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June 23, 2006, St. Petersburg, Russia—
The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is providing a financing package totaling $119.5 million to the Eurosib Group, one of the country’s leading private railroad and logistics operators. The investment will support the first phase of the development of Russia’s first private network of inland logistics terminals.
The investment package consists of a long-term senior loan of $33 million for IFC’s own account, a syndicated loan of $71.5 million for participating banks, and a subordinated loan of $15 million for the account of IFC. The long-term syndicated finance is provided by Citigroup, inc. as mandated lead arranger; HVB Group and Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG as lead arrangers; BayernLB as co-arranger; and Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederösterreich-Wien AG as manager.
Eurosib Group will use IFC financing to build and operate six inland container terminals at cargo processing hubs in the Urals, Siberia and outside Moscow and St. Petersburg. This is the first phase of Eurosib’s multi-stage terminal development program. The group plans to build approximately 20 terminals in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Each terminal will have a rail and road connection, a warehouse, and a container yard designed to handle up to 60,000 20-foot containers per year. “Upgrading the transportation and logistics infrastructure is a priority for Russia to maintain its growth. The construction of Eurosib’s inland terminal network will contribute to further development of local multimodal transport services and will have a substantial positive impact on the Russian economy through lower transport costs and more efficient intermediation of goods,” said Francisco Tourreilles, the director of IFC’s infrastructure department. “IFC is very pleased to be working with Eurosib on this second investment in the group’s transportation and logistics operations.”
“Our project has benefited from IFC’s ability to structure complex transactions and attract additional resources from international financial markets,” said Dmitry Nikitin, general director of Eurosib. “Eurosib’s main goal is to provide high quality comprehensive logistics solutions to a variety of domestic and international clients, and IFC’s financial support has been instrumental in our efforts to attain this objective.”
“IFC’s partnership with Eurosib Group is a good example of our strategy in Russia to support local businesses and assist them in reaching their potential,” said Edward Nassim, IFC’s director for Central and Eastern Europe. “Eurosib is a dynamic company with significant growth prospects in an area critical to Russia’s further economic development.”
About Eurosib Group
Established in 1992, Eurosib is a locally owned group of companies headquartered in St. Petersburg primarily engaged in rail transportation, freight forwarding and logistics. The group also owns and operates several car dealerships in the St. Petersburg area.
Eurosib owns and/or operates a fleet of over 12,000 railcars for dry cargo. The network of inland container terminals will build on the group’s transportation and freight forwarding operations providing cargo consolidation, storage and distribution services to various domestic and foreign clients. The terminals will be connected through scheduled container block trains operated by Eurosib.
About IFC
The International Finance Corporation is the private sector arm of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. IFC coordinates its activities with the other institutions of the World Bank Group but is legally and financially independent. Its 178 member countries provide its share capital and collectively determine its policies.
The mission of IFC is to promote sustainable private sector investment in developing and transition countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private sector investments in the developing world, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses. From its founding in 1956 through FY05, IFC has committed more than $49 billion of its own funds and arranged $24 billion in syndications for 3,319 companies in 140 developing countries. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
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IFC manages environmental and social risks associated with the projects it finances through standards that its clients companies are required to apply. In collaboration with client companies, IFC looks at business opportunities arising from the protection of the environment and from social development. IFC also explores and develops new financial products that create new business opportunities linked with the environment and social development.
IFC in Russia
Russia became a member and a shareholder of IFC in 1993. Since then IFC has invested $2.9 billion in the country, including $527 million in syndicated loans, in over 110 projects across a variety of sectors. In FY05 (July 2004–June 2005) IFC’s investments reached $832 million. IFC’s investment portfolio in Russia currently stands at $1.8 billion, making it the largest country exposure for IFC globally. IFC has invested in key sectors including banking, leasing, housing finance, infrastructure, mining, agribusiness, pulp and paper, construction materials, oil and gas, telecommunications, information technologies, retail, and health care. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org/europe
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