Shearman acts for banks in $1.48bn AES Panama issuance
Shearman & Sterling has advised the initial purchasers of a $1.48 billion notes offering in Panama by AES Corporation
The purchasers were Citigroup Global Markets, JP Morgan Securities, Scotia Capital (USA), Credit Suisse Securities (USA) and Banco General, and the offering comprised $1.38 billion of 4.375 per cent senior secured notes due 2030 by AES Panama Generation Holdings, a special purpose vehicle owned indirectly by AES Corporation.
The banks also acted as arrangers for a related $105 million term loan facility and a $50 million liquidity facility, all secured pari passu by the same collateral, and bringing the total of the refinancing to $1.48 billion.
The issuer applied the proceeds of the term loans and the notes to fund back-to-back loans to various operating companies of AES in Panama, in turn, to repay and refinance their existing indebtedness and to finance new projects. The issuer will also use the proceeds of the liquidity loans to finance short-term working capital needs of the issuer.
The notes were listed on the Panamanian Stock Exchange and will be listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange.
AES is a power generation and utility company that seeks to provide affordable, sustainable energy to 14 countries through a diverse portfolio of thermal and renewable generation facilities and distribution businesses.
The Shearman & Sterling team was led by partners Manuel A. Orillac (pictured), Gregory Tan, Larry Crouch, Russell Sacks, Jennifer D. Morton and Robert O’Leary, with associates Stella Bae, Roberto Powel, Justin Huynh, Janna Mouret, Anna Shepard, J. Ignacio Saldaña and international associates Alejandro Medina and Gonzalo Robles.
