[Suspended] China Development Bank provided $350 million loan for 240MW Agus 3 Hydropower Project

According to the World Bank’s Private Participation in Infrastructure (PPI) Database, China Development Bank (CDB) and Agus 3 Hydropower Corporation (Agus3HC or 菲律宾Agus3水电公司) — a special purpose vehicle and joint venture of Tranzen Group Inc. (80% ownership stake) and Lanao Hydropower Development Corporation (20% ownership stake) — signed a $350 million loan agreement for the 240MW Agus 3 Hydropower Project in 2012. The proceeds of the loan were to be used by the borrower to partially finance a $460 million commercial contract that it signed with China Gezhouba Group Company Ltd (CGGC) on March 24, 2010. The borrowing terms of the loan are unknown. The independent power project was reportedly financed according to a debt-equity ratio of 70:30. Loan details are unknown. The purpose of the project was to construct a 250MW hydroelectric power plant along the Agus River complex within Saguiaran in Lanao del Sur and the municipalities of Pantar and Balo-i in Lanao del Norte. The project involved the construction of a dam, a powerhouse, substations, pen-stocks, head and tailrace tunnels, and related facilities, the installation of turbines, transformers and generators, and the laying of transmission lines. China Gezhouba Group Company Ltd (CGGC) was the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor responsible for implementation. A formal groundbreaking ceremony for the project was held in April 2010. Then, on September 10, 2012, Agus3HC sought congressional approval for the CDB loan. According to the PhilStar article, the project had received opposition previously, but was expected to be approved. A groundbreaking ceremony for the project was held in April 2010; however, the project was delayed due to unspecified financial issues. As a result, construction on the project never began after the groundbreaking ceremony. According to "12 projects pitched for China financing," in February 2017, the project was resubmitted to be considered for Chinese funding. As of 2021, the project was in permitting stage with construction expected to begin in 2022 and operation to begin in 2025. This project is also known as the Tranzen Agus III Project. The Chinese project title is Agus3水电站项目.

Additional details

The government appears to have withheld approval and there is no evidence of the project implementation, so AidData has status-coded this project as ‘suspended’ for the time being.

Number of official sources

1

Number of total sources

15