THE International Finance Corp. (IFC) of the World Bank said Thursday that it signed a loan agreement with SN Aboitiz Power-Benguet Inc. (SNAPB) to help rehabilitate two hydroelectric plants.

In a statement, IFC said the loan agreement will help boost electricity output in the Benguet province and spur economic development.

IFC’s $100-million loan will enable SNAPB to install new turbines and generators at the Ambuklao and Binga hydro facilities.

Ambuklao’s three 25-megawatt (MW) generating units have not been functioning since 2000, and Binga’s four 25-megawatt generators operate as a base-load plant when the water level is high and as a peaking plant when the level is low.

SNAPB is a joint venture between Aboitiz Power Corp. (APC) and SN Power Invest AS of Norway, a global renewable-energy company.

The Ambuklao and Binga plants are part of the privatization program under the Philippines’ Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira).

The transaction is IFC’s second loan to the APC and SN Power Invest consortium, as the same sponsors won the bid for the 360-MW Magat hydro project in 2007 through SN Aboitiz Power-Magat Inc.

“The Ambuklao-Binga acquisition is another building block of our strategic vision of positioning Aboitiz Power as the country’s leading provider of energy from renewable sources. We will continue prioritizing investments in renewable sources of energy and pursuing our vision of making Cleanergy available to every Filipino,” said Erramon Aboitiz, APC president and chief executive.

He added that Cleanergy is the Aboitiz brand of energy sourced from clean and renewable sources.

“The transaction aligns with IFC’s strategy to support the implementation of the Epira through key milestone projects. It also fits within the World Bank Group’s climate-change strategy, which calls for increased investments in renewable energy. We are pleased to work again with SNAPB, which shares IFC’s vision for sustainability,” Jesse Ang, IFC resident representative for the Philippines, said.

SNAPB is also looking into obtaining carbon credits for the plants under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism scheme, and IFC has expressed its full support for the effort.

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THE International Finance Corp. (IFC) of the World Bank said Thursday that it signed a loan agreement with SN Aboitiz Power-Benguet Inc. (SNAPB) to help rehabilitate two hydroelectric plants.

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