Hidroelectrica to reduce loan application by €200 mln

Hidroelectrica, the largest electricity producer on the local market, and one of the largest state-owned companies in Romania, revised a loan it intends to apply for, to €100 million from €300 mln, due to the financial crisis. The company is currently negotiating with Deutsche Bank for syndication, said market sources. According to these same sources, the chances of Hidroelectrica obtaining this loan in the first half of this year are rather low, even after reducing the value to one third. The financial crisis is also responsible for blocked negotiations between Termoelectrica, another state-owned company in the energy field, and several lenders, for borrowing some €100 mln for its Paroseni branch. Ioan Ungureanu, the company’s General Manager said that the enterprise is currently negotiating with officials of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) “different solutions for other arrangements,” but did not provide any further details. Complexul Energetic (CE) Turceni, Romania’s largest thermoelectric power station, likewise negotiated a €300 mln loan with EBRD, which is frozen for the time being. On the other hand, CE Rovinari, the country’s fourth-largest electricity producer, estimates it will register investments worth €110 mln in 2009, of which €77.5 mln to come from a loan signed with the UniCredit Tiriac bank. “The papers were signed at the end of last year, but the complex has not yet received the money, as the bank announced that some formalities remain incomplete,” said the quoted sources. In November 2008, the financial crisis led to the blockage of some investment loans worth up to €700 mln for companies operating in the energy field. In September-October 2008, due to the worsening of the financial crisis, banks became more restrictive in granting loans.