Philippines' First Gen plans $3-B expansion

First Gen Corp. may invest as much as $3 billion in the next six years building power plants and a liquefied natural gas terminal.

“There’s room for additional capacity,”said First Gen President Francis Giles Puno.

“We intend to meet the needs of the market by expanding our platform.”

First Gen owns of two of the Philippines' three gas-fired power facilities, and will build another, which it will later expand. The company will also invest in wind and hydroelectric projects.

“Building infrastructure the country needs is a sure way to sustain the nation’s economic momentum,” BDO Unibank chief market strategist Jonathan Ravelas said. “Companies like First Gen are taking advantage of the low interest rates and the strong currency to support expansion.”

Talks are ongoing with a group of banks for a $400-million loan due in 10 years “to reduce debt and have room for more investments,” Puno said.

First Gen operates two gas plants with combined capacity of 1,500 megawatts. The company plans to build a third gas plant with an initial capacity of as much as 400 megawatts to operate by 2014 with plans to possibly expand by an additional 800 megawatts after four years.

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