FRANKFURT, July 17 (Reuters) - German car parts supplier Schaeffler said it signed a new credit agreement worth 3.875 billion euros ($5.1 billion) to replace existing bank loans.
"Through these measures, cost of debt will be further reduced and the capital structure on the holding level will be significantly improved," Schaeffler said on Wednesday.
The arrangement, struck with several international banks, includes term loans worth 2.175 billion euros with maturities until 2017 as well as a revolving credit facility worth 200 million euros.
Schaeffler, which owns 49.9 percent in tyre maker Continental, said the loans and the credit facility have "significantly improved conditions" compared with the 2009 credit financing they replace.
As part of the transaction, Schaeffler will also issue high yield bonds in euros and U.S. dollars worth about 1.5 billion euros, with a term of five years, to institutional investors.
The issue size and the final terms will be determined over the next days, it said, and credit rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's will publish their respective ratings for the bonds shortly.
($1 = 0.7612 euros) (Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Christoph Steitz)