Aboitiz-led consortium gets P70-B loan for CBK hydroelectric power plant
An Aboitiz-led consortium has secured up to P70 billion in bridge loan facilities to partially finance its acquisition of the Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) Hydroelectric Power Plant complex.
In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, Aboitiz Power Corp. said its wholly owned subsidiary, Aboitiz Renewables Inc. (ARI), informed the company that the Thunder Consortium—composed of ARI, Japan’s Sumitomo Corp. and Electric Power Development Co. Ltd.—obtained bridge loan facilities from BDO Unibank Inc. and Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co.
Under the arrangement, each lender will provide the consortium with a credit line of up to P35 billion. Loan proceeds will be used to partially fund the consortium’s acquisition of the CBK hydroelectric complex, one of the country’s major renewable energy assets.
ARI serves as AboitizPower’s investment arm for renewable energy projects, covering geothermal, large hydroelectric facilities, run-of-river hydro projects, wind farms, battery energy storage systems and solar developments.
The company did not disclose further details on the loan tenor, pricing or drawdown schedule. It likewise did not indicate whether additional funding sources would be tapped to complete the transaction.
Earlier this month, Thunder Consortium clinched the 796.64-megawatt complex after edging out a consortium backed by Lopez-led First Gen Corp. at the auction held by the state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management (Psalm).
The deal covers the privatization of the P36-billion CBK complex in Laguna, a major pumped-storage and conventional hydro facility that helps stabilize the Luzon grid during demand swings.
Dennis Edward Dela Serna, president and chief executive officer of Psalm, said they aim to hand over the facility by February 2026.
