U.S. backs petrochemical equipment exports to India

   The U.S. Export-Import Bank has voted to extend a $1.06 billion direct loan and to guarantee a $1.06 billion JPMorgan Chase loan to Reliance Industries Ltd. of Mumbai, India, for the export of American goods and services for expansion projects at Jamnagar in the Indian state of Gujarat.
   The transaction is the single largest Ex-Im Bank has ever authorized for Reliance, and it represents Reliance’s first attempt at funding through the capital markets with an Ex-Im Bank guaranteed bond issuance.
   The credit will support 12,300 U.S. jobs, according to bank estimates derived from Commerce and Labor department data.
   Among the more than 65 exporters and suppliers involved in the transaction are Fluor Corp., Lummus Technology, Univation Technologies, Bechtel, and ConocoPhillips.
   Located on the Gulf of Kutch, the Jamnagar complex oversees the largest single-location refinery operation in the world. Reliance intends to increase the complex’s petrochemical output by constructing a petcoke gasification unit to enhance the efficiency of the company’s refinery business. Reliance also plans to erect a refinery off-gas cracker with matching downstream units that will better integrate polymer and polyester production.
   “We are once again partnering with major U.S. suppliers for cutting edge technology, critical project management services and equipment from a wide section of American exporters for rolling out our next phase of growth,” said Alok Agarwal, Reliance’s chief financial officer, in a statement.
   Reliance is India’s largest private sector company, and its operations range from oil and gas exploration and production to refining and petrochemicals.
   As of the end of fiscal year 2012, Ex-Im Bank credit exposure in India totaled $6.5 billion.