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THE SIX banks arranging the circa $3.6bn debt facility backing National Grid's $3.2bn New England Electric System are to launch the deal to sub-underwriters today (Friday). Euroweek understands that ABN Amro, Barclays, Chase (joint bookrunner), Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Kleinwort Benson (joint bookrunner) and HSBC plan to go to between 25 and 30 banks to raise the required sub-underwriting.

* WestLB has appointed Alan Kelsey as a managing director and global head of its transportation industry group. He will be responsible for managing WestLB Panmure's investment banking activities in this industry group. Kelsey was previously an executive director of National Express Group, where he was in charge of strategy and development.

* The Republic of Kazakhstan's hopes of launching its much delayed Eu300m-Eu500m five to seven year issue via JP Morgan suffered a double blow this week after Fitch IBCA downgraded the country to BB- from BB and Moody's Investors Service cut it to B1 from Ba3. Both agencies cited sharp falls in the price of Kazakhstan's main exports - oil and ferrous and non-ferrous metals - and its high trade exposure to the stricken Russian economy.

* Dresdner Kleinwort Benson and SG will shortly complete the block trade of Telef stock. The two firms are selling a stake of around 14% of the German telephone group's equity capital and have been marketing the issue as an accelerated bookbuilt deal. Some 950,000 shares will be sold to international investors, which will increase the size of the company's float by around 60%.

* Railtrack has mandated Deutsche to arrange its forthcoming Euro-MTN programme. The programme will complement the company's existing CP programme, and proceeds will be used to fund infrastructure development and maintenance. * Gas Natural, Spain's primary natural gas provider and proprietor of its gas transmission system, is to establish a Euro-MTN programme.

* National Australia Bank Ltd -Rating: Aa3/AA

* European Investment Bank Rating: Aaa/AAA

Mexican oil group Pemex made its first 1999 appearance in the international bond markets this week with its long awaited $1bn four tranche oil receivables issue. The deal, led by joint bookrunners JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Goldman Sachs, was the second deal Pemex has issued using a receivables structure whereby its US oil revenues are directed into an offshore vehicle which issues and makes payments on the bonds.

Mexican oil group Pemex made its first 1999 appearance in the international bond markets this week with its long awaited $1bn four tranche oil receivables issue. The deal, led by joint bookrunners JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Goldman Sachs, was the second deal Pemex has issued using a receivables structure whereby its US oil revenues are directed into an offshore vehicle which issues and makes payments on the bonds.

Compagnie Vauban, the French property company, and Greenwich NatWest broke new ground last Friday when they launched a Eu228.67m securitisation of apartment block rents, using one of the first UK-style secured loan structures in the French market. Vauban was set up by Vauban Foncier SA of Belgium in 1991, at the start of the French property market's slump, to buy city centre blocks across France, often from forced sellers.

* Bayerische Landesbank Girozentrale Rating: Aaa/AAA/AAA

THE RETAIL market got its first chance this year to buy into a Middle Eastern project finance asset this week when co-ordinating arrangers Apicorp, Credit Suisse First Boston and Paribas launched general syndication on Tuesday of the $475m Qatar Vinyl Company (QVC) project financing. For international banks three ticket levels are on offer. Senior lead managers committing $20m receive participation fees of 80bp, lead managers receive 70bp for takes of $15m and managers with $10m receive 60bp. A sell-down was also targeted at regional banks, led by Apicorp, for slightly smaller ticket sizes.