Citicore Renewable Energy Corporation (CREC) has secured a financing arrangement with Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) for the funding of multiple solar power plant projects with a combined installed generating capacity of at least 600MWdc and up to approximately 1GW of solar energy capacity.
The financing deal, arranged by RCBC Capital Corporation, is slated to reach up to PhP20 Billion in funding, starting with the signing of an initial tranche of PhP9 Billion. The structure is believed to be the first-of-its-kind project financing in the Philippines, which covers various project portfolios instead of the typical per-project financing structure, stated Citicore.
The proceeds of the initial funding tranche will be applied towards CREC’s development of certain solar power plant projects in Batangas, Pampanga, and Negros Occidental. The proceeds of subsequent tranches will be applied towards the completion of additional solar power projects or additional generating capacity from CREC’s pipeline of projects in various stages of development, according to Citicore renewables.
“RCBC’s support will assist us to fulfill our 1GW target for this year,” said CREC President and CEO Mr. Oliver Tan. “We thank RCBC for their trust in us and we will endeavor to meet our goals with excellence.”
The solar power plant projects in Batangas, Pampanga, and Negros Occidental are integral to CREC’s target of contributing 1GW of ready-to-build/under-construction solar energy capacity per year over the next five years. The expected commercial operation dates for the first and second phases of the Negros Occidental project are in September 2024 and 2025, respectively. Meanwhile, the expected commercial operation dates for the first and second phases of each of the Batangas and Pampanga projects are in December 2024 and 2025, respectively.
