Accountant General Shuki Oren is due to meet the heads of the Tel Aviv light rail consortium, Metro Transportation Solutions (MTS) tomorrow to discuss the future of the project. MTS CEO Yohanan Orr will present to Oren the new banking syndicate that is due to provide €1.4 billion in financing (over NIS 7 billion). Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI) has already promised to provide NIS 2.5 billion.
Sources inform ''Globes'' that Banco Espirito Santo SA (Euronext: BES) of Portugal is expected to join the syndicate, alongside banks from Germany and France and two Chinese banks.
On the basis of the talks with MTS, the Ministries of Finance and Transport will decide whether to approve another postponement in closing the financing for the project, which will total NIS 10-11 billion. The financial closing has already been postponed twice, and the deadline was today.
Last week, MTS notified the Ministry of Finance that German banks KfW Bank Group, and Bayern LB, which are due to head the syndicate, had promised financing for the project, subject to the reaching of a commercial agreement. The Royal Bank of Scotland plc (LSE; NYSE: RBS) is also due to approve its participation in the syndicate next week.
The MTS consortium comprises Africa-Israel Investments Ltd. (TASE:AFIL; Pink Sheets:AFIVY), Egged Israel Transport Cooperative Society Ltd., Siemens AG (NYSE: SI; XETRA: SIE), China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), and Sociedade de Construcoes Soares da Costa SA of Portugal.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 28, 2009
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