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Private equity giantsKohlberg, Kravis, Roberts andMadison Dearborn Partners have emerged as the front runners to acquire Cilcorp, an integrated utility that is being shopped by AES, according to a banker familiar with the matter. He says the cash-strapped independent power producer and its financial advisor Lehman Brothers recently received final bids from five suitors and these two financial players are favorites to land the Illinois utility based on their attractive bids. Dynegy, Duke Energy and Ameren are also involved in the auction, he says.

Demand for Vattenfall's planned EUR500 million ($441 million) bond offering, priced last Wednesday, reached EUR1.3 billion as continental European institutional investors flocked to the deal. Fraser Ross, a syndicate manager at Deutsche Bank, one of the two joint-lead arrangers of the deal, says it received EUR200 million of commitments when it began the book-building effort last Monday and a further $1.1 billion on Tuesday. Healthy investor appetite allowed the Swedish utility to increase the offering to EUR600 million and price the deal at 84 basis points over swaps, inside the 85-90 basis point price talk range. The seven-year deal pays a 6% coupon and was priced at 99.54 to yield 6.08%.

Kansas City, Mo.-based Kansas City Power & Light issued $225 million of five-year notes in mid-March to refund $200 million of outstanding MTNs that mature later this month. An investor relations official at the Midwest utility says it also wanted to take advantage of the tight spread over treasuries and the low interest-rate environment. "It was a great time for us to come to market. There was a lot of demand and the pricing was good," he says.

Following is a directory of ongoing generation asset sales. The accuracy of the information, which is derived from many sources, is deemed reliable but cannot be guaranteed. To report new auctions or changes in the status of a sale, please call Will Ainger, managing editor, at (44-20) 7303-1735 or e-mail wainger@euromoneyplc.com. Seller Plants Location MW Plant Type Advisor Status American Electric Power/ Northeastern units 3 & 4 Okla. 300 Coal N/A Reviewing sale strategies. Central and Southwest Corp. Lon C. Hill Texas 546 Gas - Nueces Bay Texas 559 Gas - Ennis S. Joslin Texas 249 Gas - ADWEA Um Al Nar Abu Dhabi 1,100 Gas & Water Desalination CSFB Expected to send out RFPs in April. CMS Energy Loy Yang Melbourne, Australia 2,000 Coal Not chosen Announced intention to sell. Ensenada Argentina 128 Gas-fired J.P. Morgan CT Mendoza Argentina 520 Gas-fired J.P. Morgan El Chocon Argentina 1,320 Hydroelectric J.P. Morgan Enel Interpower Italy 2,611 - Lehman, Merrill, - CSFB Enron Bahia Las Minas Panama 355 Various PwC Intention to sell. Pueto Quetzal Guatemala 110 - (administrator) PQPLLC Guatemala 124 - - Margarita II Nicaragua 70.5 - - EcoElectrica Puerto Rico 507 - - Puerto Plata Dominican Republic 185 - - Cuiaba Brazil 480 - - Nowa Sarzyna Poland 116 - - Sarlux Italy 551 - - Trakya Turkey 478 - - Chengdu Cogen China 284 - - Northern Marianas Guam 80 - - Bantagas Philippines 110 - - Dabhol India 2,184 - - Subic Bay Philippines 116 - - Teesside U.K. 1875 Wilton U.K. 154 (Continued) IVO Energy Brigg U.K. 240 Gas BNP Paribas South Humber U.K. 1,240 Gas - Grangemouth*** U.K. 130 Gas - Edenderry Ireland 120 Peat - Independent Energy Various U.K. 130 N/A KPMG KPMG is handling the asset sale after Independent Energy went into receivership. MARCOR Remediation - Calif. 5.7 Wood - - (A broker acting for an undisclosed seller) North Atlantic Energy Seabrook* N.H. 408 Nuclear N/A Must be sold by Dec. 2003. NRG/Xcel CEEP Poland 10 (10% stake) - - Is currently selecting a financial advisor Csepel II Hungary 389 Gas/Oil - ECK Czech Republic 350 (44% stake) Coal/Gas/Oil - Enfield U.K. 380 (25%) Gas-fired - Killingholme A U.K. 680 Natural Gas - MIBRAG Germany 238 (50% stake) Coal - Gladstone Power Australia 1,500 (37.5% stake) Coal - Flinders Australia 760 Coal - Loy Yang A Australia 2,000 (25% stake) Coal - Hsinchu Taiwan 400 (60% stake) Gas-fired - Lanco Kondapalli India 340 (30% stake) Gas/Oil - Collinsville Australia 192 (50% stake) Coal - TermoRio Brazil 1040 (50% sake) Gas - COBEE Boliva 220 (98% stake) Hydro/Gas - Itiquira Energetica Brazil 160 (98% stake) Hydro - Cementos Pacasmayo Peru 66 Hydro/Oil - Bulo Bulo Bolivia 90 (60% stake) Gas-fired - Cahua Peru 45 Hydro - Oman (Ministry of Housing, Rusail Oman 730 Gas - Electricity & Water) Ghubratt Oman 507 CHP - Wad Al-Jazzi Oman 350 Gas - Ontario Power Generation Lennox Ontario 2,140 Oil, gas Merrill Lynch & Expects to sell Lennox and Lakeview shortly. Lakeview Ontario 1,140 Coal Scotia Capital- Atikokan Ontario 215 Coal - Thunder Bay Ontario 310 Coal - Mississagi River Ontario 490 Hydro - Public Service Co. of New Merrimack N.H. 475.8 Coal J.P. Morgan Subject to approval for rate settlement by PUC Hampshire (Northeast Utilities) Newington N.H. 415 Oil/gas - and state legislature. Schiller N.H. 146.6 Oil/gas - Lost Nation N.H. 19.1 Diesel - Merrimack N.H. 42.2 Diesel - Schiller N.H. 18 Diesel - White Lake N.H. 23 Diesel - Amoskeag N.H. 17.5 Hydro - Ayers Island N.H. 9.1 Hydro - Canaan Vt. 1.1 Hydro - Eastman Falls N.H. 6.5 Hydro - Garvins Falls N.H. 12.1 Hydro - Gorham N.H. 2.1 Hydro - Hoolsett N.H. 1.95 Hydro - Jackman N.H. 3.55 Hydro - Smith N.H. 14.2 Hydro - Reliant Resources Reliant Energy Power Netherlands 3,476 Mixture Merrill Lynch Is looking to seal sale imminently Generation Benelux Argener Argentina 160 CHP - TXU Lake Creek Texas 323 Gas Merrill Lynch Reviewing sales strategy. Tradinghouse Texas 1,340 - - River Crest Texas 110 - - Mountain Creek Texas 893 - - Parkdale Texas 327 - - North Main Texas 123 - Monticello Texas 1,900 Coal Merrill Lynch Is looking to sell an undisclosed number of its Martin Lake Texas 2,250 - - coal assets. Big Brown Texas 1,150 - - Sandow Texas 545 - - Wisconsin Energy Bridgeport Conn. 1,100 (combined) - - Has put up for sale following collaspe New Haven Conn. 1,100 (combined) - - of NRG deal. * North Atlantic Energy owns 34.8% of Seabrook *** Fortum owns 75% of Grangemouth. Mitsubishi owns the remainder.

Rapid City, S.D.-based Black Hills Corp. has closed its $135 million project level financing for two Colorado peaker plants after scaling back allocations by $90 million in the wake of strong demand during syndication. Richard Ashbeck, senior v.p. of finance, says the overcommittment level reflects fair pricing, but also adds the company made it clear it viewed the deal as a relationship issue. "The deal is, if you want opportunities with us, you have to step up," he says.

Lead arrangerCitibank has rustled up four more banks for FPL Energy's $425 million Rhode Island State Energy Partners project loan, taking the running score of commitments to $380 million. IBJ has committed $50 million, CIT Group $35 million, Sumitomo Bank $30 million and Arab Banking Corp. has come in with $15 million, says a syndicate official. The lease-back financing, which funds the construction of a 535 MW gas-fired plant in Johnston, R.I., already has Royal Bank of Scotland, J.P. Morgan and HypoVereinsbank signed up (PFR, 3/11).

International Power has held discussions with AES about buying its 3.8 GW Drax power plant in northern England, but is balking at AES's price tag. Paul Parshley, director of corporate planning and communications at International Power, says the companies have held discussions over a sale but that AES is asking too much. He adds International Power will keep its powder dry until asset sale prices come down further in the U.K.

The failures of PG&Eand Enron are just the beginning. The adoption of revenue and cost management strategies pioneered by the U.S. airline industry is likely to heat up competition in the power industry and lead to the shakeout of the weakest players, argues Jerry Jackson, president of Jackson Associates.

* Energias Eolicas Europeas' non-recourse financing for the construction of a 1,173 MW wind energy project in the Castilla La Mancha region of Spain, was one of the few European project-level loans to reach the market last year. But even in a bumper year this landmark deal would have stood out from the field, enthuse lenders. The EUR814 million loan is by far the biggest wind-energy loan to date and should prove a bellwether transaction from the numerous other wind projects in early development, they add.

Rapid City, S.D.-based Blacks Hills Corp. is looking at tapping the bond market to refinance the construction costs of a 230 MW Las Vegas plant, a move that would herald the first non-recourse bond offering in the power sector this year. Richard Ashbeck, senior v.p. of finance, says the company is looking at an April investor roadshow for a 144a deal north of $200 million. The structure and size haven't been settled, as discussions with the rating agencies are continuing in order to achieve an investment-grade rating, he adds.