Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On December 23, 2010, ICBC entered into a $15.5 million USD loan agreement with Hoku Corporation — a now-defunct Idaho-based clean energy company that specialized in polysilicon production for solar panels — to support the company’s corporate financing needs during project development. The proceeds were used by the borrower for general corporate purposes, particularly in relation to the construction and operation of its Pocatello, Idaho polysilicon production facility. The maturity of the loan is three years, and the interest rate is LIBOR plus 2.6%. The loan was fully secured by a standby letter of credit issued by the Sichuan Branch of ICBC and procured by Tianwei in Chengdu, China, in favor of ICBC’s New York Branch. The standby facility had a total availability of $17 million USD. Hoku also entered into a reimbursement agreement with Tianwei to cover all interest, fees, and expenses related to the issuance and maintenance of the standby letter of credit. As of March 31, 2011, the entire $15.5 million USD was outstanding.
Staff comments
1. The entirety of the loan agreement is not available. However, Form 10-K from the company is available for descriptions of the loan. It can be accessed at https://getfilings.com/sec-filings/110715/HOKU-SCIENTIFIC-INC_10-K/. 2. Hoku Corporation was a U.S.-based clean energy company headquartered in Pocatello, Idaho. It began in fuel cell technology before transitioning to solar manufacturing. In 2009, it became majority-owned by China’s Tianwei New Energy Holdings. Hoku declared bankruptcy in 2013, and its assets were liquidated. 3. AidData estimates the interest rate by adding the margin (2%) to 6 months LIBOR.