South Africa cement project secures loan

South Africa-based Nedbank and Bank of China have agreed to provide a ZAR800m (US$86m) loan for a 1Mta  greenfield cement plant in Limpopo.

“A master finance agreement was entered into between Nedbank Capital and Bank of China and a special-purpose vehicle known as Mamba Cement Company,” said Nedbank head of infrastructure Brett Botha.

Mamba Cement Company is made up of Jidong Cement Company and the China-African Development Fund, Wiphold — which is led by Gloria Serobe — and developer Anton Weavind.

Mr Botha said the two banks would provide funding worth ZAR800m, subject to compliance with requirements of credit committees. “Nedbank will provide ZAR400m plus hedging and working capital facilities,” Mr Botha said. The main equity providers are China’s Jidong Development Group with the China-African Development Fund.

About the plant project...

Tangshan Jidong Cement Company, the largest cement producer in northern China, will hold a 51 per cent share in the plant with Wiphold holding 23.9 per cent and limestone mining company Conticem 25.1 per cent. The plant, which is located adjacent to Conticem’s limestone mine, will primarily supply the Gauteng region. Wiphold has also signed an agreement with Tangshan Jidong to import cement into South Africa from China, acting as Jidong’s sole distributor. Jidong intends to ship its ‘Dunshi’ brand cement into Durban where it will be offloaded into docking stations for collection by Wiphold customers.