EDC Lead Arranger for USD 3.3 B Financing for Landmark STAR Refinery Project in Turkey

OTTAWA, ON--(Marketwired - December 11, 2014) - Export Development Canada (EDC) announced today its participation as lead arranger in a USD 3.3 billion dollar debt financing consortium to STAR Rafineri A.S., majority owned by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR).

EDC financed USD 150 million within the bank consortium. This financing is for the development of the SOCAR Turkey Aegean Refinery (STAR) project. This is the largest project financing deal ever done in Turkey.

Once completed in 2018, the USD 5.6 billion STAR project will be the first refinery to start operations in Turkey since 1972. This project will process an estimated 10 million tons of crude oil per year and is expected to dramatically reduce Turkey's dependence on foreign energy imports.

"EDC will focus particular attention on developing Canadian procurement across the entire range of Canadian capabilities, at every stage of the exploration, drilling and development of SOCAR's supply chain, including the infrastructure and transportation sectors," says Zenon Woychyshyn, Chief Representative, EDC, Istanbul.

The project, located 5 kilometers from Aliaga, Izmir Province, also includes the construction and operation of three marine shipping terminals, and a new stand-alone wastewater treatment plant for managing refinery by-product.

This deal is not only significant because of its size, but also for the number of financial institutions and export credit agencies involved, which together provided USD 3.3 billion in debt financing to the project. Other than EDC, there were a total of 6 export credit agencies; JBIC and NEXI, US Exim, CESCE, SACE and K‐Sure; and 16 commercial banks involved in this financing.

Based on SOCAR's interest and involvement with EDC to date, and given its significant capital expansion plans in Eurasia, EDC expects strong growth in Canadian procurement from SOCAR over the 15 year term of the loan.

"This was a landmark transaction for both Turkey and EDC," says Sven List, Vice-President Structured and Project Finance, EDC. "The successful closing of this deal demonstrates EDC's expertise in structuring complex project financings, and also sets the stage for future trade facilitation in Turkey."

"EDC's participation in this financing has allowed us to establish a constructive relationship with SOCAR and will undoubtedly yield substantial Canadian procurement opportunities in the future," says Woychyshyn.

Consistent with EDC's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitments, EDC benchmarked the project against its corporate Environmental and Social Review Directive and the internationally recognized standards of the Equator Principles. The project has ultimately passed or exceeded these reviews and other internationally recognized standards.

About EDC

EDC is Canada's export credit agency, providing financing and insurance solutions locally and around the world to help Canadian companies of any size respond to international business opportunities. As a profitable Crown corporation that operates on commercial principles, EDC works together with private- and public-sector financial institutions to create greater capacity for Canadian companies to engage in trade and investment.

For more information about how EDC can help your company, visit www.edc.ca.