White & Case advises IFC-led lender group on US$1.25 billion financing for Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited

Global law firm White & Case LLP has advised a group of lenders led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on a US$1.25 billion financing package to Indorama Eleme Fertilizer and Chemicals Limited (Indorama) in Nigeria.

"This is a transformational deal for the sponsor and reflects the longstanding commitment and relationship between Indorama and the DFIs which have supported it from the first financing in 2013," said White & Case partner Deji Adegoke, who co-led the Firm's deal team. "This landmark deal represents the high point of PPP-type hybrid financings. Its complex nature as well as the scale of the documentation package was managed in a collaborative and effective manner by our cross-border team."

The financing will provide the required investment for Indorama to build a third nitrogenous urea fertiliser plant, with expected annual capacity of 1.4 million metric tonnes of urea, and a new shipping terminal base in Nigeria. As well as IFC, the group of development finance institutions which provided the financing included African Development Bank, British International Investment Plc, DEG – Deutsche Investitions  und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, United States International Development Finance Corporation, The Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund Limited, The Export-Import Bank of Korea, Export Import Bank of India, Nederlandse Financierings – MaatsChappij Voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V.

White & Case advised on all aspects of the transaction including project development, due diligence, commercial launch and the negotiation and drafting of finance documents.

Based near Port Harcourt in Nigeria, the Indorama facility is Sub-Saharan Africa's largest producer of granular urea, a key input for agricultural fertiliser production.

The White & Case team which advised on the transaction was led by partners Deji Adegoke (London) and Gareth Hodder (Dubai) and included partner Martin Menski (Washington, DC), local partners Lulama Selele and Matthew Richards (both Johannesburg) and associates Lauren Vallender, Miebi Inokoba (both London), Andrea McKaiser-Walbrugh, Rhulani Matsimbi, Robyn Anderson (all Johannesburg), Margaret Zelenski (Washington, DC) and Ijeoma Oti (New York).

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