NY -- Standard&Poor's CreditWire 3/6/96 -- Standard&Poor's assigns its triple-`B' corporate credit rating to EDELNOR S.A., and to the company's planned $250 million senior loan participation certificates due 2006. The rating outlook is stable. The rating reflects fast-growing electricity demand in Northern Chile, a supportive regulatory framework, EDELNOR's high proportion of contracted sales to a relatively diversified group of customers, and the implicit support of its parent, Southern Electric International (SEI; a subsidiary of the Southern Co.). However, until the completion of Mejillones II, EDELNOR continues to rely on higher-cost spot purchases and is exposed to spot price fluctuations. Also, because demand is largely reliant on copper mining, generators in Chile's Northern Interconnected System (SING) face
