June 5, 2019,
estimating under $1 million in both assets and liabilities.  The
Debtor tapped Noemi Landrau Rivera, Esq., at Landrau Rivera &
Assoc., as counsel.


STAR PETROLEUM: Case Summary & 6 Unsecured Creditors
----------------------------------------------------
Debtor: Star Petroleum, Corp.
        165 Road Street Km 10.1
        Contorno Ward
        Toa Alta, PR 00953

Business Description: Star Petroleum, Corp. is a privately held
                      company based in Puerto Rico.

Chapter 11 Petition Date: February 5, 2020

Court: United States Bankruptcy Court
       District of Puerto Rico

Case No.: 20-00558

Debtor's Counsel: Charles A. Cuprill Hernandez, Esq.
             CHARLES A. CUPRILL, PSC LAW OFFICES
                  356 Fortaleza Street
                  Second Floor
                  San Juan, PR 00901
                  Tel: 787-977-0515
                  Email: ccuprill@cuprill.com

Total Assets: $0

Total Liabilities: $6,782,500

The petition was signed by Sami Abraham, president.

A copy of the petition containing, among other items, a list of
the
Debtor's six unsecured creditors is available for free at
PacerMonitor.com at:

                     https://is.gd/kFCTMB



                           *********


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
co-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Fairless
Hills, Pennsylvania, USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, D.C.,
USA, Marites O. Claro, Joy A. Agravante, Rousel Elaine T.
Fernandez, Julie Anne L. Toledo, Ivy B. Magdadaro, and Peter A.
Chapman, Editors.

Copyright 2020.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2746.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without prior
written permission of the publishers.

Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
be reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR Latin America subscription rate is US$775 per half-year,
delivered via e-mail.  Additional e-mail subscriptions for members
of the same firm for the term of the initial subscription or
balance thereof are US$25 each.  For subscription information,
contact Peter A. Chapman at 215-945-7000.
.


                  * * * End of Transmission * * *