VEB.RF, in partnership with Sberbank and Otkritie Bank, will participate in financing the construction of the country's first green electrometallurgical complex

VEB.RF, Sberbank and Otkritie Bank will finance the project of Europe's first large full-cycle steelmaking complex using environmentally friendly technologies. The corresponding agreements were signed by the chairman of VEB. Russian Federation Igor Shuvalov, First Deputy Chairman of the Board of Sberbank Alexander Vedyakhin, President-Chairman of the Board of Otkritie Bank Mikhail Zadornov and owner of Ecolant Anatoly Sedykh.

The signing took place on April 20, 2021 in Vyksa, Nizhny Novgorod Region, where the project is being implemented, its initiator is Ecolant LLC. The project includes the construction of an electrometallurgical complex and the necessary infrastructure with modern technology for the production of steel, round billets and high-quality slabs.

The total cost of the project exceeds 140 billion rubles. To finance it, a syndicate was formed with the participation of VEB. RF, Sberbank and Otkritie Bank. The project will be implemented using the Project Finance Factory mechanism. The share of participation of the state corporation in the syndicate is 20 billion rubles, another 20 billion rubles will be the reserve tranche. Two other financial partners will provide another 40 billion rubles each. More than 40 billion rubles are the own funds of the project initiator.

“This is a project that is in line with the green economy development agenda. New facilities are being created here that meet the highest environmental requirements and contribute to reducing the carbon footprint in the production of metallurgical products. VEB. The Russian Federation invests in the project in syndicate with commercial banks through the “Project Finance Factory” mechanism. Together with our partners, the initiator of the project, the Ecolant company, we are creating a foundation for the long-term competitiveness of the enterprise itself, the monotown of Vyksa and the Nizhny Novgorod region,” said Igor Shuvalov.

“Sber pays great attention to environmental issues and the overall ESG transformation of both individual enterprises and entire industries. The Ecolanta project is of particular interest to us not only for its significance for the domestic metallurgy, but also for the fact that it involves the use of the best available technology - DRI direct iron reduction technology. Compared to blast-furnace converter technology, it can significantly reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions,” said Alexander Vedyakhin.

“A conscious approach to business financing and support for a green economy are more relevant today than ever. The initiator of the project, as one of the largest representatives of the metallurgical industry, adheres to high quality and environmental standards, and we are pleased to expand our cooperation. Thanks to the joint work of lenders and Ecolant, we managed to find the optimal investment solution and structure financing in such a way as to achieve a high credit quality of the transaction in compliance with the principles of ESG,” Mikhail Zadornov noted.

“We have accumulated vast experience in implementing large-scale, breakthrough projects. They would not have been possible without bank lending. Ecolant is our first such major investment project, which we are implementing exclusively with Russian funding. Russian banks have become competitive on a global scale. The implementation of one of the largest investment projects in the metallurgy will become an example of the introduction of technology that can give a new development to the steel industry, improve the environment in industrial regions, and ensure a new development of the Russian economy,” Anatoly Sedykh emphasized.

"Ekolant" is a metallurgical complex without coke-chemical and blast-furnace-converter stages. The steel will be produced from iron ore and natural gas using Direct Reduced Iron (DRI). The project is a single production chain "ore-steel" consisting of DRI, an electrometallurgical furnace and an out-of-furnace processing complex with a capacity of 1.8 million tons of steel per year and two continuous casting machines. The start of production is expected in 2025. The main part of the production will be used for the production of wide sheets for large-diameter pipes for main pipelines and shipbuilding, for the production of seamless pipes for oil production and for the production of railway wheels on the largest line in Europe at the Vyksa plant of the United Metallurgical Company.