CREIT lists maiden ASEAN green bonds

MANILA, Philippines — Citicore Energy REIT Corp. (CREIT) has raised P4.5 billion from its maiden issuance of ASEAN green bonds.

The ASEAN green bonds, which will bear a coupon rate of 7.0543 percent and mature on Feb. 10, 2028, was listed on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. yesterday.

CREIT said the offer was oversubscribed, with the P1.5-billion oversubscription option fully taken up.

“This listing marks our second capital raising activity in just 12 months, following our initial public offering almost a year ago,” CREIT president and CEO Oliver Tan said.

“We are very grateful for the investment community’s continued favorable reception and the support of our joint lead underwriters, regulators, and participants. Without all of you, this exercise would have not been a successful offering, especially amid a looming global recession,” he said.

Proceeds of the offering will be used to acquire value-accretive properties to grow the company’s green asset portfolio.

These are expected to expand CREIT’s landholdings from the current two million square meters to seven million square meters, cementing its status as the country’s largest renewable energy landlord.

The company will then lease out the land parcels to solar power generators and operators, who will construct three utility-scale solar plants with a total projected generation capacity of 269-megawatt direct current, and form part of the expansion pipeline of CREIT’s sponsor, Citicore Renewable Energy Corp.

CREIT and the issue earlier received a rating of PRS Aa+ with Stable Outlook from the Philippine Rating Services Corp., signifying its strong capacity to meet its financial obligation.

SB Capital Investment Corp. and PNB Capital and Investment Corp. served as the transaction’s joint local underwriters, issue managers, bookrunners, and selling agents, with Security Bank Corp.–Trust and Asset Management Group acting as the trustee.

The Securities and Exchange Commission expressed its support to CREIT’s initiatives, citing Citicore’s growth agenda in relation to the country’s race for cleaner and renewable energy.

“CREIT once again sets another first this time, as the first REIT company to issue ASEAN green bonds,” SEC chairman Emilio Aquino said.

“In addition to its REIT shares listed in the PSE, the issuance of such bonds has also contributed to the diversification of the investment products available to the capital market,” he said.

Green bonds comply with ASEAN Green Bond Standards, which require proceeds to be used exclusively for the funding of eligible green projects.