Société Arabe Internationale de Banque (SAIB) has signed on Tuesday the long-awaited agreement to arrange, manage and market a syndicated loan in favor of the state-owned Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC). Around 12 banks operating in the Egyptian market will be participating in the banking consortium to provide EGPC’s EGP 2 billion loan.
The 42-month finance is designed to meet with the EGPC’s immediate needs both internally and externally to secure the provision of petroleum products fro the local market.
The EGPC’s funding request has attracted a high turn-out from Egyptian banks. EGPC has seen major interest from banks across Egypt receiving subscriptions that cover more than 150% of the loan value. This is backed by the fact that the state-owned corporation has always managed to meet with its contractual obligations with lenders without facing faltering times over the last period, thanks to its good cash flows.
A Consortium of 13 Banks
The banking consortium to provide EGPC’s EGP2 billion loan consists of the SAIB Bank as the key loan arranger – the Mandated Lead Arranger and Facility Agent; in addition to Ahli United Bank, Bank Audi Egypt, the Egyptian Arab Land Bank (EALB), the Egyptian Gulf Bank (EGBE), Faisal Islamic Bank of Egypt, Blom Bank – Egypt, the Arab Bank, Arab Investment Bank (AIB), Piraeus Bank – Egypt, Al Baraka Bank of Egypt, the Industrial Development & Workers Bank of Egypt (IDBE), and the National Bank of Greece (NBG) – Egypt.
This is the second syndicated loan to be arranged, run, and marketed by SAIB Bank in favor of the EGPC after its first finance in 2010 that was in the amount of EGP 2.5 billion.
Signing the EGPC’s syndicated loan agreement coincides with the issuance of World Bank’s report on Investment Potential in the Middle East and North Africa markets. The WB report has referred to the oil sector as being the most balanced and least crises-stricken during the previous period, therefore citing the sector’s lower investment risks compared to other economic sectors.
