First Gen firms up $200-M term loan

MANILA, Philippines - First Gen Corp., the power generation arm of the Lopez Group, has closed a $200-million loan with  BDO Unibank Inc. to finance the capital expendtures of its subsidiaries.

First Gen signed yesterday a $200-million term loan agreement with BDO, arranged by BDO Capital & Investment Corp.

The facility would have a tenor of 10 years from issue date.

“First Gen intends to use the proceeds from the notes as funding for its subsidiaries’ capital requirements and other general corporate purposes,” the company said.

The company, through its subsidiaries, is currently working on the 414-megawatt (MW)San Gabriel natural gas power facility and 97-MW Avion open cycle natural gas-fired power plant, both located near the 1,000-MW Sta. Rita and 500-MW San Lorenza natural gas plants in Batangas.

The 414-MW first phase of the San Gabriel plant is expected to run by end-2015, while its expansion to 800 MW under two phases is targeted on or before 2017.