SB Capital arranges $220-M loan for TeaM Energy

Manila Times.net
Published : Monday, July 02, 2012 09:39


TeaM Energy Corp. recently closed a $220-million 12-year mezzanine loan facility arranged by SB Capital Investment Corp., with proceeds from the loan facility to be used primarily to refinance the energy company’s existing mezzanine loan facility with PPF Company B.V. (formerly Nomura Philippines Power Funding Company B.V.).

The transaction marked the first time that TeaM Energy has tapped the domestic capital market for funding requirements. Security Bank Corp. and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Company were the major lenders for the transaction.

Security Bank president and chief executive Officer Alberto Villarosa said, “The mezzanine lenders welcome the opportunity to support TeaM Energy’s projects to produce reliable and stable energy sources. We are pleased to be a partner in efforts to develop a strong energy sector which is a key driver in our country’s economic growth.”

Toshiro Kume, executive vice president and chief finance officer of TeaM Energy, said “The new mezzanine loan facility is TeaM Energy’s maiden fund-raising exercise from the domestic market. Notwithstanding the subordinated nature of the loan, the $220 million mezzanine facility achieved a successful financial close amidst a very tight timetable”.

TeaM Energy is a joint venture partnership between noted Japanese firms, Marubeni Corp. and Tokyo Electric Power Co. Inc. and, is one of the largest independent power producers in the Philippines, with over 2,000 megawatts (MW) of installed generating capacity.

In June 2007, CrimsonPower Holdings Co. Inc., the predecessor of TeaM Energy, signed a mezzanine loan facility agreement with PPF Company B.V. to partially fund the acquisition of 100-percent ownership in Mirant Asia-Pacific Limited, then the largest Independent Power Producing holding company, from US-based IPP Mirant Corp.

TeaM Energy’s power generation portfolio consists of a 100-percent direct interest in the 1,218 MW coal-fired Sual power plant located in Sual, Pangasinan; a 100-percent direct interest in the 735 MW coal-fired Pagbilao power plant in Pagbilao, Quezon; as well as a 20-percent indirect interest in the 1,251 MW natural gas-fired Ilijan power plant located in Ilijan, Batangas. A significant portion of Sual and Pagbilao’s capacity is contracted by the National Power Corp. In addition, TeaM Energy also operates an Energy Supply Business group, wherein it markets and sells the excess capacity of Sual and Pagbilao to various distribution utilities and direct users.

SB Capital is the wholly-owned investment banking arm of Security Bank.

Further sequels will be monitored on July 4 once the European Central Bank (ECB) holds its policy meeting, as details unfold on how the EU’s approved 120-billion euro ($149-billion) funding package will be utilized to promote growth.

“Any ‘implicit indication’ towards ‘fiscal integration’, coupled by potential easing in monetary policies will provide a big sentiment boost for regional equities,” Natividad said.

Calaycay added that Europe and the United States, while still at the core of financial markets’ risk profile, provided some encouraging spin to the constant positive input from the domestic front.

In the previous week, the PSE index zoomed 126 points to 5,246.41, up 2.47 percent week-on-week, primed by the Services and Holdings counters. Turnover improved to 23 percent to P6.21 billion. Net foreign buying zoomed from P499 million to P1.11billion.    source