Rating on Azure Power Solar's notes unaffected by sale of rooftop projects: Fitch
Apr 12, 2021
Hong Kong, Apr 12 : The rating on Azure Power Solar Energy Pvt Ltd's (APSEPL')s 350.1 million dollar 5.65 per cent senior notes due 2024 is not affected by the sale of Azure Power Global Ltd's (APGL's) rooftop solar portfolio, Fitch Ratings said on Monday.
Fitch does not expect the transaction to trigger a change of control provision in indenture of notes.
On April 5, APSEPL's ultimate parent APGL announced that its 97.5 per cent-owned subsidiary Azure Power India (API) has signed a binding agreement to sell its non-core rooftop solar portfolio to Radiance Renewables Pvt Ltd for Rs 537 crore.
The portfolio includes 32.5 MW of rooftop projects that are part of the restricted group of 10 operating entities (Azure RG2) underpinning the rating on APSEPL's 350.1 million dollar notes. API owns 100 per cent of Azure RG2.
The rights of the noteholders have been protected in the transaction. As part of the sale agreement, 48.6 per cent of the equity ownership of Azure RG2's projects will be transferred to Radiance and the remaining 51.4 per cent will be transferred after refinancing of the notes.
All of the cash flows related to such projects will remain in the restricted group to service debt and cannot be upstreamed until the refinancing and the remaining 51.4 per cent stake is transferred to Radiance.
APSEPL says that under such an arrangement, APGL will effectively retain 50.115 per cent stake in the rooftop projects of Azure RG2. As such the transaction will not trigger the change of control provision in the bond document.
APGL is an independent power producer, a developer and an operator of utility and commercial scale solar PV power plants headquartered in New Delhi. The company sells energy to government utilities, and independent industrial and commercial customers.
