Sunwest Group eyes IPO for Phl unit

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino-owned renewable energy player Sunwest Water & Electric Co. (Suweco), an affiliate of the Sunwest Group of Companies, is eyeing an initial public offering (IPO) within three to six years as it hopes to hitch a ride on the country’s rosy economic prospects.

 â€œWe may consider an IPO. We are preparing for it, probably it can be in the medium-term,” Sunwest Group chairman and president Elizaldy Co.

He said that when Suweco’s four hydropower plants become operational next year, the company may seriously consider embarking listing on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).

This would help the company fund more projects and become an even bigger player in the renewable energy sector.

The company has four planned projects in the pipeline. These four projects are the 15-megawatt Main Aklan, 9.4-MW Villasiga II, 6-MW Pinacanauan, Cagayan and the 1.5-MW Bansud Oriental Mindoro hydropower plants.

Suweco is preparing to borrow P4 billion from a group of local banks to finance the four new hydropower projects.

Co said that the company would tap a syndicate of banks for the P4 billion financing facility, with the Investment and Capital Corp. of the Philippines (ICCP) as the lead arranger.

Other banks in the consortium include the Security Bank, Development Bank of the Philippines, the Land Bank of the Philippines, China Bank, Philippine Veterans Bank, PBCom and Banco De Oro.

The company is also working on its plan to put up nine new mini-hydropower plants in Antique and Aklan to help address tight supply in the region.

The nine plants would have a total combined capacity of 50 MW.

In all, the company hopes to commission at least one plant per year up to 2020.

Suweco is targeting the completion of the development of the nine hydropower projects with the next five years.

Natividad said the company also has wind and solar projects but the priority is hydropower projects.

Incorporated in 2005, Suweco aims to a major supplier of clean renewable energy particularly in the rural areas that could not be reached by the national grid.

Suweco has currently a project portfolio of 59 projects at different stages of development.  These 59 projects are expected to generate a total capacity of around 280 MW in the next 10 years, the company also said.