LTL enters Nepal with landmark financial closure

Thursday, 10 May 2018 00:03 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka’s leading engineering conglomerate LTL Holdings Group, upon securing approvals to develop a 10 MW hydro power project in Nepal, signed syndicate loan agreements securing finance for the project in a landmark transaction.

Sanima Bank, one of the leading banks in Nepal, arranged a Syndicate Debt package of $ 15 million in local currency to finance the project on an optimal leverage of debt to equity mix. Century Bank and National Credit & Commerce Bank are the other syndicate partners.

This transaction being structured on project financing basis, is an indication of the shear confidence the international banking community is having on a renowned and well established global power sector player such as LTL. LTL was assisted in the transaction by Accede Capital of Sri Lanka. LVL Energy Fund PLC will invest in the project along with LTL.

LTL’s latest hydro project is located in western Nepal in Darchula district. It will be a run of the river high head power plant in the Makari River. River is fed throughout the year by the surrounding snowcapped mountains of Nepal securing high plant factor for the power plant. According to LTL Vice President (Renewable Energy) Sameera Ganegoda, the project is estimated to be completed by end of 2019.

Securing all important finance, facilitates the entry of any Sri Lankan company to the energy market in Nepal, whilst the project being financed on project financing basis would be a catalyst for other regional players to explore the vastly untapped hydro potential in Nepal.

LTL intends constructing a state of the art model plant with the finest machinery from renowned European suppliers carefully blended with the vast technical know-how of LTL in hydro power space that has been garnered over the years.

LTL is the leading power sector company in Sri Lanka with more than Rs. 25 billion revenue. Having earned experience in Sri Lanka, LTL has recently been aggressive in expansion globally. LTL is one of the largest industrial equipment exporters in Sri Lanka through its transformer export business to Africa, Mid East and Asia.

LTL also has a strong presence in Thermal Power space in Bangladesh with more than 200MW of its own projects. It is currently building four projects to a total capacity of 500MW for Bangladeshi customers.

Sanima Bank CEO Bhuwan Kumar Dahal said, “Sanima Bank is overwhelmingly happy to be the partner of a regional player such as LTL, that has demonstrated a strong track record, not only in Sri Lanka but across the continents such as Africa in addition to Asia.”