Energy Devt Corp. plans to raise P5-billion capex in H2

by Lenie Lectura - April 4, 2016
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/energy-devt-corp-plans-to-raise-p5-billion-capex-in-h2/

LOPEZ-LED Energy Development Corp. (EDC) plans to raise P5 billion in fresh capital in the second half (H2) of the year, the company’s chief finance officer said.

“It’s not refinancing, but we will be raising P5 billion of new money this year for general purposes,” Nestor Vasay said in a text message.

Vasay said the EDC would be tapping local banks for the planned P5-billion financing scheme, which the company is still working on.

The EDC, he added, has close to P18 billion in cash right now. It is also earmarking P14 billion in capital expenditure (capex) this year, higher than the P10 billion to P12 billion set aside last year.

Bulk of the capex would be used to fund the upgrade of the company’s 112.5-megawatt (MW) Tongonan geothermal-power plant in Leyte, which went on emergency shutdown last year due to issues related to the facility’s age.

“The capex is P14 billion this year. The rest will be allotted for some drilling and interconnection in Mindanao,” Vasay said.

The company is the largest geothermal producer in the country. It has also expanded to other sources, like wind, solar and hydropower. It has a total installed geothermal capacity of 1,169 MW, or 60.9 percent, of the country’s 1,918 MW installed geothermal capacity in 2014. EDC’s core profit in 2015 dropped by 4 percent to P8.8 billion, from P9.2 billion the previous year due to higher operating expenditures.

The company’s consolidated income, inclusive of nonrecurring items, stood at P7.6 billion, 35 percent lower than the P11.7 billion booked the previous year.

EDC recorded higher operating and depreciation expenses from assets reporting their first full year of operations last year. It also incurred increased power plant and pipeline maintenance expenditures for both the Leyte and Palinpinon projects.

EDC invested in a fleet-wide typhoon-proofing project to make its facilities more resilient against severe weather disturbances.