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Ireland's state-owned electric utility, the Electricity Supply Board, has hired Royal Bank of Scotland to arrange financing for the construction of an 800 MW combined-cycle gas-turbine fired power plant in the Basque region of northern Spain. A banker familiar with the matter says RBoS has agreed to fully underwrite financing for the construction of the Amorebieta project. Calls to Kevin MacDermott, an ESB spokesman, were not returned.

Doncaster, U.K.-based Waste Recycling Group is looking to tap the project finance market to fund the development of a waste incinerator and associated power plant at Allington in Kent, southern England, according to an official familiar with its plans. The green-energy and waste-management provider has yet to send out requests for proposals to banks, but has retained KPMG to advise on financing. Hugh Etheridge, finance director at WRG, and Uilleam Cameron, a director at KPMG, declined to comment.

Cincinnati-based Cinergy is on track to announce the sale of its 1 GW international generation portfolio and its 200 MW wind business within the next couple of months. James Rogers, president and ceo of Cinergy, says the sale process has gone surprisingly well and notes there are several bidders interested in snapping up the assets.

Atlanta-based Mirant is homing in on an arrangement that would enhance the credit rating of its trading and marketing arm. CEO Marce Fuller told analysts in an earnings conference call late last month, "We have identified a potential structure that would ultimately provide a long-term credit enhancement solution. We are currently involved in active discussions and plan to take the proposed structure to the rating agencies for review." Mirant has been looking at enhancement structures and at teaming up with other institutions for credit support following a rating downgrade last year that took the energy trader into junk territory (PFR, 2/11). Fuller gave no indication of the timeline for enhancement.

PG&E National Energy Group has closed the retail end of its jumbo non-recourse plant financing and added $385 million to the $1.075 billion booked in the wholesale round (PFR, 1/7). The additional round has allowed the IPP to add the fourth plant--a 170 MW facility in Covert, Mich.--that it was looking to round out theCitibank and Société Générale-led financing, says a banker. Banks signing tickets in the wholesale phase were told to get comfortable with either three or four plants in the completed financing. Company officials did not return calls by press time.

Bankers for Tractebel North America are telling project financiers to expect the launch of the company's long-gestated non-recourse construction loan by the end of next month. The structure, which was originally planned as a portfolio deal (PFR, 12/9), may now take the form of four separate loans pitched to bankers on the basis that they must sign up for more than one, says one syndicator.

Citibank and Fuji Bank plan to seal syndication of a $200 million long-term non-recourse loan next month for the construction of Altamira (495 MW), a combined-cycle gas-turbine plant in northeastern Mexico. A project financier involved in the financing declined to comment on the banks approached or the terms of the loan.

Allentown, Pa.-based PPL Global is looking to exit the Brazilian and Chilean distribution markets and has put on the block six utilities in the region covering some 1.5 million customers. A banker familiar with the matter says that within the past month PPL has retained J.P. Morgan to shop Empresas Emel, a holding company for five distribution companies in Chile, and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein for the sale of Companhia Energetica do Maranhao (CEMAR), a Brazilian distributor.

Dearborn, Mich.-based CMS Energy is looking to renew a $450 million 364-day revolver and consolidate a number of Consumers Energy facilities into a new $300 million facility, which is split 50/50 between a 364-day revolver and a three-year term loan. Both deals were launched last week, with Barclays Capital leading the holding company loan and splitting the duties with Bank One on the electric utility facility, says a syndicate official.

IVO Energy, the London-based arm of Finland's Fortum, is still looking to divest of its U.K. and Ireland power generation assets, but will not be rushed into a fire sale, says Valorie Kohler, managing director. She notes that divestiture remains the long-term goal, but adds that falling generation asset prices in the U.K, mean the company will likely hold its fire until the market firms up again.