NPC signs $100m loan

NPC signs $100m loan

MANILA (AFP): State-owned National Power Corporation (NPC) on
Saturday signed a US$100-million syndicated loan facility, the
Philippine presidential palace said in a statement.

The NPC, the Philippines' main power producer, will use the
proceeds of the loan for various generation and transmission
projects, many of which are already being implemented, the palace
said.

The loan, which has a five year maturity and is fully
guaranteed by government, was arranged by JP Morgan Securities
Asia. Among the participating banks are Morgan Guaranty Trust
Company of New York, Bangkok Bank Public Company Ltd., and
Deutsche Bank (Asia) Finance Ltd.

Also involved are the Korean Development Bank, Krung Thai Bank
Public Company Ltd. and Fuji Bank.

The interest rate was set at LIBOR plus 1.625 percent, the
statement added.

The palace quoted finance officials as saying the loan was
arranged before the Mexican currency crisis and had not changed
in the last four months, indicating that the lenders have greater
confidence that the Philippines will not experience a Mexico-like
situation.