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Overview

ICBC contributes to USD 252.5 million syndicated loan for Phase 2 of the Second Road Safety and Urban Mobility Program in Buenos Aires

Commitment Year•2017Country of Activity•ArgentinaDirect Recipient Country of Incorporation•ArgentinaSector•Transport And StorageFlow Type•Loan

Status

Project lifecycle

Pipeline: Commitment

Pipeline: PledgePipeline: CommitmentImplementationCompletion

Timeline

Key dates

Commitment date
Apr 5, 2017

Geospatial footprint

Map overview

Visualizes the AidData-provided feature geometry for this project.

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See https://www.ausa.com.ar/documentos/Informe-Marco-de-Reasentamiento-Nuevo-viaducto-Autopista-Illia.pdf for maps of highway locations related to the project. More detailed locational information can be found at: https://www.openstreetmap.org/way/53198237.

Stakeholders

Organizations involved in projects and activities supported by financial and in-kind transfers from Chinese government and state-owned entities

Ultimate beneficial owners

At least 25% host country ownership

Funding agencies

State-owned Commercial Banks

  • Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC)

Cofinancing agencies

Intergovernmental Organizations

  • IDB Invest (formerly Inter-American Investment Corporation or IIC)
  • Inter-American Development Bank

Private Sector

  • Federated Hermes (formerly Federated Investors)

Receiving agencies

State-owned companies

  • Autopistas Urbanas, S.A (AUSA)

Guarantors

Government Agencies

  • Government of the City of Buenos Aires

Loan desecription

ICBC contribution to USD $252.5 million syndicated loan for Phase 2 of the Second Road Safety and Urban Mobility Program in Buenos Aires

Interest type•Unknown

Narrative

Full Description

Project narrative

On or about April 5, 2017, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC, now IDB Invest) signed a USD 252.5 million syndicated loan package with Autopistas Urbanas, S.A. (AUSA)-- a state-owned enterprise-- for Phase 2 of the Second Road Safety and Urban Mobility Program to improve road safety and connectivity in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The loan contract includes the remaining amount of a 2014 loan from the IDB for Phase 1 of the project (USD 128.1 million, loan number 3183/OC-AR, project AR-L1166), USD 24.4 million from the IIC, and USD 100 million from Federated Investors (a US-based investment manager) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC). The Government of the City of Buenos Aires provided a guarantee. ICBC's individual contribution to this syndicated loan is unknown. The borrowing terms are also unclear. As of September 30, 2019, the loan balance was USD 200.38 million and as of September 30, 2020 it was 185.39 million USD. The purpose of the Second Road Safety and Urban Mobility Program to improve road safety and connectivity in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The purpose of Phase 2 is to relocate a segment of the Illia Highway and to construct a bridge connecting Lanus and Buenos Aires. While the "New Au. Illia Master Plan" is listed as a completed project on AUSA's website, it is unclear if the specific section to be relocated with these funds has been completed.

Staff comments

1. The IDB Invest website explicitly says a contract was signed, indicating a commitment, but the Government of Buenos Aires financial statements do not mention debt held by ICBC. While this alone would be insufficient to call into question the project status, given it is likely IDB Invest was the lead of the loan syndicate, the law firm that seems to have worked on the deal only includes IDB and IDB Invest as well, while listing out loan syndicate members for other financing deals (see "Syndicated Loans & Other Bank Financings" from Brucho). 2. The implementation status of this road project is unclear since the project page for the Second Road Safety and Urban Mobility Program (number 11226-04) is no longer on the IDB Invest website.