OPIC Board Approves $250 Million To Support ContourGlobal Solutions' Clean Energy Project For Bottling Plants

NEW YORK and WASHINGTON, April 6 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) today approved up to $250 million to support ContourGlobal Solutions' energy-efficiency project which will enable a major Coca-Cola bottler to significantly reduce its carbon dioxide emissions while also reducing energy consumption and costs.

The OPIC loan facility will support ContourGlobal Solutions Holdings Ltd. and its subsidiaries' program of building and operating combined heat and power plants (CHPs) for Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (CCH) plants, largely in Eastern Europe and Nigeria. The CHPs supply electricity, steam, hot water, chilled water and food-grade CO2 to CCH beverage bottling facilities for the bottling process.

The energy efficiency of the CHPs can be as high as 90 percent, compared to 35-40 percent for conventional gas-fired simple cycle power plants. Moreover, ContourGlobal's QuadGen™ process incorporates carbon capture technology to remove approximately 95 percent of the CO2 from the CHP's flue gas.  The purified CO2 is then used by the bottler and other customers requiring food grade CO2.

"Supporting clean technology that reduces the fuel and energy required for energy production is a top priority for OPIC, and is exemplified by this innovative project, which will also support economic development in a number of emerging markets," said OPIC Acting President Dr. Lawrence Spinelli. "We are pleased to work with ContourGlobal on a project with so many developmental benefits."

"Producing products sustainably is a key challenge for the consumer goods industry.  We are very grateful to OPIC for their continued support which enables us to bring cutting edge technology and projects to the world's least developed countries," said Joseph C. Brandt, President & Chief Executive Officer of ContourGlobal.  "This expansive project is the natural outgrowth of our partnership agreement with OPIC signed last October to work together on innovative projects in Africa and Eastern Europe."

ContourGlobal Solutions Holdings Ltd. is a wholly owned subsidiary of ContourGlobal. ContourGlobal is a power and energy operating and development company headquartered in New York with approximately 900 employees worldwide and over 1,300 MW of capacity in operation, under construction, or in active development in a diverse set of markets including the United States, the European Union, Brazil, Colombia, Togo, Rwanda, Nigeria and Ukraine. The Company develops and operates electric and combined heat and power businesses around the world for both governments and multinational companies.  ContourGlobal focuses both upon high-growth, under-served markets and innovative niches within developed markets – such as renewable energy and Combined Heat and Power.

OPIC has already provided financing and political risk insurance to a subsidiary of ContourGlobal for a 100-megawatt power plant in Togo, which is helping the country overcome an electricity shortage – one of the largest power projects in West Africa in 25 years.  Earlier this year, OPIC's financing for ContourGlobal's Togo project was awarded "African Private Power Deal of the Year" by Euromoney's Project Finance Magazine.

On October 6, 2009, OPIC entered into a memorandum of understanding with ContourGlobal to provide financing and political risk insurance to support power projects in emerging markets, including highly energy-efficient facilities which substantially reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company is one of the largest bottling, sales and distribution companies of Coca-Cola brands. The project supports CCH's efforts to reduce energy consumption and costs, and lower carbon emissions throughout its operations.

OPIC was established as an agency of the U.S. government in 1971.  It helps U.S. businesses invest overseas, fosters economic development in new and emerging markets, complements the private sector in managing risks associated with foreign direct investment, and supports U.S. foreign policy. Because OPIC charges market-based fees for its products, it operates on a self-sustaining basis at no net cost to taxpayers.

OPIC's political risk insurance and financing help U.S. businesses of all sizes invest in more than 150 emerging markets and developing nations worldwide. Over the agency's 38-year history, OPIC has supported $188 billion worth of investments that have helped developing countries to generate over 830,000 host-country jobs. OPIC projects have also generated $72 billion in U.S. exports and supported more than 273,000 American jobs.

Visit OPIC on the web at www.opic.gov

Visit ContourGlobal on the web at www.contourglobal.com

SOURCE OPIC; ContourGlobal