Ayala’s ACEN to list ‘green’ bonds on PDEx

Ayala-led ACEN Corp. is targeting to list its Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) “green” bonds on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDEx) later this month as it moves to finance more of its energy projects under environmental, sustainability and governance frameworks.

ACEN, in a disclosure to the stock exchange, said it has applied to the PDEx for the listing of the green bonds. The target listing date is on Sept. 22.

It already secured the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) approval for its maiden peso-denominated green bond issuance at an aggregate principal amount of P10 billion

The listed firm’s green bond offering runs from Sept. 9 to Sept. 15.

The bonds carry a fixed coupon interest rate of 6.0526 percent per annum due September 2027, which were taken from the shelf registration of ACEN’s Asean green bonds worth P30 billion.

ACEN holds the discretion to sell the debt securities in one or two tranches. The SEC earlier defined these securities as bonds and “sukuk” which comply with the Asean Green Bond Standards, where the proceeds will be exclusively applied to finance or refinance, in part or in full, new or existing eligible green projects.

“Eligible green projects include those involving renewable energy, energy efficiency, pollution prevention and control, environmentally sustainable management of living natural resources and land use, clean transportation, climate change adaptation and green buildings,” it said.

For this transaction, ACEN commissioned BDO Capital and Investment Corp. and BPI Capital Corp. as joint issue managers, working alongside RCBC Capital Corp. and SB Capital Investment Corp. as joint lead underwriters and bookrunners.

Ayala’s power business expects to raise P9.87 billion from the initial green bond sale, which it would use to finance or refinance new or existing eligible green projects, in line with the Green Bond Framework.

Renewable projects include the 283-megawatt (MW) San Marcelino solar farm in Zambales, touted as the largest solar farm in the country; the 42-MW expansion of the 72-MW Arayat-Mexico Solar farm in Pampanga and the construction of the first phase 133-MW solar farm in Lallo, Cagayan.

ACEN aims to achieve 20 gigawatts of attributable renewables capacity by 2030 and become the largest listed renewables platform in Southeast Asia. INQ