SunPower's Maxeon selling USD 185m of green notes

Solar cell and panel maker Maxeon Solar Technologies Pte Ltd, part of SunPower Corp (NASDAQ:SPWR), has launched a USD-185-million (EUR 164.2m) private sale of green convertible senior notes.

The Singapore-based company, which is due to be spun off as a separate unit of SunPower, is offering the securities to qualified institutional buyers, the parent company said on Tuesday. An additional USD 15 million will be sought by granting the initial purchasers the option to buy more notes, for settlement within a period of 13 days from the initial issuance.

The green notes will mature on July 15, 2025, and will be unsecured obligations of Maxeon, with interest to be paid semi-annually. They will bear a coupon of 6.5% per year.

While the notes will not be convertible initially, noteholders will be able to convert the securities if the planned spin-off of Maxeon is carried out within three months after the first issuance of the notes. In this case, the settlement will be made through cash, ordinary shares of Maxeon or a combination of cash and ordinary shares.

Provided that the proposed spin-off transaction does not close within the given three-month window or the plan falls through, Maxeon will have to redeem all outstanding notes at a price equal to 101% of their principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any.

The company is expecting proceeds of around USD 177.2 million net. Some will be allocated to repay debt to SunPower, as well as to support general corporate needs. An unspecified amount will go to finance or refinance existing and new projects.

The completion of the sale is subject to market and other conditions.

SunPower said in June that the separation of Maxeon will close in the third quarter of this year, instead of the second, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and certain delays in finalising financing for the transaction.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.887)

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