The Romanian state is providing the largest guarantee of the past twenty years, worth 320m euros, for Ford's investments in Craiova plant.
The 400m-euro loan the European Investment Bank granted Ford Europe for its investments in Craiova plant comes with the biggest state guarantee of the past twenty years, worth 320m euros. The Romanian state is guaranteeing 80% of the total value of the loan extended to Ford.
The biggest state guarantees of recent years include the 116m dollar one offered for Grand Hotel Marriott in 2000 and the one for the construction of the French Village in 1994. The two automakers that bought plants in Romania, Ford and Renault, requested loans totally worth 600m euros from the European Investment Bank.
"Both companies are in talks with the European Investment Bank. The loan for Ford is due to be approved toward the end of next month, while the loan for Renault is expected to be approved in the second half of the year," Romanian president Traian Basescu stated in Brussels, quoted by Mediafax.
Both moves were part of the programme set to support EU economies, the president added. "The two companies have the advantage of getting cheap financing compared to the market and the possibilities firms now have of getting easy financing from the free market," Basescu said.
Ford Europe submitted a request to the European Investment Bank for a loan part of the European programme of loans for environment-friendly transport, an initiative meaning to boost the development of environment-friendly and fuel-efficient cars.
In the submitted request, Ford Europe said it would invest 600m euros to match the EIB loan that will help turn the Craiova plant, acquired last year, into a state-of-the-art car production centre and help develop technologically advanced cars, with low fuel consumption and low gas emissions. @N
