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Washington, D.C./Cairo, June 30, 2010 -
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, agreed to invest $120 million in Egyptian Refining Company, which will be part of the largest project-financing transaction in Egypt, to promote enhanced environmental standards and cleaner domestic fuel sources in Egypt.
IFC’s equity investment will be used by Egyptian Refining Company, a platform company of Citadel Capital, Africa’s largest private equity firm, to build a $3.7 billion hydro-cracking and coking refinery that will allow Egypt to transform locally available fuel oil into lighter fuel products, such as ultra-low sulfur diesel, for the domestic market. The company also will help upgrade an adjoining state-owned refinery to increase its energy efficiency and environmental performance, resulting in reduced sulfur dioxide emissions.
“IFC is a valuable partner that has met our financing needs in an innovative and efficient manner,” said Dr. Ahmed Heikal, Chairman and Founder of Citadel Capital. “We appreciate our long-term relationship with IFC and will draw on their global expertise as ERC follows international best practices in environmental and social management and works with local communities. These are all important considerations as we continue to grow our 15-industry, 14-country investment footprint.”
IFC is assisting Egyptian Refining Company in designing and implementing a community investment strategy to maximize the positive social impact the company will have on local communities. IFC also is working with the company and other financiers to create a robust environmental monitoring system.
“This project has the potential to optimize the use of Egypt’s petroleum product infrastructure, elevate the environmental and social standards within the refining industry, and create significant employment opportunities,” said Somit Varma, IFC Global Head of Oil, Gas, Mining, and Chemicals. “IFC is very pleased to support the project and to help catalyze new private sector investments through our strong partnership with Citadel Capital and the Government of Egypt.”
The investment is part of IFC’s strategy to help enhance development of Egypt’s energy sector. Egypt currently lacks the refining capacity to meet its growing demand for lighter fuels such as diesel and relies heavily on the importation of these products. The Egyptian Refining Company investment and such other initiatives will help increase Egypt’s ability to produce fuels domestically and therefore create sizeable savings to the economy through import substitution.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. IFC fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing capital for private enterprise, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. IFC new investments totaled $14.5 billion in fiscal 2009, helping channel capital into developing countries during the financial crisis. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
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About Citadel Capital
Citadel Capital (CCAP.CA on the Egyptian Stock Exchange) is the leading private equity firm in the Middle East and Africa. Citadel Capital focuses on building regional platforms in select industries through acquisitions, turnarounds, and greenfields executed via Opportunity-Specific Funds. The firm’s 19 OSFs now control Platform Companies with investments worth more than US$ 8.3 billion in 14 countries spanning 15 industries, including mining, cement, transportation, food and energy. Since 2004, Citadel Capital has generated more than US$ 2.5 billion in cash returns to its co-investors and shareholders (on investments of US$ 650 million), more than any other private equity firm in the region. Citadel Capital is the largest private equity firm in Africa by PE assets under management (2005-2010, as ranked by Private Equity International). For more information, please visit
www.citadelcapital.com
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