The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector
arm of the World Bank Group, signed a US$50 million loan agreement
with Shanshui Group, a leading cement producer in east China's Shandong Province.
IFC said the loan will be used by the cement group in debt
restructuring and for installation of energy efficient
technology.
Lars Thunell, IFC executive vice president, said Shanshui
Group's investment in environmentally friendly technology should
serve as a model for other companies in key industrial sectors
across China as they strive to achieve international standards.
IFC's loan follows a 7.7 million equity investment it made in
the cement group last year, and the group meets the World Bank
Group limits for particulate emissions at all plants.
From its founding in 1956 through financial year 2005, IFC has
committed more than US$40 billion of its own funds and arranged
US$24 billion in syndications for 3,319 companies in 140 developing
countries.
The loans and syndications include US$2.4 billion for 101
projects in China in the past two decades since 1985, which
involved six commercial banks on the Chinese mainland.
(Xinhua News Agency May 17, 2006)