WASHINGTON, D.C., June 15 -- The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved a financing package for Abonos del Pacifico, S.A., which will construct and operate a bulk-blending fertilizer plant at Orotina on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.
The plant will produce and sell 80,000 metric tons of mixed fertilizers per year, providing the Costa Rican agricultural sector with a wider range of products than are currently available and at internationally competitive prices.
Agricultural exports, which currently exceed US$1 billion, earn significant foreign exchange revenues for the Costa Rican economy. Bananas and coffee, the primary crops requiring fertilizers, are two of Costa Rica's most important export products.
IFC has approved a loan of up to US$3.5 million to Abonos del Pacifico and an equity investment of up to US$500,000 in the company. The principal sponsor of the project is Grupo Disagro of Guatemala, which manufactures and distributes fertilizers and agricultural chemicals throughout Central America.
"Abonos will be able to tailor its output to the specifications of local farmers and meet the different requirements of Costa Rica's wide variety of soils and micro-climates," according to Mr. Jean-Philippe Halphen, Director of IFC's Chemicals, Petrochemicals and Fertilizers Department. "The project should help lower the cost of fertilizer delivered to farmers and improve the competitiveness of Costa Rican agricultural products on world markets."
IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and is the leading multilateral source of equity and loan finance for private sector projects in developing countries.
