BW Group, a maritime group with diversified interests in shipping, floating infrastructure, and deepwater oil and gas production, has secured a US$145 million senior term loan facility for BW Batangas, a floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) to be deployed in the Philippines.

Standard Chartered played a leading role in the syndicated financing with a group of four lenders, where it acted as coordinating bank, facility agent, and security agent, as well as mandated lead arranger and lender.

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel will play a vital role in ensuring the country’s energy resilience and security as part of an interim offshore LNG terminal in Batangas City in southwestern Luzon.  The terminal, which supports the country’s ambition to become an LNG hub, is run by clean energy provider First Gen, which is a subsidiary of First Philippine Holdings Corporation, a conglomerate controlled by the Lopez family.

Commenting on the deal, Abhishek Pandey, global head of transportation finance at Standard Chartered, says: “We are delighted to further grow our relationship with BW Group, supporting them in their efforts to deploy floating solutions for LNG as part of wider transition to a low carbon economy. The success of the facility not only demonstrates our strong credit offering and capabilities, it also aligns with the bank’s commitment to direct capital to areas that can help drive sustainable development in energy, storage and transportation infrastructure across Asean markets.”