|
EBRD signs Russia North-West Shipping Company loan
The Russian shipping sector is to receive further assistance from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which has arranged a DM 51 million loan package for a river-sea shipping company based in St Petersburg. The borrower is a special purpose Cyprus subsidiary of North-Western Shipping Company (North-Western Shipping), one of the largest shipowners in Russia.
The transaction is the first of its type and represents a breakthrough in the Western financing of the Russian river-sea vessels employed in domestic markets. Guy de Selliers, Deputy Vice President of the EBRD, said: "Shipping is a major industry for Russia. Via increased exports, improved shipbuilding facilities, stable employment and a more modern fleet, companies such as North-Western Shipping can provide vital benefits to the economy."
Evgeny Zubarev, President of North-Western Shipping, said: "The transaction concludes the first stage of our fleet development programme, which will enable us to maintain our position as the largest and highest quality fleet of river-sea vessels in Russia."
The proceeds are to finance a portion of the purchase price of 10 dry-cargo river-sea vessels from the Volgograd shipyard. DM 21 million of the EBRD's loan has been syndicated to three commercial banks and one finance company, some of which are working with the EBRD for the first time. The four participants are Incentive Credit AB (Sweden), Raiffeisen Zentralbank Öesterreich A.G. (RZB Austria), Bank of Scotland and Moscow Narodny Bank (which is also acting as administrative and monitoring agent). The loan is structured on a dual flag basis, under which the vessels are registered in the names of Cypriot special purpose companies and additionally registered on the Russian registry allowing them to fly the Russian flag.
TDF Partners, a London-based firm, acted as financial advisers to North-Western Shipping. The new vessels will be commercially managed by Russochart GmbH, a German ship management and ship broking company located in Hamburg.
North-Western Shipping was founded in 1923 and privatised in 1992 with 51 per cent owned by its employees. It is one of the leading transport corporations in Russia, carrying both passengers and cargo, and has a fleet of 620 vessels of which 250 are river-sea. The company owns and manages nine ports, five shipbuilding and repair yards and operates in the Baltic, North, Mediterranean, and Black Seas as well as in inland waterways. In 1994, the company transported 14 million tons of cargo. It is one of the largest employers in the north-west region of Russia, employing about 15,650 people.
|
