9. Debt

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

9. Debt

Our long-term debt consisted of the following at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 (in thousands):


		Balance (USD)
Loan Agreement	Currency	March 31, 2020		December 31, 2019
Revolving Credit Facility	USD	$	—	$	—
Luz del Norte Credit Facilities	USD	187,958		188,017
Ishikawa Credit Agreement	JPY	217,811		215,879
Japan Credit Facility	JPY	1,693		1,678
Tochigi Credit Facility	JPY	37,638		37,304
Anamizu Credit Agreement	JPY	12,246		12,138
Anantapur Credit Facility	INR	14,010		15,123
Tungabhadra Credit Facility	INR	12,039		12,753
Long-term debt principal		483,395		482,892
Less: unamortized discounts and issuance costs		(11,000)		(11,195)
Total long-term debt		472,395		471,697
Less: current portion		(81,807)		(17,510)
Noncurrent portion		$	390,588	$	454,187

Revolving Credit Facility

Our amended and restated credit agreement with several financial institutions as lenders and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. as administrative agent provides us with a senior secured credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) with an aggregate borrowing capacity of $500.0 million, which we may increase to $750.0 million, subject to certain conditions. Borrowings under the credit facility bear interest at (i) London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), adjusted for Eurocurrency reserve requirements, plus a margin of 2.00% or (ii) a base rate as defined in the credit agreement plus a margin of 1.00% depending on the type of borrowing requested. These margins are also subject to adjustment depending on our consolidated leverage ratio. We had no borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 and had issued $14.2 million and $39.3 million, respectively, of letters of credit using availability under the facility. Loans and letters of credit issued under the Revolving Credit Facility are jointly and severally guaranteed by First Solar, Inc.; First Solar Electric, LLC; First Solar Electric (California), Inc.; and First Solar Development, LLC and are secured by interests in substantially all of the guarantors’ tangible and intangible assets other than certain excluded assets.

In addition to paying interest on outstanding principal under the Revolving Credit Facility, we are required to pay a commitment fee at a rate of 0.30% per annum, based on the average daily unused commitments under the facility, which may also be adjusted due to changes in our consolidated leverage ratio. We also pay a letter of credit fee based on the applicable margin for Eurocurrency revolving loans on the face amount of each letter of credit and a fronting fee of 0.125%. Our Revolving Credit Facility matures in July 2022.

Luz del Norte Credit Facilities

In August 2014, Parque Solar Fotovoltaico Luz del Norte SpA (“Luz del Norte”), our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary and project company, entered into credit facilities (the “Luz del Norte Credit Facilities”) with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (“DFC”) and the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”) to provide limited-recourse senior secured debt financing for the design, development, financing, construction, testing, commissioning, operation, and maintenance of a 141 MW_AC PV solar power plant located near Copiapó, Chile.

In March 2017, we amended the terms of the DFC and IFC credit facilities. Such amendments (i) allowed for the capitalization of accrued and unpaid interest through March 15, 2017, along with the capitalization of certain future interest payments as variable rate loans under the credit facilities, (ii) allowed for the conversion of certain fixed rate loans to variable rate loans upon scheduled repayment, (iii) extended the maturity of the DFC and IFC loans until June 2037, and (iv) canceled the remaining borrowing capacity under the DFC and IFC credit facilities with the exception of the capitalization of certain future interest payments. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the DFC loans was $140.8 million. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the IFC loans was $47.2 million. The DFC and IFC loans are secured by liens over all of Luz del Norte’s assets and by a pledge of all of the equity interests in the entity.

Ishikawa Credit Agreement

In December 2016, FS Japan Project 12 GK (“Ishikawa”), our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary and project company, entered into a credit agreement (the “Ishikawa Credit Agreement”) with Mizuho Bank, Ltd. for aggregate borrowings up to ¥27.3 billion ($233.9 million) for the development and construction of a 59 MW_AC PV solar power plant located in Ishikawa, Japan. The credit agreement consists of a ¥24.0 billion ($205.6 million) senior loan facility, a ¥2.1 billion ($18.0 million) consumption tax facility, and a ¥1.2 billion ($10.3 million) letter of credit facility. The senior loan facility matures in October 2036, and the consumption tax facility matures in April 2020. The credit agreement is secured by pledges of Ishikawa’s assets, accounts, material project documents, and by the equity interests in the entity. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the credit agreement was $217.8 million and $215.9 million, respectively.

Japan Credit Facility

In September 2015, First Solar Japan GK, our wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into a construction loan facility with Mizuho Bank, Ltd. for borrowings up to ¥4.0 billion ($33.4 million) for the development and construction of utility-scale PV solar power plants in Japan (the “Japan Credit Facility”). Borrowings under the facility generally mature within 12 months following the completion of construction activities for each financed project. The facility is guaranteed by First Solar, Inc. and secured by pledges of certain projects’ cash accounts and other rights in the projects. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the facility was $1.7 million.

Tochigi Credit Facility

In June 2017, First Solar Japan GK, our wholly-owned subsidiary, entered into a term loan facility with Mizuho Bank, Ltd. for borrowings up to ¥7.0 billion ($62.2 million) for the development of utility-scale PV solar power plants in Japan (the “Tochigi Credit Facility”). The term loan facility matures in March 2021. The facility is guaranteed by First Solar, Inc. and secured by pledges of certain of First Solar Japan GK’s accounts. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the term loan facility was $37.6 million and $37.3 million, respectively.

Anamizu Credit Agreement

In December 2019, FS Japan Project 31 GK (“Anamizu”), our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary and project company, entered into a credit agreement (the “Anamizu Credit Agreement”) with MUFG Bank, Ltd.; The Iyo Bank, Ltd.; The Hachijuni Bank, Ltd.; The Hyakugo Bank, Ltd.; and The Yamagata Bank, Ltd. for aggregate borrowings up to ¥7.7 billion ($70.8 million) for the development and construction of a 17 MW_AC PV solar power plant located in Ishikawa, Japan. The credit agreement consists of a ¥6.6 billion ($61.0 million) term loan facility, a ¥0.7 billion ($6.5 million) consumption tax facility, and a ¥0.4 billion ($3.3 million) debt service reserve facility. The term loan facility matures in September 2038, the consumption tax facility matures in November 2022, and the debt service reserve facility matures in March 2038. The credit agreement is secured by pledges of Anamizu’s assets, accounts, material project documents, and by the equity interests in the entity. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the credit agreement was $12.2 million and $12.1 million, respectively.

Anantapur Credit Facility

In March 2018, Anantapur Solar Parks Private Limited, our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary and project company, entered into a term loan facility (the “Anantapur Credit Facility”) with J.P. Morgan Securities India Private Limited for borrowings up to INR 1.2 billion ($18.4 million) for costs related to a 20 MW_AC PV solar power plant located in Karnataka, India. The term loan facility matures in February 2021 and is secured by a letter of credit issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Singapore, in favor of the lender. Such letter of credit is secured by a cash deposit placed by First Solar FE Holdings Pte. Ltd. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the term loan facility was $14.0 million and $15.1 million, respectively.

Tungabhadra Credit Facility

In March 2018, Tungabhadra Solar Parks Private Limited, our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary and project company, entered into a term loan facility (the “Tungabhadra Credit Facility”) with J.P. Morgan Securities India Private Limited for borrowings up to INR 1.0 billion ($15.3 million) for costs related to a 20 MW_AC PV solar power plant located in Karnataka, India. The term loan facility matures in February 2021 and is secured by a letter of credit issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Singapore, in favor of the lender. Such letter of credit is secured by a cash deposit placed by First Solar FE Holdings Pte. Ltd. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the balance outstanding on the term loan facility was $12.0 million and $12.8 million, respectively.

Variable Interest Rate Risk

Certain of our long-term debt agreements bear interest at prime, LIBOR, TIBOR, BBSY, or equivalent variable rates. An increase in these variable rates would increase the cost of borrowing under our Revolving Credit Facility and certain project specific debt financings. Our long-term debt borrowing rates as of March 31, 2020 were as follows:


Loan Agreement	March 31, 2020
Revolving Credit Facility	2.99%
Luz del Norte Credit Facilities (1)	Fixed rate loans at bank rate plus 3.50%
		Variable rate loans at 91-Day U.S. Treasury Bill Yield or LIBOR plus 3.50%
Ishikawa Credit Agreement	Senior loan facility at 6-month TIBOR plus 0.75% (2)
		Consumption tax facility at 3-month TIBOR plus 0.5%
Japan Credit Facility	1-month TIBOR plus 0.55%
Tochigi Credit Facility	3-month TIBOR plus 1.0%
Anamizu Credit Agreement	Term loan facility at 6-month TIBOR plus 0.70% (2)
		Consumption tax facility at 3-month TIBOR plus 0.5%
		Debt service reserve facility at 6-month TIBOR plus 1.20%
Anantapur Credit Facility	INR overnight indexed swap rate plus 1.5%
Tungabhadra Credit Facility	INR overnight indexed swap rate plus 1.5%

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(1)Outstanding balance comprised of $152.2 million of fixed rate loans and $35.8 million of variable rate loans as of March 31, 2020.

(2)We have entered into interest rate swap contracts to hedge portions of these variable rates. See Note 6. “Derivative Financial Instruments” to our condensed consolidated financial statements for additional information.

Future Principal Payments

At March 31, 2020, the future principal payments on our long-term debt were due as follows (in thousands):


	Total Debt
Remainder of 2020	$	17,767
2021	77,917
2022	19,401
2023	18,393
2024	19,321
Thereafter	330,596
Total long-term debt future principal payments	$	483,395