Government has appointed Fidelity bank and Standard Chartered bank as lead managers for the issuance of the Energy Sector Levy Act (ESLA) bond. The banks are expected to raise GHS10 billion.
A press statement issued by the Ministry of Finance and copied to Citi Business News said that the banks were selected after evaluating ten proposals received in response to the Request for Proposals.
As part of their duties, the banks are expected to work closely with members of their respective syndicates/consortia and any other local banks/ financial institutions as Co-managers with the view to building capacity locally and facilitating knowledge transfer.
“The Lead Joint Managers on behalf of Government (the “Sponsor”) shall set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (ESLA-SPV) to issue a long-term bonds (The “Energy Bond” or the “Bond”) on the back of ESLA receivables assigned to the SPV, which shall be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE),” the statement said.
“The ESLA SPV is expected to issue bond(s) to the tune of about GH¢10 billion, being the total estimated legacy debt within the energy sector. A portion of the bond proceeds shall also be used to refinance previously restructured debt due Banks that are currently being repaid with ESLA receivables, as well as the BDC debt due the Banks,” it added.
The proceeds will be used to repay the legacy debt of the energy sector SOEs, in line with the strategy as stated in paragraph 805 of the 2017 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of Government, to streamline the ESLA flows.
This is aimed at resolving the various issues within the energy sector, which have led to intermittent power supply and high tariffs, as well as provide liquidity to the banking sector.
“The Ministry looks forward to a successful ESLA Sponsored Bond issuance as we take steps to resolve the challenges of the energy sector, improve our country risk and debt sustainability outlook, as well as deepen our domestic capital market and promote broader economic growth and development”, the statement said.
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By: citibusinessnews.com/Ghana