IFC and Partner Investors Provide $1.25 Billion Investment In Nigeria's Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals.
The International Finance Corporation( IFC) an arm of the World Bank, has led a group of investors in providing a $1.25 billion financing package to Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited in Nigeria.
Why is this Important: The Port-Harcout based Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals is Sub-Saharan Africa's largest producer of granular urea, a key input for agricultural fertiliser production, with a big market in Nigeria with a current production capacity of only eight million metric tonnes. The $1.25 billion financing will provide the required investment for Indorama to build a third nitrogenous urea fertiliser plant with expected annual capacity of 1.4 million metric tons of urea and a new shipping terminal at its Port Harcourt base.
Singapore based Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), joined IFC as joint mandated lead arranger and lender. Other financing partners include African Development Bank, Bangkok Bank, British International Investment, Citibank, Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG), DZ Bank, Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF), Rand Merchant Bank, Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), Export-Import Bank of India (India Exim Bank), Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM), the Standard Bank Group, Standard Chartered Bank, and the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
The bottom line: Nigeria agriculture sector contributed 23.69 per cent to its GDP. The demand for key production inputs like fertiliser continues to grow as the country's tries to diversify from its dependency on oil. The critical nature of this sector has led other leading conglomerates like Dangote Group, BUA and other firms to invest in various sub-sectors of the agriculture value chain. The new funding provides Indorama with the opportunity to play an active role in meeting the growing demand but also in an energy efficient way.
