Panda Stonewall Nears Refinancing With Ares Ready To Take Keys

Panda Stonewall, a power plant in Virginia, has lined up lenders to refinance a $490 million loan and aims to close on the deal on Friday, just before its current obligation comes due, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

The refinancing is part of a broader out-of-court restructuring process that will hand ownership of the 778-megawatt gas-fired plant to Ares Management from private equity firm Panda Power Funds. As part of the refinancing deal, Ares is planning to provide $50 million to $60 million of equity.

Existing lenders will be fully repaid, and the new debt ...