Leading grain trader Nibulon to develop new infrastructure and increase exports

The EBRD is promoting the development of grain logistics in Ukraine by increasing the capacity of the country’s inland waterways and creating associated infrastructure.

A US$ 50 million loan to Nibulon Group, one of Ukraine’s largest grain exporters, will improve logistical solutions, help increase the firm’s volumes of cargo transported on inland waterways by up to 4 million tonnes a year and increase its grain exports by up to 8 million tonnes a year.

The financing will be structured as an A-loan of up to US$ 40 million for the EBRD’s own account and a B-loan of up to US$ 10 million, which will be syndicated to commercial banks.

Nibulon is a longstanding client of the EBRD. The new loan will support Nibulon’s large-scale three-year investment programme, which includes, but is not limited to: the construction of three new river terminals for grain; the expansion of Nibulon’s fleet, including a new floating transhipment crane, tugboats, barges and a self-propelled dredging vessel; and the construction of a 42,000-tonne storage facility, a barge quay and a new railway at the firm’s Mykolaiv terminal.

The project is supported by grant funding provided by the Japan-EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund.

The EBRD is the largest international financial investor in Ukraine. To date, the Bank has made a cumulative commitment of almost €12.1 billion across some 400 projects since the start of its operations in the country in 1993.