Sberbank to Finance the Construction of Sodrugestvo New Port and Processing Complex in Kaliningrad, Russia
By Sodrugestvo Group, PRNETuesday, March 15, 2011
LUXEMBOURG and NEW YORK, March 16, 2011 - Sberbank and Sodrugestvo have signed a loan agreement today in Svetliy
(Kaliningrad Region) setting a new facility for Sodrugestvo Group.
Mr. Alexey Koltchik, vice president of the North-West Branch of Sberbank;
Mr. Alexander V. Lutsenko, chairman of the board of Sodrugestvo Group; and
Mr. Stephane Frappat, chief executive officer of Sodrugestvo Group
participated in the signing ceremony.
The loan will be used to finance the construction of a new port complex
and a new soybean crushing plant being developed by Sodrugestvo in
Kaliningrad, announced last week. Sberbank will finance $300 million of the
project which is expected to cost US$ 430 million.
"The construction of this terminal and the new crushing facility has
great importance for the growth of the agro-industrial sector, not only in
the Kaliningrad region, but throughout Russia. This is why we believe in this
project and have decided to participate in its financing," said Alexey
Koltchik, vice president, North-West Branch of Sberbank.
"This project is extremely important for our group, and we are extremely
pleased Sberbank has decided to support this endowment," said Stephane
Frappat, chief executive officer, Sodrugestvo. "We are also very happy that
this new facility will give Russia the most sophisticated specialized
terminal in Europe to support the export of any kind of agricultural
commodity to world markets. Russia is returning to the global agricultural
market as a major supplier and our task will be to play a major role in this
process. As for our new crushing plant, it will allow us to continue
participating in the growth of the sector with the best products in the most
competitive conditions."
Sberbank Rossii
Sberbank today is the largest credit institution in Russia and Eastern
and Central Europe, accounting for about a quarter of the aggregate Russian
banking assets. It is also the major lender to the Russian economy. The main
shareholder of Sberbank is the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (60% of
the voting rights), but the bank counts more than 250,000 shareholders in
total. Sberbank disposes of the largest network in Russia with 17 regional
banks, over 20,000 agencies; it has as well daughter banks in Kazakhstan,
Ukraine and Belarus, as well as a representative office in Germany and a
branch in India.
Sodrugestvo Group
Sodrugestvo Group (www.sodrugestvo.com), founded in 1994, is a
rapidly growing agro-industrial company serving global markets. The company
is vertically integrated with three business units - specialized
infrastructure (including deep-water sea ports), logistics (including
railcars and storage facilities) and processing facilities (for the
production of proteins and oils from vegetal and animal commodities). In
2010, Sodrugestvo crushed more than 1.1 million tons of soybeans and
rapeseed, making it a leading player in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe.
The company is also expanding into commodities trading and direct origination
capabilities.
Headquartered in Luxembourg, the company has 32 facilities located in
nine countries including Russia, Denmark, Brazil, the United States and
several Eastern European nations. With consolidated sales of $857 million in
its fiscal year ending June 30, 2010, Sodrugestvo has enjoyed average annual
growth of 15 percent or more for the last 10 years. Sodrugestvo employs 1,300
and is privately held.
This release is available online in the Feintuch Communications media
room at www.feintuchcommunications.com/sodru.
Jules Abraham, +1-212-808-4904, jules at feintuchpr.com, or Savannah Tikotsky, +1-212-808-4903, savannah at feintuchpr.com, both of Feintuch Communications
Tags: Luxembourg, Luxembourg And New York, March 16, New York, Russia, Sodrugestvo Group