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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

          Monday, June 20, 2022, Vol. 23, No. 116

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Annual Inflation Rate Reaches 61% as Investors Worry


B R A Z I L

BANCO DE BRASILIA: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Neg.
BANESTES SA: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Negative
BANRISUL: Fitch Affirms BB- LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Negative
ELETROBRAS: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable
FS AGRISOLUTIONS: Moody's Upgrades CFR to Ba3, Outlook Stable

USINAS SIDERURGICAS: Fitch Affirms BB LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable


C H I L E

INVERSIONES LATIN AMERICA: Fitch Puts USD403MM Notes on Watch Neg.
LATAM AIRLINES: To Get $2.75BB in New Loans for Bankruptcy Exit
VTR FINANCE: Fitch Affirms 'BB' IDRs & Alters Outlook to Negative


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Eye Savings by Switching to Natural Gas
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: New Province Draws Wide Rebuke
[*] DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Not at Risk of LPG Shortage


G U A T E M A L A

GUATEMALA: Moody's Affirms 'Ba1' Issuer Rating, Outlook Stable


G U Y A N A

GUYANA: Gets S$83.3MM IDB Loan to Promote Use of Energy Sources


M E X I C O

CEMEX SAB: Fitch Raises Currency Issuer Default Ratings to 'BB+'


P A N A M A

CABLE & WIRELESS: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable


P E R U

SAN MARTIN CONTRATISTAS: Fitch Withdraws B- Issuer Default Ratings


P U E R T O   R I C O

ESJ TOWERS: Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy With $39MM Debt


T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O

TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES: 376 Workers to Get New Lay-Off Letters


X X X X X X X X

[*] BOND PRICING: For the Week June 13 to June 17, 2022

                           - - - - -


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

ARGENTINA: Annual Inflation Rate Reaches 61% as Investors Worry
---------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Gillespie at Bloomberg News reports that Argentina's
monthly inflation slowed slightly more than expected in May, with
price gains reaching almost 61 percent in annual terms as investors
worry about the government's ability to pay its local debt.

Consumer prices rose 5.1 percent last month from April, just below
a 5.2 percent median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
From a year ago, inflation climbed to 60.7 percent, a new 30-year
high, according to government data published, according to
Bloomberg News.

Health costs shot up 6.2 percent from the previous month, the
report notes.  Transport, clothing and shoes, and restaurants and
hotels were also categories that rose above the headline figure,
the report relays.

Argentina is facing one of the world's more damaging inflation
spikes, and the Central Bank is very likely to boost the key
interest rate in response to the price increases, the report
discloses.  The government has been focusing its efforts on curbing
inflation through price freezes, the report notes.

High inflation has also rattled investors, who are increasingly
concerned that the government can pay its inflation-linked peso
bonds, which make up about 80 percent of the government's local
debt obligations, the report relays.  So far in June, investors
have withdrawn 10 percent of total inflation-linked assets, the
biggest drop on record, the report relays.

Economy Minister Martin Guzman has emphatically stated the
government will always pay its peso-denominated debt, the report
notes.  A new government debt auction will likely test market
appetite after sell-off, the report adds.

The jitters also follow the International Monetary Fund's first
review of its US$44-billion program with the country, the report
relays.  The IMF said the path to achieving its year-end targets,
such as its fiscal deficit and reserve accumulation, may shift due
to the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the report notes.

Economists surveyed by the Central Bank forecast inflation ending
this year at nearly 73 percent, the report adds.

                         About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of South
America.  Its 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.

Standard & Poor's credit rating for Argentina stands at CCC+ with
stable outlook, which was a rating upgrade issued on Sept. 8,
2020.

Moody's credit rating for Argentina was last set at Ca on Sept. 28,
2020.  Fitch's credit rating for Argentina was last reported on
Sept. 11, 2020 at CCC, which was a rating upgrade from CC.  DBRS'
credit rating for Argentina is CCC, given on Sept. 11, 2020.  

As reported by The Troubled Company Reporter - Latin American, DBRS
noted that the recent upgrade in Argentina's ratings (September
2020) follows the closing of two debt restructuring agreements
between the Argentine government and private creditors.  The first
restructuring involved $65 billion in foreign-law bonds.  The deal
achieved the requisite participation necessary to trigger the
collective action clauses and finalize the restructuring on 99% on
the aggregate principal outstanding of eligible bonds.  DBRS added
that the debt restructurings conclude a prolonged default and
provide the government with substantial principal and interest
payment relief over the next four years.

Argentina obtained on March 25, 2022, approval from the Executive
Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of a 30-month
extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF)
amounting to SDR 31.914 billion (equivalent to US$44 billion).
Under the new terms, Argentina secured a much-needed grace period
that postpones repayment of its debt. However, IMF warned of
exceptionally high risks to the program.




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

BANCO DE BRASILIA: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Neg.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Banco de Brasilia S.A.'s (BRB) Long-Term
Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB-',
and Long-Term National Rating at 'A+(bra)'. The Rating Outlook on
the Long-Term IDRs is Negative, and the Outlook on the Long-Term
National Rating is Stable. In addition, Fitch has affirmed BRB's
Viability Rating (VR) at 'bb-', and Shareholder Support Rating at
'b'.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Ratings Driven by VR: BRB's Long-Term Local Currency and Foreign
Currency IDRs are driven by its 'bb-' Viability Rating (VR). The
bank's VR reflects its resilient company profile and captures the
limitations imposed by the Brazilian operating environment. BRB
continues to maintain its strong franchise in the Federal District
with a stable and diversified retail funding base. BRB's National
Ratings provide a relative measure of credit risk among issuers in
Brazil.

Operating Environment Revision: Fitch revised the Brazilian banking
system's operating environment (OE) score to 'bb-', reflecting the
banking system's resilience. However, the operating environment
assessment remains constrained by the country's sovereign rating.
Brazil's ratings are supported by its large and diverse economy,
high per capita income relative to peers and capacity to absorb
external shocks underpinned by its flexible exchange rate, moderate
external imbalances, robust international reserves and deep
domestic government debt market. This is counterbalanced by
Brazil's high financing needs and government debt, a rigid fiscal
structure, weak economic growth potential and a difficult political
landscape that hampers timely progress on fiscal and economic
reforms.

Development of Digital Bank: BRB has invested in its digital
platforms in order to expand its operations to other Brazilian
states, which could strengthen and diversify its revenues sources.
At March 2022, the bank reported 2.9 million digital accounts,
including 200,000 new clients in the last quarter (2.6 million over
the past 12 months). Digital accounts now correspond to 66% of
BRB's total client base. Fitch believes although the digital
strategy may initially pressure the institution's results, due to
the increase in expenses, in the long term, it should expand the
bank's franchise, bringing scale gains and cross-selling
opportunities.

As a result of this strategy, BRB's credit card portfolio reached
6.6% of gross loans in March 2022 from 4.9% a year before. At March
2022, payroll deductible loans and mortgages made up 43% and 19.2%
of gross loans, respectively. Both portfolios present low credit
risk due to the robustness of the type of guarantee.

Digital Bank Growth Drives Asset Quality Trend: As a result of its
strategy to develop its digital bank, BRB's asset quality ratios
have deteriorated over the past two years; however, asset quality
remains manageable and aligned with peers. Loans classified in the
'D-H' range stood at 5.8% of gross loans at March 2022 from 5.4%
and 4.3% at YE 2020 and YE 2019, respectively. During the same
period, non-performing loans (NPLs) increased to 3.1% of gross
loans from 2.5% and 1.4%.

Fitch expects asset quality trends to remain linked with the
bank´s growth appetite for unsecured loans, although these will
remain manageable given BRB's high proportion of secured loans in
its portfolio, which reached 62.3% at March 2022. Fitch has
affirmed BRB's Asset Quality assessment at 'b+'/Outlook Stable.

Profitability to Remain Pressured in 2022: Before 2021, BRB
historically reported high profitability ratios. However, over the
past year the bank's profitability materially deteriorated as a
result of higher loan provisions and higher fixed costs. The bank
reported an operating profit to risk-weighted assets (RWAs) ratio
of 0.9% at March 2022 compared with 0.7% at YE 2021. This ratio
averaged a high 4.5% over the last four years. Fitch expects BRB's
2022 performance to remain pressured and below its historical
average due to the limited ability to increase interest rates on an
important part of its loan portfolio in a rising interest rate
environment, expansion costs and higher provisions.

However, Fitch believes that BRB's long-term profitability could
benefit from the ongoing development of its business verticals,
although success depends on its proper execution. Despite the
recent decline in profitability, Fitch has recalibrated BRB's
Earnings and Profitability assessment to 'bb-' from 'b+'/Outlook
Stable, as the benchmark range for this indicator changed after
Fitch revised the OE score.

Capitalization Could Limit Expansion: In March 2022, BRB reported a
10.3% common equity tier 1 ratio (CET 1) from 12.7% at YE 2021, a
level that is below peers. This reduction in capitalization metrics
was a result of the observed growth of RWAs in the last quarter of
11.7%, coupled with lower internal capital generation. Fitch
believes BRB's current capitalization levels could limit its
capacity to sustain its growth trajectory and reduce its capacity
to absorb unexpected losses. Fitch has affirmed BRB's
Capitalization and Leverage assessment at 'b+'/Outlook Stable.

Stable Funding and Liquidity: The bank's funding and liquidity
remained good and stable. BRB funds its loan book through a
combination of low-cost retail deposits, deposits from related
parties (mainly Governo do Distrito Federal [GDF]) and judicial
deposits. Customer deposits and local financial bills, which are
very similar to deposits, made up 63% of total funding at March
2022, leading to a loan to customers deposits ratio of 81.3%. Fitch
also recalibrated BRB's Funding and Liquidity assessment to 'bb-'
from 'b+'/Outlook Stable due to the revised OE score.

Shareholder Support Rating: The SSR reflects Fitch's view that the
Government of Federal District (GDF) has relatively limited
capacity to support BRB should the need arise, despite its
willingness to do so. BRB is strategically important for GDF, as it
is the local government's main financial agent, and has a
meaningful market share in the state's loans and deposits. In
addition to its commercial operations, BRB performs a policy role
for the region through lending operations that promote development
and economic growth. BRB's SSR is driven by Fitch's internal
opinion of GDF's creditworthiness.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- A downgrade of Brazil's sovereign rating, due to the
    constraint of the sovereign ratings on the bank's Long-Term
    IDRs and VR.

-- A sustained decline in the operating profit/RWA ratio below
    1.5%.

-- A sustained deterioration in the bank's CET1 ratio below 10%.

Shareholder Support Rating

--Material negative changes in Fitch's assessment of GDF's ability
and willingness to provide support to BRB could affect the SSR of
the bank.


Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- A sustained recovery in the macroeconomic environment,
    including a reduction of vulnerabilities in the Brazilian
    economy that could underpin an IDR's Outlook revision to
    Stable.

-- Although unlikely, an upgrade of the sovereign.

-- BRB's IDRs have a Negative Outlook, which makes an upgrade in
    the near future highly unlikely. However, improvements in the
    bank's operating profits/RWA ratio above 3%, coupled with a
    strengthening of its CET 1 ratio above 13% in the context of a

    sovereign upgrade could be positive for creditworthiness.

Shareholder Support Rating

-- Positive changes in Fitch's assessment of GDF's ability and
    willingness to provide support to BRB could affect the SR of
    the bank.

NATIONAL RATINGS

BRB's National ratings may be affected by a change in Fitch's
perception of the bank's local relativities with respect to other
Brazilian entities.

VR ADJUSTMENTS

The Viability Rating has been assigned in line with the implied
Viability Rating.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Financial Institutions and
Covered Bond issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario
(defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in
a positive direction) of three notches over a three-year rating
horizon; and a worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative
direction) of four notches over three years. The complete span of
best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating
categories ranges from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario
credit ratings are based on historical performance.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

BRB´s ESG Relevance Score for Governance Structure was changed to
'3' from '4' reflecting the observed reduction of GDF government
influence and interference on the bank's policies it controls in
recent years. Fitch views BRB's corporate governance as adequate
and stable, with no major changes in the overall long-term strategy
of the bank.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT       RATING                                   PRIOR
   ----       ------                                   -----

BRB –     
Banco de
Brasilia SA

          LT IDR                 BB-       Affirmed    BB-

          ST IDR                 B         Affirmed    B

          LC LT IDR              BB-       Affirmed    BB-

          LC ST IDR              B         Affirmed    B

          Natl LT                A+(bra)   Affirmed    A+(bra)

          Natl ST                F1(bra)   Affirmed    F1(bra)

          Viability              bb-       Affirmed    bb-

          Shareholder Support    b         Affirmed    b


BANESTES SA: Fitch Affirms 'BB' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Negative
---------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Banestes SA - Banco do Estado do
Espirito Santo's (Banestes) Long-Term, Foreign- and Local-Currency
Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB-'. The Rating Outlook on the
IDRs is Negative. In addition, Fitch has upgraded the bank's
National Long-Term Rating (NLTR) to 'AA-(bra)' from 'A+(bra)'. The
Outlook on the NLTR is Stable.

Banestes' NLTR upgrade reflects Fitch's view that the bank has
maintained its financial profile, which compares better in
relativity with its peers (with ratings in A(bra) range). The
stability of the bank's solid profitability, capitalization and
funding/liquidity core metrics over the past two and a half years
underpins Fitch's view.

Fitch has withdrawn Banestes' Support Rating of '4' as it is no
longer relevant to the agency's coverage following the publication
of its updated Bank Rating Criteria on Nov. 12, 2021. In line with
the updated criteria, Fitch has assigned Banestes a Shareholder
Support Rating (GSR) of 'b+'.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

IDRs Driven By VR: Baneste's IDRs are driven by its intrinsic
strength, as reflected in its 'bb-' Viability Rating (VR). The VR
reflects the continuity of the bank's stable business profile,
which has a robust regional franchise, but limited market share and
size in the national financial system and its solid financial
profile. As a subnational-owned bank, a relevant part of its
strategy is focused on providing services and granting credit to
state and municipal public employees, as well as companies
interested in investing in the subnational. The ratings also
reflect Banestes's risk profile with risk controls aligned with the
practices of major national banks.

Operating Environment Revision: Fitch revised the Brazilian banking
system's operating environment (OE) score to 'bb-' from 'b+'
reflecting banking system resilience. However, the operating
environment assessment remains constrained by the country's
sovereign rating. Fitch also analyzed Banestes's operating
environment given the bank's high regional importance and
concentration in the state.

Stable Business Profile: Banestes operates as a commercial bank,
serving both companies and individuals and has a strong presence in
the Espirito Santos State, with a 35% market share in
credit/securities and 38% in total deposits as of December 2021.
Banestes has a stable business profile and offers a wide range of
financial products and services. Like other public entities,
Banestes is potentially subject to political influence, given its
control structure, despite its solid corporate governance
structure.

Moderate Risk Profile: Banestes has a moderate risk appetite, with
underwriting standards in line with major banks. Credit risk is the
most capital consuming, representing 83% of total risk-weighted
assets in March 2022. The portfolio consisted of mainly retail
payroll loans (64%), and working capital corporate (36%). The
top-10 largest borrowers represented less than 5% of total loans in
the period. Market risk in relation to risk-weighted assets was
lower, 2.9% in March 2022. The securities portfolio consisted
mainly of federal government securities.

Adequate Asset Quality: The bank's asset quality is adequate;
Banestes's non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio has remained
controlled and adequate at 1.8% in March 2022 (2.1% in 2021 and
1.9% in 2020). Impaired Loans in the 'D-H' risk range totaled 5.6%
of the portfolio in 1Q22, compared with 6.0% in 2021 and 7.4% in
2020. The core metric averaged 8.8% from 2018 to 2021. Provisions
for loan losses covered 70.9% of impaired loans (D-H) in 1Q22 and
2021. Fitch believes that the bank will be able to manage the
portfolio quality and maintain pre-pandemic figures.

Strong Profitability: Banestes's profitability ratios were strong,
with operating profit/RWAs ratio of 3.5% in 2021 and 3.4% in 2020,
an average of 3.2% between 2018 and 2021. In the 1Q22, the ratio
increased to high 4.5%, explained mainly by the positives results
from the federal securities exposures due to rising interest
rates.

Good Level of Capitalization: Banestes presents a good and stable
capitalization level. In March 2022, the Common Equity Tier 1
Capital ratio was 15.8% (15.6% at 2021 and 15.4% at 2020). The
expanded loan leverage was conservative, around 5x equity in March
2022 and December 2021. Fitch believes that the bank's
capitalization position remains adequate and sufficient to maintain
its strategy over the medium term.

Stable and Diversified Funding: Banestes's funding structure is
stable and diversified. The bank's main financing sources come from
demand deposits, savings and time deposits. Banestes's
Loans/Deposits ratio was 34.5% in March 2022 and 34.9% in 2021.
This core metric averaged 35.8% from 2018 to 2021, among the
strongest ratios compared with peers. The bank's liquidity is
adequate and Fitch expects the bank's loans/deposits ratio to
increase over the medium term due Banestes's to plans to increase
its loan portfolio.

Strategically Important to State of Espirito Santos: Banestes' SSR
of 'b+' reflects the limited likelihood of support from its
controlling shareholder, the State of Espirito Santo. Fitch
believes that the state would have a high propensity but limited
capacity to support the bank, if necessary. Banestes is
strategically important for Espirito Santo, as it acts as its main
tax collection agent, making transfers to municipalities and is
responsible for cash management. In addition, public entities, to
which the bank provides services and grants credit to suppliers, as
well as payroll deductible credits to public employees, make up an
important portion of Banestes's business.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:
IDR and VR

-- The ratings may be downgraded if the bank presents a material
    deterioration in its asset quality, which compromises its
    profitability indicators, with an operating profits/risk
    weighted assets ratio sustained below 1.5% for more than two
    fiscal periods;

-- Deterioration in its capital position with a Tier 1 Capital
    ratio less than 12% and significant outflows of its funding
    base that compromises its liquidity can also lead to negative
    actions;

-- In addition, negative actions on the sovereign's IDRs would
    result in similar actions for the bank's IDRs.

SSR

-- Banestes's SR would be revised if there is any change in its
    strategic importance or changes in the capacity or propensity
    of the State of Espirito Santo to provide support to the bank.

NATIONAL RATINGS

-- Banestes' National Ratings would be downgraded by a change in
    Fitch's perception of the bank's local relativity with other
    entities.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

IDR and VR

-- There is limited possibility of positive actions in the medium

    term, given the current operating environment, but a sustained

    recovery of the macroeconomic environment, including the
    reduction of vulnerabilities in the Brazilian economy, could
    support a revision of the Outlook to Stable.

SSR

-- Banestes' SR would be revised if there is any change in its
    strategic importance or changes in the capacity or propensity
    of the State of Espirito Santo to provide support to the bank.

NATIONAL RATINGS

-- Banestes' National Ratings would be upgraded by a change in
    Fitch's perception of the bank's local relativity with other
    entities.

VR ADJUSTMENTS

The VR has been assigned in line with the implied VR.

The Funding and Liquidity score of 'bb' has been assigned below the
'bbb' category implied score due to the following adjustment
reasons: Historical and Future Metrics.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Financial Institutions and
Covered Bond issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario
(defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in
a positive direction) of three notches over a three-year rating
horizon; and a worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative
direction) of four notches over three years. The complete span of
best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating
categories ranges from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario
credit ratings are based on historical performance.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Banestes´s ESG Relevance Score for Governance Structure was
changed to '3' from '4' reflecting the observed reduction of the
subnational government's influence and interference in the policies
of the banks it controls in recent years. Fitch views Banestes'
corporate governance as strong and stable, with no major changes in
the overall long-term strategy of the bank.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT             RATING                                 PRIOR
   ----             ------                                 -----

Banestes S.A. –   
Banco
do Estado do
Espirito Santo    LT IDR               BB-       Affirmed  BB-

                  LC LT IDR            BB-       Affirmed  BB-

                  Natl LT              AA-(bra)  Upgrade   A+(bra)


                  Viability            bb-       Affirmed  bb-

                  Shareholder Support  b+        New Rating


BANRISUL: Fitch Affirms BB- LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Negative
-----------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Banco do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul
S.A.'s (Banrisul) Long-Term, Foreign Currency and Local Currency
Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB-'. The Rating Outlook on the
IDRs is Negative. In addition, Fitch has upgraded the bank's
National Long-Term Rating (NLTR) to 'AA-(bra)' from 'A+(bra)'. The
Rating Outlook on the NLTR is Stable.

Banrisul's NLTR upgrade reflects Fitch's view that the bank has
maintained capitalization and leverage ratios above peers (with
ratings in the A(bra) category) for the past two and a half years.
It also reflects the resilience of its business and risk profile
and a lower influence of the State of Rio Grande do Sul's operating
environment on the bank's financial profile.

Fitch has withdrawn Banrisul's Support Rating of '4' and Support
Rating Floor of 'B' as they are no longer relevant to the agency's
coverage following the publication of its updated Bank Rating
Criteria on Nov. 12, 2021. In line with the updated criteria. Fitch
has assigned Banrisul a Government Support Rating (GSR) of 'b'.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

IDRs Driven By VR: Banrisuls's IDRs are driven by its intrinsic
strength, as reflected in its 'bb-' Viability Rating (VR). The VR
reflects stability of the bank's business profile and its moderate
risk appetite, with risks controls in line with major banks.
Banrisul operates as a commercial bank, serving both companies and
individuals and presents an adequate financial profile.

Operating Environment Revision: Fitch revised the Brazilian banking
system operating environment (OE) score to 'bb-' from 'b',
reflecting banking system resilience. However, the OE assessment
remains constrained by the country's sovereign rating. Fitch also
analyzed Rio Grande do Sul's operating environment given the bank's
high regional importance and concentration in the state; however,
the state's impact on the operating environment has been limited,
as evidenced by the bank's recent good financial performance.

Resilient Business Profile: Banrisul has a resilient and stable
business profile and offers a wide range of financial products and
services. The ratings also reflect adequate management quality and
stable strategies. Banrisul operates as a commercial bank, serving
both companies and individuals. The bank has a strong presence in
Rio Grande do Sul, with a 20% market share in credit and 40% in
term deposits as of February 2022.

Moderate Risk Profile: Banrisul has a moderate risk appetite, with
risk controls in line with major banks. Loans to individuals
corresponded to the main part of the total portfolio in 1Q2022,
with a predominance of payroll loans. The top 10 borrowers
accounted for only 2.4% of total loans; historically this ratio is
low. The bank has a regional concentration, with more the 95% of
its credit originated in southern region, mainly in the state of
Rio Grande do Sul. In 2021 and 1Q22, the bank kept the size of its
loan portfolio relatively stable. It is expected that the bank will
accelerate credit growth in the second half of 2022, especially in
the agrobusiness and real estate segments.

Adequate Asset Quality: Fitch considers asset quality to be
adequate. The 90-day NPL ratio corresponded to 2.0% of total loans
in 1Q22 compared with 2.1% 2021, 2.3% in 2020 and 3.4% in 2019.
Impaired loans, in the 'D-H' risk range, totaled 8.4% in 1Q22,
compared with 8.5% in 2021, 10.2% in 2020 and 11.3% in 2019. The
core metric impaired loans ratio averaged 10.7% for the four years
ending in 2021.

Drop in Profitability Still Acceptable: Banrisul's profitability
ratios remain acceptable, with operating profit/RWAs of 2.5% in
2021 and 2.3% in 2020, from an average of 3.1% between 2018 and
2021. In 1Q22, the ratio decreased to 1.1%, explained mainly by a
higher flow of expenses with provision for credit losses and
reduction in the financial margin. Fitch understands that the
earnings remain volatile in the short/medium term due to the
volatility of the Brazilian economy.

Good Level of Capitalization: Capitalization was satisfactory with
a CET1 capital ratio of 15.1% in March 2022. During 2021, the bank
reinforced its regulatory capital with the issuance of subordinated
debt, resulting in a total regulatory capital ratio of 17.6% in
March 2022 and 18.4% at end-2021.

Stable and Diversified Funding: One of Banrisul's strengths is its
stable and diversified funding base with clients with savings
accounts and time deposits. In Fitch's opinion, liquidity is
adequate, while the bank's policy of minimum cash is conservative.
The bank's loans/deposits ratio was an adequate 67.9% in 1Q22
compared with a four-year average from 2018 to 2021 of 65.5%.

Limited Support from Federal Government: Fitch does not assign a
Shareholder Support Rating (SSR) to Banrisul given the current low
ability support of Rio Grande do Sul´s State to the bank. However,
Fitch considers a limited likelihood of support from the federal
government during a crisis scenario due to the bank's relative
moderate systemic importance. Banrisul, as subnational bank, was
the 12th largest financial institution in Brazil, as of September
2021, in terms of assets and 10th in deposit volume. There are no
explicit guarantees of support from the federal government.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

IDRs and VR

-- A sustained decline in the operating profits/RWAs ratio
    average below 1.5% and increase in the four-year average of
    the impaired loan ratio above 10.0%;

-- A sustained deterioration in the bank's CET1 ratio below 12%;

-- Any negative change in Fitch's opinion on the State of Rio
    Grande do Sul's operating and economic situation, given the
    bank's strong presence and concentration in this state;

-- In addition, a downgrade of the Sovereign Rating of Brazil
    would result in a similar action on the bank's Long-Term IDRs.

GSR

-- The GSR is potentially sensitive to any change in Fitch's view

    of the sovereign's propensity or ability to provide support to

    the bank should the need arises.

NATIONAL RATINGS

-- Banrisul's National Ratings would be downgraded by a change in

    Fitch's perception of the bank's local relativity with other
    entities.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

IDRs and VR

-- While not likely given the current operating environment, a
    sustained recovery in the macroeconomic environment, including

    a reduction of vulnerabilities in the Brazilian economy, that
    underpins the revision of the Sovereign Outlook to Stable;

-- While highly unlikely given the current operating environment,

    an upgrade of Brazil's Sovereign Rating.

GSR

-- The GSR is potentially sensitive to any change in Fitch's view

    of the sovereign's propensity or ability to provide support to

    the bank should the need arise.

NATIONAL RATINGS

-- Banrisul's National Ratings would be upgraded by a change in
    Fitch's perception of the bank's local relativity with other
    entities.

OTHER DEBT AND ISSUER RATINGS: KEY RATING DRIVERS

Fitch has affirmed the rating on Banrisul´s subordinated notes,
which are eligible as Tier 2 capital and due in 2031, at ´B`.
These subordinated notes are rated two notches below its VR of
'bb-'. The notching is driven by the notes' high expected loss
severity. No notching for non-performance is applied because
coupons are not deferrable and the write-off trigger is close to
the point of non-viability. As a result, Fitch believes that the
incremental non-performance risk is not material from a rating
perspective.

OTHER DEBT AND ISSUER RATINGS: RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- The subordinated debt rating will be downgraded if Banrisul's
    VR is downgraded.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- The subordinated debt rating will be upgraded if Banrisul's VR

    is upgraded.

VR ADJUSTMENTS

The VR has been assigned in line with the implied VR.

The Earning and Profitability score of 'b+' has been assigned below
the 'bb' category implied score due to the following adjustment
reasons: Earnings Stability.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Financial Institutions and
Covered Bond issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario
(defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in
a positive direction) of three notches over a three-year rating
horizon; and a worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative
direction) of four notches over three years. The complete span of
best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating
categories ranges from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario
credit ratings are based on historical performance.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Banrisul's ESG Relevance Score for Governance Structure was changed
to '3' from '4' reflecting the observed reduction of the
Subnational government's influence and interference in the policies
of the banks it controls in recent years. Fitch views Banrisul's
corporate governance as strong and stable, with no major changes in
the overall long-term strategy of the bank.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT              RATING                                PRIOR
   ----              ------                                -----

Banco do Estado    
do Rio Grande
do Sul S.A.        LT IDR         BB-         Affirmed     BB-

                   LC LT IDR      BB-         Affirmed     BB-

                   Natl LT        AA-(bra)    Upgrade      A+(bra)


                   Viability      bb-         Affirmed     bb-

                   Support Floor  WD          Withdrawn    B

subordinated       LT             B           Affirmed     B


ELETROBRAS: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable
-------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras S.A.'s
(Eletrobras) Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Default
Ratings (IDRs) and outstanding senior unsecured bond ratings at
'BB-'. Eletrobras' National Scale ratings, as well as its rated
subsidiaries and their outstanding local debentures ratings were
also affirmed at 'AA(bra)'. The Rating Outlook on the IDRs has been
revised to Stable from Negative. The Outlook for the National Scale
ratings remains Stable.

The Outlook revision to Stable for the IDRs reflects the weakened
linkage between the company and the Brazilian sovereign rating
(BB-/Negative) following the privatization of the company's shares.
Fitch rates Eletrobras on a standalone basis since the government
now owns less than 50% of the shares and will likely only control
one or two of 11 board seats after the board election. The
government retains the right to veto changes to the company's
bylaws.

Fitch has withdrawn the company's standalone credit profile (SCP)
assessment of 'bb-' since the company is now rated on a standalone
basis and not equalized with the sovereign. The rating also
reflects the consolidation of the 3,568MW hydro plant Santo
Antonio, the deconsolidation of Eletronuclear and anticipated
increases in the tariffs of the capacity currently sold under the
Quota regime.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Standalone Approach Following Privatization: The Brazilian
government and state-run development bank BNDES completed the sale
of 697 million shares at BRL42 per share, or USD8.56, reducing its
ownership to less than 50% from a combined 72.8%. The government's
board representation has also been reduced from eight of 11 seats
to likely one or two of 11 depending on the results of the board
election; however, the government does retain a golden share
allowing it to veto bylaw changes. Following the privatization,
Fitch no longer rates Eletrobras according to its
Government-related Entity (GRE) criteria and assesses the company's
credit quality of 'BB-'.

Moderately Elevated Leverage: Fitch expects Eletrobras' total
adjusted leverage, including off balance sheet guarantees, to be
5.3x and rise to 6.4x in 2023 due to BRL2.1 billion in annual
privatization-related contractual obligations and capital
injections. Leverage will return to the 5.5x-5.7x level in 2024 and
2025 due to scheduled debt amortizations, Quota regime tariff
increases and moderate privatization synergies. Fitch assumes 20%
of the company's quota capacity will be repriced per year beginning
in 2023 to reflect free market conditions. A one-time BRL5 billion
capital injection outflow is assumed in 2022 related to the
privatization.

Changes to Consolidation: An BRL11.3 net increase in total adjusted
debt is expected in 2022 due to Eletrobras' decision to inject
capital in and subsequently consolidate the 3.568GW hydro plant
Santo Antonio. Prior to the capital increase, controlled entity
Furnas had owned a minority stake of 43.06% of Madeira Energia S.A.
(MESA), the entity that wholly owns Santo Antonio Energia (SAESA).
Santo Antonio's recurring EBITDA is approximately BRL1.3 billion.
Eletrobras has also deconsolidated Eletronuclear whose EBITDA is
roughly BRL900 million and whose deconsolidation reduces total
adjusted debt by around BRL1 billion.

Privatization Increases Hydrology Risk: Fitch estimates that
Eletrobras' uncontracted energy volumes of 25% in 2022 and 31% in
2023, will be sufficient to support the expected generating scaling
factor (GSF) of 0.80 in 2022 and 0.85 in 2023. This scenario
mitigates the company's exposure to the energy price in the spot
market (PLD), whose ceiling defined by the regulator for 2022 is
BRL640/MWh. The company exposure to the hydrological risk will
increase after the privatization, as the sales contracts in the
quota regimes, which represents around 50% of the total energy
sold, currently are not affected by GSF.

If needed, Eletrobras has to obtain energy purchase contracts at
prices compatible with those established in the sales contracts or
maintain uncontracted energy to cover the reduction in its own
generation to avoid higher negative impacts on cash generation.

Manageable Negative FCF: Eletrobras' Strategic Plan for 2022-2025
incorporates an aggressive investment plan of BRL33.5 billion in
capex, which should pressure FCF over the next few years. Despite
of strong expected cash flow from operations (CFFO) of around
BRL8.2-8.9 billion over the next four years, the capex program
should leave Eletrobras with negative FCF of around BRL2.3 billion
on average between 2023 and 2025. Fitch forecasts dividend payout
of 25% over the rating horizon.

Subsidiaries Ratings Equalized: Fitch equalizes National Scale
ratings of Companhia Hidro Eletrica do São Francisco (Chesf) and
Companhia de Geracao e Transmissao de Energia Eletrica do Sul do
Brasil - Eletrobras CGT Eletrosul (CGT Eletrosul) with Eletrobras'
rating due to the high legal, operational and strategic incentives
between them and the controlling shareholder. Eletrobras held
99.58% of Chesf and 99.89% of CGT Eletrosul. The high incentives
are mainly based on the importance of Chesf and Eletrosul assets
for the Eletrobras group and on Eletrobras' position as guarantor
and creditor of 55% of Chesf's debt and 81% of CGT Eletrosul's
debt.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Eletrobras' 'BB-' rating is three notches below the Local Currency
IDR of the Brazilian generation company Engie Brasil Energia S.A.
('BB'/Negative, LC: 'BBB-'/Negative) and the Brazilian transmission
groups Alupar Investmento S.A. ('BB'/Negative, LC: 'BBB-'/Negative)
and Transmissora Alianca de Energia Eletrica S.A. ('BB'/Negative,
LC: 'BBB-'/Negative; TAESA) due to its lower operating performance
and weaker financial profile, despite its larger size and asset
diversification.

Eletrobras will have higher gross and net leverage than its higher
rated peers, particularly after the consolidation of Santo Antonio
Energia S.A. and incurring privatization-related costs. Eletrobras'
2021 gross and net leverage were 4.7x and 3.7x, respectively, which
includes off balance sheet guarantees as debt. Engie Brasil's gross
and net leverage were 3.7x and 2.7x, Alupar's were 2.6x and 2.1x
and TAESA's were 3.0x and 2.9x.

Eletrobras' leverage is expected to remain above of its peers over
the next two years, with 2022 net leverage of 4.6x and 5.8x in
2023, while Engie Brasil's will be 3.0x and 2.5x. Alupar's leverage
will be 3.3x and 2.7x, and TAESA's will be 3.0x and 2.5x.
Additionally, Alupar and TAESA have a lower business risk profile
due to their concentration in electricity transmission, which has
less variability than generation.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

-- Generation prices of BRL196/MWh in 2022, BRL178/MWh in 2023,
    BRL184/MWh in 2024 and 2025;

-- Hydro plant Santo Antonio's revenue, EBITDA, debt and capex
    are fully consolidated and Eletronuclear is de-consolidated;

-- 20% per year of capacity under the quota regime is repriced to

    reflect market prices;

-- Financial obligations from the privatization of BRL5 billion
    in 2022 and BRL2.068 billion annually thereafter;

-- Inflation of 9.2% in 2022 and 5% thereafter;

-- GDP growth of 0.5% in 2022 and 1.8% thereafter;

-- Average annual capex (not including equity contributions) of
    BRL7.9 billion from 2022 to 2025;

-- Dividends of 25% of net income;

-- No distributions associated with the outstanding guarantees to

    non-consolidated subsidiaries.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- Sustained total adjusted leverage below 5.0x and sustained net

    adjusted leverage below 4.0x, coupled with FFO interest
    coverage of 3.5x or greater.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- Total adjusted leverage above 6.0x or net adjusted leverage
    above 5.0x;

-- Structurally materially negative free cash flow (FCF) across
    the investment cycle.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Sound Liquidity Profile: Eletrobras has a strong liquidity
position. The company's robust consolidated cash and marketable
securities of BRL15.4 billion were above its short-term debt of
BRL9.4 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2022. Eletrobras'
total adjusted debt of BRL72.6 billion at YE 2021 was mainly
concentrated in Brazilian state-owned entities. Brazilian owned
Federal banks hold 29% of the consolidated on-balance-sheet debt,
with Petrobras responsible for 12%. Foreign currency debt
representing around 17% of the group's debt. The Brazilian
government provides guarantees in the amount of BRL5.9 billion,
approximately 14% of total consolidated debt.

ISSUER PROFILE

Eletrobras is the largest electric energy group in Brazil. It
operates in the energy generation and energy transmission segments.
The group is responsible for 28% of the installed generation
capacity and 40% of the transmission lines in the country.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT                    RATING                          PRIOR
   ----                    ------                          -----

Companhia de Geracao e     Natl LT    AA(bra)   Affirmed  AA(bra)
Transmissao de Energia
Eletrica do Sul do Brasil –
Eletrobras CGT Eletrosul

   senior unsecured        Natl LT    AA(bra)   Affirmed  AA(bra)

   senior secured          Natl LT    AA(bra)   Affirmed  AA(bra)

Centrais Eletricas        
Brasileiras S.A.
(Eletrobras)               LT IDR     BB-       Affirmed BB-

                           Natl LT    AA(bra)   Affirmed  AA(bra)

   senior unsecured        LT         BB-       Affirmed  BB-

Companhia Hidro Eletrica
do Sao Francisco S.A.

   senior secured          Natl LT    AA(bra)   Affirmed  AA(bra)


FS AGRISOLUTIONS: Moody's Upgrades CFR to Ba3, Outlook Stable
-------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has upgraded FS Agrisolutions Industria
de Biocombustiveis (FS)'s Corporate Family Rating to Ba3 from B1.
At the same time, Moody's upgraded the Senior Secured notes issued
by FS Luxembourg S.a r.l. unconditionally and irrevocably
guaranteed by FS to Ba3 from B1. The outlook for the ratings is
stable.

Ratings upgraded:

FS Agrisolutions Industria de Biocombustiveis

Corporate Family Rating: to Ba3 from B1

FS Luxembourg S.a r.l.

Gtd senior secured notes: to Ba3 from B1

Outlook is stable for all ratings.

RATINGS RATIONALE

FS's upgrade to Ba3 incorporates the quick deleverage the company
has presented since the rating was first assigned and Moody's
expectation that FS will maintain an adequate gross leverage and
liquidity through commodity cycles and while it undertakes the
construction of its 3rd mill. The new mill will take FS ethanol
production capacity to 2.0 billion liters starting in the 2023-24
harvest from 1.4 billion liters in 2021-22. Moody's believes the
new investment will benefit FS competitive position and scale in
the Brazilian corn ethanol market by increasing its already leading
scale in Mato Grosso. FS will become one of the four largest
ethanol producers in Brazil, behind BP Bunge (2.4 billion liters),
Atvos Agroindustrial Investimentos S.A. (3.2 billion liters), and
Raizen Energia S.A. (Baa3 stable)(6.0 billion liters), all three
sugarcane ethanol producers.

FS rating incorporates its scale among ethanol producers in Brazil,
being the largest on corn feedstock. FS is a low-cost producer with
favorable access to corn feedstock and located in a region with a
high demand for animal nutrition, co-product from the ethanol
production process. The company is also low-carbon footprint
producer benefiting from a sustained demand growth for biofuels.
Additionally, the company has a strong execution track record
having expanded quickly to the 1.4 billion liters production
capacity presently from just 265 million liters in 2017, with its
inaugural mill.

FS' rating is constrained by its high exposure to the dynamics of
the ethanol and corn markets and the consequent susceptibility to
sharp price volatility, event risks, weather imbalances and global
trade flows. The exposure to corn price as an input is partially
offset by its animal nutrition business, since the price of the
distillers grains is directly correlated to those of corn and
soymeal. The company's concentration in single-line commodity,
production in two plants and in a single region exacerbates
commodity risks.

FS liquidity is adequate even when considering about BRL2 billion
in investments to be made in a new mill during 2022 and 2023. As of
March 2022, cash balance of BRL2.1 billion, compared to BRL976
million in short term debt maturities – mostly working capital
lines. Total debt amounts to BRL5.8 billion, including BRL3.3
billion in bonds. This debt balance is net of its Credit Linked
Notes (ex-CLN), the company has BRL2.9 billion in CPR-f (financial
rural producer certificates) which is referenced in assets
deposited abroad: BRL2.9 billion in a Total Return Swap (TRS). In
March 2022, gross leverage at 2.17x (ex-CLN) with an EBITDA
generation of BRL2.7 billion. In 2022-2023 Moody's expects revenues
to advance over 8.6% on higher ethanol prices, but costs will raise
about 18% pushed by higher corn prices, with that EBITDA will be
BRL2.1 billion and gross leverage 2.9x. Although the cash balance
will likely fluctuate during the harvest, for working capital
reasons,  Moody's expects the cash and restricted cash balance to
cover all short-term maturities at the end of each harvest.

The stable rating outlook incorporates Moody's expectation that FS
will maintain a sustained EBITDA generation with gross leverage
below 4.0x even as it advances in the construction of its third
mill. The outlook also considers prudent shareholder distributions
which should not jeopardize liquidity and leverage.

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

Ratings are constrained by the concentration and single line
commodity exposure of the business (corn ethanol and relating
co-products). An upgraded would require further diversification of
the business reducing geographic and commodity risk exposure
coupled with a robust financial position with consistent positive
free cash flow, adequate leverage and liquidity profile.
Quantitatively this would require Debt /EBITDA to remain
consistently below 3.0x, Retained Cash Flow/Debt to remain above
20% and EBITDA/Interest Expense to be sustained above 5.0x.

A downgrade could result from a consistent increase in leverage or
a deterioration of liquidity profile. Large shareholder
distributions or the deployment of large investments that
compromise short-term credit metrics and liquidity could trigger a
downgrade. Quantitatively this would be the case if Debt /EBITDA is
sustained above 4.0x, Retained Cash Flow/Debt remains below 10% or
EBITDA/Interest Expense remains below 2.5x.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Chemical
Industry published in March 2019.

FS is headquartered in Lucas do Rio Verde, state of Mato Grosso
(MT), Brazil. The company produces mostly ethanol from corn
feedstock. The company also commercializes co-products generated in
the production process, including destillers grains, wetcake, corn
oil for livestock feed and electricity. FS is a limited liability
company and was established as a joint-venture between US-based
Summit Agricultural Group with a 71.2% stake and Brazilian
agricultural holding company, Tapajos S.A. with a 23.7% stake. The
remaining 5.0% stake is owned by the management. In the 2021-22
harvest, FS generated net revenue of BRL6.6 billion ($1.25 billion,
converted using the average rate for the period), with
Moody's-adjusted EBITDA margin of 40.6%.


USINAS SIDERURGICAS: Fitch Affirms BB LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais
S.A.'s (Usiminas) Long-Term Foreign Currency (FC) and Local
Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB' and its National
Scale rating at 'AA+(bra)'. Fitch has also affirmed the 'BB' rating
of the senior unsecured notes due in 2026 that were issued by
Usiminas International S.a r.l. and are guaranteed by Usiminas. The
Rating Outlooks for the international Foreign and Local Currency
IDRs of Usiminas and its National Scale rating remains Stable.

The rating affirmation reflects Usiminas' low absolute and relative
debt levels, its manageable debt amortization profile, and its
robust operating profile in the flat steel sector amid a slowdown
in the Brazilian economy. Fitch projects an average EBITDA of
BRL4.7 billion (USD880 million), and total debt of BRL5.7 billion
(USD 1.1 billion) representing gross leverage of 1.2x over the next
three years.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Low Leverage: Usiminas net leverage fell to a net cash position in
2021. Usiminas gross debt has decreased steadily since it
restructured it in 2017 from BRL7.1 billion (USD2.2 billion) that
year to BRL6.1 billion (USD1.3 billion) as of March 2022. Fitch
projects gross and net debt will remain low averaging about BRL6.1
billion and BRL1.5 billion in 2022 and in 2023 with resulting gross
and net leverage ratios of 1.2x and 0.4x on both years.

Lower FCF Generation: The company's EBITDA is forecasted to
decrease to BRL6.0 billion in 2022 from BRL12.5 billion in 2021
when it was buoyed by a tight steel market in Brazil and record
high iron ore prices, but higher than the BRL2.8 billion generated
in 2020 as shipments decrease and cost pressures intensify. Fitch
expects FCF will turn negative due to rising capex, working
capital, taxes and dividends. Final preparations for the start of
blast furnace three including inventory build-up to face the
scheduled stoppage in mid-2023 are key reasons for the increase in
working capital needs and capex to BRL2.05 billion from BRL1.5
billion in 2021.

Easing Steel Environment: Usiminas steel sales are forecasted to
fall to 4.3 million tons in 2022 and 4.1 million tons by 2023 from
4.8 million tons in 2021. Steel prices started to fall in Brazil
from the August 2021 peak and continued to decrease in 2022 amid
political risk, inflationary pressures, tighter monetary policy and
a growth slowdown. Flat steel apparent consumption fell 15% in
January-April of 2022 compared with a year ago, according to the
Brazilian Steel Institute. However, an easing of the semiconductor
shortage is expected to improve auto making in 2H22.

This is supportive for Usiminas given its large share in the flat
steel used in automobile and white goods production. Usiminas' 1Q22
shipments of 1.14 million tons and revenue/ton of BRL 6,114 were
9.5% lower and 33% higher than a year ago. Usiminas cost position
in the third quartile of costs is expected to face pressure from
the current inflationary environment. Fitch's projections assume a
decrease in steel EBITDA/ton to USD173 from USD309 in 2021.

Still High Iron Ore Prices: Usiminas' performance has been
bolstered during the past three years by elevated iron ore prices
globally. This has allowed the company to fund capex with strong
cash flow and to continue to improve its liquidity position. High
iron ore spot prices are driven by a constrained supply and still
resilient Chinese demand. Fitch is using USD110/ton in 2022 and
USD85/ton in 2023, and forecasts 9.0 million tons of iron ore
sales, at the same level of 2021 shipments.

Country Ceiling: Fitch measures the relationship between cash flow
generation in a given country or region relative to hard currency
gross interest expense over a three- to five-year time horizon in
determining a company's applicable Country Ceiling. If Brazil's
'BB' Country Ceiling would be lowered in the case of a sovereign
downgrade, Fitch would continue to rate Usiminas at 'BB', as the
company's cash flow generated through exports would allow it to
comfortably cover its hard-currency debt service by more than 1.5x
in the next two years, permitting an up to three notches of uplift.
Because of these benefits, the FC IDR Outlook of Usiminas remains
Stable despite Brazil's current negative sovereign Outlook.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Usiminas' business risk is similar to that of peer Companhia
Siderurgica Nacional (BB/Positive), as both are highly exposed to
the local steel industry in Brazil. While CSN has greater business
diversification, with larger mining operations and operations in
the cement industry, Usiminas' robust business position in its
niche markets and solid operating margins are a competitive
advantage.

Both Usiminas and CSN have a much weaker business position compared
with the other Brazilian steel producer, Gerdau S.A (BBB/Stable),
which has a diversified footprint of operations with significant
operating cash flows from its assets abroad, mainly in the U.S.,
and a more flexible business model that allows it to better
withstand economic and commodities cycles.

From a financial risk perspective, CSN has launched noteworthy
liability management exercises including bank debt renegotiation
and the listing of assets but Usiminas benefits from much lower
overall gross debt, more manageable cash outflows to maintain its
capital structure and a better debt maturities ladder than CSN.
Gerdau has the lowest financial risk of the three, and has been
able to maintain positive FCF, strong liquidity and no refinancing
risks over the last few years of challenging conditions in Brazil,
as reflected in its investment-grade rating.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

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

-- Benchmark iron ore prices average USD110/ton in 2022 and
    USD85/ton in 2023;

-- Iron ore COGS/ton fall 8% in 2022, less than the decrease in
    prices, and falls 18% in 2023;

-- Iron ore sold remains flat in 2022 and 2023;

-- Total steel volumes sold decrease 10% in 2022 and then 5% in
    2023;

-- Steel EBITDA/ton falls to USD175 in 2022 and to USD135 in
    2023;

-- Capex of BRL2.05 billion in 2021 and BRL2 billion in 2023;

-- An exchange rate of BRL5.35/USD1.00 at YE 2022 and
    BRL5.35/USD1.00 at YE 2023.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- Additional diversification in products and geography;

-- Consistent and positive FCF generation;

-- Net debt/EBITDA leverage ratios consistently below 2.5x would
    be a consideration for a potential upgrade;

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- A significant change in industry dynamics or an increase of
    steel imports into Brazil;

-- Negative FCF;

-- Maintenance of net debt/EBITDA leverage ratios above 3.5x.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Comfortable maturities: Usiminas had BRL6.1 billion of Fitch
adjusted debt as of March 31, 2022. The debt consists of BRL2
billion of Brazilian real-denominated debentures that mature in
2023, 2024 and 2025; a USD750 million (BRL3.5 billion) note that
matures in 2026; and BRL564 million of short-term forfaiting
transactions Fitch includes in its debt calculations. In May,
Usiminas announced a BRL700 million issuance of debentures that was
used to repay the 2023 maturity.

Usiminas had BRL6.6 billion of cash and marketable securities at
the end of March 31, 2022. About BRL990 million of the cash
reported by the company is held at bank accounts abroad. The
company does not face significant principal amortizations on its
debt in 2022. The debentures begin to amortize in 2024, when a
BRL647 million payment is due.

ISSUER PROFILE

Usiminas is the largest domestic supplier of cold rolled and
electro-galvanized steel products and holds approximately 35% share
of the flat steel market in Brazil. The company has a robust
position within the local automotive industry. Usiminas has a large
exposure to the Brazilian domestic steel industry.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT                 RATING                          PRIOR
   ----                 ------                          -----
Usiminas International S.a r.l.

   senior unsecured   LT          BB         Affirmed   BB

Usinas Siderurgicas   LT IDR      BB         Affirmed   BB
de Minas Gerais S.A.
(Usiminas)

                      LC LT IDR   BB         Affirmed   BB

                      Natl LT     AA+(bra)   Affirmed   AA+(bra)




=========
C H I L E
=========

INVERSIONES LATIN AMERICA: Fitch Puts USD403MM Notes on Watch Neg.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has placed Inversiones Latin America Power Limitada's
(ILAP, the Issuer) USD403.9 million senior secured notes, rated
'BB+', on Rating Watch Negative (RWN). The notes are supported by
cash flows from two windfarms in Chile, San Juan, S.A. (San Juan)
and Norvind, S.A. (Totoral).

RATING RATIONALE

The Rating Watch Negative reflects Fitch's concerns of further
deterioration of the project's coverage metrics and liquidity
position if energy spot price volatility and adverse generation
conditions remain, in view of the high energy prices and large
decoupling of injection and withdrawal node prices, caused by the
adverse hydrological conditions and high commodity prices Chile is
facing.

The RWN will be resolved if project liquidity continuously erodes,
or when Fitch has a better visibility on the hydrological
conditions, on the energy generation performance and on the effects
of the government measures over the basis risk, energy price
volatility and curtailment.

The rating for ILAP's portfolio of the San Juan (81% of total
generation capacity) and Totoral (19%) windfarms, reflects its
mostly contracted position with distribution companies (DisCos)
through regulated, fixed-priced, long-term power purchase
agreements (PPAs) and short-term bilateral PPAs through 2033. The
transaction is exposed to profitability erosion due to varying
prices between the energy injection node and the DisCo withdrawal
node, which is expected to be mitigated over the medium term due to
transmission network expansions.

The rating is not limited by counterparty risk, as the projects'
most relevant counterparties are either investment grade or DisCos
under regulated PPAs, which benefit from protective regulatory
step-in provisions.

The transaction will also have a mostly merchant tail once the
regulated PPAs expire in 2033, although this is somewhat mitigated
by the long remaining useful life of the larger plant, San Juan,
which Fitch assumes will end in 2042 (25 years total). Together,
both farms have a P90/P50 differential of 13%, indicating moderate
wind resource variability, and have performed at around P50 in most
years. The windfarms have some curtailment risk, which is expected
to persist going forward.

Both farms have presented a satisfactory operating track record and
benefit from long-term, fixed-price service and availability
agreements with Vestas Chile, guaranteed by Vestas Wind Systems
A/S, which is considered an experienced O&M contractor. The overall
debt structure is solid, with a mandatory amortization schedule
complemented by a partial cash sweep up to a target debt balance.
Refinancing risk exists by way of a balloon payment that is
expected to be equal to roughly 15% of the original value of the
notes under Fitch's cases.

Under Fitch's rating case, debt service coverage ratios (DSCRs) are
mostly consistent with the assigned rating despite a few periods of
shortfalls versus 'BB+' thresholds over the near term. These
metrics average 1.30x, with a minimum of 1.03x (in 2022).
Refinancing risk is mitigated by a project life coverage ratio
(PLCR) of 2.29x at the time of the notes' maturity in 2033; this is
considered adequate versus applicable criteria to offset potential
merchant volatility after 2033.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Robust O&M Agreement Provides Comfort (Operation Risk - Midrange):
Vestas Chile, which is supported by a guarantee of its parent
company, Vestas Wind Systems A/S, is a provider of equipment and
O&M contracts and has a long and proven track record with the
plants' technology. The plants benefit from a comprehensive service
and availability agreement (SAA) with fixed and defined costs,
including scheduled and unscheduled maintenance covering the
majority of the life of the debt.

The SAAs also provide minimum availability guarantees of 97% for
both windfarms in 2021 and of 98% for San Juan starting in 2022.
However, the transaction will be exposed to re-contracting risk
once these agreements expire, in 2037 for San Juan and 2029 for
Totoral, which could lead to increases in costs or lower
availability guarantees. Life extension programs are planned for
both farms to add to their useful life, bringing them up to 30
years, although Fitch has assumed a maximum of 25 years for
conservatism per applicable criteria. A three-month O&M maintenance
reserve account (OMRA) provides comfort to the structure.

Strong, but Evolving Track Record (Revenue Risk - Volume:
Midrange): Both farms benefit from a resource forecast that
considers operating history, with a longer track record considered
for the smaller windfarm, Totoral, having started operations on
2010. Both farms have P90/P50 differentials of 13%, indicating
moderate wind resource variability. San Juan has a shorter
operating track record and has been exposed to wake effect since
2020 due to the construction of neighboring windfarms.

Although wake effect remains a risk for this plant, losses have
been conservatively estimated by the project's independent engineer
(IE), included in the resource forecast utilized by Fitch. Both
plants are also exposed to some curtailment risk, which is expected
to continue as additional renewables incorporate themselves into
the system.

Long Term PPAs Limits Risks (Revenue Risk - Price: Midrange): The
plants have some merchant exposure during the life of the notes
given that the majority of revenues (around 70%) are contracted
through long-term, inflation-linked, fixed-priced PPAs. Price
exposure mainly originates from the differential between injection
node and withdrawal node. This is because the company earns the
injection price where the plants are located, north of Santiago,
and pays the withdrawal price in Central Chile, where the majority
of the energy demand is located. The withdrawal price is generally
higher due to the concentration of energy demand.

The transaction will have a merchant tail post-2033, to retire the
remaining debt after the balloon payment is refinanced. Spot prices
are expected to be capped in the long term through the entry of
more renewable energy projects and newer technologies, such as
batteries, that would lower the marginal cost of energy
production.

Solid Structure, Some Refinancing Risk (Debt Structure - Midrange):
The debt is amortizing with manageable refinancing risk. The plants
will benefit from a legal amortization schedule complemented by a
partial cash sweep up to a target debt balance. Failure to meet the
target debt balance is not an event of default, therein providing
flexibility to the transaction in the event that certain years
perform below original expectations.

Under Fitch's base case, the balloon payment would be equivalent to
15% of the original amount of the notes, which is considered a
moderate refinancing risk exposure. The transaction benefits from
an adequate covenant and security package, including a 1.2x
backward- and forward-looking dividend distribution test. The
project's six-month debt service reserve account (DSRA) also
provides some comfort to the structure.

Financial Profile: Under Fitch's base case, which represents
expected financial performance under normal operating conditions,
DSCRs average 1.4x with a minimum of 1.2x. Fitch's rating case
represents a downside scenario, with stresses on operational
expenses and availability after year 20 of each plant's useful
life, among other factors. Rating case DSCRs average 1.3x with a
minimum of 1x (in 2022).

These metrics are mostly consistent with the rating assigned
however shortfalls over the near term are a concern given the
stress they bring to project liquidity. Break-evens demonstrate
that financial profile should be resilient against a variety of
stresses, including increasing withdrawal prices, an increasing
basis between injection and withdrawal node prices and decreases in
spot prices, which further supports the assigned rating. A 2.3x
PLCR in Fitch's rating case at the notes' maturity suggests a
sufficient buffer against potential long-term spot price
variability.

PEER GROUP

Fitch considers other wind energy generation projects in the region
as peers for this project, such as Energia Eolica S.A. (Inka),
rated 'BBB-', with a rating case DSCR minimum of 1.17x and an
average of 1.26x under Fitch's rating case. Parque Eolico Tres
Hermanas, S.A.C. is also rated 'BBB-', with a rating case DSCR
minimum of 1.30x and an average of 1.39x. Like ILAP, these projects
also have a large proportion of revenues originating from
contracted energy sales. However, when compared to these
investment-grade peers, ILAP has lower average and minimum rating
case DSCRs.

The lower metrics alongside ILAP's higher revenue risk profile (in
terms of basis risk and exposure to DisCo demand) coupled with
exposure to refinancing risk are consistent with its lower rating.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- Injection prices that are consistently USD10 per MWh below of
    those in withdrawal nodes, resulting in a considerable erosion

    of profitability;

-- Adverse operating performance, including energy generation
    near or below P90 levels and curtailment above 5%, that leads
    to DSCR profile below 1.2x;

-- DisCo energy demand that is consistently below 70% of
    contracted maximums, leading to sustained lower revenues that
    substantially deteriorate rating case credit metrics, with a
    DSCR profile persistently below 1.2x.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- A positive rating action is unlikely given the rating is on
    RWN. Potential removal of the RWN should the decoupling costs
    are persistently below or equivalent to USD10 per MWh,
    yielding a forecast average DSCR above 1.2x.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Sovereigns, Public Finance
and Infrastructure issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario
(defined as the 99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in
a positive direction) of three notches over a three-year rating
horizon; and a worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative
direction) of three notches over three years. The complete span of
best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating
categories ranges from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario
credit ratings are based on historical performance.

CREDIT UPDATE

During 2021, Chile's national electric system experienced high
average power prices and high volatility caused by extremely
adverse hydrological conditions, which drove the system to rely on
high-cost diesel power generation. According to the issuer, this
was exacerbated by insufficient LNG purchases, as they were planned
for better hydrological conditions and the scheduled and
unscheduled maintenance of several generation facilities.

These circumstances were accompanied by a low level of wind
generation of the plants, especially during the months of July and
August which implied an important level of energy purchase at high
prices in the spot market in order to comply with the energy
committed in the PPA contracts.

Recently, Chilean government has taken additional measures to
mitigate the risks of hydro generation shortfalls during winter
months such as the creation of a hydric reserve in the dams during
the second quarter of 2022, which is expected to stabilize the
system, reducing volatility and reliance on diesel plants.

During 2021, the gross generation for the wind farms was slightly
below P50 generation however net power generation, after
curtailment, was near P90, in line with Fitch's rating case.
Availability averaged 97% as expected.

On the revenue side, net spot energy losses were -USD15.81 million
versus the expected -USD1.93 million in Fitch's rating case and
USD1.53 million in the base case. This was caused by a large
purchase of energy at the more expensive withdrawal nodes and a
wider than expected margin with the injection nodes, due to the
mentioned price volatility. Also, the lower than expected
generation during a few months caused shortfalls versus contracted
energy which had to be bought at high spot prices further
deteriorating results. DisCo oversupply was lower than expected at
28.4% instead of Fitch's rating case 33.8%, which contributed to
slightly higher PPA revenues.

Overall, total revenues (contracted sales, spot revenues and
capacity revenues) at USD40 million were significantly lower than
the USD53 million estimated in Fitch's rating case, due to the
losses experienced in the spot market.

O&M costs were generally in line with expectations. A higher than
expected inflation increased inflation-linked O&M costs, however,
it was partially compensated by a lower land-lease cost given that
this expense is linked to revenues which were lower than
projected.

Cash Flow Available for Debt Service (CFADS) in 2021 achieved USD13
million, which was below Fitch's expectation of USD17.4 million.
This resulted in a DSCR of 0.92x versus the expected 1.13x. The
shortfall was covered with available liquidity without the need of
using reserves. However, no target amortization was made in this
period. Fitch's rating case had projected a USD2 million target
amortization to be covered this period, which affects debt service
going forward, as debt outstanding will be higher than projected.

DSRA and OMRA are guaranteed through letters of credit, which back
their target balance of USD16.5 million and USD4.5 million,
respectively. During the first quarter of 2022, EBITDA was USD6.7
million, which is equivalent to only 70% of Fitch's rating case
expectation of USD9.6 million, due to the prevalence of adverse
conditions.

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS

Fitch's base case reflects the agency's view of long-term
sustainable performance. Fitch's base case assumes P50 generation
with an additional production haircut of 3% to account for forecast
uncertainty and potential wake losses before planned transmission
expansion infrastructure comes online, which will significantly
reduce congestion. After this point, the haircut is 2%.

The operational cost profile assumed is in line with the sponsor's
original assumptions given the long-term, full-scope SAA. Fitch
considers only five additional years of useful life beyond the
expiration of the Vestas contracts, for a total of 25 years of
useful life for each asset. For the refinancing of the balloon
payment, Fitch did not stress the coupon rate of the notes in the
base case. Inflows from stabilized price receivables were not
considered in coverage metrics, but were considered as cash-flows
to reach target amortizations.

Fitch's rating case reflects a reasonably likely combination of
uncorrelated stresses that could occur in any given year, but which
are not expected to persist. The rating case assumes P90 generation
and the same generation haircut as the base case.

The rating case assumes a 7.5% stress on operating expenses,
excluding SAA costs. However, to reflect the agency's view that
operating costs may increase after the typical 20-year useful life
of a wind asset, Fitch stressed the SAA costs by 12.50% after year
20 of operation. Availability is also reduced to 96% for San Juan
and 95% for Totoral after this year to account for potential
increases in major maintenance events during the last years of
project life. For the refinancing of the balloon, Fitch assumed a
higher rate of 7.5%, in comparison with the base case interest
rate, to account for potentially higher future interest rates. All
other assumptions mirror the base case.

Fitch revised other projection assumptions to reflect expectations
going forward and to be consistent with the reality faced by the
project in current conditions. Fitch updated its U.S. inflation
expectations to 4.50%, 2.60% and 2% for 2022, 2023 and long-term,
respectively.

Fitch's adjusted spot price curve for central Chile nodes (the main
withdrawal nodes) was shifted upwards, consistent with Fitch's
expectation of a spot price of around USD70/MWh for 2022, followed
by a decrease to USD40/MWh for 2023 and 2024 due to new renewable
generators coming online, with an ensuing increase to USD50/MWh for
2025 to 2028 and USD53/MWh for 2029 until 2033 due to the
decarbonization process. To assess the refinancing risk, Fitch
continues using Valgesta's downside case of long-term spot price of
real USD40/MWh.

To account for basis risk and the prevalent volatility in injection
and withdrawal prices, Fitch considered injection prices on average
20% below the mentioned spot prices until 2029. Similarly, the
agency increased its curtailment expectation to 3.5% from 2% until
2029, given the congestion caused by new renewable projects
expected to come online. In 2029 and onwards, Fitch believe the COD
of new transmission infrastructure will ease congestion concerns
and close the spot price differential between northern and central
nodes. Contracted revenues from PPA with DisCos are not projected
to be reduced due price stabilization going forward, as this
program was concluded in the first quarter of 2022 and not expected
to continue in its previous form.

Under Fitch's base case, average DSCRs are 1.4x with a minimum of
1.2x. Under the rating case, these metrics erode to an average of
1.3x with a minimum of 1x in 2022.

Fitch also ran break-even analyses to evaluate the project's
financial resilience to extreme stresses. These analyses indicated,
under Fitch's base case conditions, that the project could
withstand a sustained minimum real merchant price of 20USD/MWh
before defaulting. This result is considered strong, as it is below
relevant historical spot prices and the expected levelized cost of
energy for a renewable plant. The project was also able to
withstand a maximum increase, beyond the stress included in Fitch's
cases, on the differentials between its withdrawal and injection
node prices of 15%; these results were considered robust and
commensurate with the assigned rating.

Even though project metrics are mostly consistent with the assigned
rating and has a strong PLCR at the time of refinancing, the
near-term low coverage is a concern, considering further that DSCR
for the mid-year payment has an expected coverage near 1x.

The company has indicated that its sponsors have an equity line
ready to cover shortfalls without triggering the use of reserves,
as they expect this to be a short-term situation, which is not an
obligation, but signals the intention of management to support the
project.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Fitch has revised Inversiones Latin America Power Limitada's ESG
Relevance score to '3' from '4' for Exposure to Social Impacts due
to alleviated concerns of the effects on the rating of the rate
stabilization mechanism that was signed into law following social
unrest in Chile in 2019.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT                 RATING                            PRIOR
   ----                 ------                            -----
Inversiones Latin America Power Ltda.

Inversiones Latin America Power Ltda.
/Senior Secured Notes/1 LT
LT

USD 403.9 mln          LT      BB+      Rating Watch On      BB+
5.125% bond/note
15-Jun-2033 46137NAC2


LATAM AIRLINES: To Get $2.75BB in New Loans for Bankruptcy Exit
---------------------------------------------------------------
LATAM Airlines announced June 11, 2022, that after carrying out an
exhaustive search process for the best available conditions for its
financing to exit the Chapter 11 process, LATAM has signed debt
commitment letters with various financial entities, which
represents a sign of market confidence in LATAM, and allows the
group to take a further step towards emerging from the Chapter 11
process during the second half of 2022 with a solid financial
structure.

The exit financing is part of the restructuring contemplated in the
Reorganization Plan and considers new debt of US$2.250 billion, and
a new revolving credit facility for US$500 million, and is subject
to the approval of the United States Court.  The financial entities
with which the commitment letters were signed are: JPMorgan Chase
Bank, N.A., Goldman Sachs Lending Partners LLC, Barclays Bank PLC,
BNP Paribas, BNP Paribas Securities Corp., and Natixis, New York
Branch.

"This commitment secures us the full amount of financing required
to complete our restructuring plan and, very importantly, with a
degree of flexibility that allows us to optimize existing market
conditions. The US$2.25 billion of debt is in addition to the
US$5.4 billion of equity we secured in January of this year.  This
is another important step towards emerging from Chapter 11 as a
strengthened airline group," said LATAM Airlines CEO Roberto Alvo.

The exit financing commitment letters also provide for US$1,172
million in financing to be provided during the life of the Chapter
11 process (i.e., prior to exit) in the form of a
debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing with a lower repayment
preference than the exit financing ("Junior DIP Financing"). The
financial institutions with which the commitment letter for the
Junior DIP Financing was entered into are: Delta Air Lines, Inc,
Lozuy S.A., Costa Verde Aeronutica S.A., QA Investments Limited,
and members of LATAM's ad hoc group of creditors represented by
Evercore.

The Exit Financing has been structured as a debtor-in-possession
(DIP) financing to be provided during the Chapter 11 process.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and unlike the DIP Financing
currently in place (the "Existing DIP Financing"), it has been
structured so that, subject to the satisfaction of certain
conditions customary in this type of transaction, it will remain in
place after LATAM's emergence from the Chapter 11 process.
Accordingly, to the extent such conditions are met, on the exit
date from the Chapter 11 process, the Exit Financing will
automatically convert into a financing that will remain in place
thereafter. This does not apply with respect to Junior DIP
Financing, which must be fully repaid prior to the exit from the
Chapter 11 Proceeding.

The proceeds from the Exit Financing and the Junior DIP Financing
will be used in part to repay the Existing DIP Financing in full
during the Chapter 11 process.

The exit financing has been structured as follows:

  * US$500 million Exit Revolving Facility, which will accrue
    interest at LATAM's election, either: (i) ABR plus an
    applicable margin of 3.00%; or (ii) SOFR rate plus an
    applicable margin of 4.00%.

  * US$750 million Term B Loan Facility, which will accrue
interest
    at LATAM's choice, either: (i) ABR plus an applicable margin
    to be determined at time of allocation thereof; or (ii) SOFR
    rate plus an applicable margin to be determined at time of
    allocation thereof.

  * US$750 million Bridge to 5Y Notes Facility Proposal

  * US$750 million Bridge to 7Y Notes Facility Proposal

The interest rate for the bridge loans indicated above will be
determined based on market conditions available at the time of
closing, subject in all cases to certain limits established in the
financing commitment letters.

LATAM is awaiting the ruling of the United States Court regarding
its Reorganization Plan, which has substantial support from the
creditors that represent close to 90% of the LATAM Parent unsecured
claims. This was reinforced after having reached an agreement with
the holders of bonds issued in Chile (including those represented
by Banco Estado), the Official Committee of Valista Creditors
(UCC), the Ad Hoc group of LATAM surety creditors (led by Sixth
Street, Strategic Value Partners and Sculptor Capital) and the main
shareholders of the group (Delta Air Lines, Qatar Airways, Grupo
Cueto).

                    About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group S.A. -- http://www.latam.com/-- is a
pan-Latin American airline holding company involved in the
transportation of passengers and cargo and operates as one unified
business enterprise.  It is the largest passenger airline in South
America.

Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, LATAM offered passenger
transport services to 145 different destinations in 26 countries,
including domestic flights in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
Ecuador and Peru, and international services within Latin America
as well as to Europe, the United States, the Caribbean, Oceania,
Asia and Africa.

LATAM and its 28 affiliates sought Chapter 11 protection (Bankr.
S.D.N.Y. Lead Case No. 20-11254) on May 25, 2020.  Affiliates in
Chile, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and the United States are part of
the Chapter 11 filing.

The Debtors disclosed $21,087,806,000 in total assets and
$17,958,629,000 in total liabilities as of Dec. 31, 2019.

The Hon. James L. Garrity, Jr., is the case judge.

The Debtors tapped Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP as
bankruptcy counsel, FTI Consulting as restructuring advisor, Lee
Brock Camargo Advogados as local Brazilian litigation counsel, and
Togut, Segal & Segal LLP and Claro & Cia in Chile as special
counsel.  The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. and The Boston
Consulting Group UK LLP serve as the Debtors' strategic advisors.
Prime Clerk LLC is the claims agent.

The official committee of unsecured creditors formed in the case
tapped Dechert LLP as its bankruptcy counsel, Klestadt Winters
Jureller Southard & Stevens, LLP as conflicts counsel, UBS
Securities LLC as investment banker, and Conway MacKenzie, LLC as
financial advisor.  Ferro Castro Neves Daltro & Gomide Advogados is
the committee's Brazilian counsel.

The Ad Hoc Group of LATAM Bondholders tapped White & Case LLP as
counsel.

Glenn Agre Bergman & Fuentes, LLP, led by managing partner Andrew
Glenn and partner Shai Schmidt, has been retained as counsel to the
Ad Hoc Committee of Shareholders.


VTR FINANCE: Fitch Affirms 'BB' IDRs & Alters Outlook to Negative
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed the Long-Term (LT) Local Currency (LC)
and Foreign Currency (FC) Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) of VTR
Finance N.V. at 'BB-' and revised the Rating Outlook to Negative
from Stable. Fitch also affirmed VTR Finance N.V.'s senior secured
notes of USD550 million due in 2028 at 'BB'/'RR3' and the VTR
Comunicaciones SpA revolving credit facilities (RCF), senior
secured notes of USD480 million (2028) and senior secured notes for
USD410 million (2029) at 'BB+'/'RR2'.

The Negative Outlook is based on the deterioration of the company's
credit profile as a result of weaker than anticipated operational
performance and increasing leverage metrics, as well as Fitch's
expectation that the credit profile will continue to be pressured
in the medium term due to the highly competitive environment in
Chile. A materialization of the business combination with America
Movil (AMX) in Chile could partially offset the negative
expectations of Fitch, considering the integration of operations
but uncertainty remains around final structure of the transaction.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Deterioration in Operational Performance Remained: After the
disruptive impacts in the middle of the pandemic, the company's
revenues continue to show weakness, with reductions of 3.1% in
2020, 6.9% in 2021 and 9.2% YTD as of 1Q22. This was mainly due to
declines in its customer base and ARPU. EBITDA margin has declined
from pre-pandemic levels close to 40% to 30% during the LTM March
2022. This was due to the loss of customers on the company's mostly
fixed cost structure. The company's strategy is focused on service
quality improvement, network capacity expansion through fiber, and
pricing to reduce the churn. Considering these factors and the
strong competitive environment, Fitch expects moderate ability to
grow revenues and recover EBITDA margins in the medium term.

Higher Leverage and Limited Reduction is Expected: In 2021 and LTM
March 2022, the net leverage of VTR increased to 5.8x and 6.5x,
respectively, due to the reduced operational performance. This
level is high for the rating level and higher compared with Fitch
Previous projections. Fitch expects leverage to increase to 7.0x in
2022 before declining in the medium term considering a gradual
recovery of its operational performance amid the highly competitive
environment in the industry.

Fitch estimates the combined Claro Chile and VTR JV will have a
much lower net leverage at slightly more than 4.0x. The JV will
have around CLP1.400 billion of net debt; on pro forma LTM EBITDA
of CLP340 billion (25% of revenues). Given the high investment
needs for 5G and fiber broadband development and intense
competition, deleveraging capacity over the next two-three years
will likely depend on attaining merger synergies.

Potential Combination of Operations with Claro Chile: In September
2021, Liberty Latin America (LLA) announced the agreement with AMX,
enter into a JV between VTR with and Claro Chile operations. The
transaction considers around 3.0 million subscribers of VTR in
Internet, Video and Voice service, and around 6.5 million mobile
customers of Claro Chile to create a business with greater scale,
product diversification and a capital structure what will enable
significant investment for fixed fiber footprint expansion and to
be a forefront of 5G mobile delivery.

LLA and AMX will contribute to the business net debt of CLP1.095
billion and CLP259 billion, respectively. In addition, LLA will
make a balancing payment to AMX of CLP73 billion. The formation of
the JV will not result in a change of control event for existing
debtholders of VTR. The combined operation seeks to achieve
run-rate synergies of over USD180 million, 80% of that amount is
expected in the first three years post completion, mostly related
with cost savings. The JV's board will be shared in same proportion
by both groups, with an alternating the president of the board.

Investments Pressures FCF: Fitch expects VTR's FCF in 2022 to be
pressured due to higher capital intensity for VTR of around 23%-25%
of the revenues. The higher investments should strengthen the
quality of service and network competitiveness. The pressured FCF
is compensated by the strong liquidity and extended schedule of
maturities.

Strong Market Position: VTR has a strong position in the Chilean
Telecom Market. As Subtel based on December 2021, the company
reached the first place in Pay TV services with 30% of M/S, and
second place in Internet data broadband and fixed services with 28%
and 22% of M/S, respectively, following closely the main player of
the industry, the incumbent competitor, Telefonica Chile S.A.
(BBB+/Stable). Despite the subscriber reductions in 2020 and 2021,
VTR should maintain it solid market position based on effective
bundling product strategy and improving network quality. In mobile,
the company operates as a virtual network operator with a low
market share of 0.9%. Fitch does not expect any material cash flow
contribution from this segment in the short to medium term.

The pending JV with Claro Chile could imply that the combined
business rises to the first place in Fixed Broad Band, and
diversifies its participation in Mobile business, as Claro Chile is
the third operator in mobile services and fourth operator in fixed
broadband services with around 22% and 10% of M/S in terms of
subscribers, respectively.

LLA Linkages: VTR is a wholly owned subsidiary of LLA. LLA's
financial management involves moderately high amounts of leverage
across its operating subsidiaries, each ring-fenced from one
another. While the credit pools are legally separate, LLA has a
history of moving cash around the group for investments and
acquisitions. This approach improves financial flexibility, but it
also limits deleveraging prospects. Weak performance in the other
credit pools or in the broader group could place more financial
burdens on VTR, given LLA's acquisitive nature.

Secured Bond Recovery Prospects: VTR Comunicaciones SpA's 'BB+'
secured debt ratings positively incorporate the collateral support,
i.e. the pledges over the equity shares of the issuer and
guarantor, included in the transaction structure. VTR's debt
qualifies as Category 2 first lien, which results in a 'RR2'
rating, considering the Recovery Rating's cap defined for Chile in
Country-Specific Treatment of Recovery Ratings Rating Criteria. The
'RR3' on the parent company notes reflects its structural
subordination and security relative to the secured VTR
Comunicaciones instruments resulting in an a one-notch uplift from
the IDR.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

VTR's competitive position and financial profile compare favorably
with other speculative-grade telecoms in the region, although the
company's relative lack of diversification and LLA's financial
management will likely limit it to the 'BB' category.

Compared with sister company Cable & Wireless, VTR benefits from
the Chilean operating environment and its status as second player
in fixed broadband service and the largest pay TV operator by
subscriber share. Cable & Wireless has larger scale, better service
and geographical diversification than VTR. Following the AT&T
acquisition, LCPR's scale is more than twice that of VTR's, and
with greater product diversification.

VTR has a similar fixed-line operating profile to Telefonica Chile
(BBB+/Stable), although Telefonica Chile benefits from leverage
metrics around 2.0x-2.5x lower than VTR's, and the scale and
diversification provided by its parent Telefonica Moviles Chile
S.A. (BBB+).

Compared with WOM Mobile S.A. (WOM, BB-/Stable), VTR has better
diversification and scale, as well as more stable cash flow
generation and a stronger EBITDA margin. WOM's ratings reflect the
company's short but solid track record in Chile, taking on much
larger competitors WOM's ratings, like VTR's, incorporate Fitch's
expectations that the company will be managed to moderately high
levels of net leverage.

When compared to Millicom International Cellular S.A.'s
(BB+/Stable) subsidiaries, Comcel (CT Trust; BB+/Stable) and
Telefonica Celular del Paraguay (Telecel; BB+/Stable), VTR has is
less diversified and operates in a more competitive market, but in
a stronger operating environment. Comcel and Telecel have more
dominant market positions and significantly lower net leverage at
around 3x and 2x, respectively. Millicom's consolidated leverage,
at about 3x, is lower than LLA's at around 4x. Comcel's and
Telecel's ratings reflect a strong linkage with their parent as
Millicom heavily relies on these two wholly owned subsidiaries'
dividend upstreams to service its debt.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

-- Reductions in Revenue of 8% and EBITDA margin of 28% in 2022.
    Conservative recovery on fixed RGU from 2023;

-- Completion of JV with Claro Chile modeled from start of 2023:
    EBITDA margin of around 25% and low single digit of revenue
    increase in the medium term;

-- Capex to revenues reducing from 25% in 2022 to 21% in 2025 for

    VTR Finance in the medium term and around 18% for Claro Chile
    operations;

-- No dividends are expected, Neutral to Positive FCF generation
    expected to 2022-2024 period.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- Stabilization on the VTR Finance and VTR Comunicaciones SpA's
    ratings could occur in the case of closing of combined
    operation's agreement with Claro Chile in 2H22 and a clear
    evidence of sustained reduced leverage metrics after the
    transaction;

-- Longer-term positive rating actions are possible to the extent

    that debt to EBITDA and net debt to EBITDA sustained below
    4.50x and 4.25x, respectively, at both VTR and LLA.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- A Negative outcome regarding the JV with Claro Chile in
    conjuction with lack of evidence to return to total
    debt/EBITDA and net debt/EBITDA ratios below 5.25x and 5.00x,
    respectively, in a sustained basis;

-- While the three credit pools are legally separate, LLA net
    debt/EBITDA sustained above 5.0x could result in negative
    rating actions for one or more rated entities in the group.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Sound Liquidity Profile - Pressured Leverage: VTR's liquidity
profile is sound as the company does not face any debt maturity
until 2028 (senior secured notes of USD550 million and USD480
million). The issuance of USD410 million (due in 2029) was used to
refinance CLP174 million (USD240 million) of term loan and prepay
20% (USD120 million) of VTR Comunicaciones SpA's outstanding 2028
notes.

The company's cash balance amounted to CLP78 billion by the end of
March 2022, which represent 1.1x the short-term debt of CLP70
million, which represent mainly vendor financing debt. Liquidity is
further supported by VTR's access to committed credit facilities,
which as of March 2022 are completely undrawn.

ISSUER PROFILE

VTR Finance N.V. is a Netherland-domiciled telecom operator whose
operations are based in Chile. The company offers fixed and mobile
services to consumers and businesses throughout the country.

SUMMARY OF FINANCIAL ADJUSTMENTS

Standard adjustments made; debt amount adjusted by FX hedge;
reclassified certain operating expenses and working capital items;
added interest payable to total debt.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

VTR Finance N.V. has an ESG Relevance Score of '4' for Financial
Transparency due to the company's relatively opaque financial
disclosure and management strategy, which has a negative impact on
the credit profile, and is relevant to the ratings in conjunction
with other factors.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT              RATING                      RECOVERY   PRIOR
   ----              ------                      --------   -----
VTR Comunicaciones SpA

   senior secured   LT          BB+    Affirmed    RR2      BB+

VTR Finance N.V.    LT IDR      BB-    Affirmed             BB-

                    LC LT IDR   BB-    Affirmed             BB-

   senior secured   LT          BB     Affirmed    RR3      BB




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

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Eye Savings by Switching to Natural Gas
-----------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the Vice President of the Senate of
the Dominican Republic, as well as members of the Treasury and
Energy Commission of both legislative chambers, valued the savings
of nearly US$235 million that the Government has already had as a
result of the conversion to natural gas of generation plants that
worked with derived fuels of oil and favored the entire national
electricity matrix to switch to producing with cleaner and cheaper
fuels.

Senator Jose de Castillo Savinon, a member of the Senate's Treasury
and Energy committees, expressed that they are savings for the
national electricity system, especially now when oil prices are
above 120 dollars a barrel, according to Dominican Today.

"We must continue promoting that conversion process that began in
the last government, towards much cheaper energy sources.  There is
no doubt that this is what is convenient, this is what has been the
global trend in order to generate savings in the National
Interconnected System," the report relays.

He stated that the ideal is for the entire National Electric System
to be transformed to energy generation at the cheapest systems, the
report notes.  He indicated that there is coal, which has the
problem that it is polluting, and natural gas, which is the second
cheapest, the report discloses.

"The ideal is that this be promoted and that from the electricity
sector, both the new plants that are being considered to be built,
since the Government has announced a tender for about 2,000
megawatts and announced a tender for Manzanillo for 2 natural gas
power plants, then they are the cheapest fuels that are available,
in this case natural gas is a viable option, less polluting than
coal and at much more affordable prices than the traditional fossil
fuel that is basically fuel oil," Del Castillo said, the report
relays.

Likewise, the vice president of the Senate, Santiago Jose Zorrilla,
said the Gov. has already saved almost US$235 million and US$518.2
million is projected as of 2023 for the conversion of electricity
generation plants that previously worked with petroleum-derived
fuels, 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. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 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.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.


DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: New Province Draws Wide Rebuke
--------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that the approval in the Chamber of
Deputies of the Matias Ramon Mella province has generated the
rejection of different sectors of the national level.

In this regard, the urban planner and architect Marcos Barinas
Uribe considered that the arguments to create the Matias Ramon
Mella province are not conclusive and that it is necessary to study
this possibility in greater depth, according to Dominican Today.

He considers that this initiative should be part of a territorial
ordering plan and that "until now it appears to be an intention of
an electoral nature," 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. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 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.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.


[*] DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Not at Risk of LPG Shortage
---------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that The Dominican Petroleum Refinery
(Refidomsa) guaranteed that the country is not at risk of Liquefied
Petroleum Gas (LPG) shortage and informed that it received the most
recent shipment from the company Geogas as scheduled.

In a press document, the state-owned company highlighted that it
maintains a commercial relationship with Geogas through which the
latter supplies LPG, under a contract since 2019, according to
Dominican Today.

The document indicates that the contract guarantees minimum monthly
deliveries of LPG to Refidomsa, with Geogas being responsible for
the environmental permits required for the operations of its
vessels, the report notes.

From 2021, Geogas notified a change in its logistics to supply
Refidomsa from its storage tanks in San Pedro de Macoris, the
report relays.

The Dominican Petroleum Refinery (Refidomsa), has a share in the
LPG market in the country of approximately 36%, so, under the
current circumstances, a shortage that could harm the country is
not possible, given the participation of other companies in the
market and the existing supply infrastructure, the report
discloses.

                        New Tanks

In 2019, Refidomsa started the construction of new tanks to raise
LPG storage capacity to 20,000 tons, as it is currently only 5,000,
the report recalls.

This situation prevents the entry of large vessels that supply the
product, but small ships that increase the cost of docking and
affect the final price, the report notes.

To finance the work, Geogas signed a contract for US$61 million,
which advanced US$11 million; however, the current management of
Refidomsa allegedly decided not to use the financing, which was
paid with estimated savings at US$20.00 per ton, the report
relates.

It was reported that Refidomsa, after refusing to certify the
documents to Banreservas to complete the financing, requested a
loan for the same amount and left that part of the Geo Gas contract
without effect indebting the company, the report adds.

                 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. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 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.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.




=================
G U A T E M A L A
=================

GUATEMALA: Moody's Affirms 'Ba1' Issuer Rating, Outlook Stable
--------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has affirmed the Government of
Guatemala's long-term Ba1 issuer ratings and senior unsecured bond
ratings and changed the outlook to stable from negative.

The change to a stable outlook reflects Guatemala's demonstrated
ability to cope with the pandemic shock with a minimal impact to
its overall credit profile. Guatemala's economy recovered strongly
from the pandemic-induced recession which combined with
conservative fiscal policies limited the increase in the country's
debt metrics. Moody's expects that in 2022 and 2023 continued
economic growth will support the stabilization of the country's
debt burden.

The Ba1 rating affirmation reflects the balance between the
country's track record of conservative fiscal management and
resiliency to domestic and external shocks and credit pressures
derived from low per-capita income and weak institutions, evidenced
by low overall government effectiveness and rule of law scores.

Guatemala's  local-currency (LC) and foreign-currency (FC)
ceilings remain unchanged. The Baa1 LC ceiling, 3 notches higher
than the sovereign rating, reflects limited government intervention
in the economy and a history of respect for the rule of law. The
Baa3 FC ceiling, two notches below the LC ceiling, reflects the
risk of potential transfer and convertibility controls in the event
of a default given domestic dollarization.

RATINGS RATIONALE

RATIONALE FOR THE CHANGE IN OUTLOOK TO STABLE FROM NEGATIVE

Guatemala managed the economic, fiscal, and debt shocks resulting
from the pandemic without significant changes to its credit
standing. The 2020 recession was among the shallowest in the region
and the subsequent recovery among the strongest. The solid economic
results and a conservative fiscal policy stance kept the
pandemic-related increase in the debt burden to less than 5 points
of GDP. The economy is expected to grow 3.7% on average this year
and next which will support stabilizing the government's debt
burden below 31% of GDP.

After contracting 2% in 2020, compared to a 5% average decline in
similarly rated sovereigns,  Guatemala's economy jumped 8% in 2021
driven by large increases in domestic consumption. Workers'
remittances have been a key driver of private consumption, reaching
the equivalent of 18% of GDP last year. Data from the first four
months of this year shows continued strong growth with remittances
rising 25% compared to the same period a year ago.

For 2022 and 2023 Moody's expects Guatemala's economy to remain
slightly above the 3.5% pre pandemic trend rate and fiscal deficits
to fall as well. The fiscal deficit rose to almost 5% of GDP in
2020, pushed by Covid-related outlays in health and social
assistance. Fast economic growth last year led to a sharp reduction
in the deficit to 1.2% of GDP and in 2022 and 2023 fiscal deficits
will average close to 2% of GDP.

The strong growth and limited deficits allowed Guatemala to limit
the increase in its debt burden. Government debt will remain below
31% of GDP this year, a modest increase from the 27% of GDP debt
burden in 2019 before the pandemic.

RATIONALE FOR AFFIRMING THE Ba1 RATING

The Ba1 rating balances Guatemala's history of prudent fiscal
policies that have kept fiscal deficits comparatively low and its
resiliency to domestic and external shocks with the credit
challenges resulting from low per-capita income and weak
institutions, evidenced by low overall government effectiveness and
rule of law scores.

Guatemala has a long track record of moderate fiscal deficits. The
average fiscal deficit has been close to 2% of GDP, never breaching
3.3% of GDP in the decade prior to the pandemic. Low fiscal
deficits are mainly the result of spending restraint given that the
government's revenue base is among the lowest in Moody's rated
universe - tax evasion, a large informal sector, and low tax rates
have led to modest government revenues in the order of 10% of GDP.

Guatemala further benefits from a stable economy with a history of
resiliency to external shocks. Its $93 billion economy (2022
estimate) is the largest in Central America, and larger than the
median of US$69 billion for rated peers. It also grows faster than
peers and with less volatility, the result of a combination of
reasons, including the relevance of light manufacturing aimed at
the US market (compared to more traditional commodity exporters),
support from remittances and a history of prudent monetary policies
that have led to stable and low inflation.

Guatemala's ratings are constrained by weak institutions and low
income per capita. The country's  Worldwide Governance Indicators,
which are incorporated as part of Moody's assessment of
'institutions and governance strength', are lower than those of
most of its peers with key weaknesses in the rule of law and
overall government effectiveness. And the country's per capita GDP
(PPP basis) of $9,153 in 2021 is more than 30% lower than the
median for rated peers. Moody's considers Guatemala's weak
development indicators as structural credit constraints for the
sovereign rating.

Guatemala's overall institutional scores are bolstered by the
effectiveness of its fiscal and monetary institutions. But among
the subset of institutional scores that more directly measure the
capacity of a government to address social demands, Guatemala lags
peers. In past years widespread protests against political
corruption have been recurrent, raising domestic political risk
including that of lower business confidence and investor
sentiment.

Guatemala's society is highly unequal, further increasing potential
political and policy risks. The country has one of the highest Gini
coefficients (a standard measure of income inequality) in the
world. Moody's considers that income inequality, while not always a
differentiating factor for sovereign ratings, is associated with
higher political risks, lower growth, and for some countries,
weaker institutions.

ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE CONSIDERATIONS

Guatemala's ESG Credit Impact Score is highly negative (CIS-4) and
reflects its weak governance profile and limited resilience because
of low economic development, its highly negative exposure to social
risks, and a moderately negative exposure to environmental risks.

Guatemala's exposure to environmental risks is moderately negative
(E-3 issuer profile score) based on the country's exposure to
climate change risks from recurring droughts and hurricanes, which
can deplete agricultural production and harm Guatemalan exports.
Exposure to physical climate risk is the major concern for the
country while access to water, the depletion of natural capital,
and waste and pollution are all moderately negative risks for
Guatemala.

Exposure to social risks is highly negative (S-4 issuer profile
score) and stem from long-standing levels of poverty, economic
inequality and social exclusion. Guatemala is characterized by high
levels of violent crime, high levels of poverty, limited
educational outcomes, and lack of sufficient access to basic
services and housing. Like many other emerging economies, Guatemala
benefits from a comparatively benign demographic structure.

The influence of governance on Guatemala's credit profile is
moderately negative (G-3 issuer profile score) and reflects issues
such as rule of law and control of corruption, which limit policy
effectiveness and reduce investment and growth. In recent years,
accusations of political corruption have led thousands to protest,
raising the risk of domestic political turmoil.

GDP per capita (PPP basis, US$): 9,154 (2021) (also known as Per
Capita Income)

Real GDP growth (% change): 8% (2021) (also known as GDP Growth)

Inflation Rate (CPI, % change Dec/Dec): 3.1% (2021)

Gen. Gov. Financial Balance/GDP: -1.2% (2021) (also known as Fiscal
Balance)

Current Account Balance/GDP: 2.5% (2021) (also known as External
Balance)

External debt/GDP: 23.4% (2021)

Economic resiliency: ba1

Default history: No default events (on bonds or loans) have been
recorded since 1983.

On June 14, 2022, a rating committee was called to discuss the
rating of the Guatemala, Government of. The main points raised
during the discussion were: The issuer's economic fundamentals,
including its economic strength, have not materially changed. The
issuer's institutions and governance strength, have materially
increased. The issuer's governance and/or management, have
materially increased. The issuer's fiscal or financial strength,
including its debt profile, has not materially changed.

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

An upgrade of Guatemala's rating is unlikely in the near to medium
term. Upward pressure on the credit profile would require both an
improvement in economic conditions that leads to higher GDP growth
on a sustained basis, and a significant improvement in the
country's institutional framework in general, and its governance
indicators in particular.

The rating could experience downward pressure if there is an
erosion in the country's long-standing commitment to prudent fiscal
management, a worse-than-expected economic performance results in
persistently higher debt ratios, or social development indicators
weaken and domestic security challenges begin to pose a threat to
political stability.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Sovereign
Ratings Methodology published in November 2019.




===========
G U Y A N A
===========

GUYANA: Gets S$83.3MM IDB Loan to Promote Use of Energy Sources
---------------------------------------------------------------
Guyana will promote its energy matrix diversification by promoting
climate-resilient renewable energy sources use in the electricity
generation matrix to avoid deforestation and face climate change,
with a non-reimbursable investment financing of up to US$83.3
million approved by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) with
funds from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation.

The IDB has been supporting the Government of Guyana to develop the
energy sector through financing of several renewable energy
activities. Building on this, the country will now make a
transformational leap towards decarbonization by expediting
climate-resilient renewable energy in the electricity generation
matrix.

The Guyana Utility Scale Solar Photovoltaic Program (GUYSOL) will
invest in eight utility-scale, photovoltaic solar projects totaling
33MWp with associated 34MWh energy storage systems distributed
across three areas in the country. Specifically, it will invest in
10MWp in the Berbice area, 8MWp project in the Essequibo system
with a minimum of 12MWh battery storage and 15MWp plant connected
to the Linden system, with a minimum of 22MWh battery storage.  

The eight projects will contribute to avoiding CO2 emissions,
lowering electricity cost generation, and supporting a substantial
transition to generation based on renewable energy sources.

The program will also support a step-change with respect to
digitalization of Essequibo and Linden electrical systems, moving
them from manual systems towards real-time, automated monitoring
and control, improving efficiency, reliability, and stability.

Alongside of these investments in infrastructure, the GUYSOL
Program will encourage diversity and inclusion in the maintenance
and management of renewable infrastructure, developing local skills
and apprenticeships with a focus on opportunities for women.

By 2025 in line with Guyana's Low Carbon Development Strategy
(LCDS), more than 265 thousand customers within the
Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System and Linden and Essequibo
systems will benefit from reinforced reliability of electricity
supply, and modernization of systems.

The Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) and the Linden Electricity
Company Inc. (LECI) will also benefit from the use of solar
photovoltaic technology that will displace significant amounts of
fossil fuels and reduce generation costs.

This operation is in line with Vision 2025 - Reinvesting in the
Americas: A Decade of Opportunities, created by the IDB to achieve
recovery and inclusive growth in Latin America and the Caribbean,
in the areas of digital economy, gender and inclusion, and climate
change.




===========
M E X I C O
===========

CEMEX SAB: Fitch Raises Currency Issuer Default Ratings to 'BB+'
----------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has upgraded the foreign and local currency Issuer
Default Ratings (IDRs) of CEMEX, S.A.B. de C.V. (CEMEX) to 'BB+'
from 'BB', its senior unsecured notes to 'BB+' from 'BB' and its
subordinated hybrid issuance to 'BB-' from 'B+'. Cemex's National
Long-Term rating is being upgraded to 'AA-(mex)' from 'A+(mex)',
and its National Short-Term rating is affirmed at 'F1'. The Rating
Outlook is Stable.

The upgrade reflects CEMEX's ongoing stronger operating performance
which along with asset sales have supported effective debt
reduction since late 2019. The company has been also improving its
debt profile, in terms of maturity, collateral basis and financial
costs which translate to better financial flexibility. Fitch
expects Cemex to solidly maintain credit metrics below 3.5x in the
next 2-3 years while continuing to invest to optimize its
portfolio, enhance its business position and advance on its
sustainability agenda.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Declining Debt Burden: Cemex's adjusted net debt has been showing a
downward trend as it declined to USD7.9 billion in 2021 from USD9.4
billion in 2020 and USD10.2 billion in 2019. Debt reduction in 2021
was primarily driven by the sale of carbon credits for
approximately USD550 million, FCF and USD500 million of equity
credit from hybrid security issued in June 2021. Fitch expects
Cemex to solidly maintain net debt/EBITDA ratios below 3.5x in the
next 2-3 years, with net leverage projected to be 3.1x in 2022 and
2.8x in 2023.

U.S. Market Trends Still Positive: Despite rising interest rates
and elevated inflation, Fitch expects the private non-residential
and public construction end-markets to grow by low to high-single
digits this year following declines in 2021, while residential
construction activity grows modestly supported by record-high
backlogs and long build cycles for many public homebuilders.

Risks remain that rapidly rising interest and mortgage rates, input
cost inflation, and disrupted supply chains will weigh on demand in
the construction end-markets. However, the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act and non-residential construction's tendency
to follow growth in residential construction should support demand
for cement beyond 2022.

Mexican Market to Normalize: Fitch expects cement demand in Mexico
to return to more normal levels of around 43 million metric tons
(mt) from the peak 46mt registered in the last 12 months ending
3Q21 as pandemic driven homes improvement spending gradually
subsides over the next few years. During the last twelve months
period ended in Mar. 2022 total volume was 44mt.

Manageable EBITDA Pressure: Fitch forecasts that CEMEX's adjusted
EBITDA in 2022 will maintain slightly in line with 2021 figures, at
USD2.5 billion per the agency's calculation (adjusted by IFRS16).
This reflects general inflationary pressures as well as higher
electricity and fuel costs, that should be partially offset by
strong prices increases across the portfolio and regions. Still
favorable long-term fundamentals in the U.S., and additional EBITDA
from bolt-on investments should sustain EBITDA moderate growth in
the next two years. For 2023-2024, Fitch estimates median adjusted
EBITDA of USD2.7 billion.

Declining FCF Projected: CEMEX generated USD771 million of FCF in
2021, compared with USD674 million in 2020 and USD71 million in
2019, mainly through capex reduction, foregone dividends and higher
EBITDA cash conversion. FCF is estimated around USD53 million for
2022 due to higher operating costs, working capital and capex. The
increasing in raw material costs are putting some pressure in
working capital during 2Q22 and 3Q22, which together with higher
capex (around USD1.2 billion per year in the next three years) will
pressure FCF. For 2023 and 2024, FCF are forecasted USD187 million
and USD390 million, respectively.

Strong Business Position: CEMEX benefits from product and
geographic diversification as one of the world's largest cement
producers, selling 67 million metric tons of cement in 2021. It is
the leading cement producer in Mexico and one of the top producers
in the U.S. CEMEX also has a large global presence in ready-mix and
aggregates, with 2021 sales of 49 million cubic meters of ready-mix
and 137 million metric tons of aggregates. CEMEX's main geographic
markets by EBITDA are Mexico at 40%, the U.S. at 27%, Europe at
13%, Central and South America at 14%, and Asia, the Middle East
and Africa at 6%.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

CEMEX's ratings reflect its diversified business position across
several large markets, notably Mexico, the U.S. and certain
European countries; its vertical integration and economies of
scale; and positive FCF. The company is the leading cement producer
in Mexico, one of the top producers in the U.S. and the largest in
Spain.

CEMEX's closest peers are large global cement producers such as
Holcim Ltd. (BBB/Stable), which CEMEX competes with in several
markets. Holcim has broader geographic diversification, with
operations in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific, each
representing roughly 25% of EBITDA, while the remaining 25% of
EBITDA is split among the Middle East and Africa at 10% and Latin
America at 15%. Latin America is CEMEX's largest region,
representing close to 50% of EBITDA, of which 35% is generated in
Mexico. The U.S. represented almost 30% of CEMEX's EBITDA, with the
remainder from Europe at about 15% and, to a lesser extent, Israel
and the Philippines.

CEMEX's broader geographic diversification and larger scale compare
well with regional building materials companies such as Martin
Marietta Materials, Inc. (BBB/Stable) and cement producers
Votorantim Cimentos S.A. (VCSA; BBB-/Stable) and InterCement
Participacoes S.A. (B-/Stable).

VCSA, which has a dominant position in Brazil and operations in the
U.S., Canada and throughout the world, is not a direct peer, as the
rating is tied to parent Votorantim S.A.'s (BBB-/Stable), which
includes mining, utilities and financial services subsidiaries.
Martin Marietta is focused in the U.S. and the Caribbean.
InterCement's portfolio is weighted heavily toward volatile
emerging markets such as Brazil, Argentina and Mozambique, which
creates cash flow uncertainty and higher exposure to foreign
currency risk than CEMEX.

CEMEX's ratings reflect its weaker credit metrics than higher rated
global peers. CEMEX's net EBITDA leverage is forecast below 3.5x in
2022, while Holcim and Votorantim were around 2.0x. CEMEX's global
scale, business position and funding access are all positive, as is
the company's record of reducing debt. CEMEX's FFO interest
coverage forecast at around 4.5x is in line with a 'BB' category
building materials issuer.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

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

-- Mexican cement sales volumes to decline low single digits in
    2022 and a timid recovery to low single digits in 2023 and
    2024;

-- U.S. cement sales volumes rise by low-single digits in 2022-
    2024;

-- Fitch adjusted EBITDA of USD2.5 billion in 2022 and USD2.7
    billion in 2023;

-- Capex of about USD1.2 billion in 2022 in line with management
    guidance, and a similar level in 2022;

-- An exchange rate of the Mexican peso to the U.S. dollar at
    around MXN20.5/USD1.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- Sustainable net debt/EBITDA of below 2.5x;

-- Sustainable FCF generation that leads to a reduction in net
    debt to below USD7 billion

-- Continued growth in the U.S. market coupled with sustained
    cash flows in Mexico and a rebound in other key markets,
    leading to more stable cash flows;

-- A strengthening of CEMEX's business position outside of Mexico

    that leads to expectations of higher operating cash flows.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- A weakening of operating cash flow and FCF expectations such
    that net debt/EBITDA is forecast above 3.5x;

-- Expectations of a pronounced deterioration of Mexico's
    economic environment that weakens EBITDA prospects.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Sound Liquidity: CEMEX's liquidity is solid and Fitch expects the
company to maintain an active approach in terms of liability
management in order to avoid refinancing risks in the shot to
medium term. The company does not face meaningful maturities until
2025, when approximately USD852 million of bank debt is due. In
addition to USD593 million of cash, CEMEX has undrawn committed
credit facilities for USD1.3 billion (USD1.75 billion as of Mar.
31, 2022), which support liquidity. Fitch expects the company to
generate USD53 million in FCF in 2022.

As of Mar. 31, 2022, Cemex's total debt was USD8.9 billion, which
mainly includes market bonds (60%), syndicated loans (27%),
receivables securitization (7%) and hybrid issuance (6%). During
June 2021, Cemex issued USD1 billion of perpetual notes in June
2021, which qualify for 50% equity credit under Fitch's criteria.
During April 2022, CEMEX repurchased around USD440 million of its
bonds and used the committed credit facility to fund it.

ISSUER PROFILE

CEMEX is a large global cement producer, selling 63.8 million
metric tons of cement in 2020. The company is the leading cement
producer in Mexico and one of the top producers in the U.S.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT                RATING                            PRIOR
   ----                ------                            -----
Cemex Materials, LLC

   senior unsecured    LT          BB+        Upgrade    BB

CEMEX, S.A.B.
de C.V.                LT IDR      BB+        Upgrade    BB


                       LC LT IDR   BB+        Upgrade    BB

                       Natl LT      AA-(mex)   Upgrade    A+(mex)

                       Natl ST      F1(mex)    Affirmed   F1(mex)

   senior unsecured    LT           BB+        Upgrade    BB

   subordinated        LT           BB-        Upgrade    B+




===========
P A N A M A
===========

CABLE & WIRELESS: Fitch Affirms 'BB-' LongTerm IDRs, Outlook Stable
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has affirmed Cable & Wireless Communications
Limited's (C&W) Long-Term Foreign Currency and Local Currency
Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB-'. Fitch has also affirmed C&W
Senior Finance Limited's unsecured notes, Coral-US Co-Borrower
LLC's secured credit facilities, and Sable International Finance
Limited's secured notes, revolver and term loan at 'BB-'/'RR4'. The
Rating Outlook is Stable.

The ratings reflect C&W's leading market positions across
well-diversified operating geographies and service offerings,
underpinned by solid network competitiveness and leading B2C and
B2B offerings. The ratings also reflect Fitch's expectations that
parent company Liberty Latin America (LLA) will maintain moderately
high levels of leverage as a result of acquisitions or cash
upstream events.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

Net Leverage Forecast of 4.0x-4.5x: Relatively stable EBITDA
margins and growth in broadband and business-to-business (B2B)
services should help the company delever modestly from an organic
standpoint. Fitch forecasts C&W will maintain net leverage at the
lower end of the 4.0x to 4.5x range over the medium term, absent
acquisitions. LLA targets net proportionate leverage of around 4.0x
at its main operating subsidiaries, although M&A activity or
operating weakness in core markets could temporarily push leverage
metrics toward 5.0x. Fitch expects a rebound in capital intensity
to 16% of sales from 12% in 2021 mainly due to network upgrade and,
to a lesser extent, from expansion.

Moderately Improving Operating Prospects: C&W's Panamanian business
should improve over the medium term with the mobile market's
consolidation and the synergies from Claro Panama, which should add
around 750,000 subscribers. Claro has slightly greater postpaid
penetration, which along with consolidation should lead to average
revenue per user (ARPU) stabilization. The company's residential
fixed-line segment has shown stronger growth in Panama and
elsewhere, over the same timeframe, as multiplay packages and
broadband growth have helped grow fixed-line ARPUs and revenues.

Strong Market Position: C&W has the number-one or number-two
position in its major markets, many of which are a duopoly between
C&W and Digicel Group Holdings Limited (CCC). The risk of new
entrants in any given market is low given their relatively small
size. C&W's largest mobile market, Panama is turning mainly into a
two-player market from a four-player market after C&W reached an
agreement to acquire the number three player while the number four
player is exiting the market. While local legislation requires
three operators to participate in this market, the economic
prospects of a third operator in the near-term are questionable.
C&W's revenues should be more resilient than speculative-grade
issuers in the region, as the latter generally have a higher
dependence on mobile revenues that are less sticky than
subscription fixed-line and B2B service revenues.

Diversified Operator: The company's revenue mix per service is
well-balanced, with business-to-customer (B2C) mobile accounting
for 24% of total sales in 2021, B2C fixed-line at 27% and B2B at
49%. The company has a large presence in countries with
dollarized/U.S. dollar-linked economies. The company's subsea cable
business should continue to exhibit strong growth as data demand
increases, and the residential fixed-line segment should be more
resilient than mobile. The company's largest markets are Panama and
Jamaica, which together account for 79% of mobile and 56% of fixed
subscribers. The company has grown its footprint through M&A and
consolidated ownership of its subsidiaries.

LLA Linkages: LLA's financial management involves moderately high
amounts of leverage across its operating subsidiaries. While the
credit pools are legally separate, LLA has a history of moving cash
around the group for investments and acquisitions. This approach
improves financial flexibility; however, it also limits the
prospects for deleveraging. LLA also has a modest amount of debt
(approximately USD400 million) at the parent company level, which
is dependent on upstream cash from the subsidiaries. A
deterioration of the financial profile of one of the credit pools,
or the group more broadly, could potentially place more financial
burdens on C&W, given LLA's acquisitive nature.

Instrument Ratings and Recovery Prospects: The secured debt at
Sable International Finance Limited are secured by equity pledges
in the various subsidiaries. Per Fitch's Corporates Recovery
Ratings and Instrument Ratings Criteria, category 2 secured debt
can be notched up to 'RR2'/'+2' from the IDR; however, the
instrument ratings have been capped at 'RR4' due to Fitch's Country
Specific Treatment of Recovery Ratings Rating Criteria. The C&W
Senior Finance Limited unsecured notes are rated 'BB-'/'RR4', which
is the same level of the IDR.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

Compared to its sister company, VTR Finance N.V. (BB -/Stable),
which focuses on the Chilean broadband and television markets, C&W
has larger scale, better product and geographical diversification.
VTR operates in Chile, which is less risky than several Caribbean
markets but is very competitive. VTR is pending a transaction to
merge with America Movil's Chilean operations, which hold a
relevant position in the country's mobile market, in a 50-50 joint
venture. VTR's leverage is around 5.5x, which is high, although
Fitch expects the JV to carry slightly lower leverage than C&W.

Compared to its sister entity, Liberty Communications of Puerto
Rico LLC (LCPR), C&W has larger scale and better geographical
diversification, although C&W also operates in weaker operating
environments. LCPR's net leverage is expected to be in the same
4.0-4.5x range as C&W.

Compared with competitor Digicel, C&W has a stronger financial
profile and better product diversification. Digicel is also
concentrated in markets with weaker operating environments and per
capita incomes and more foreign exchange (FX) risk. Both companies'
ratings reflect their approaches to corporate governance, although
LLA's approach is much less hostile to creditors. Digicel has a
large debt maturity due in 2023 at one of its subsidiaries, which
faces significant refinancing risk.

Compared to WOM S.A. (BB -/Stable), C&W has greater diversification
and scale and a history of positive FCF generation. WOM benefits
from its status in Chile, a market that is close to a 50-50
post-paid/prepaid mobile. WOM's ratings reflect Fitch's
expectations that the company will be managed to net leverage
around 3.0x -3.5x, or around 1.0x -1.5x lower than C&W's leverage.

C&W operates in slightly more balanced markets when compared with
Millicom International Cellular S.A.'s (BB+/Stable) subsidiaries,
Comcel (CT Trust; BB+/Stable) and Telefonica Celular del Paraguay
(Telecel; BB+/Stable), which have more dominant the market
positions and significantly lower net leverage at around 3x and 2x,
respectively. Millicom's consolidated leverage, at about 3x, is
lower than LLA's at around 4x. Comcel's and Telecel's ratings
reflect a strong linkage with their parent as Millicom heavily
relies on these two wholly owned subsidiaries' dividend upstreams
to service its debt.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

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

-- B2B revenues growing 2%-3% per year with subsea revenues
    growing at 4% -5%;

-- Net fixed customer additions of approximately 30,000 - 40,000
    per year;

-- Fixed-line customer ARPUs rising in 2022 to USD47 per month
    before declining at around 1% per year in subsequent years;

-- Mobile subscribers growing to 4.5 million in 2024 from 3.5
    million in 2021 mainly due to the Claro Panama acquisition
    (about 750,000 subscribers);

-- Mobile ARPUs decline on average at a 2% per year;

-- Total revenues growing to USD2.6 billion by YE 2024 from
    USD2.3 billion in 2021;

-- EBITDA margins of around 37% -38%, consistent with recent
    history, or around USD900 million -USD1.0 billion per year;

-- Capex of around 16% of revenue, or USD380 million -USD420
    million per year;

-- Excess cash flow mostly returned to shareholders or kept for
    acquisitions or investments.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to positive
rating action/upgrade:

-- Fitch does not anticipate an upgrade in the near term given
    C&W's and LLA's leverage profiles.

-- Longer-term positive actions are possible if debt-to-EBITDA
    and net debt-to-EBITDA are sustained below 4.50x and 4.25x,
    respectively, for C&W and LLA.

Factors that could, individually or collectively, lead to negative
rating action/downgrade:

-- Total debt-to-EBITDA and net debt-to-EBITDA at C&W sustained
    above 5.25x and 5.00x, respectively, due to organic cash flow
    deterioration or M&A.

-- While the three credit pools are legally separate, LLA net
    debt-to-EBITDA sustained above 5.0x could result in negative
    rating actions for one or more rated entities in the group.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Solid Financial Flexibility: C&W's liquidity, access to internal
financing and long-dated amortization profile all support the
company's solid financial flexibility. As of March 31, 2022, C&W
had cash of USD541 million against short-term debt (including
accrued interest and related-party debt) of USD116 million. C&W has
USD630 million under the C&W revolving credit facility and USD165
million under regional facilities, of which approximately USD70
million are fully committed. The company's amortization profile is
long-dated, with the majority of the debt due after 2027. Fitch
expects that the company will maintain cash balances of around
USD400 million-USD500 million over the rating horizon.

ISSUER PROFILE

Cable & Wireless Communications Limited is a U.K.-domiciled
telecommunications provider that is owned by Liberty Latin America,
a Bermuda-domiciled entity. The company provides B2C mobile, B2C
fixed and B2B services to customers mainly in the Caribbean and
Panama.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Cable & Wireless Communications Limited has an ESG Relevance Score
of '4' for Exposure to Environmental Impacts due todue to its
operations in a hurricane prone region, which has a negative impact
on the credit profile, and is relevant to the ratings in
conjunction with other factors.

Cable & Wireless Communications Limited has an ESG Relevance Score
of '4' for Financial Transparency due to LLA's relatively opaque
disclosure and financial management strategy, which has a negative
impact on the credit profile, and is relevant to the ratings in
conjunction with other factors.

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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.

   DEBT                RATING                     RECOVERY   PRIOR
   ----                ------                     --------   -----
Cable & Wireless     
Communications
Limited              LT IDR        BB-   Affirmed            BB-

                     LC LT IDR     BB-   Affirmed            BB-

Coral-US Co-Borrower
LLC

   senior secured    LT            BB-   Affirmed    RR4     BB-

Sable International
Finance Limited

   senior secured    LT            BB-   Affirmed    RR4     BB-

C&W Senior Finance
Limited

   senior unsecured  LT            BB-   Affirmed    RR4     BB-




=======
P E R U
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SAN MARTIN CONTRATISTAS: Fitch Withdraws B- Issuer Default Ratings
------------------------------------------------------------------
Fitch Ratings has downgraded San Martin Contratistas Generales
S.A.'s (San Martin) Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer
Default Ratings to 'B-' from 'B' and simultaneously withdrawn
ratings. The agency has also withdrawn the 'B'/'RR4' rating to the
proposed USD100 million senior unsecured bond issuance, as the
issuance did not materialize. At the time of the withdrawal, the
Rating Outlook for the corporate ratings was Stable.

The downgrade incorporates San Martin's failure to issue a
long-term bond, as considered in Fitch's original rating case,
leaving the company with a weak liquidity and high refinancing risk
that is commensurate with the 'B-'. San Martin has partially
recovered its EBITDA as compared to the pandemic lows and slightly
stretched the debt maturity profile.

However, it still depends on an uncertain improvement of the market
conditions in Peru to resume its issuance attempt. At the same
time, ratings continue to reflect San Martin's reduced scale and
client concentration, despite being one of the leading service
providers for large mining and cement companies in Peru.

Fitch is withdrawing the ratings for commercial reasons. Therefore,
Fitch will no longer provide analytical coverage for the issuer.

KEY RATING DRIVERS

High Refinancing Risk: San Martin's liquidity remains weak with the
failure of the USD100 million bond issuance attempt in 2021. The
company continues to target the issuance in 2022, though it will
depend on improvement of market conditions. The refinancing risk
for low scale service providers that operate in the Peruvian mining
sector has increased over the past twelve months with the reduction
of mining projects being approved or extended by the regulator.
Risk aversion has also increased as global investors seek for more
conservative assets and more benign operating environments, which
lead San Martin to rely on banks to refinance its debt.

Low Scale Mining Service Company: San Martin provides contract
services to large and conventional mining and cement companies in
Peru, with a small presence in Colombia and Spain. It also executes
certain civil works for its clients. Nearly 80% of the company's
revenues comes from services provided and about 50% from its two
largest mining customers. The USD1 billion backlog in December 2021
provides adequate revenue visibility, while the near 30-year
expertise enables San Martin to competitively price and execute
services and maintain adequate margins.

Cyclical and Competitive Business: San Martin's ratings incorporate
average business risk, as demand for mining services tends to
follow commodity cycles, with large projects being initiated when
prices are high and cost cutting measures being implemented in
downturns. Operating environment is less favourable to the mining
sector in Peru, resulting in lack of new products and
opportunities. Competition in Peru to provide services for large
mining projects, which demands the heaviest and most expensive
equipment, tends to be moderate, and margins are in the mid-teens.

Large Clients: Unlike mining, where there are several local and
international companies operating in Peru, the cement market is
concentrated in the hands of a few Peruvian conglomerates. The
credit quality of most miners and cement companies is strong, which
puts low scale service companies, such as San Martin, at a
structural disadvantage when negotiating potential contracts. This
is partially offset by the trend of outsourcing some aspects of
mining, which saves these companies capex and labor costs and
related issues.

DERIVATION SUMMARY

No longer relevant, as the rating has been withdrawn.

KEY ASSUMPTIONS

No longer relevant, as the rating has been withdrawn.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

No longer relevant, as the rating has been withdrawn.

BEST/WORST CASE RATING SCENARIO

International scale credit ratings of Non-Financial Corporate
issuers have a best-case rating upgrade scenario (defined as the
99th percentile of rating transitions, measured in a positive
direction) of three notches over a three-year rating horizon; and a
worst-case rating downgrade scenario (defined as the 99th
percentile of rating transitions, measured in a negative direction)
of four notches over three years. The complete span of best- and
worst-case scenario credit ratings for all rating categories ranges
from 'AAA' to 'D'. Best- and worst-case scenario credit ratings are
based on historical performance.

LIQUIDITY AND DEBT STRUCTURE

Weak Liquidity: As of Dec. 31, 2021, San Martin reported a cash and
cash equivalents of USD3.2 million that covered only 9% of USD35.7
million in short-term debt. The company's total debt of USD90.6
million was mainly composed of bank loans of USD46 million (51%),
finance leasing of USD32 million (35%), direct credit from
Caterpillar Inc. of USD4.4 million (5%), factoring of USD4.4
million (5%), and corporate bonds of USD3.6 million (4%). San
Martin relies on banks to refinance short-term debt.

ISSUER PROFILE

San Martin has over 30 years in providing engineering and
construction services, consisting in drilling, blasting, loading,
hauling, among others to large mining and cement companies mainly
in Peru (80% of revenues). It also builds leach pads, dams, dumps
and assembles electromechanical equipment (20% of sales). The total
fleet of 1,000 heavy machines is 40% owned and the backlog amounts
USD1 billion.

ESG CONSIDERATIONS

Unless otherwise disclosed in this section, the highest level of
ESG credit relevance is a score of '3'. This means 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. Following the rating withdrawal Fitch will
no longer provide ESG scores for San Martin.

   DEBT                     RATING                          PRIOR
   ----                     ------                          -----

San Martin                 
Contratistas
Generales S.A.            LT IDR       B-    Downgrade      B

                          LT IDR       WD    Withdrawn      B-

                          LC LT IDR    B-    Downgrade      B

                          LC LT IDR    WD    Withdrawn      B-

   senior unsecured       LT           WD    Withdrawn      B




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P U E R T O   R I C O
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ESJ TOWERS: Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy With $39MM Debt
-----------------------------------------------------------
ESJ Towers Inc. filed for chapter 11 protection in Old San Juan,
Puerto Rico.

The Debtor disclosed $30.76 million in assets against $39.14
million in liabilities as of the bankruptcy filing.  Its assets
include timeshare intervals valued at $10.30 million and the real
property ESJ Tower at 6165 Isla Verde Ave. in Carolina, Puerto
Rico, valued at $11.8 million.

The business generated $5.089 million in revenue in calendar year
2021, compared with $8.252 million in 2020 and $2.21 million in
2019.

The Debtor is affiliated with Around the World HOldings, LLC.

According to court filing, ESJ Towers estimates between 200 and 999
creditors.  The petition states funds will be available to
unsecured creditors.

According to the resolution authorizing the Chapter 11 filing, the
Debtor is unable to meet its obligations as they mature, and
claimants have undertaken and are threatening suit and have
threatened to undertake steps to obtain possession of the Company's
assets.

A meeting of creditors under 11 U.S.C. Section 341(a) is slated for
July 18, 2022 at 11:00 AM via Telephonic Conference Information for
AUST/Trial Attys.

Proofs of claims are due by Oct. 17, 2022.  Government proofs of
claims are due by Dec. 12, 2022.

                       About ESJ Towers Inc.

ESJ Towers Inc. owns the ESJ Towers in Carolina, Puerto Rico.  The
luxury apartments and condo units at ESJ Towers have direct access
to Isla Verde Beach, widely considered one of the best in Puerto
Rico.  The property is located just 5 minutes from the airport.

ESJ Towers Inc. sought protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S.
Bankruptcy Code (Bankr. D.P.R. Case No. 22-01676) on June 10.
2022.

In the petition signed by Keith St. Clair, as president, ESJ
Towers Inc. estimated assets and liabilities between $10 million
and $50 million each.  Charles A. Cuprill, of Charles A. Cuprill,
PSC Law Offices, is the Debtor's counsel.




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T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O
=====================================

TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES: 376 Workers to Get New Lay-Off Letters
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Trinidad Express reports that Telecommunications Services of T&T
(TSTT) is expected to re-issue retrenchment notices to the 376
unionized workers by giving them 45-day notices which will end July
15.

TSTT and its recognized majority union, the Communications Workers
Union (CWU) came to an agreement outside of the courts, that will
see the organization continue with its restructuring exercise
without delay, according to Trinidad Express.

In a news release, the majority State-owned telecommunications
company said under the terms of the agreement, TSTT will re-issue
the notices of retrenchment to the 376 unionized workers with the
same date May 31, 2022 but with the last date of employment being
July 15, instead of June 1, as was stated in the initial letters of
separation, the report discloses.

"TSTT previously used the June 1 date because the company's
collective agreement allowed for separated employees to leave
immediately and receive payment in lieu of the statutory 45 days'
notice.  The workers will now remain employees of TSTT until July
15, 2022. The agreement will not reduce employees' severance
packages in any way," the release stated, the report notes.

TSTT indicated that after four months of consultations with its
employees' unions, on May 31, it issued notices of retrenchment to
its unionized employees advising them that their services were
surplus to the needs of the restructured organization, the report
discloses.

Retrenchment notices were also issued to 65 members of TSTT's
management staff, the report notes.

On the same day, the CWU filed an application for an ex parte
injunction, claiming TSTT had breached good industrial relations
practice by not giving the workers 45 days' notice, the report
discloses.

The Industrial Court did not grant the CWU's ex parte injunction
application but stayed any action by the Company pending a further
hearing. Under the terms of the stay, all workers who received
notices of retrenchment, but who wished nevertheless to do so, were
allowed to report for work, the report relays.

Some 44 of the 376 affected workers put themselves on a list of
persons wanting to report for work; but fewer than 20 turned out on
any one day, the report notes.

Meanwhile, at a news conference at CWU headquarters in Port of
Spain, secretary general Clyde Elder said the matter that was
expected to be called before the courts was discontinued, due to
the consent order entered by TSTT and CWU on the 45 days issue, but
has not given consent to continue the retrenchment exercise, the
report discloses.

"The union is totally against the restructuring and retrenchment of
any worker and I want to make that clear, as it is being said in
some quarters that this union did not fight to save some of 376
unionised workers who were given retrenchment letters and that is a
blatant lie.  After the 45 days is passed we are expected to have
further consultations with TSTT, because if we can save two or
three jobs out of 376 retrenched workers it would be a great move,"
Elder said, the report relays.

The union head also noted that on June 7, CWU sent an objection to
the majority state owned company and the Minister of Labor Stephen
McClashie in accordance with Section 8 of the Retrenchment and
Severance Benefits Act, outlining their disagreement to the
retrenchment, however Elder said to date no acknowledgement has
been received on the issue, the report says.

He noted that the union will continue to fight for the workers, the
report notes.  On the issue with the TSTT workers, who accepted
voluntary separation packages (VSEP) in 2018, and are threatening
to bring legal action against their former employer if it does not
furnish them with new TD4 forms in 21 days, the report discloses.

Elder made it clear that he never abandoned those VSEP workers as
being purported by their now representing head Phillip Alexander
Citizen's Union of T&T (CUTT) but he said to date none of the VSEP
workers came to the union and the 500 retrenched workers' matter is
expected to come before the Industrial Court on August 3, 4, 5 and
8, the report adds.




===============
X X X X X X X X
===============

[*] BOND PRICING: For the Week June 13 to June 17, 2022
-------------------------------------------------------
Issuer Name              Cpn     Price   Maturity  Country  Curr
-----------              ---     -----   --------  -------   ---
Polarcus Ltd               5.6    71.8     7/1/2022    AE     USD
Noble Holding Internat     6.2    62.2     8/1/2040    KY     USD
Avadel Finance Cayman      4.5    55.0     2/1/2023    US     USD
Automotores Gildemeist     6.8    54.9    1/15/2023    CL     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     0.5    27.6   12/31/2038    AR     JPY
Metrogas SA/Chile          6.0    41.6     8/1/2024    CL     CLP
Province of Santa Fe       6.9    75.2    11/1/2027    AR     USD
Provincia de Cordoba       7.1    74.7     8/1/2027    AR     USD
Esval SA                   3.5    49.9    2/15/2026    CL     CLP
Argentine Republic Gov     6.9    75.2    1/11/2048    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     8.3    74.5   12/31/2033    AR     USD
Provincia del Chaco Ar     4.0     0.0    12/4/2026    AR     USD
Province of Santa Fe       6.9    75.2    11/1/2027    AR     USD
Provincia del Chubut A     4.5    2208    3/30/2021    AR     USD
Province of Santa Fe       6.9    74.7    11/1/2027    AR     USD
Fospar S/A                 6.5     1.2    5/15/2026    BR     BRL
Cia Latinoamericana de     9.5    73.9    7/20/2023    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     6.3    74.1    11/9/2047    AR     EUR
Argentina Bonar Bonds      7.6    74.4    4/18/2037    AR     USD
Odebrecht Finance Ltd      6.0    16.4     4/5/2023    KY     USD
Argentina Bonar Bonds      5.8    75.2    4/18/2025    AR     USD
Noble Holding Internat     6.1    62.0     3/1/2041    KY     USD
Automotores Gildemeist     6.8    54.9    1/15/2023    CL     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     8.3    72.9   12/31/2033    AR     USD
Provincia de Rio Negro     7.8    70.3    12/7/2025    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     8.3    72.9   12/31/2033    AR     USD
Odebrecht Finance Ltd      6.0    16.4     4/5/2023    KY     USD
AES Tiete Energia SA       6.8     1.2    4/15/2024    BR     BRL
Noble Holding Internat     5.3    60.5    3/15/2042    KY     USD
Provincia de Cordoba       7.1    72.7     8/1/2027    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     8.3    74.5   12/31/2033    AR     USD
Provincia de Rio Negro     7.8    70.4    12/7/2025    AR     USD
Odebrecht Finance Ltd      6.0    16.4     4/5/2023    KY     USD
Cia Latinoamericana de     9.5    74.3    7/20/2023    AR     USD
Sylph Ltd                  2.4    65.1    9/25/2036    KY     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     4.3    70.0   12/31/2033    AR     JPY
Provincia de Buenos Ai     7.9    75.3    6/15/2027    AR     USD
Province of Santa Fe       6.9    74.7    11/1/2027    AR     USD
City of Cordoba Argent     7.9    73.1    9/29/2024    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     8.3    72.9   12/31/2033    AR     USD
Argentine Republic Gov     7.1    75.7    6/28/2117    AR     USD
Provincia del Chaco Ar     9.4    74.8    8/18/2024    AR     USD
Provincia de Rio Negro     7.8    70.3    12/7/2025    AR     USD



                           *********


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 2022.  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
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Information contained herein is obtained from sources believed to
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