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$18m for Russian methanol derivatives – and big energy savings
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is lending $18 million to
Russia’s largest producer and exporter of the feedstock chemical methanol to
increase output of methanol derivatives with greater added value and to push
through energy efficiency improvements that will cut production costs.
The six-year loan to JSC Metafrax is the EBRD’s first project in Russia
involving basic, non-fertiliser chemicals. The loan will finance the
construction of urea-formaldehyde concentrate (UFC) plants needed to meet the
growing demands of the Russian wood-processing industry. It also provides
funding for a range of other projects specifically to improve energy
efficiency.
Metafrax, situated in the Urals town of Gubakha, some 1,200 km east of Moscow,
is a good example of successful restructuring through which a Soviet-style
organisation managed to turn into a market-oriented enterprise. It is one of
the Russian few chemical firms to be investing intensely in energy-saving
technologies.
This new EBRD project will not only help Metafrax deepen its existing
commitment to raising corporate governance standards, but could also encourage
other energy-intensive companies to shift to more environmentally friendly
energy-consumption patterns.
The government of Greece supported the transaction through the grant of
technical cooperation funding to finance an energy audit of Metafrax’s
operations.
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