Egyptian Indian Polyester Company (EIPET)

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South Asian Petrochem Limited (SAPL or the sponsor), India’s second largest manufacturer of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), is planning to set up a joint venture with the Egyptian Petrochemical Holding Company (Echem), an agency of the Government of Egypt (GoE), to establish a 315,000 tons per annum (tpa) greenfield PET resin plant in Damietta, on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast. SAPL will have a 70% share in Egyptian Indian Polyester Co. (EIPET or the project company) whereas Echem will hold 23% and Engineering for the Petroleum & Process Industries (Enppi) will hold the balance 7%.The project has an estimated cost of about $135 million (including working capital requirements). SAPL’s major shareholder is the Dhunseri Group of Companies, promoted by the Dhanuka family, which also owns tea businesses in Eastern India. SAPL currently operates a 180,000 tpa PET plant, commissioned in 2003, at Haldia in West Bengal state (India). The proposed IFC investment comprises an A Loan of up to $20 million to the project company in Egypt and an equity investment of up to $6 million in SAPL, the Indian Sponsor, which will be used to fund SAPL’s proposed equity in the project.