IFC Finances Buenaventura Port in $224M Deal, For US$1.88B Total In Colombia Since 2004
October 28, 2009
The World Bank’s private lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”), announced earlier in October a large new transaction. The IFC has provided a combination of three different loan facilities totaling US$224M to finance the modernization and expansion of the Buenaventura Port on Colombia’ Pacific coast, very close to Cali.
The IFC has been very active in Colombia in the last several years, as described in several prior posts on this site. The deal brings to more than $1.88 Billion the value of the IFC’s deals in Colombia since 2004.
Overall, just the top ten IFC transactions from 2004 to present total a whopping US$1.35B. About half of that amount, $670M, was committed in the finance and insurance sector, with Banco Davivienda the single biggest recipient overall (and in the top ten) at $320M. Other sectors in the top ten are Transportation and Warehousing ($384M), Utilities ($157.5M), Chemical ($100M), and Oil, Gas & Mining ($85M).
Of all 36 IFC financing transactions in Colombia from 2004 to present, the two biggest years by far were 2007 and 2008. Seven deals occurred in 2009, for a total of $304.25M, ten in 2008 worth $415.5M (not including the unspecified amount of the Giros y Finanzas micro-lending loan facility), eleven in 2007 worth $655M (not including “up to $75M” invested in Grupo Bolivar common shares of equity to recapitalize its insurance group), four in 2006 worth $365M, three in 2005 totaling $140M (not including the Promigas loan facility), and one in 2004 (Carvajal’s transaction of unspecified size for plant modernization).
My updated table of the IFC’s deals, in descending order by size, are shown below.
| Rank | Year | Proj. No. | Company Name | Sector | IFC Amt. ($USM) | Notes |
| 1 | 2007 | 26235 | Compania de Gerenciamiento de Activos Ltda.(CISA) NPLs | Finance and Insurance | $275 | A1 and A2 loans and equity of up to 15% at SPV level, and syndication of B1 and B2 loans as part of $306M project to finance the purchase of a portfolio of Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) and other Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) a majority of which were accumulated by the government of Colombia post the financial crisis of 1999. IFC would provide both debt and equity financing to a local Colombian SRL established by the Consortium. |
| 2 | 2009 | 28479 | Sociedad Portuaria Terminal de Contenedores de Buenaventura (“TCBuen”) | Transportation and Warehousing | $224 | Colombia’s Pacific Port development, engineering, construction, dredging, equipment purchases, and operation of the terminal.IFC investment comprises an A Loan of $25 million, for IFC’s own account, a B Loan of $117 million from syndication banks, and a C Loan of up to $15 million. |
| 3 | 2006 | 25520 | Banco Davivienda S.A. | Finance and Insurance | $200 | Financing for acquisition of Granbanco SA. $75 million of direct equity investment into Davivienda and $125 million ($65 million expected for IFC’s own account) of subordinated debt. |
| 4 | 2008 | 27396 | Termoflores | Utilities | $157.5 | The total project cost is estimated at about $278.2 million. The proposed IFC investment is a $65 million A Loan for IFC’s own account and $92.5 million B loan from participants. The project (Flores IV) is located in Barranquilla, Colombia, 948 kilometers north of Bogotá and 2 kilometers west of the Magdalena river. The Flores IV project consists of the construction of a 169 MW gas-fired combined cycle unit by the expansion/conversion of the existing gas turbines in Flores II and III from open cycle to a combined cycle facility. Flores IV will utilize the waste heat from Flores II and III to provide 169 MW of additional capacity without using significant additional gas. |
| 5 | 2005 | 24282 | Banco Davivienda S.A. | Finance and Insurance | $120 | The project consists of a financing package of up to $120 million to support the expansion and consolidation of the Bank’s operations in Colombia. The project will help Davivienda continue to expand its retail business while maintaining a strong presence in the mortgage industry. |
| 6 | 2007 | 25795 | Org. Terpel SA | Chemicals | $100 | $60M A loan and $40M B loan to fuel distribution company for capital expansion and recapitalization project cost of $280M |
| 7 | 2006 | 24463 | Petrotesting Colombia SA | Oil, Gas, Mining | $85 | Oil and gas exploration, distribution services, equity and debt investment for $85M to strengthen financial position project over two years adoption of best practice corporate systems (such as those related to governance, environmental, social, community programs and accounting) |
| 8 | 2007 | 26520 | Grupo Bolivar | Finance and Insurance | $75 | Equity shares for recapitalization to separate cross-holdings of insurance companies Sociedades Bolivar S.A., Compañía de Seguros Bolivar S.A., Seguros Comerciales Bolivar S.A. and Capitalizadora Bolivar S.A., which hold a number of the Group’s operating companies. |
| 9 | 2008 | 25930 | Cartagena PortTerminal de Contenedores Cartagena SA (Contecar) | Transportation and Warehousing | $60 | A Loan for IFC’s own account in $210M four year capital expansion program to develop Contecar into a world class container port terminal. The capital expenditure program is expected to increase Contecar’s annual capacity from 144 thousand TEUs to 850 thousand |
| 10 | 2008 | 25899 | Avianca | Transportation and Warehousinng | $50 | Corporate loan to finance aircraft acquisitionAerovias del Continente Americano S.A. (Avianca or the company) is planning to renew its fleet over the period 2008-2012 to reduce costs, improve efficiency and safety as well as provide better passenger service (the “Upgrade Program”). The company has negotiated the purchase of 42 aircraft over the next 5 years (including at least 12 Boeing-787s and a number of Airbus-319/320s) to replace its MD-83 and Boeing-757/767 aircraft. The proposed project is to provide financing of up to $50 million to Avianca and its subsidiaries to help finance the implementation of the company’s fleet renewal program. |
| 11 | 2007 | 26473 | Bogota Distrito Capital – Bogota Street Rehab-ilitation | Transportation | $50 | Senior Loan million senior loan to the metropolitan municipality of Bogota Distrito Capital, to finance part of its 2007-2008 capital expenditures program for and rehabilitation of the City’s urban streets network as well as incremental construction of sidewalks and walking/bike paths. |
| 12 | 2006 | 24811 | Fundacion Social | Finance and Insurance | $50M | IFC is considering providing Fundación Social (the “Fundacion”) a long term loan of up to $50 million part of which may be exchanged into equity in any of the Fundacion’s investee companies. Following the appraisal the management team at Fundacion and IFC will jointly agree on the specific terms for this investment. This investment will allow IFC to support the activities of an entity which has an impressive track record of investing in socially responsible projects and targeting lower income households as its core clientele. |
| 13 | 2007 | 25599 | Sodimac | Wholesale and Retail Trade | $50 | Home Improvement retailer recapitalizationThe specific locations of the new stores have not been determined yet. However, the Company’s store expansion will be focused in the main cities in Colombia where the company is already located and might also include some other smaller city in the country. |
| 14 | 2008 | 25672 | Tecnoquimicas | Chemicals | $45 | $25M equity and up to $20M standby loan for $100M capital project for 8 existing chemical facilities mostly around Cali |
| 15 | 2008 | 26175 | Abocol (Abonos Colombianos) | Chemicals | $30 | A Loan for carbon credits.The first project involves upgrading the technology of the current NPK plant, through the ODDA process maintaining its production capacity at 300,000 MTY of NPK solid granulated, producing the raw material for the production of 100,000 MTY of solid granulated calcium nitrate as by-product, and replacing 85% of mono ammonium phosphate usage with phosphate rock as raw material.The second project involves:- installing a nitric acid plant, with capacity to produce about 80,000 MTY,- installing an ammonium nitrate solution plant with capacity to produce about 82,000 MTY, and- building a calcium nitrate plant, with capacity to produce about 100,000 MTY of calcium nitrate solid granulated and 25.000 MTY of calcium nitrate liquid 100% concentration by 2009. |
| 16 | 2007 | 24680 | Interbolsa | Finance and Insurance | $30 | The project consists of a “PCG” for up to $30 million equivalent to Interbolsa. The facility will comprise of:- a PCG in local currency for up to $30 million with a final maturity of up to six years and- a warrants of up to $10 million to be negotiated.Interbolsa is seeking to issue the first local currency medium term bond by a securities broker in the Colombian market to strengthen its liquidity, diversify funding sources, and reduce market risk. The project consists of a partial credit guarantee, “PCG” of up to $30 million that would enhance the rating of the bond up to two notches from local rating agencies. The project will also help Interbolsa continue to strengthen it liquidity and strengthen its proprietary trading business as well as consolidate retail brokerage activities in Colombia. |
| 17 | 2006 | 24934 | Kappa Resources Colombia SA | Oil, Gas, Mining | $30 | $30M of $90M project Kappa Energy Limited SA, Kappa has requested the IFC to provide a corporate revolving credit facility and the IFC is also considering an equity investment, oil and gas exploration in the Magdalena Valley and the Cerrito gas field in the Catatumbo Basin near the city of Cucuta. |
| 18 | 2009 | 27549 | Riopaila | Agriculture and Forestry | $30 | Riopaila Castilla is implementing a cost reduction and technological improvement program from 2008–2012 while diversifying its agribusiness activities. Specifically, Riopaila Castilla’s Investment Program entails:adding co-generation capacity with the objective of selling excess energy to the national grid;replacing and modernizing equipment and machinery across production units; andrestructuring short- and medium-term debt that is maturing in 2008–2010.With this Investment Program, Riopaila Castilla expects to:- further integrate the sugar-cane value chain;- improve efficiencies and cut costs by reducing the consumption of steam and energy per ton of cane milled;- carry out needed maintenance investments and equipment upgrades to firm up its competitive position in Colombia; and- strengthen its balance sheet by extending maturity of short- and medium-term debt. |
| 19 | 2007 | 25569 | Cartones America SACartones II | Pulp and Paper | $25 | Up to $5M in equity and total $20M investment to acquire facilities in Chile, upgrade Colombian facilitiesCartones America’s (CAME, the Group, or the Company) 2006-2008 investment program and includes:- acquisition of a 60% stake in Chilempack, (Chile);- upgrade and expansion of CAME’s manufacturing facilities in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Chile and Peru; and- refinancing existing short-term debt.Earlier project approved: 20721 (2003) |
| 20 | 2008 | 26567 | Crediservicios | Finance and Insurance | $25 | coinvestment with Crediservicios in a Fondo de Capital Privado [Private equity Fund] for payroll deductible loans to low and middle income employees.The project involves supporting Crediservicios (Crediservicios or the company), a locally established, mid-sized company, in offering pay-roll deductible loans to clients spread across Colombia. The company’s core clientele are low to middle income employees who traditionally do not have access to the banking system.According to a survey conducted by USAID on September 2007, only 26.1% of the low-income households in Colombia (socio-economic groups 1, 2 and 3) have access to credit with banks, cooperatives or NGOs, while 35% obtain short-term resources from friends or informal lenders at interest rates as high as 280% per annum. Crediservicios plays an important role in reducing this gap as it actively provides financing solutions for this underserved segment. |
| 21 | 2009 | 27961 | Greystar | Oil, Gas, Mining | $20 | The total project cost of the exploration and pre-mine development phase of the project is estimated at C$131 million, and the company is seeking to raise up to US$20 million from IFC. It is proposed that IFC will initially contribute approximately C$12.04 million in equity with a right to invest approximately up to an additional C$12.19 million on the exercise of warrants to be issued as part of the equity subscription (these estimated proceeds are based on current exchange rates). IFC’s investment would be used to fund completion of the BFS, ESIA, and other needed ground works to prepare for the project development stage. For the period from 2001 to the present, the company raised C$122 million in equity financing, including the exercise of warrants related to the financings.The Angostura project is located 55 km by road from Bucaramanga, the capital of the Santander Region. The deposit elevation ranges from 2,600 to 3,400 meters above sea level. The project is in a traditional mining area; it enjoys access to the existing power grid, water and materials, and a skilled local work force. There are three villages which are located within 15 km of the project site.Development Impact: Colombia has substantial mineral resources, but the country still suffers from country risk perceptions among many potential foreign investors. A successful project of this size would likely spur significant additional global mining interest in Colombia, particularly valuable at a time when Colombia has demonstrated considerable progress in addressing security issues and political risk and is well positioned for continued economic success.IFC has identified Colombia as a primary target for mining investment because of the potential for substantial development impact from the mining sector. This would be IFC’s first mining investment in Colombia.A mine development of the expected size could have substantial impact on the local communities, not only through direct employment and services, but also from government royalties and taxes that flow back directly to local municipalities. It is estimated that 97% of the royalties will flow back directly to the region, with 87% of total royalties flowing to the municipality level. The Government of Colombia and oil and gas companies have been working with IFC on a pilot municipal level royalty management and capacity building program in the petroleum sector. The Government of Colombia, the Ministry of Mines, and mining associations have expressed interest in expanding this program to the mining sector. The two municipalities where the project is located could be part of any second pilot program, further ensuring greater development benefits to the local communities. |
| 22 | 2007 | 25897 | Procafecol (Promotora de Café de Colombia) | Agriculture and Forestry | $20 | $20M in equity for expansion of 150 Juan Valdez coffee shops in Colombia and select international markets |
| 23 | 2005 | 22588 | Women’s World Bank | Finance and Insurance | $20 | The total project cost is estimated at $20.0 million. IFC’s proposed investment consists of five separate local currency loans, reflecting the independent nature of the WWB affiliates. The five entities will be individually appraised and the investments will be tailored to the specific needs and circumstances of each entity. IFC’s financing will allow the affiliates to further expand their lending activities, diversify their funding sources and strengthen their position in the market. IFC’s financing will enable these entities to serve an additional 70,000 microentrepreneurs and thereby generate exceptional development impact in terms of employment generation and poverty reduction. |
| 24 | 2008 | 26257 | Finandina (Financiera Andina S.A.) | Finance and Insurance | $17 | The company’s core clientele are consumers, micro entrepreneurs and transport vehicle owners who use the credit offered by Finandina to undertake investment projects needed to improve the freight distribution capacity within Colombia.Colombia’s banking penetration of 23% as of December 2006 is still low in relation to international standards and accordingly there is an unmet demand for credit from local SMEs active in the transport arena. Finandina plays an important role in reducing this gap as its financing solutions are tailored to suit the needs of this underserved segment. 10% equity stake to help provide car and vehicle financing to consumers, micro enterprises and transport owners |
| 25 | 2009 | 27780 | Termo Rubiales | Utilities | $16.5 | The total project cost is estimated at about $68.5 million. The proposed IFC investment is a $16.5 million loan. The project is located in the Llanos Basin, 465 km from Bogotá in the Meta Department.Development Impact: IFC is investing in Termo Rubiales to support the development of Meta Petroleum, a promising player of the oil industry in Colombia that has embarked in an ambitious plan to increase the production of the Rubiales field. The investment in Termo Rubiales would be directly supportive of Government policies to increase local production and private investment in the oil sector. |
| 26 | 2008 | 26399 | Century Energy Corp. | Utilities | $15.5 | $13M A loan, $2.5M C loan, for IFC account, in $43.7M project for development, construction and operation of two small run-of-river hydropower plants in the Guadalupe river basin, 95 kilometers (km) north of the city of Medellin, in the Antioquia Department in western Colombia. Arms-length, fixed price engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and operation and maintenance (O&M) agreements with HMV Ingenieros. |
| 27 | 2008 | 26399 | Century Energy Corp. (Century Hydros) | Utilities | $15.5 | Development, construction and operation of two small run-of-river hydropower plants in the Guadalupe river basin, 95 kilometers (km) north of the city of Medellin, in the Antioquia Department in western Colombia. The two plants, Caruquia S.A. (9.5MW) and Guanaquitas S.A. (9.8MW) are expected to begin commercial operations in late 2009 and early 2010, respectively.The project companies will enter into arms-length, fixed price engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and operation and maintenance (O&M) agreements with HMV Ingenieros which is also wholly owned by the Helm Group. HMV Ingenieros is one of the largest engineering consulting firms and the leading consultant for the power sector in Colombia.Total project cost is estimated at $43.7 million ($21.5 million for Caruquia and $22.2 million for Guanaquitas). The project will be financed with $31.0 million of debt and $12.7 million of equity contribution from Century. The proposed IFC investment includes a $13.0 million A loan and a $2.5 million C loan, for IFC’s account. |
| 28 | 2007 | 25895 | MEB Port(Terminal Maritimo Muelles El Bosque) | Transportation and Warehousing | $15 | A loan for capital expansion program of $27.1MIn 1992 Terminal Maritimo Muelles el Bosque S.A. (MEB) began executing a 20-year concession (extended in 2005 for another 20 years until 2032) to develop and manage a new multipurpose port in the Bay of Cartagena, on Colombia’s Atlantic coast. Muelles el Bosque Operadores Portuarios S.A. (MBO and together with MEB the company), a sister company to MEB, is the operator of the port facility. The port occupies and area of 13 hectares and is the second largest in the city of Cartagena and the fifth largest in Colombia. In 2006 it received 438 ships and handled 46,278 containers, 253,179 tons of general cargo, 412,714 tons of grains and 52,760 tons of coke (fuel).The proposed project includes:- the extension of the south container terminal berth by 180 meters;- the expansion of the container yard by 3.2 hectares and the paving of the existing container yard;- the acquisition of an additional mobile crane and other container yard equipment;- the extension of the north berth by 50 meters;- the building of two additional warehouses/silos;- purchase of land to increase container storage space; and
– the upgrade of the port’s IT systems. |
| 29 | 2007 | 25852 | Tribeca Partners SA | Collective Investment Vehicles | $15M | Tribeca Fund I investment, to help fund reach target, give comfort to local investors not familiar with FCPs, and ensure fund is structured to international standards to ensure best practices in particular in back office |
| 30 | 2009 | 27689 | Uniminuto | Education Services | $8 | The total project cost over the 2009-2010 period is estimated at $18 million. The proposed IFC investment is a $8 million A loan for IFC’s own account.The physical infrastructure component of the investment program consists of three projects in Cundinamarca, including expansion of two key facilities in Bogota and Soacha, as well as construction of a new (phase 1) facility in Girardot. Land has been secured in all cases, and project planning is at advanced stages.Development impact: Increased Access to Tertiary Education Services – Colombia has made significant advances in gross enrollment ratios at all education levels over the past 5 years yet access and coverage for certain segments of the population remain weak. While average gross enrollment ratios for tertiary education are estimated at 29%, government data indicates that coverage in Bogota may exceed 50%, yet remain below 10% in various departments. Additionally, schooling has traditionally been less accessible to students of lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Through its network approach, commitment to distance learning technologies and presence in more than 11 departments, Uniminuto is expected to contribute to increased coverage for students in more remote areas of the country. |
| 31 | 2009 | 27745 | Covinoc SA | Finance and Insurance | $5 | The proposed investment consists of an equity investment in common shares for up to US$5 million earmarked at strengthening Covinoc’s ability to administer pools of non-performing assets. This investment is expected to assist the Company in the implementation of the growth plan put forth by its management and shareholders. |
| 32 | 2009 | 27952 | Cartones | Pulp and Paper | $.756 | Cartones America is planning to reduce their use of energy at their plant in Cali, Colombia. The energy efficiency improvement project planned by Cartones consist several sub-projects which will help it to reduce its energy consumption and thus reduce the operating cost for energy by almost 17% annually. This project is an overall energy systems improvement which will consist of improving the electrical system, such as lowering the voltage setting on the transformers, improving the transmission efficiency of motor by using poly V-belts instead of ordinary V-belts, increase the efficiency of the electric motor by replacing large standard efficiency motors with high efficiency motors and also down-sizing motors so that they operate at optimal loading, the plant will also install variable speed drives on some application so that the supplied power to the machines matches the demand and also improve its lighting and refrigeration systems. On the thermal side the plant will be improving the efficiency of its boilers by installing automatic air-fuel regulators, improving its insulation on its steam pipes, valves and flanges and most importantly it will be improving the steam/ condensate management system at its Paper machine 3 so that its specific steam consumption will be reduced. Together, these “Cleaner Production” investment for energy efficiency qualify for funding via IFC’s Board approved Cleaner Production Lending Pilot, a $20 million Facility via which IFC can provide Cleaner Production sub-loans to its existing portfolio clients.The estimated total project cost is $755,814 and the proposed IFC investment is an A Loan (Cleaner Production Loan) of $756,000 equivalent for IFC’s account. This investment in Cartones America will be a sub-loan for the above mentioned dedicated lending facility established as part of IFC’s Cleaner Production Lending Pilot initiative.The Cleaner Production Investment will be implemented at Cartones America’s Cali plant, which is located about 190 miles South-West of Bogota. |
| 33 | 2004 | 20932 | Carvajal | Pulp and Paper | TBD Project cost for modernization programThe company’s expansion, rationalization and modernization plans in the 2003-2007 period, to help its Project Core Businesses to grow (organically and through acquisitions), to become leaders in their sectors, and to achieve international competitiveness. In particular, the project includes the following components:- Paper Manufacturing/Conversion:Modernizing and rationalizing its existing plants;- School/Office Supplies:Modernizing its facility in Brazil, and expanding its operations, mainly in Mexico and Brazil;- Yellow Pages:Rationalizing and growing its operations in Brazil;- Book and Text Book Publishing/Editing:
Growing its operations in Mexico and Spain; and – Plastic Packaging: Modernizing its Colombian facilities, and expanding its operations there and in Mexico. In addition, the project will also contemplate environmental and social and health and safety improvements at some of the company’s facilities in and outside Colombia. |
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| 34 | 2008 | 26538 | Giros y Finanzas Compania de Financiamiento Comercial SA | Finance and Insurance | microfinance and lending to low income households in Colombia | |
| 35 | 2007 | 26520 | Grupo Bolivar | Equity investment in common shares for up to $75 million to recapitalize the Insurance Companies and restore its solvency margins to levels before elimination of non-insurance related investments). Grupo Bolivar is the third largest local financial conglomerate in Colombia. The Group is a strong player in the insurance industry, with second largest market share through the Insurance Companies, and in the banking industry, with the third largest bank in Colombia, Banco Davivienda. | ||
| 2005 | 24514 | Promigas | Utilities | Promigas has requested IFC to consider providing a corporate loan facility that would support a number of initiatives for the 2005-2007 period. These include potential investments in additional gas transmission and distribution assets in Colombia as well as the acquisition of new assets throughout South America.The proposed IFC facility would support a number of initiatives currently pursued by Promigas during 2005-2007, including potential investments in additional gas transmission and distribution assets in Colombia as well as the acquisition of new assets throughout South America. The total investment program is estimated at a maximum of $319.0 million if all projects are carried out concurrently. The proposed IFC investment in discussion with Promigas, comprised of an A and B Loan, would fund part of this program. |
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Hunter T. Carter 