AEF Swazi Wattle Industires (Pty) Ltd

completed

Summary Of Project Information (SPI)Project NameSwaziland – AEF Swazi WattleRegionSub Saharan AfricaSectorProject No010154Projected Board DateApril 17, 2000Company NameSwazi Wattle Industries (Pty.) Ltd.Technical Partner and/or Major ShareholdersThe sponsor of the project is Swazi Wattle Industries (Pty.) Ltd., a company based in Matshapa, Swaziland. Swazi Wattle Industries (Pty.) Ltd. is owned 33.3% by Gerhard Heiser, the marketing director, 33.3% by Percy Elston, the operations director, and 33.3% by Moosa Yousaf, a non-executive director     Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment:The total project cost is R20.0 million (US$3.23 million equivalent), which is an expansion of the existing business. IFC proposes an investment of R2.0 million (US$0.33 million equivalent) in equity and R5.5 million (US$ 0.89 million equivalent) in a venture loan.      Location of project and Description of site:The project will be located at Nhlangano, in the southern part of the Kingdom of Swaziland.      Description of Company and Purpose of Project:The project involves the establishment of a new plant to process Mimosa tannin extract powder from the bark of wattle trees. Mimosa is sold on the export market to tanneries worldwide. The new plant will increase the production capacity of Swazi Wattle Industries from 2,000 tons per annum to 12,000 tons per annum.The plant will provide a means for processing wattle bark, which is normally regarded as a waste product. The project has the potential to act as a catalyst to develop the wattle farming industry in Swaziland, particularly those lands farmed by rural farmers. The project will also generate foreign currency revenue for Swaziland as the product is exported. The IFC is playing a development role in the project by providing equity and venture loan finance to establish the new plant. Environmental Category and Issues:This is a Category B project according to IFC''s environmental review procedure. The key environmental health and safety issues that were analyzed include source and sustainability of raw material (bark) for processing, including any Government plans to expand black wattle plantations; source of water and power supply, including fuel storage if applicable; air emissions; workplace air quality; recycling, treatment and disposal of solid wastes; recycling, treatment and disposal of liquid processing wastes and sewage; handling and storage of potentially hazardous materials; employee exposure to dust, heat, noise and hazardous materials; compliance with IFC policy on harmful child labor, as well as national labor standards and regulations; provision of personal protective equipment and health and safety training for employees; fire protection and emergency response; and general plant safety and housekeeping. IFC has reviewed environmental information supplied by Swazi Wattle, as well as the findings of a recent report prepared by Danish Cooperation for Environment and Development (DANCED) for the Swazi Ministry of Environment and Energy on Forest Policy and Legislation (November 1997); and a 1990 report by the German organization Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit''s (GTZ) Forest Inventory and Planning Project in Swaziland. Key elements of this information are described below. Details of the proposed operating procedures and mitigation measures are provided in the Environmental Review Summary (ERS) for the project.     The is from the InfoShop.Host country location of environmental documentsWattle Growers Co-operativeOffice No. 2Main StreetNhlanganoTel: 20 79580Nhlangano Town HallMain StreetNhlanganoTel: 20 78267Montigny InvestmentsFarm F 84NhlanganoTel: 20 78619     Date SPI sent to InfoShop March 15, 2000      “This Summary of Project Information is prepared and distributed to the public in advance of consideration of the proposed transaction by the Corporation’s Board of Directors. It is provided for the purpose of enhancing the transparency of IFC’s activities and should not be construed as presuming the outcome of IFC Board consideration.”For Additional Information contact: Corporate Relations Unit -telephone: (202) 473-7711facsimile: (202) 974-4384Environmental documents for this project are available at http://www.ifc.org and from the World Bank InfoShop (http://www.worldbank.org/html/pic/aboutinfo.html).