Tender offer of First Gen shares priced at P33/share


The tender offer (TO) of the common shares of First Gen Corporation that can be unloaded or sold by its outstanding shareholders had been priced at P33 per share, according to a report filed by bidder Philippine Clean Energy Holding Inc. with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“The tender offer is being made at the price of P33 per common share, the net proceeds of which is payable to tendering shareholders by check or by bank transfer,” Philippine Clean Energy Holding said.

The tender offer will cover disposal of shares by outstanding common shareholders of the Lopez firm – and it will be for a minimum of 107,897,265 issued and outstanding common shares –which will account for 3.0-percent of the company’s total shareholdings.

The higher end target will be 205,000,000 of outstanding common shares and that will be for 5.7-percent shareholdings of First Gen.

Philippine Clean Energy Holding, which will be buying the shares in the tender offer exercise, is affiliated with global investment firm KKR Asia Pacific Infrastructure Pte Holdings Ltd.

American firm KKR is the same company that acquired shares in First Gen when it carried out tender offer for 11.9-percent of its shareholdings last year.

For this TO with the First Gen shareholders, the designated stock transfer agent is BDO Unibank Inc – Trust and Investments Group; while BDO Securities Corporation will act as the tender agent.

When KKR invested in First Gen last year, it cited the credence and integrity of the Lopez family and the entire conglomerate’s business directions; and it likewise noted the company’s leaning on clean energy technologies as its main enticement into injecting capital in the Lopez power generation firm.

First Gen is the country’s leading developer of clean energy projects – and its installations are mainly leaning on renewable energy and gas-fired power technology deployments.

The technology convergence of its power development portfolios are seen to be of perfect-fit, because the flexibility of gas is seen as a best complement to the intermittency dilemmas of emerging RE technologies.

The Lopez firm is also advancing its interim liquefied natural gas (LNG) import facility project, and that is targeted to come on stream by last quarter of next year – and will be a replacement asset with the anticipated depletion of the Malampaya gas field. ###