JBIC TodayMay 2020

Special Feature Turkey, a regional superpower surrounded by , Arab states & Persia

▶ Appeal as a “business hub” ▶ JBIC Interview Hopes for strengthened cooperation for business expansion from Turkey into third countries

T o oa Ca 英 文 組 合 せシステム Learning the way to achieve the best and fastest success from local “prosperous companies”

a o o o a Project Frontline ▶ Project financing for onshore wind in Morocco ▶ 110 billion yen loan for a fertilizer plant in Bangladesh, one of the “Economic Frontier” markets ▶ Loan for a Japanese company manufacturing solar panel sheet glasses in the and Vietnam Feature Feature

very early age, they have good impression of story has been told to the Japanese people, . further strengthening the favorable relations Historically, Turkey has always been between Japan and Turkey. exposed to Russian invasions on its eastern side, and has even battled in war with them. As Turkey has long been threatened by , The Turkish business environment some Turkish people remark on how won- supports entrance of foreign derful it is that Japan defeated Russia in the companies Russo-Japanese War. In addition, Turkish are Muslims. Mus- ― Considering the circumstances so far, is lims have basically been at odds with Chris- Turkey pro-Japanese and can Japanese com- tianity, but since the Industrial Revolution, panies easily conduct business in the current Western powers centered on Christianity have environment? Special Feature Turkey, a regional superpower surrounded by Europe, Arab states & Persia dominated the . Despite losing to West- Uchino Yes. In addition to having strong ern powers in World War II, Japan rose from economic ties with Europe, Turkey is also ruins from the war. Also, Japan is the only very pro-Japanese, making it easy for Japanese Appeal as a “business hub” non-Christian country among the G7. Japan, companies to do business there. Furthermore, UCHINO Mika Director which has never invaded Turkey, has risen as many people from the Turkish , Division 3 an industrial country despite losing the war financial institutions and businesses whom New Energy and Power Finance Department 2 Turkey is a pro-Japanese country which encourages Japanese companies to conduct and is currently leading the world as a member we’ve worked with are meticulous in how they Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group business there. of the G7. Turkey desires to rely on such Japan conduct their work, while also being sincere Recently, the number of businesses utilizing Turkish networks has been growing not only as a global leader. in their business practices and hard worker̶ part of their logistics operations infrastructure ― Is it true that Japanese people were helped showing that they share many similarities with to support such global businesses, for which in Turkey, but also in Europe and . by Turkey during the Iran-Iraq War? Japanese business culture. We also often hear JBIC has provided financial support (see the Tamaki at’s right. At the time, there were from Japanese companies in Turkey about how project case on page 4). problems as to how Japanese people left be- skillful the Turkish people are. Tamaki Furthermore, such large-scale infra- ― What is the current relationship between and even crossed over the Bosporus Strait and the Middle East? hind in Iran could be rescued. The Japanese On top of its attractiveness as a consumer structure requires a large amount of funding, Japan and Turkey? to enter Europe. Turkey, which eventually be- Tamaki Japan has good relations not only government was unable to fly government with a population of more than 80 and global trends have seen such development Tamaki In order to understand the relation- came the Ottoman , took down Con- with Turkey but also with the Middle East as aircraft, and Japan Airlines was also unable to million, Turkey’s potential as a manufacturing take place increasingly in the form of so-called ship between Japan and Turkey, it is necessary stantinople in 1453, which became Istanbul a whole. Japan imports more than 99% of its y there due to the risks involved. Under such and export base is also appealing due to its PPP (public-private partnership) in many to understand Turkish history. First of all, the as we know today. Due to this historical back- oil, relying mostly on the Middle East. Saudi circumstances, Turkey took the initiative of abundant young, talented and pro-Japanese cases. For example, Turkey has a strong PPP Turks were based in Central Asia. It is said ground, Turkey still maintains a significant Arabia has the highest ratio at about 40%, using Turkish Airlines to rescue the Japanese resources. Hence, many Japanese com- model for its hospital business. Hospital man- that built the Great Wall to prevent the presence in the Middle East. followed by UAE at about 25%. Around 90% people left in Tehran. is is said to be recip- panies have already started doing business in agement consists of building a hospital, hiring invasion of the Turks. Therefore, the Turks of the oil Japan needs comes from the Middle rocation for the Ertuğrul Ship incident, but Turkey. One example is Toyota’s partnership doctors and receiving treatment fees from were unable to travel eastward, and headed East. erefore, Japan is a major trading part- was also due to a Japanese person working in with Turkey’s Sabancı conglomerate in the patients. However, it is difficult for overseas westward instead. They swept over Central Border demarcations imposed ner for the Middle East, and stability in the a trading company. He had a very close friend production of automobiles in Turkey in the operators to enter such a market and conduct by Western powers turn the Middle East into a region also leads to stability in the Japanese from when he studied in Turkey and a friend 1990s. is venture was established to export healthcare business. In the case of Turkey, its powder keg . Given this situation, it is impera- of this friend was the Turkish president during to Europe and eventually became a large-scale PPP model allows for project developer to tive that Japan maintain good relations with the Iran-Iraq War. The emergency flight was production base. Recently, Nippon Yusen con- receive a certain amount of fees so long as they ― When did the Middle East take its current all countries in the Middle East. Japan has a the result of this relationship. is wonderful structed a dedicated automobile terminal as construct a hospital building and maintain form? good relationship with Iran, as well as with Tamaki It was triggered by World War I, Iran’s rival, Saudi Arabia. Japan’s which began in 1914. During the war, the Ot- with the Middle East is dierent from that of toman Empire was defeated and the area un- Western countries because of Japan’s energy Column der its control were divided by Western powers challenges. The Ertuğrul Ship Incident such as the and France. e Western powers imposed border demarcations On September 16, 1890, the Turkish warship Ertuğrul was stranded - Turkey and Japan develop by a typhoon off Kii-Oshima Island in Kushimoto Town, Wakayama Pre- using the dierences between Islam and Juda strong ties ism, or between the Shiite and Sunni factions based on two events in the past fecture. The islanders of Kii-Oshima carried out desperate rescue opera- of Islam. This fracturing of the Middle East tions without regard for their own safety and were able to rescue 69 sail- caused quarrels in the region, which turned it ― How does Turkey feel about Japan? ors and officers in the shipwreck which caused 587 victims. It is said that Tamaki into the world’s powder keg. e addition of Turkish people have a very good im- the large amount of donations received from the Japanese people who oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia pression of Japan. e Ertuğrul Ship incident learned of the accident in the press deeply impressed the Turkish people. and UAE (the United Arab Emirates) to the (see column on page 3), which is featured in At present, a memorial ceremony is held every year at a cenotaph built in TAMAKI Naoki Middle East has further complicated the rela- textbooks of Turkish elementary schools, is Director General Kushimoto Town. The photo shows the 2015 ceremony (source: Jiji Press). New Energy and Power Finance Department 2 tionship among countries in the region. one of the events that created this paradigm. Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group ― What is the relationship between Japan As Turkish children learn about this from a

2 May 2020 │ JBIC Today May 2020 │ JBIC Today 3 Feature Feature

― Is it true that Turkey also shares deep ties ed bonds (Samurai Bonds) in Tokyo to raise that our support will help to stabilize Turkey, export and import bank supporting corporate with Africa? funds, we supported them by guaranteeing which is very important from a topographical trading activities in the same way as JBIC. We Uchino Turkish people have recently been their bonds. We provide such support because standpoint, as well as the region where the hope to collaborate with such government making headway in Africa by taking advantage we recognize that Turkey is an important country belongs. nancial institution to provide nancing sup- of their strong prociencies in risk-taking and business partner for Japanese companies and Furthermore, Turkey also has its own port to businesses outside of Turkey. their ability to interact with various cultures. Under President Erdogan, the Turkish gov- ernment has also deepened its ties with Afri- Project Case can countries, and Turkish embassies on the Project financing for Ikitelli Hospital PPP project continent have more than tripled in the past decade. Furthermore, Turkish Airlines is cur- This project entails the construction of Ikitelli Hospital in Ikitelli rently one of the leading airlines in terms of district, Istanbul, which will be one of the largest hospital complexes the number of African destinations it services. As a result, many Turkish companies are doing in Turkey (with 2,682 beds), by Istanbul PPP Saglik Yatirim A.S. (IPSY), a business in Africa, especially those in the con- Turkish funded by Sojitz Corporation and Ronesans Holding the system to operate medical business. This its former rivals Russia, Iran and Qatar. is struction industry. A.S., a major Turkish construction company. The operation and manage- makes it easy for overseas companies to enter has created a favorable environment where ― Are Japanese companies starting to invest ment of this hospital will be implemented in the form of PPP (public-pri- the healthcare sector in Turkey. As the Turkish Japanese companies can safely establish part- in Africa in cooperation with Turkey? vate partnership) by IPSY, while the Turkish Ministry of Health will be government does not have ample funds, they nerships there. Uchino In Turkey, there are a number of responsible for providing medical services. This is a large-scale hospital have instead created an environment where The Middle East is located at the junc- conglomerates that Japanese companies trust PPP project in Turkey in which the Sojitz Corporation will participate as foreign companies can easily enter to establish tion of Europe, Asia and Africa. Istanbul in as partners, and these conglomerates are pro- an investor and engage in its operation and management for the next basic infrastructure such as hospitals. JBIC Turkey serves as a link between Europe and actively trying to expand overseas. Until now, 25 years. During this period of time, Sojitz will provide knowledge and also signed a loan agreement three years ago Asia. In addition, as Africa is situated just to Japanese companies and Turkish conglomer- experience of the operation and management of Japanese hospitals. This project is the first hospital PPP project in Tur- for the İkitelli Hospital PPP project involving the south of Turkey, people, goods and money ates have formed consortiums to collaborate in a Japanese company (see the project case on have been owing through the country as part projects, such as infrastructure construction, key where JBIC and Japanese companies are involved. page 5). of the Silk Road for many years. Furthermore, not only in Turkey, but also in the Middle Signed on: July 20, 2017 Loan amount: approximately 81.3 billion yen (JBIC's portion) Turkey was able to become a great and wealthy East, Russia and Central Asia. JBIC has also empire because it is blessed with a natural supported some of these projects. Moreover, Leveraging Turkish networks environment that features abundant sunlight, - to expand business in other there are some projects in Africa where Japa countries rain and rivers. Although Turkey has been nese and Turkish companies work together. dominated by different at different We will provide more support than ever ― How is the economic environment in Tur- times, this historical background has fostered to projects where Japanese and Turkish com- potential of Turkey. key? people who are procient in interacting with panies can cooperate not only in Turkey, but JBIC opens Representative Office in Istanbul ― Do you have a message for Japanese com- Tamaki The current economic environment other cultures. ey have been called Persian, also in third countries including Africa. JBIC opened a new office in Istanbul on March 19, 2020. panies considering business in Turkey? is by no means good, but in the long run, Phoenician or Turkish merchants over the Tamaki We are also actively supporting the We have various nancial tools to support Turkey has a geographical advantage and is in years, and have come to be known as people Turkish government. For example, when the Below is an interview with Chief Representative and Japanese companies do business here, as well the process of forming friendlier relations with procient in commerce. Turkish government issued yen-denominat- Representative. as a network with the Turkish government, banks and private companies. We will not only provide financial support, but also assist our Project Case ― What is the attractiveness of the Turkish ― What is the purpose of opening an office clients in solving the issues they face, based on Loan for car logistics terminal operation project market? in Istanbul? our knowledge and experience gained through Turkey is a promising market with a We aim to contribute to promoting Jap- projects where we were involved. We are happy population of over 80 million including mid- anese companies’ investment in Turkey as well to receive requests for consultation from our Turkey is gaining worldwide attention as a base for the manufac- dle class consumers with purchasing power. as their collaboration with Turkish companies clients. (SUZUKI Ryuta, Chief Representative turing and export of automobiles. Based on this background, Nippon It connects with Europe, the Middle East, at an early stage of project development and and MIYAZAKI Momoi, Representative) Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) constructs and operates a car logis- Russia, Central Asia and Africa, serving as a from a location closer to our clients. tics terminal in the Körfez district of Kocaeli Province located approx- foothold for doing business in each region. We view Turkey as a “CORE”, which imately 70 km east of Istanbul. This project is implemented by a joint Since the 2000s, Turkey has established itself means Turkey is a “Center Of Regional Econ- venture between NYK Line and a subsidiary of OYAK, a leading Turkish as an export base to Europe, with approxi- omy” and a place where “Collaboration with conglomerate. JBIC has signed a loan agreement with this joint venture mately 60,000 foreign companies entering the Reliable Partners” can be expected. However, to finance to this project in collaboration with a private bank. OYAK market. the attractiveness of Turkey as an investment maintains several prominent affiliated companies such as the largest Especially in recent years, the number destination or the potential of Turkish com- of Turkish companies actively expanding into panies as business partners in entering third steel company in Turkey. Through this loan, it is also expected that Japa- Africa has been increasing. We believe that countries are not yet widely recognized in nese companies will expand and diversify their opportunities to collaborate with OYAK’s affiliates. cooperation with such Turkish companies will Japan. Through the launch of an office in Signed on: October 4, 2019 Loan amount: up to US$44 million (JBIC’s portion) Address: Esentepe Mahallesi, Büyükdere Cad. No: 199/95, pave the way for Japanese companies to enter Istanbul, we hope to take more opportunities Levent 199, Kat (Floor) 20-34394 Şişli/İstanbul, Turkey Africa. than ever to promote the attractiveness and Phone: +90-212-337-4060 Fax: +90-212-270-0700

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Turkey also boasts a labor market with an ample number of young and highly skillful workers. As many Turkish workers are disciplined and obedient, they are capable of contributing to Japanese manufacturers of high value-added prod- ucts. One example of this is the Japanese automobile factory in Turkey. Although there are various ways to evaluate the per- formance of factories, their Turkish factory gains highest reputation among all of their neighboring countries. As for Turkey’s connections with Special Feature Turkey, a regional superpower surrounded by Europe, Arab states & Persia automobile factories across the world. Turkey is also attractive as a consumer JBIC, I recall that the Export-Import Bank JBIC Interview Another advantage is that Turkish market. Turkey has a strong consumer base of Japan, which is a former organization of business people maintain very good rela- thanks to having a population of over 80 JBIC, provided a loan of 23 billion yen to tionships with neighboring countries. is million people whose average age is in the Turkey in 1993. More recently, JBIC has network can be used by Japanese compa- early 30s. provided various support including the Hopes for strengthened cooperation for business expansion nies when expanding their businesses to ere are also expectations for collab- guarantee for Samurai Bonds issued by the from Turkey into third countries countries around Turkey. oration with Japanese companies for proj- Turkish government. ects in third countries. e leaders of both JBIC is indispensable for coopera- Turkey's Ambassador to Japan talks about the attractiveness of Turkey and its potential countries signed the Joint Declaration on tion between the two countries and for for future business development. Expectations for a further strengthening of our relationship the Establishment of Strategic Partnerships the development of business not only in in 2013 and have since suggested partner- Turkey, but also in third countries. We also between Turkey and Japan. Following an expanding into third countries in collabo- An extremely powerful synergy can ships to promote third-country projects. In welcome the establishment of a JBIC rep- Trade with Japan is worth US$4 billion annually investment agreement signed in 1993, ration between the two nations. be expected by mixing Japan’s technology particular, business collaborations are ex- resentative o ce in Istanbul. In the future, Turkey and Japan have developed a rela- and capital with Turkey’s young, talented pected in Africa and Central Asia, and we we look forward to further support from e rst Japan-Turkey Joint Econom- tionship. Furthermore, discussions have workforce and its strong network with hope to accelerate discussions to that end. JBIC. A country blessed with young, ic Committee Meeting was held in 1987 been underway since 2014 regarding an abundant workforce to promote the economic partnership Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and geographical advantages between both nations to further strengthen economic relations. We believe that there are many ben- According to Turkish data, there are efits for Japanese companies to invest in currently 248 Japanese companies oper- Turkey. First, Turkey is close to Europe, ating in Turkey. As of 2019, the value of Asia, Middle East and Africa, and its geo- exports from Japan to Turkey was approx- graphical features make it possible to access imately US$3.5 billion and that from Tur- many countries via only a short ight. In key to Japan was US$500 million, totaling addition, Turkey has established a customs US$4 billion. However, given the size of union with the EU, simplifying the export the in both countries, we be- process from Turkey. lieve this amount is small. We will enhance Looking at the manufacturing in- various strategic partnerships, including dustry, Turkey is situated at a place where those for Turkish and Japanese companies raw materials and intermediate goods can easily be obtained. It’s also an attractive His Excellency Dr. manufacturing base with great accessibility Hasan Murat Mercan, to Russia and Europe, which are major Ambassador of the of Turkey to Japan product consumers.

6 May 2020 │ JBIC Today May 2020 │ JBIC Today 7 The Focus Our Global Challenges

Business of “Yamato (Thailand) Co., Ltd.” is going very well. Their meat-processing business is expanding, Learning the way to achieve the best and fastest success and they've received financing from JBIC in collaboration with the 77 Bank, Ltd. It's not about from local “prosperous companies” would be capable enough or not. As the former incorporated this habit into their restaurant. e catering to ― YAMATO Co., Ltd. president died suddenly forcing me to take over benefits were immediate, and six months later, the business immediately, our business partners sales began to increase noticeably. Japanese, YAMATO Co., Ltd., which operates yakiniku (Japanese barbecue) and cold noodle restaurants probably hoped that I wouldn’t just exacerbate After getting their restaurant on track, they but more in Iwate and Miyagi prefectures, entered Thailand about 15 years ago. President MIDORIKAWA the situation.” started meat-processing business for other local Chieko talks about many twists and turns they experienced there. President Midorikawa also mentioned, restaurants. Since then, their food-processing “I thought it might be easy to withdraw from business has continued its growth, and in June important Why did Yamato choose to expand to ai- he was attracted by Bangkok and decided to Thailand, but questioned whether we should 2019 they received nancing from JBIC in col- to focus on Starting a land in the rst place? Midorikawa Chieko, the launch a business there for growing bananas and give up so quickly.” Closing their ai business laboration with e 77 Bank, Ltd. president of Yamato, reflects back 15 years ago ornamental foliage plants. However, a typhoon would’ve also damaged their core operations, “ anks to that, we were able to add more locals new business saying, “It all started with a visit to Bangkok to in 2011 caused a flood that completely wiped because they would have been unable to recover freezers and vacuum machines. This allowed us import pineapples.” out their business. investment that had been made up to that point. not only to expand our meat-processing capacity, after learning At the time, as BSE (bovine spongiform en- President Midorikawa thought that the for- Even if they had decided to sell the business, that but also to process other ingredients, which en- cephalopathy) had prevented the importation of mer president would decide a withdrawal from would’ve resulted in recovering only 1/10th of abled us to further focus on nding new business the local American beef, Australian beef (Aussie beef) was ailand to focus more on their domestic busi- the investment they had made. After consulting partners.” used instead. Nowadays, Aussie beef is raised on ness, but he did not give up his Thai business. with the president of the Thai subsidiary, they ey also hope to expand into other coun- market compound feed, exhibiting a high quality that’s He proclaimed that he wanted to open a Yamato concluded they just had to move on. en, they tries in the future. Yamato is currently hiring acceptable to Japanese consumers. However, at restaurant in Thailand, which was their main decided to learn from other successful Japanese Vietnamese technical trainees at Yamato Food that time, the Aussie beef was known for having business. companies in ailand about how they do busi- Service Co., Ltd., which is their subsidiary a chewy texture because beef cattle were grass- “We immediately set up a local subsidi- ness there. engaged in food-processing. But these workers fed. ary and started preparing for the launch of the “I sought advice from a chain of Japa- can only work in Japan for one year. After that, “ en, we wondered if any natural enzymes restaurant.” nese-style bar (Izakaya) restaurants operating in these workers have to return to their country. It could be used to make the meat tender and But things proved quite challenging right the area.” is a shame that they do not have an opportunity found that pineapple had such an eect.” from the start. Six months later, with sales still to utilize their skills learned in Japan. If Yamato sluggish, the former president passed away. Pres- expands into Vietnam, they can provide these Entering the meat-processing business ident Midorikawa inherited his entire business. Vietnamese trainees with a place for work. We Importing Thai pineapples and marketing to local restaurants to improve meat quality One saving grace was that the management can expect Yamato to continue to take on new policy of the former president was still in place. e rst advice they received was business challenges. Pineapple contains proteolytic enzymes, When he run a business, he took an approach can be difficult unless you get local customers. which can help soften meat through marination. to pass his work onto his employees at some Initially, Yamato targeted Japanese customers Yamato first tried importing pineapples from point after launching a business and navigating such as expatriates. However, in the case of the ailand through an importer in Sendai, Japan. it through its initial stages. After that, he avoided chain of Izakaya restaurants, most of the cus- However, they found that the portion of usable any interference with the way his employees were tomers were ai customers. Although the prices pineapple was so small that President Midorika- implementing operations. Although this could weren’t cheap, they were surprisingly very busy. wa felt it would’ve been cheaper to just buy them sometimes be a difficult policy to maintain, it “ ey also suggested using SNS to bring in in Japan. led to development of skills and experience of ai customers.” Cold noodles are a popular menu item among customers. After telling this to a Thai supplier, the their employees, which enabled the company to Yamato already had contracts with some The noodles are served with the same taste as in Japan. supplier invited Yamato to visit the production continue its domestic operations without diffi- companies to promote their restaurant, but they plants before terminating the transaction. culties even after the former president had passed terminated those contracts by paying penalties In response to this invitation, President Mi- away. However, their Bangkok business was still in order to revamp their strategy for the local Corporate Data dorikawa’s husband (the former president) ew a source of concern. Due to the geographical business. ey also revised their menu to suit the YAMATO Co., Ltd. to ailand. He acknowledged the quality of the distance between Iwate and Thailand, many of local palate. Founded 1986 pineapple and decided to import it. Thereafter, their employees were worried about running an “Because we were condent in the taste of Total capital 3 million yen overseas business, and various people including our food, we tried switching up the condiments.” Business Restaurants, school lunches their business partners advised a withdrawal from Thai restaurants generally provide three Headquarters 11-2, Kitaoniyanagi 15 Chiwari, Kitakami City, Iwate Prefecture MIDORIKAWA Chieko ailand. types of condiments at tables: sweet, sour and Relation with JBIC YAMATO Co., Ltd. “On top of that, I think there were many spicy. Customers then usually use these to adjust Yamato received cross-border loan to their local subsidiary in order to strengthen their restaurant and meat- President concerns about whether a female president the taste based on their own preferences. Yamato processing business in Bangkok.

8 May 2020 │ JBIC Today May 2020 │ JBIC Today 9 Latest Report From Young Staff JBIC is working on a variety of projects around the world. ProjectFrontline Young staff members report on the significance of the latest projects and the role of JBIC.

in 2012. Thereafter, however, this project has taken time to start due newable energy projects that Japanese companies aim to participate to reasons on the side of Morocco, which resulted in the need to in. Various countries are hoping to obtain financial support from Project financing for onshore wind farm in Morocco expedite the whole process for launching the project, including the Japan. JBIC will continue to promote Japan’s infrastructure export preparation of financial agreements. Under such circumstances, in strategy, contributing to maintaining and improving the interna- the fall of 2018, Mitsui requested JBIC to resume structuring project tional competitiveness of Japanese industries.” (Abe) financing as early as possible. orocco, located in northwest Africa, has experienced eco- “I immediately set off to Morocco with our Director, Abe, to profile Mnomic growth in recent years driven by the manufacturing hold discussions with Mitsui, EDFR and Moroccan government of- of clothes, automobiles and rolling , in addition to its conven- ficials. In the summer of 2019, various parties including sponsors tional mining of mineral resources development. The government and lenders gathered in Paris to discuss topics such as terms and of Morocco aims to raise the ratio of renewable energy to 52% of conditions of a loan, which led to substantial progress in the pro- total power generation by 2030 in order to meet growing electricity cess to close the agreement. In just a few months following these demand while reducing environmental impact. discussions, we were able to build consensus on basic loan terms, With this background, Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Mitsui) and EDF Re- accelerating progress towards a signing of the loan agreement.” nouvelables, S.A. (EDFR), a French renewable energy company, (Nishida) ABE Ryoichi NISHIDA Ryohei established a project company (PETS) to build, own and operate an “The number of renewable energy projects in Africa led by Director Deputy Director (then) onshore wind farm with a generating capacity of 87.21 MW in Taza Japanese companies is not large. In that sense, this project has great Division 2 in northern Morocco. Generated electricity will be sold to Office significance. Meanwhile, European companies have a great presence New Energy and Power Finance Department 1 Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group National de l’Électricité et de l’Eau Potable for 20 years after the in Africa, and this project will help to promote collaboration be- “We’re delighted to have been able to contribute to low-carbon infrastructure export initiatives completion of construction. tween European and Japanese companies in Africa. promoted by the Japanese government. We will continue to support the overseas expansion of Wind turbines to be installed in Taza, northern Morocco. The concession for this project was obtained by Mitsui and EDFR Other African countries such as Egypt and Kenya also have re- Japanese companies that promote the export of such low-carbon infrastructure.” (Nishida)

110 billion yen loan for a fertilizer plant in Bangladesh, Loan for a Japanese company manufacturing solar panel sheet glasses one of the “Economic Frontier” markets in the United States and Vietnam

roduction of crops such as rice and jute is a major industry of he use of renewable energy like solar photoelectric generation, Plant of NSG where high-performance glasses are produced and PBangladesh which is blessed with abundant water resources Twind power generation etc. is expanding worldwide. Amid R&D activities are conducted, provided clues to resolve such issues.” from the Ganges River. Bangladesh relies on import of approximate- Conceptual drawing of Chinese companies dominating the solar panel market, First Solar, (Tamiya) ly 1.5 million tons of fertilizer to satisfy its annual demand of 2.5 the fertilizer plant. Inc. (First Solar) is the only U.S. company to maintain a large market In August 2019, loan agreements totaling US$154 million (JBIC million tons. For this reason, Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corpo- share. First Solar globally manufactures and sells thin-film solar mod- portion) was signed. “Amid the trends of Environmental, Social and ration (BCIC), a -run chemical corporation, planned to build the “In recent years, Bangladesh has achieved economic growth, ules that are resistant to changes in climate and capable of provid- Governance (ESG) investment, these loans have great significance in largest and most advanced fertilizer plant in the country. with real GDP growth exceeding 7%, and JBIC now recognizes the ing stable output, by using transparent conductive oxide glasses (TCO helping to protect the global environment. NSG aims to strengthen A company which won the bid for building the fertilizer plant country as one of the ‘economic frontier’ markets. Under such cir- glasses) manufactured by Nippon Sheet Glass Company, Ltd. (NSG). the development and sales of value-added (VA) products such as was Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI). JBIC signed a buyer’s cumstances, a loan of 110 billion yen to Bangladesh has great sig- Having a long-term supply contract with First Solar for TCO TCO glasses as part of their business strategy. I feel extremely hon- credit (export loans) loan agreement with BCIC to support the ex- nificance. Based on this experience, we wish to continue supporting glasses, NSG has decided to establish a new production facility for ored to support one of their enhanced businesses. I wish to continue port of the plant by MHI, bringing the total co-financing amount up the export and overseas business expansion by Japanese companies TCO glasses in the United States and to expand existing production working on providing finance to projects in various fields.” (Utsu- to approximately 110.3 billion yen. into other economic frontier markets.” (Morimoto) facilities in Vietnam in response to increased production of high-per- nomiya) “Although JBIC has provided loans to Bangladesh in the past, formance modules by First Solar. A loan request for this business was the amount of the loan this time was quite large and it was first profile made to JBIC in the summer of 2018. profile time for BCIC to obtain external loan. In light of this, we started by This was the first loan for the glass industry that JBIC has pro- explaining JBIC’s financing scheme, but we were unable to receive vided in quite some time. “As this industry is rapidly changing, we responses from the Bangladesh government due to their internal were required to solve various issues quickly. Visiting the Maizuru coordination process. In order to overcome this situation, we visited the capital Dhaka in June 2019 to build mutual trust through talks with the govern- ment and BCIC. Significant progress was made soon after all issues

were clarified, and the loan agreement was finally signed in Novem- MORIMOTO Soichiro FUJII Haruna UTSUNOMIYA Toshio TAMIYA Shintaro Deputy Director Deputy Director ber.” (Fujii) The construction of the fertilizer plant will start in 2020 and will Division 2 Solar panels of First Division 1 New Energy and Power Finance Department 2 Corporate Finance Department be completed in 2023. The plant is expected to significantly increase Solar. The company Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group manufactures the latest Industry Finance Group domestic production (self-sufficiency) of ammonia and urea fertiliz- “It was very rewarding for me to have contributed to an important project aimed at supporting high-efficiency solar “I was in charge of the entire transaction ranging from the start of negotiations to the disburse- ers, which are important for the agricultural sector in Bangladesh. the fast-growing Bangladesh economy.” (Fujii) panels using TCO glasses. ment procedures, which contributed to my own personal growth.” (Tamiya)

10 May 2020 │ JBIC Today May 2020 │ JBIC Today 11 JBIC Today May 2020

【d y】 Press and External Affairs Division, Corporate Planning Department, Corporate Planning Group,Japan Bank for International Cooperation 4-1,Otemachi,1-chome Chiyoda-ku,Tokyo 100-8144,Japan Tel.+81-3-5218-3100 URL: https://www.jbic.go.jp/en/

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