Citi Vietnam and the Vietnam National Coal and Mineral IndustriesHolding Corporation (Vinacomin) on Nov. 14 signed a contract on aterm-loan of 300 million USD to finance the construction of bauxitemining and alumina project in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong.

The 13-year loan has been guaranteed by theVietnamese Ministry of Finance and insured by the Japanese agency NipponExport and Investment Insurance (NEXI). Under the terms of theagreement, Citi is the sole NEXI co-ordinator and the Joint LeadArranger together with Mizuho Corporate Bank, Ltd, Sumitomo Mitsui TrustBank Limited, and the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.

This is the first bauxite and alumina project ever undertaken inVietnam, and it is critical to the development of these resources in thecountry for sales to domestic and export markets, and for thesocio-economic development of the Central Highland region. The financingdeal marks the first time that NEXI has provided untied loan insurancefor a bauxite and alumina project.

Le Minh Chuan,President and CEO of Vinacomin said: "The 300 million USD loan agreementis the largest agreement ever for Vinacomin. This financing isparticularly meaningful as it will be used to finance Vinacomin's LamDong Bauxite – Alumina Complex Project, an important nationaldevelopment with direction and support from the Government. The loanwill have a significant impact on the success and effectiveness of theproject."-VNA