Nickel Asia Corp. said Monday its board approved an additional equity contribution of P660 million to its 66-percent-owned renewable energy subsidiary Emerging Power Inc.
The board also approved a separate P1.5-billion three-year term loan to be provided by the listed firm.
“These funds, together with bank financing at the project company level will complete EPI projects of 105 megawatts lined up for 2016,” Nickel Asia said in a disclosure to the stock exchange.
The fund raising came after Nickel Asia’s fully-owned subsidiary Jobin-SQM Inc. successfully energized 7 megawatts of solar power, representing the first phase of its 100-MW solar farm in Subic Bay Freeport. The balance of 93 MW is targeted for completion within the year.
The 100-MW solar project is expected to be completed at a cost of P8 billion. The Jobin-Sqm renewable energy service contract also includes a 50-MW wind farm, which is scheduled for development in 2017.
Nickel Asia said part of the funds would also be used for the development of the first geothermal power plant with a capacity of 5 MW under 60-percent-owned subsidiary Biliran Geothermal Inc. The total project cost is estimated at P800 million.
It said seven holes were drilled in the Biliran geothermal field by 40-percent partner Orka Energy of Iceland, all of which exhibited the required temperatures for the production of geothermal power.
The development of additional plants and required infrastructure and further drilling of the potentially large geothermal field is currently under study.
“We have gained a lot of momentum in the past year especially in our Subic project and also in the other areas. EPI is determined to develop all of these clean energy projects in the soonest possible time,” said Nickel Asia president and chief executive Gerard Brimo.
Emerging Power is also said to be developing a 10-MW solar project in Camarines Sur, a 2.5-MW biogas project in Quezon and a 10-MW solar and bunker hybrid project in Northern Palawan.