BCR grants EUR 31 mln loan to largest crude edible oil plant in SEE

Newsroom 07/07/2011 | 12:37

Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR) has granted a EUR 31 million loan to Prio Extraction SRL, a company specialized in the production of crude edible oil. The loan ensures the partial financing of the working capital of the factory in Lehliu-Gara (Calarasi county), the largest greenfield investment in Romania in 2011 (EUR 93 millions) and the largest crude edible oil factory in Southeast Europe.

The unit has a production capacity of 316,000 tons of crude oil per year, and a processing capacity of 750,000 tons of seed / year (soy, sunflower, rapeseed). 90 employees work in the factory and their number is estimated to grow up in the future. 90 percent of factory production is aimed for export in the region.

The loan was granted for a period of 12 months and will cover the costs of purchasing seeds for processing as well as other expenses. “Despite the fact that it involved a greenfield investment, which is associated with a higher credit risk, we were firmly convinced of the viability of the transaction. The recession proof sector and the export destination of the production were strong arguments in favour of the deal,” said Mirela Blidarus, Industry Head within Group Large Corporate Division of BCR.

Prio Extraction controls 17,000 hectares for seeds production locally, which ensures just about 2-3 percent of crude oil necessary for the plant. The remaining raw material is purchased from local farmers and large traders on the market.