VANCOUVER, Aug. 13, 2014 /CNW/ - Alterra Power Corp. (TSX: AXY) announces it has closed a C$110 million loan facility with affiliates of AMP Capital Investors Limited.

Proceeds from the loan facility will be received in up to three tranches:

  1. Tranche A totaling C$67.3 million on or before August 15, 2014.
  2. Tranche B totaling C$21.5 million at or after the closing of construction financing for the 62 MW Jimmie Creek hydro project, subject to certain agreed conditions precedent.
  3. Tranche C totaling C$21.2 million at or after the closing of construction financing for the 204 MW Shannon wind project, subject to certain agreed conditions precedent.

Proceeds from the facility will be used to pay development and construction costs and sponsor equity contributions for the Jimmie Creek and Shannon projects (which had been temporarily funded by Alterra's revolving credit facility) and for other general corporate purposes.

Tranche A of the loan will be secured by Alterra's interests in the Toba Montrose and Dokie 1 projects (subject to senior secured project debt) and supported solely by equity distributions from these projects, which will be held in a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alterra. Upon closing of Tranches B and C, the cash flows from Jimmie Creek and Shannon, respectively, will also support the facility.

The loan facility will mature on February 5, 2023, and has no scheduled payments of principal prior to maturity. The loan facility has no equity or equity-related components. Loan pricing is approximately 8.0% per annum based on current market rates. Alterra is currently in discussions with several parties to swap the floating rate loan obligations for fixed-rate obligations.

John Carson, Alterra's Chief Executive Officer, said "This financing is built on the strong value of Alterra's clean power projects, and will take Alterra into its next growth phase. The facility will provide us with enough capital to fund our ownership equity for the Jimmie Creek and Shannon projects, and will seed our next growth projects as well. We are very pleased to be funding these projects with competitively-priced debt capital, and with no equity issuance."

About Alterra Power Corp.

Alterra Power Corp. is a leading global renewable energy company, operating six power plants totaling 568 MW of generation capacity, including British Columbia's largest run-of-river hydro facility and largest wind farm, two geothermal facilities in Iceland, and a geothermal plant in Nevada. Alterra owns a 262 MW share of this capacity, generating approximately 1,300 GWh of clean power annually. Alterra has an extensive portfolio of exploration and development projects and a skilled international team of developers, explorers, builders and operators to support its growth plans.

The company trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol AXY and OTC in the United States as MGMXF.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements and information included in this news release are "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities laws that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information relates to future events or future performance and reflects management's expectations and beliefs regarding future events as of the date hereof. Examples of forward-looking information in this news release include the use of proceeds, the timing of the potential funding of the loan tranches, and the ability of Alterra or its affiliates to satisfy conditions precedent to funding subsequent tranches of the loan facility. Forward-looking information is based on factors or assumptions that were applied in drawing a conclusion or making a forecast or projection, including assumptions based on historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments. Since forward-looking information relates to future events and conditions, by its very nature it requires making assumptions and involves inherent risks and uncertainties. Alterra cautions that although it is believed that the assumptions are reasonable in the circumstances, these risks and uncertainties give rise to the possibility that actual results may differ materially from the expectations set out in the forward-looking information. Material risk factors and assumptions include those set out in the management's discussion and analysis section of Alterra's most recent annual and quarterly reports and in Alterra's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2013. Although Alterra has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate and undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking information. Except as required by law, Alterra undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking information to reflect new information, subsequent or otherwise.

SOURCE Alterra Power Corp.



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