AboitizPower eyes P10 billion retail bond issuance in Q3

MANILA, Philippines — Aboitiz Power Corp. is eyeing to issue nearly P10 billion fixed-rate retail bonds by the third quarter of the year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange Tuesday, AboitizPower said it filed an application with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the issuance of the fourth tranche of its P30 billion fixed-rate retail bonds registered in 2017 under the shelf registration program of SEC.

“The fourth tranche bonds, with an aggregate principal amount of up to P9.55 billion, including oversubscription, is expected to be issued in the second or third quarter of 2020, in one or two series,” it said.

The company said proceeds would be used to pay for the acquisition of a 49-percent voting stake and a 60-percent economic stake in AA Thermal Inc., AC Energy Inc.’s thermal platform in the Philippines.

It will also be used to bankroll the completion of GNPower Dinginin Coal Plant Ltd. Co., AboitizPower’s joint coal-fired power project with AC Energy in Bataan.

“The proceeds of the bonds will be used to reimburse equity infusions into AA Thermal Inc., to fund succeeding infusions into AA Thermal, and to fund equity infusions into Therma Power Inc., in relation to the construction of the 2x668-megawatt (MW) super critical coal-fired power plant of GN Power Dinginin Ltd. Co.,” the company said.

For this bond offering, AboitizPower appointed BDO Capital & Investment Corp. and First Metro Investment Corp. as joint issue managers; BDO Capital & Investment Corp., First Metro Investment Corp., and China Bank Capital Corp. as joint lead underwriters; and BDO Unibank Inc. - Trust and Investments Group as the trustee.

Moreover, AboitizPower intends to list the bonds with the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp.

Earlier, the company said the fourth tranche bonds was targeted in the second quarter, subject to market conditions.