The JV obtained the loan from a consortium of funding bodies - the International Finance Corp (IFC), Nordic Investment Bank, the Development Bank of the Philippines, The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp, Banco de Oro-EPCI, Inc., Philippine National Bank and Security Bank.
In a statement to the Phillipine Stock Exchange, SN Aboitiz Power said the loan consists of a dollar tranche of up to US$160M, and a peso tranche.
SN Aboitiz Power bought the 360MW Magat plant at auction, in April, for US$530M. It intends to uprate the facility. IFC said in August it was assessing a loan to the firm to help fund the privatisation process, and appointed New Zealnd firm SKM Consulting to report on technical and environmental aspects of operations at the plant.
The loan will be used to partially finance the deferred balance of the purchase price, refinance an existing US$159M loan from Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc., and shareholder advances for the acquisition.
The company is a JV between local firm Aboitiz Power Corp and Norway's SN Power, which itself is owned by Norwegian utility Statkraft and a compatriot risk capital investor, Norfund.
SN Power has been actively investing in hydro assets elsewhere, such as in Peru where it has just agreed to buy 180MW of capacity in the four plants owned and operated by Electroandes, a subsidiary of PSEG Global.
