Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), on Monday, signed a US$22 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank Invest (IDB Invest).
Dr. Ashni Singh, Senior Minister within the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance speaking before the signing said, “Congratulations to the IDB Invest team and to the DDL team on this very significant and historic occasion. This transaction represents the largest ever done by IDB Invest with any private sector company in the history of IDB Invest operations in Guyana.”
Minister Singh added, “The government has been advocating for the IDB to do more with the private sector of Guyana. In fact, for many years, we have been calling for IDB Invest to explore more opportunities for partnership with, and support to, the private sector and I’m happy to say, in recent years, we have seen an extremely positive response to this call. We are extremely pleased by the manner in which IDB Invest has responded to this government’s call for scaled up partnership with the private sector.”
The loan agreement was signed at a simple ceremony held in the DDL’s Heritage Centre, at Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara. Mr. Komal Samaroo, Chairman of the Board of DDL signed on behalf of DDL Group and Ms. Lorena Solorzano Salazar, Country Representative (ai) in Guyana for the IDB Group signed on behalf of IDB Invest.
DDL Chairman, Komal Samaroo, said, “In recent years, the DDL group has been funding from self-generated funds for its entire expansion, which in the last two years was in the region of US$25m. However, given the present high inflation around the world and other supply chain challenges, the Group must commit more resources to its working capital at a time when it plans to step up the pace of its expansion. Based on projects currently at various stages of implementation across the group, and those that are at the planning phase, we estimate well over US$100m in new projects over the next three years. The loan agreement we are signing today will provide the resources required to fund the projects in pursuance of our diversification strategy, and the transition to renewable energy.”
He added, “I would like to thank the IDB Invest team for their confidence in approving the loan for our company. I also thank their representatives for working with us through the negotiation process to advance to the stage where we will be signing today. This occasion is very significant not only to DDL as a company, but also to the nation, as it speaks to the confidence the IDB has in the future of the country. This loan … will help us achieve the lofty goals we have set for the company as we play our part in contributing to national development.”
In her remarks, Lorena Solorzano Salazar, Country Representative in Guyana for the IDB Group, said, “It is a pleasure for the IDB Group to be here not just because it is a milestone amount that we are supporting in the private sector, but also because IDB Invest sees the importance and the
objectives of this project for the country in terms of energy and the diversification of the plants you have here. It will provide for labour force growth, and further expansion into the market. It is important for IDB Invest to support the local private sector. ”
Aitor Ezcurra, Division Chief of Corporates at IDB Invest in his remarks said, “As a developmental finance institution, when we choose to work with a private sector company we do it very selectively because the private sector companies we work with are the ones through which we can push our developmental agenda. In the case of DDL, we found the perfect partner.”
Also in attendance were Vasudeo Singh, Deputy CEO and Group Finance Director for DDL; Sharda Veeren-Chand, Marketing Director; Sharon Sue-Hung Baksh, Director Technical at DDL; Shaun Caleb, Chief Production Officer; along with other DDL Representatives; Aitor Ezcurra, Division Chief of Corporates at IDB Invest along with other IDB Invest Representatives.
