JSW Hydro Energy Raises $707 Mn via Green Bonds from International Markets

JSW Energy said that its wholly-owned subsidiary, JSW Hydro Energy, has raised USD 707 million through green bonds from international markets.

The company said in a statement that, “it has successfully priced a USD 707 million fixed rate senior secured green 144A/Reg S bond for a 10-year tenor at 4.125 per cent.”

It will, further, use the proceeds for repayment of existing green project related Rupee-denominated indebtedness.

As the company has embarked on a journey to transition to become predominantly a renewable energy player, a strong investor response globally for its maiden international bond offering has come as a shot in the arm.

The transaction was launched with an initial price guidance of 4.500 per cent area and tightened by 37.5 bps to 4.125 per cent as final pricing, it added.

The final order book was in excess of USD 2.6 billion with oversubscription of more than 3.7 times.

Moreover, the transaction witnessed 64 per cent participation from Asia, 14 per cent from the US and 22 per cent from EMEA with 82 per cent investment from long haul funds, 17 per cent from financial institutions (including Sovereign Wealth Funds), and 1 per cent from private banks. There was strong demand from some of the largest marquee fixed income investors globally.

Commenting on the investor response, Prashant Jain, Chairman of JSW Hydro, and Joint Managing Director and CEO of JSW Energy, said, “we are overwhelmed by the strong response from international bond investors in our debut issuance. We are pleased that global investors have understood and appreciated our unique credit story. This fundraise will enable us to further strengthen and diversify our sources of funding and we look forward to strengthening our partnership with global investors as we continue to build and grow our renewable energy business.”

Jain further added “from a total installed capacity of about 4.6 GW today, where about 30 per cent is from renewable sources, we currently have visibility on a pipeline of about 2.6 GW of renewable projects comprising of wind, solar and hydro which are likely to get commissioned over the next 24 – 30 months. On completion of these projects, the share of renewables in our portfolio will be over 55 per cent.”