EBRD provides Azerbaijani company with loan for construction of warehouses along Middle Corridor

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is boosting supply chain resilience in Azerbaijan through a senior secured loan of up to 5.6 million euros to existing customer Gemza Group for the construction of three modern and energy-efficient dry warehouses with a gross lettable area of 24,000 square meters, Report informs referring to the EBRD website.

Gemza operates in the manufacturing and services sector, but is now diversifying its revenue sources by entering the warehouse business.

The loan is set to address the shortage of modern warehouses in Azerbaijan, strengthening the country’s supply chain resilience and enhancing warehouse capacity across the Middle Corridor. The agreement also includes the on-site installation of solar panels to generate up to 1 MW of electricity, cutting energy costs significantly.

Gemza Group is a successful local enterprise in Azerbaijan providing engineering, procurement and repair services. It produces spare parts for mechanical equipment and carries out repair works at its facility, working with clients in Turkiye, United Arab Emirates and some Central Asian markets.

The first 8 million euros senior secured loan to Gemza Group LLC was made available at the end of 2021 for capital expenditures and working capital needs.

The attraction of additional financing from the EBRD is due to the term and repayment structure of the proposed loan, which is necessary for the implementation of the project. Local banks mainly provide loans for a shorter period with restrictive repayment schedules. Gemza Group also uses the EBRD’s experience in energy efficiency and resource efficiency to obtain the EDGE certificate, the bank said.

The European Union, under its EU4Climate initiative, will help Gemza secure the EDGE certification (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiency) for its new warehouses as well as provide it with a grant to install on-site solar panels through the EBRD’s Finance and Technology Transfer Centre for Climate Change (FINTECC). Part of the legal due diligence costs were covered by the EBRD’s Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (SIF).