Singapore-based Vena Energy on Wednesday said it has secured financing worth $210 million (about P7 billion) for its 300-megawatt (MW) solar project in Ilocos Norte, following its earlier announcement that the project has reached the financing stage.
The company previously said the Opus solar power project was fully financed by a consortium of international banks, but did not disclose the funding amount at the time.
The $210 million loan will support the development of a ground-mounted solar facility in Ilocos Norte, which is expected to supply electricity to approximately 445,000 households once commissioned.
The total project cost is reported to be around P15 billion in a filing with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, indicating that the financing will cover a large portion of the development cost.
The project marks the first US dollar-denominated project financing in the Philippine renewable energy sector that is entirely financed by foreign lenders.
“As the first US dollar-denominated project financing in the Philippines’ renewable energy sector that is fully financed by international banks, this transaction underlines Vena Group’s leadership in mobilizing large-scale cross-border capital to accelerate the country’s clean energy transition,” Vena Group Chief Investment Officer Simon Grasso said in a statement.
The participating banks were BNP Paribas (Singapore), Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank (Singapore), DBS Bank Limited, Intesa Sanpaolo SPA (Hong Kong), MUFG Bank Limited (Singapore), Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) Limited, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp.
The solar facility is part of the Department of Energy's Green Energy Auction Program 2, with commercial delivery targeted for 2026.
Vena Energy operates six renewable energy facilities in the Philippines in Negros Occidental, Rizal, Leyte, Ilocos Norte and Bukidnon with a combined installed capacity of 330.8 MW. , Sheldin Joy Talavera
