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ICBC (Asia) contributes $100 million to $200 million syndicated loan for 1GW monocrystalline solar cell manufacturing plant in Shama Jaya Free Industrial Park

$100M USD

Funder	Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) Limited (ICBC (Asia))
Recipient Organization	LONGi Green Energy Technology Co. Ltd.
Country	Malaysia
Start Date	Mar 01, 2018
End Date	Sep 03, 2032
Duration	5,300 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`109630`

Grant Description

In 2018, ICBC and China Eximbank contribute to USD 200 million syndicated loan for 1GW monocrystalline solar cell manufacturing plant in Shama Jaya Free Industrial Park, Malaysia In March 2018, LONGi Green Energy Technology Co.

Ltd. (Chinese: 隆基绿能科技股份有限公司) signed a $200 million syndicated loan agreement with a group of Chinese state-owned banks.

The participants in the loan syndicate included Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Malaysia) Berhad, and the Shaanxi Branch of the Export-Import Bank of China.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia) was mandated as sole arranger of the transaction and it contributed approximately $100 million to the syndicate.

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Malaysia) Berhad and the Shaanxi Branch of the Export-Import Bank of China each contributed approximately $50 million to the syndicated loan.

The individual bank contributions are captured via the following AidData records: ICBC (Malaysia) (Record ID #92509), ICBC (Asia) (Record ID #109630), China Eximbank (Record ID #92510). The loan carried a 5-year maturity and it was backed by a corporate guarantee from LONGI (H.K.) Trading Limited.

The borrower was expected to use the loan proceeds to build a new 1GW monocrystalline solar cell manufacturing plant in the Shama (Sama) Jaya Free Industrial Park, Kuching City, Sarawak, Malaysia. Prior to the issuance of the syndicated loan, LONGi Green Energy Technology Co.

Ltd. owned and operated a 500MW mono solar cell and 500MW of module assembly production in the in the Shama Jaya Free Industrial Park, Kuching City, Sarawak, Malaysia. LONGi Green Energy Technology Co.

Ltd. said that the capacity expansion — financed with the proceeds of the syndicated loan — was intended to meet demand in overseas markets and further expand its manufacturing footprint outside China.

The additionally capacity was originally expected to come online in 2019, providing the company with a total of 6GW of in-house mono cell capacity. However, the expansion project appears to have been delayed by the Covid-19 global pandemic.

In February 2022, the company announced that it expected to complete the expansion project by the end of the third quarter of 2022.

📋 Staff Comments

LONGi Green Energy Technology Co. Ltd. (Chinese: 隆基绿能科技股份有限公司), which is also known as the LONGi Group (隆基股份), is a major Chinese manufacturer of photovoltaic solar modules and a developer of solar power projects. LONGi Green Energy Technology Co. Ltd., which was formerly known as Xi'an Longi Silicon Materials Corporation, is the world largest manufacturer of monocrystalline silicon wafers and is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia), or more commonly known as ICBC (Asia) is a licensed bank incorporated in Hong Kong. It is a subsidiary of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
Some sources suggest that ICBC (Asia) may have issued another $100 million loan for this project in 2019. This issue warrants further investigation.

📚 Sources & References

ICBC (Asia) Hosts “Belt and Road” Cross-Border Financial Forum and Sets Up Asia Pacific Syndicated Loan Centre Actively Rolls Out ICBC Group’s Comprehensive Cross-border Financial Strategies
Southeast Asia: Best Chinese Bank in the Region for BRI 2018
LONGi to build new 1GW mono solar cell plant in Malaysia
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隆基绿能科技股份有限公司关于为全资子公司提供担保的公告
Malaysia Solar Sector Poised For Stronger Growth
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Sama Jaya Free Industrial Zone
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Southeast Asia: Best Chinese Bank in the Region for BRI 2019 Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.