MB approves 2 Napocor loans

The Monetary Board (MB), the policy-making body of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), has granted its final approval to two of the National Power Corp.’s (Napocor) loan applications.

The MB specifically approved Napocor’s ¥1.044 billion proposed suppliers credit facilities from Sojitz Corp. of Japan.

Proceeds from the Japanese loan will finance 100 percent of the contract price of supply and delivery of Daihatsu machineries for the missionary electrification program of Napocor’s small power utilities group (SPUG).

MB also granted final approval for the $100-million six-year floating rate loan of the state-owned power generation firm.

The loan will partly finance the servicing or payment of foreign currency obligations of Napocor for 2005.

The $100 million flotation came after Napocor’s successful $300-million offering of the same Notes early last month to bring its total issuance to $400 million.

To mature in 2011, the notes were priced at par and pay a quarterly coupon of three-month dollar LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate) plus 425 basis points.

LIBOR is the rate banks charge each other for short-term eurodollar loans. It is frequently used as the base for resetting rates on floating rate securities.

The transaction arranged by Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. as the sole lead manager was placed with over 30 different accounts across Asia, Europe and North America, with more than 70 percent taken by institutional investors in the United States and Europe.