Uzbekistan / Loan Insurance for Navoiyazot Fertilizer Plant Construction Project

Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) has decided to provide insurance for loans extended by Japanese commercial banks to support a Navoiyazot fertilizer plant construction planned by Uzkimyosanoat, a state chemical sector holding company in the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The loan agreement and agreement on NEXI's insurance were signed on October 25, 2015 on the sidelines of a meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Uzbek President Islam Karimov.

Under the agreements, Navoiyazot Joint-Stock Company owned by Uzkimyosanoat will use the loans to purchase the ammonia and urea fertilizer production facilities from Mitsubishi Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. The loans are provided, through Joint-Stock Commercial Bank ASAKA of Uzbekistan, by the Japanese commercial banks jointly with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC). The Japanese commercial banks are The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd., Mizuho Bank, Ltd., Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and ING Bank NV Tokyo Branch. NEXI's insurance is offered to support the loans by these commercial banks. NEXI's financial support will help Japanese exporters maintain and strengthen international competitiveness.

This is also an important project for Uzbekistan. The large-scale fertilizer plant in Navoiy, a city in the central region of Uzbekistan, will produce ammonia and urea from the country's natural gas. They are expected to meet a growing domestic demand for fertilizers and earn foreign exchange through export.

This will be a second project to be underwritten by NEXI this year as a medium-to-long term project in Uzbekistan after the digital terrestrial TV network project, in which NEXI agreed to provide a medium-to-long term insurance coverage for the country for the first time in 14 years in January 2015. As a Japanese ECA, NEXI will continue to actively support Japanese exports as well as projects that contribute to Uzbekistan's economic development.