Project Description
Up to EUR 10 million senior loan (the 'Project') to Elana Agrocredit AD ('Elana') under the Resilience and Livelihoods Framework ('RLF').
Project Objectives
The project will help Elana to increase lending to farmers (MSMEs) affected directly or indirectly by the war, thereby supporting food production and security in Bulgaria and elsewhere.
Transition Impact
ETI score: 65
The Project aims to support Elana to i) expand its lending capacity while remaining robust and operational ('Resilient') and ii) continue lending to farmers (MSMEs), whose livelihoods have been significantly affected directly or indirectly by the war ('Inclusive').
Client Information
ELANA AGROCREDIT AD
Elana is an existing client of the Bank. It was established in Bulgaria in 2012 as a non-bank financial institution focused on providing lease financing for agricultural land to Bulgarian farmers (MSMEs).
As at December 2022, Elana's total assets stood at EUR 31.8 million and its portfolio - EUR 30.7 million distributed between leases and working capital loans.
Upon establishment, the Company was 99.6% owned by Elana Holding ("EH") - one of the largest non-bank financial groups in Bulgaria. Since the IPO on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange in October 2013, EH has had just 0.5%. The remaining shares are held by major Bulgarian pension funds and other institutional investors holding 35.5% of the shares and nearly 200 retail investors for a combined stake of 64.5%.
EBRD Finance Summary
EUR 10,000,000.00
Senior secured loan
Total Project Cost
EUR 10,000,000.00
Sources total: EUR 10,000,000
EBRD financing: EUR 10,000,000
Additionality
The proposed Project provides access to financing in a period when the company is facing shortages of funding sources and significant demand from its clients for provision of farm land leasing.
Environmental and Social Summary
Categorised FI (2019 ESP). Elana is an existing client and will be required to continue to implement the Environmental and Social Risk Management Procedure for Leasing; continue to comply with the EBRD's Performance Requirements (PRs) 2, 4 and 9, including adherence to the expanded EBRD E&S Exclusion List and Referral List introduced with ESP 2019 and submit Annual E&S Reports to the Bank.
Technical Cooperation and Grant Financing
None
Company Contact Information
Georgi Georgiev, Procurator
georgievge@elana.net
+359 2 81 000 92
www.elana.net
Sopharma Business Towers
Tower B, Floor 12
5, Lachezar Stanchev St.
1797 Sofia, Bulgaria
Implementation summary
PSD last updated
24 Mar 2023
Understanding Transition
Further information regarding the EBRD’s approach to measuring transition impact is available here.
Business opportunities
For business opportunities or procurement, contact the client company.
For business opportunities with EBRD (not related to procurement) contact:
Tel: +44 20 7338 7168
Email: projectenquiries@ebrd.com
For state-sector projects, visit EBRD Procurement:
Tel: +44 20 7338 6794
Email: procurement@ebrd.com
General enquiries
Specific enquiries can be made using the EBRD Enquiries form.
Environmental and Social Policy (ESP)
The ESP and the associated Performance Requirements (PRs) set out the ways in which the EBRD implements its commitment to promoting “environmentally sound and sustainable development”. The ESP and the PRs include specific provisions for clients to comply with the applicable requirements of national laws on public information and consultation as well as to establish a grievance mechanism to receive and facilitate resolution of stakeholders’ concerns and grievances, in particular, about environmental and social performance of the client and the project. Proportionate to the nature and scale of a project’s environmental and social risks and impacts, the EBRD additionally requires its clients to disclose information, as appropriate, about the risks and impacts arising from projects or to undertake meaningful consultation with stakeholders and consider and respond to their feedback.
More information on the EBRD’s practices in this regard is set out in the ESP.
Integrity and Compliance
The EBRD's Office of the Chief Compliance Officer (OCCO) promotes good governance and ensures that the highest standards of integrity are applied to all activities of the Bank in accordance with international best practice. Integrity due diligence is conducted on all Bank clients to ensure that projects do not present unacceptable integrity or reputational risks to the Bank. The Bank believes that identifying and resolving issues at the project assessment approval stages is the most effective means of ensuring the integrity of Bank transactions. OCCO plays a key role in these protective efforts, and also helps to monitor integrity risks in projects post-investment.
OCCO is also responsible for investigating allegations of fraud, corruption and misconduct in EBRD-financed projects. Anyone, both within or outside the Bank, who suspects fraud or corruption should submit a written report to the Chief Compliance Officer by email to compliance@ebrd.com. All matters reported will be handled by OCCO for follow-up. All reports, including anonymous ones, will be reviewed. Reports can be made in any language of the Bank or of the Bank's countries of operation. The information provided must be made in good faith.
Access to Information Policy (AIP)
The AIP sets out how the EBRD discloses information and consults with its stakeholders so as to promote better awareness and understanding of its strategies, policies and operations following its entry into force on 1 January 2020. Please visit the Access to Information Policy page to find out what information is available from the EBRD website.
Specific requests for information can be made using the EBRD Enquiries form.
Independent Project Accountability Mechanism (IPAM)
If efforts to address environmental, social or public disclosure concerns with the Client or the Bank are unsuccessful (e.g. through the Client’s Project-level grievance mechanism or through direct engagement with Bank management), individuals and organisations may seek to address their concerns through the EBRD’s Independent Project Accountability Mechanism (IPAM).
IPAM independently reviews Project issues that are believed to have caused (or to be likely to cause) harm. The purpose of the Mechanism is: to support dialogue between Project stakeholders to resolve environmental, social and public disclosure issues; to determine whether the Bank has complied with its Environmental and Social Policy or Project-specific provisions of its Access to Information Policy; and where applicable, to address any existing non-compliance with these policies, while preventing future non-compliance by the Bank.
Please visit the Independent Project Accountability Mechanism webpage to find out more about IPAM and its mandate; how to submit a Request for review; or contact IPAM via email ipam@ebrd.com to get guidance and more information on IPAM and how to submit a request.
