This article appeared in the Sustainable Finance & Investment newsletter, a monthly roundup of the latest ESG news, analysis and opinion on the sustainable finance and ESG markets of Latin America and the Caribbean. Free to read thanks to IDB Invest SIGN UP HERE >
Chilean power company AES Andes returned to the international market on Wednesday to raise $500 million in its first green bond sale in more than four years.
The new five-year notes carry a coupon of 6.3% and priced at 99.907 to yield 6.322%, equal to a spread of 220 basis points over US Treasuries, a sell-side source told LatinFinance.
AES Andes opened the initial price talk earlier in the day in the mid-200 basis points area and set guidance at around 225 basis points over USTs, plus or minus five points, the source said.
Investors placed as much as $1.7 billion in orders, according to a second source.
Citi, Goldman Sachs, Mizuho, Scotiabank and SMBC were global coordinators and active bookrunners, while BBVA, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole and JPMorgan were passive bookrunners on the Rule 144/Reg S offering.
The 2029 notes received BBB- ratings from Fitch and S&P Global and a Baa3 rating from Moody’s.
The company plans to use part of the sale proceeds to fund a tender offer that got underway this week and the remaining funds for green investments and to pay off existing bank debt.
AES Andes, which is a subsidiary of US-based AES Corp, sold its first green bonds in the cross-border market in October 2019, printing $450 million worth of 6.35% 2079 fixed-to-floating rate notes.