BSTDB and Garanti Bank finance ALUM’s environmental investment plan

Bucharest, 12 October 2018– The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDDB) and Garanti Bank Romania provided USD 25 million loan to Alum, Tulcea (the “Company” or “ALUM”), the sole alumina producer in Romania, Company which is part of ALRO Group. BSTDB’s financing amounts to USD 20 million, while the remaining amount will be provided by Garanti Bank. The funding will be mainly used to continue the Company’s investments aimed at reducing its carbon footprint, which have begun a decade ago.

“We are pleased to start our cooperation with ALUM, a leading Romanian company and a strong international player. BSTDB’s financing, provided in partnership with Garanti Bank,  supports the Company’s investment plans, expected to result in increased production and diversification of the product range. Our financing has a strong development impact through the increase of energy efficiency and sustaining environmental compliance. BSTDB’s loan to ALUM will also enhance regional cooperation through exports in response to the increased demand from new markets, including from Turkey”, said Hasan Demirhan, BSTDB Vice President Banking.

“Garanti Bank has a long-term collaboration with BSTDB. At the same time, we believe that businesses have responsibilities towards the local communities and the environment. Thus, we have always been keen to support ambitious projects who have sustainable development goals and we will continue to do so long-term. The funding granted to ALUM confirms this. Garanti Bank is an active member of the Romanian Green Business Council and, therefore, adheres to the principles of responsible and durable development thus supporting projects with high social and environmental impact”, stated Çağri Memişoğlu, Deputy General Manager Garanti Bank.

“ALUM has implemented in the last years an extensive investment programme aimed to increase its energy and processes efficiency while complying with the environmental regulations in place. This new financing obtained from reliable business partners such as BSTDB and Garanti Bank represents a new step forward for continuing our long-term investment programme, focussed on technology upgrading, products portfolio’s diversification, development of new value-added products and safety and environmental protection projects”, said Gheorghe Dobra, CEO ALUM.

Between 2009-2016, ALUM invested USD 28 million to upgrade part of the existing equipment with the aim to make the production process more efficient and to comply with the European norms on environmental protection. To date, ALUM’s efforts have reduced its carbon dioxide emissions by 57 percent. ALUM has also partnered with a research&development consortium organized by European Aluminium Association to launch a four-year study aimed at exploring environmentally-friendly new uses for bauxite residue in industries in which it is not currently used.

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About ALUM, Tulcea, Romania

ALUM is the only Romanian producer of calcined alumina and is part of ALRO Group. The calcined alumina is used for the production of aluminium and ALUM has an alumina refinery with a production capacity of 600,000 tonnes of alumina per year. The alumina produced by the company is supplied both on the domestic market to ALRO S.A. and internationally. ALUM’s shares have been traded on the Bucharest Stock Exchange since 1997.

For more information on ALUM, please visit www.alum.ro

About the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank

The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) is an international financial institution established by Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. The BSTDB headquarters are in Thessaloniki, Greece. BSTDB supports economic development and regional cooperation by providing loans, credit lines, equity and guarantees for projects and trade financing in the public and private sectors in its member countries. The authorized capital of the Bank is EUR 3.45 billion. BSTDB is rated long-term “A-” by Standard and Poor’s and “A2” by Moody’s.

For information on BSTDB, visit www.bstdb.org

About Garanti Bank Romania

Garanti Bank, as part of the financial-banking group Garanti Romania, offers a series of quality products and services for all business segments: retail, SME and corporate. Present in Romania since 1998, the bank has developed a solid portfolio of clients and expanded its national presence through branches and alternative channels, reaching an extended network of branches and intelligent ATMs that can be used by anyone, not just bank customers, for transactions with or without cards.

Garanti Bank is held by Turkiye Garanti Bankasi AS (TGB), Turkey’s second largest private bank. TGB is a universal bank with leading presence in all business lines. The Spanish financial group Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) is the majority shareholder of TGB.

For more information, please visit www.garantibank.ro