Alexandria Carbon Black Expansion II

completed

Summary Of Project Information (SPI)Project NameEGYPT-Alexandria Carbon Black Company SAE (Second Expansion)RegionCentral Asia, Middle East & North AfricaSectorProject No008786Projected Board DateApril 5, 1998Company NameAlexandria Carbon Black SAE (ACB)Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders ACB is 55% owned by the Aditya Birla Group of India through Grasim Industries of India, a producer of textiles, chemicals and cement, Indo-Bharat Rayon of Indonesia, a producer of synthetic yarns, and other associated companies. The local partners include Trenco and Alexandria Tire Company, two Egyptian tire producers. Continental Carbon of the USA is the technical partner and the technology licensor for the proposed expansion as well as ACB''s existing production lines. Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment The estimated cost of the proposed expansion is US$34 million equivalent. IFC is considering a loan in the amount of US$7.5 million. Location of project and Description of site ACB''s carbon clack plant is located in the new Amreya Industrial Zone, 35 kms. Southwest of Alexandria, easily accessible from the main Cairo-Alexandria road. Description of Company and Purpose of Project The project is an expansion of ACB''s existing carbon black plant from its current capacity of 76,500 mt/yr to a total capacity of 115,000 mt/yr in order to cater for strong export demand from existing and new clients. IFC played a major role in bringing the original project and the first expansion into fruition. IFC''s continued involvement in the project is primarily aimed at reinforcing support for foreign direct investment in Egypt. This investment is also expected to consolidate ACB''s position as "model" company in terms of technology and performance, and reinforce the government''s intention of promoting Egyptian exports. Environmental Category and Issues This is a category B project according to IFC''s environmental review procedure. Environmental issues associated with the project include air emissions, solid waste management and recycling of liquid effluents. Occupational health and safety issues include exposure to chemical substances and dust, fire safety, and general employee health, safety and training. The site is located in a mixed industrial and agricultural area. There are no sensitive habitats near to the site. All process off gasses will be either fully combusted or filtered in baghouse filters. All air emissions will comply with both local requirements and World Bank guidelines. A vacuum system is used to eliminate fugitive dust problems from the packing of final products. Domestic sewage from the plant will be treated in septic tank systems and later used for irrigation purposes inside the plant premises. Process water, mainly consisting of cleaning waters and cooling water dumps will be treated in oil separators and settling ponds. The cleaned process water is either reused in the plant or used for irrigation purposes at the premises. The facility will only produce insignificant amounts of solid waste. This waste will not be toxic and will be handled through the normal refuse handling organizations in the area. The facility will be designed to meet local ambient noise requirements, which are more stringent than World Bank guidelines. Carbon black is a powder formed carbon based substance, but is not explosive or flammable under normal conditions, and has not been found toxic. A vacuum extraction system has been introduced in the packaging section to limit employees exposure to carbon dust to a minimum. Employees are provided with all necessary safety equipment including helmets, dust masks were necessary, hearing protection, etc. The company has obtained both ISO 9002 certification for quality assurance and ISO 14001 certification for environmental management. The company has prepared an emergency response plan and environmental management procedures and manuals. IFC will monitor ongoing compliance with World Bank environmental, health and safety policies and guidelines during the lifetime of the project by evaluating reports submitted annually to IFC by the company and by conducting periodic supervision. Based on its review of available information regarding potential environmental impacts and proposed mitigation measures, IFC concludes that Alexandria Carbon Black Company S.A.E.’s proposed project will meet World Bank environmental, health and safety policies, and guidelines, and host country requirements. The is available from the Public Information Center. Date SPI sent to PIC March 5, 1998“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).