Loan will create jobs and boost industry across sectors
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay — The Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) and Lirio Blanco S.A. held a signing ceremony for a loan of up to US$2.2 million, paving the way for new momentum in the Uruguayan transport market.
The signing ceremony was held within the framework of the Twenty-seventh Annual Meeting of the IIC Board of Governors. The loan is set to finance the purchase of two tug boats, which will help the company provide riverine transport services to ships and vessels arriving at the ports of Punta Pereira and Nueva Palmira in Uruguay’s Colonia Department.
“The IIC loan has opened up new sources of financing for us in an undeveloped market for long-term projects. Moreover, the IIC’s international experience has complemented and improved the work of our professional team in both finance and projects. The entire process has enriched our capabilities and better positioned us for future projects,” noted Gonzalo Tapia, general manager of Lirio Blanco.
According to Jacques Rogozinski, the IIC’s general manager,“This project will have a significant impact on Uruguayan small- and medium-sized enterprises, establishing ties between the transport sector and the country’s export sector through its suppliers. Lirio Blanco is expected to create jobs and channel at least US$7.2 million into the Uruguayan economy over the next six years.”
The operation is part of a larger project implemented by fellow Uruguayan enterprise Montes del Plata, which plans to build a cellulose pulp mill in Colonia Department. Lirio Blanco will begin offering exclusive towage support services to Montes del Plata at its Punta Pereira port terminal in 2013 and operate for at least five years.
The Montes del Plata project is the largest foreign investment in Uruguay’s history, for a total of US$2.3 billion. It also includes the construction and operation of a 160-megawatt biomass plant, river port and barge terminals, and a wood chipping plant.
The signing ceremony was held at the IIC’s offices in Montevideo’s Radisson Hotel. Signing on behalf of Lirio Blanco was Gonzalo Tapia, and on behalf of the IIC, Jacques Rogozinski.
About the IIC
The IIC is a multilateral financial institution that is a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group. The IIC’s mission is to promote the economic development of its regional member countries by encouraging the establishment, expansion, and modernization of private enterprises, particularly those that are small and medium in size. It does so by providing financing (in the form of equity investments, loans, guarantees, and other instruments) and advisory services to private enterprises in Latin America and the Caribbean. As of September 2011, the IIC’s equity totaled US$799 million, with US$1.44 billion in assets, US$987 million of which make up its development portfolio in the region. For more information on the IIC’s activities, visit www.iic.org.