New York, January 29, 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) has upgraded to A2 the ratings of
the below listed deals following the upgrade of The Goldman Sachs Group,
Inc. ("Goldman Sachs") senior unsecured rating to A2
on January 27, 2021.
• Black Belt Energy Gas District, Gas Prepay Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 3), Series 2018
• Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds,
Series 2007A & Series 2007B (Project No. 1)
• Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 3), Series 2012
• Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 4), Series 2018
• Lower Alabama Gas District, AL, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds, Series 2016A
• Lower Alabama Gas District, AL, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds (Project No. 2), Series 2020
• Northern California Energy Authority, CA, Commodity
Supply Revenue Bonds, Series 2018
• SA Energy Acquisition Public Facilities Corporation, TX,
Gas Supply Revenue Bonds, Series 2007
• Southern California Public Power Authority, CA, Gas
Project Revenue Bonds, Series 2007A, Series 2007B
• Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds, Series 2006A
• Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds, Series 2017A
• Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds, Ser. 2018
Please click on this link https://www.moodys.com/viewresearchdoc.aspx?docid=PBS_ARFTL439753
for the List of Affected Credit Ratings. This list is an integral
part of this Press Release and identifies each affected issuer.
RATINGS RATIONALE
The ratings of the above deals take into account the following factors:
(i) the credit quality of Goldman Sachs (A2) as guarantor for payments
due under the prepaid gas agreements, receivables purchase agreements
(when applicable), the back-end commodity swaps (when applicable)
and the interest rate swaps (when applicable),
(ii) the structure and mechanics of the transactions which provide for
the payment of debt service consistent with the rating assigned to the
Bonds, and
(iii) for Black Belt Energy Gas District, Gas Prepay Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 3), Series 2018 the credit quality of (i) Greenville
Utilities Commission, NC (Aa1), (ii) Okaloosa Gas District,
FL (Aa3), (iii) Omaha Metro.Util.Dist. NE Gas
Ent. (Aa2) and (iv) Tallahassee (City of) FL Electric Enterprise
(Aa3) as municipal participants,
(iv) for Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds,
Series 2007A & Series 2007B (Project No. 1) the credit quality
of (i) Omaha Metro.Util.Dist. NE Gas Ent.
(Aa2) as municipal participant and (ii) Transamerica Life Insurance Company
(A1) as investment agreement provider,
(v) for Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 3), Series 2012 the credit quality of (i) Natixis
Funding Corp. (A1) as investment agreement provider and (ii) Omaha
Metro.Util.Dist. NE Gas Ent. (Aa2) as municipal
participant,
(vi) for Central Plains Energy Project, Gas Project Revenue Bonds
(Project No. 4), Series 2018 the credit quality of (i) Moody's
internal assessment of the likelihood of payments under the gas supply
agreement for Fremont (City of) NE Gas Enterprise and (ii) Omaha Metro.Util.Dist.
NE Gas Ent. (Aa2) as municipal participants,
(vii) for Lower Alabama Gas District, AL, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds, Series 2016A the credit quality of (i) Clarke-Mobile
Counties Gas District, AL (A1) as municipal participant,
(viii) for Lower Alabama Gas District, AL, Gas Project Revenue
Bonds (Project No. 2), Series 2020 the credit quality of
(i) Moody's internal assessment of the likelihood of payments of an enhanced
pool of municipal participants and (ii) Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance
Company (Aa3) as investment agreement provider,
(ix) for Northern California Energy Authority, CA, Commodity
Supply Revenue Bonds, Series 2018 the credit quality of (i) Sacramento
Municipal Utility District, CA (Aa3) as municipal participant,
(x) for SA Energy Acquisition Public Facilities Corporation, TX,
Gas Supply Revenue Bonds, Series 2007 the credit quality of (i)
San Antonio (City of) TX Combined Util. Ent. (Aa1) as municipal
participant,
(xi) for Southern California Public Power Authority, CA, Gas
Project Revenue Bonds, Series 2007A, Series 2007B the credit
quality of (i) Anaheim (City of) CA Electric Enterprise (Aa3) and (ii)
Glendale (City of) CA Electric Enterprise (Aa3) as municipal participants,
(xii) for Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project
Revenue Bonds, Series 2006A the credit quality of (i) Royal Bank
of Canada (Aa2(cr)) as commodity swap counterparty,
(xiii) for Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project
Revenue Bonds, Series 2017A the credit quality of (i) Clarke-Mobile
Counties Gas District, AL (A1), (ii) Municipal Gas Authority
of Georgia (A1), (iii) Omaha Metropolitan Utilities District,
NE (Aa2), (iv) Patriots Energy Group, SC (A2), (v) Southeast
Alabama Gas District (A2) and (vi) Tallahassee (City of) FL Electric Enterprise
(Aa3) as municipal participants, and
(xiv) for Tennessee Energy Acquisition Corporation, Gas Project
Revenue Bonds, Ser. 2018 the credit quality of (i) Clarksville
(City of) TN Combined Util. Ent. (Aa2), (ii) Tallahassee
Consolidated Utility Systems, FL (Aa1), (iii) Tennessee Energy
Acquisition Corporation (A2), and (iv) Moody's internal assessment
of the likelihood of payments under the gas supply agreements for (a)
Elk River Utility District, TN, (b) Huntsville (City of) AL
Gas Enterprise, (c) Jefferson & Cocke Counties P.U.D.,
TN, (d) Oak Ridge Utility District, TN, (e) La Grange
Gas Authority, GA and (f) Powell-Clinch Utility District
(Anderson & Campbell Counties), TN as municipal participants.
FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OF THE RATINGS
» Upgrade of the long-term rating of Goldman Sachs
FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO A DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS
» Downgrade of the long-term rating of Goldman Sachs
The principal methodology used in these ratings was US Gas Prepayment
Bonds Methodology published in July 2019 and available at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBM_1142804.
Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com
for a copy of this methodology.
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
The List of Affected Credit Ratings announced here are all solicited credit
ratings. Additionally, the List of Affected Credit Ratings
includes additional disclosures that vary with regard to some of the ratings.
Please click on this link https://www.moodys.com/viewresearchdoc.aspx?docid=PBS_ARFTL439753
for the List of Affected Credit Ratings. This list is an integral
part of this Press Release and provides, for each of the credit
ratings covered, Moody's disclosures on the following items:
• Rating Solicitation
• Issuer Participation
• Participation: Access to Management
• Participation: Access to Internal Documents
• Disclosure to Rated Entity
• Endorsement
• Lead Analyst
• Releasing Office
For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity
analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity
to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and
Definitions can be found at: https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_79004.
For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of
debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosuresin
relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same
series, category/class of debt, security 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.
Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social
and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://www.moodys.com/researchdocumentcontentpage.aspx?docid=PBC_1243406.
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.
Joann Hempel
VP - Senior Credit Officer
Public Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
250 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10007
U.S.A.
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
Florence Zeman
Associate Managing Director
Public Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
Releasing Office:
Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
250 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10007
U.S.A.
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653