NOTE: On 27 February, 2018 the Press Release was corrected as follows: In the third paragraph of the RATINGS RATIONALE section, replaced “over the past 5 years” with “since the beginning of operations.” Revised release follows.
Singapore, February 27, 2018 -- Moody's Investors Service has today assigned a (P)Ba3 rating to
Star Energy Geothermal (Wayang Windu) Limited's proposed senior secured
notes of up to USD650 million. The rating outlook is stable.
The provisional status of the rating will be removed upon Moody's
satisfactory review of the final terms and conditions.
Star Energy intends to use the proceeds of the proposed notes issuance
to refinance existing borrowing and for general corporate purposes.
RATINGS RATIONALE
"The (P)Ba3 rating reflects Star Energy's predictable revenue
profile, underpinned by a solid operating track record and strong
take-or-pay features under its Energy Sales Contract (ESC)
with Perusahaan Listrik Negara (P.T.) (PLN, Baa3 positive),"
says Spencer Ng, a Moody's Vice President and Senior Analyst.
"At the same time, Star Energy's credit profile is constrained
by its dependence on the continuous supply of steam resources, and
by its high financial leverage", Ng adds.
Moody's expects Star Energy to maintain its strong operational performance
during the term of the notes, supported by its experienced work
force and robust track record since the start of operations. With
the exception of a 4-month outage in 2015 -- caused
by a landslide that damaged its main steam pipeline -- both
generation units at Wayang Windu have registered an average availability
factor around 98% since the beginning of operations (excluding the landslide
affected periods).
Star Energy benefits from a robust tariff structure under the ESC,
according to which PLN is required to pay for at least 95% of nameplate
generation capacity available, regardless of whether PLN actually
dispatches the electricity. Moody's notes that PLN has historically
dispatched all of the electricity generated by the Wayang Windu facilities.
Reflecting the natural decline of geothermal steam wells, Star Energy
faces a degree of resource risk, and will need to drill new make-up
wells in addition to introducing measures to raise production from existing
wells. This also gives rise to variability in both the rate of
decline across the steam wells and the company's success in developing
new steam production from its drilling campaign.
However, Star Energy has extensive experience in these areas,
thereby supporting its ability to design and implement its scheduled drilling
program over time.
"Star Energy's rating incorporates its high financial leverage",
Ng says, adding "Over the term of the notes, we expect Star
Energy to achieve an average debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) of 1.2x
under Moody's base case assumptions".
Furthermore, Star Energy's financial flexibility is constrained
by the need to undertake sizeable drilling programs on a periodic basis,
and which could have a materially impact on its financial profile if actual
timings or drilling requirements shift as actual well performance changes.
Moody's believes the cash reserving requirements under the proposed
notes will lessen the impact from an increase in capital spending requirements.
The (P)Ba3 rating incorporates the possible need for Star Energy to renew
the supply arrangement with PLN for Unit 1 in December 2030. Moody's
considers risks associated with contract extension for Unit 1 as manageable,
given the company's exclusive access to geothermal resources in
the Wayang Windu area for electricity generation and the role of geothermal
power in Indonesia's carbon reduction plans to meet its international
commitments.
The (P)Ba3 rating has not factored in the potential credit impact of expansion
at Unit 3, given uncertainty over its timing and funding structure.
Moody's will consider the financial impact and execution risk relating
to such an expansion, if Star Energy progresses with its expansion
plans in the future.
The stable rating outlook reflects Moody's expectation that Star
Energy's performance is unlikely to experience a material change
over the next 12-18 months relative to Moody's base case
expectations.
Upward momentum for the rating is not expected in the near term,
given the project's fixed revenue profile. Over time,
the rating could face upward trend if there is a sustained improvement
in the company's DSCR levels to above 1.35x.
The rating could come under downward pressure if the projected financial
metrics drop to levels that are below Moody's base case expectations,
including average DSCR falling consistently below 1.15x during
the amortization period. This could be due to faster-than-expected
decline in steam production which could lead to increases in drilling
costs.
The principal methodology used in this rating was Power Generation Projects
published in May 2017. Please see the Rating Methodologies page
on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology.
Star Energy Geothermal (Wayang Windu) Limited operates one of the largest
geothermal power stations in Indonesia by capacity. Its Java Island
plant has an operational capacity of 227 MW. Commercial operations
for the 110MW Unit 1 began in June 2000, followed by the 117MW Unit
2 in March 2009. All of the electricity produced is sold to PLN
under the energy sales contract (ESC).
Star Energy Geothermal (Wayang Windu) Limited is 100% owned by
Star Energy Geothermal Pte Ltd (SEG), which is in turn 60%
owned by Star Energy Group Holdings Pte Ltd (SEGH). SEGH and SEG
own a further 648 MW of geothermal generation capacity in West Java (Darajat
and Salak) after they had acquired these facilities from Chevron Corporation
(Aa2 stable) in March 2017.
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
For ratings issued on a program, series or category/class of debt,
this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation
to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series
or category/class of debt or pursuant to a program for which the ratings
are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's
rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider,
this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation
to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to
each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their
credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating.
For provisional ratings, this announcement provides certain regulatory
disclosures in relation to the provisional rating assigned, and
in relation to a definitive rating that may be assigned subsequent to
the final issuance of the debt, in each case where the transaction
structure and terms have not changed prior to the assignment of the definitive
rating in a manner that would have affected the rating. For further
information please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page for the
respective issuer on www.moodys.com.
For any affected securities or rated entities receiving direct credit
support from the primary entity(ies) of this credit rating action,
and whose ratings may change as a result of this credit rating action,
the associated regulatory disclosures will be those of the guarantor entity.
Exceptions to this approach exist for the following disclosures,
if applicable to jurisdiction: Ancillary Services, Disclosure
to rated entity, Disclosure from rated entity.
Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit
rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating
review.
Please see www.moodys.com for any updates on changes to
the lead rating analyst and to the Moody's legal entity that has issued
the rating.
Please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com
for additional regulatory disclosures for each credit rating.
Spencer Ng
Vice President - Senior Analyst
Project & Infrastructure Finance
Moody's Investors Service Singapore Pte. Ltd.
50 Raffles Place #23-06
Singapore Land Tower
Singapore 48623
Singapore
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077
Terry Fanous
MD-Public Proj & Infstr Fin
Project & Infrastructure Finance
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077
Releasing Office:
Moody's Investors Service Singapore Pte. Ltd.
50 Raffles Place #23-06
Singapore Land Tower
Singapore 48623
Singapore
JOURNALISTS: 852 3758 1350
Client Service: 852 3551 3077