Phoenix Group secures USD 205 million debt

Global agricultural and food company, Phoenix Group on Monday announced a USD 205 million borrowing base facility to expand its rice business in India, Asia and Africa.

We have successfully closed a USD 205 million borrowing base facility from Standard Chartered Bank, Singapore. The facility is supported by ICICI Bank, BNP Paribas, RaboBank, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Shinhan Bank and OFID Vienna, Phoenix Group Chairman Gaurav Dhawan said in a statement.

The facility is targeted at Mozambique, Benin and the Ivory Coast as destinations and India as origin but this could expand across geographies (both origins and destinations) as well as other agricultural products, Dhawan said.

"This will enhance our volumes of offtake from India originated through our subsidiary there. This is a beginning our financial structuring and would provide liquidity and operative efficiency, which we hope to see translate to business competitiveness and increase of volumes and our market share," he said.

Phoenix Group, established in 2000 as a rice trading company in Singapore, has evolved into a multi-dimensional global agri-foods and resources business.