JBIC Today

May 2020

Special Feature

Turkey, a regional superpower surroundedby Europe, Arab states & Persia▶ Appeal as a “business hub”
▶ JBIC Interview

Hopes for strengthened cooperation for business expansion from Turkey into third countries

The Focus / Our Global Challenges

英文組合せシステム

Learning the way to achieve the best and fastest successfrom local “prosperous companies”

Latest Report From Young Staff

Project Frontline▶ Project financing for onshore wind farm in Morocco▶ 110 billion yen loan for a fertilizer plant in Bangladesh, one of the “Economic Frontier” markets▶ Loan for a Japanese company manufacturing solar panel sheet glasses in the United States and Vietnam

FeatureFeatureSpecial Feature Turkey, a regional superpower surrounded by Europe, Arab states & Persia

Appeal as a “business hub”
Turkey is a pro-Japanese country which encourages Japanese companies to conductbusiness there.
Recently, the number of businesses utilizing Turkish networks has been growing not onlyin Turkey, but also in Europe and Africa.

very early age, they have good impression ofJapan.
Historically, Turkey has always been
exposed to Russian invasions on its easternside, and has even battled in war with them.
As Turkey has long been threatened by Russia,
some Turkish people remark on how wonderful it is that Japan defeated Russia in the
Russo-Japanese War.
In addition, Turkish are Muslims. Muslims have basically been at odds with Christianity, but since the Industrial Revolution,
Western powers centered on Christianity havedominated the world. Despite losing to Western powers in World War II, Japan rose fromruins from the war. Also, Japan is the only
non-Christian country among the G7. Japan,
which has never invaded Turkey, has risen as
an industrial country despite losing the war
and is currently leading the world as a memberof the G7. Turkey desires to rely on such Japanas a global leader.
― Is it true that Japanese people were helped
by Turkey during the Iran-Iraq War?

Tamaki Thatʼs right. At the time, there were

― What is the current relationship between
Japan and Turkey?
Tamaki In order to understand the relation-

ship between Japan and Turkey, it is necessary
to understand Turkish history. First of all, theTurks were based in Central Asia. It is said
that China built the Great Wall to prevent theinvasion of the Turks. Therefore, the Turks
were unable to travel eastward, and headed
westward instead. They swept over Central

Asia and even crossed over the Bosporus Strait
to enter Europe. Turkey, which eventually became the Ottoman Empire, took down Constantinople in 1453, which became Istanbul
as we know today. Due to this historical background, Turkey still maintains a significant
presence in the Middle East.

Border demarcations imposedby Western powers
turn the Middle East into a
powder keg― When did the Middle East take its current
form?

TAMAKI Naoki

Director General
New Energy and Power Finance Department 2
Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group2

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

Tamaki It was triggered by World War I,
which began in 1914. During the war, the Ottoman Empire was defeated and the area under its control were divided by Western powers
such as the United Kingdom and France. The
Western powers imposed border demarcations
using the differences between Islam and Judaism, or between the Shiite and Sunni factionsof Islam. This fracturing of the Middle Eastcaused quarrels in the region, which turned it
into the worldʼs powder keg. The addition of
oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia
and UAE (the United Arab Emirates) to theMiddle East has further complicated the relationship among countries in the region.
― What is the relationship between Japanand the Middle East?
Tamaki Japan has good relations not onlywith Turkey but also with the Middle East asa whole. Japan imports more than 99% of its
oil, relying mostly on the Middle East. Saudi
Arabia has the highest ratio at about 40%,
followed by UAE at about 25%. Around 90%of the oil Japan needs comes from the Middle
East. Therefore, Japan is a major trading partner for the Middle East, and stability in theregion also leads to stability in the Japanese
economy. Given this situation, it is imperative that Japan maintain good relations withall countries in the Middle East. Japan has agood relationship with Iran, as well as with
Iranʼs rival, Saudi Arabia. Japanʼs diplomacy
with the Middle East is different from that ofWestern countries because of Japanʼs energy
challenges.

Turkey and Japan develop
strong ties
based on two events in the past
― How does Turkey feel about Japan?
Tamaki Turkish people have a very good im-pression of Japan. The Ertuğrul Ship incident(see column on page 3), which is featured in
textbooks of Turkish elementary schools, is
one of the events that created this paradigm.
As Turkish children learn about this from a

problems as to how Japanese people left behind in Iran could be rescued. The Japanese
government was unable to fly government
aircraft, and Japan Airlines was also unable tofly there due to the risks involved. Under suchcircumstances, Turkey took the initiative ofusing Turkish Airlines to rescue the Japanesepeople left in Tehran. This is said to be reciprocation for the Ertuğrul Ship incident, but
was also due to a Japanese person working ina trading company. He had a very close friend
from when he studied in Turkey and a friendof this friend was the Turkish president during
the Iran-Iraq War. The emergency flight was
the result of this relationship. This wonderful

Columnstory has been told to the Japanese people,
further strengthening the favorable relations
between Japan and Turkey.

The Turkish businessenvironment
supports entrance of foreigncompanies― Considering the circumstances so far, isTurkey pro-Japanese and can Japanese companies easily conduct business in the current
environment?

Yes. In addition to having strong
economic ties with Europe, Turkey is also
very pro-Japanese, making it easy for Japanesecompanies to do business there. Furthermore,
many people from the Turkish government,
financial institutions and businesses whom
weʼve worked with are meticulous in how they
conduct their work, while also being sincere
in their business practices and hard worker̶
showing that they share many similarities withJapanese business culture. We also often hearfrom Japanese companies in Turkey about how
skillful the Turkish people are.
On top of its attractiveness as a consumer
market with a population of more than 80
million, Turkeyʼs potential as a manufacturing
and export base is also appealing due to its
abundant young, talented and pro-Japanesehuman resources. Hence, many Japanese companies have already started doing business inTurkey. One example is Toyotaʼs partnershipwith Turkeyʼs Sabancı conglomerate in the
production of automobiles in Turkey in the
1990s. This venture was established to export
to Europe and eventually became a large-scale
production base. Recently, Nippon Yusen constructed a dedicated automobile terminal as
UchinoUCHINO Mika

Director
Division 3
New Energy and Power Finance Department 2
Infrastructure and Environment Finance Grouppart of their logistics operations infrastructure
to support such global businesses, for which
JBIC has provided financial support (see theproject case on page 4).
Tamaki Furthermore, such large-scale infrastructure requires a large amount of funding,and global trends have seen such development
take place increasingly in the form of so-called
PPP (public-private partnership) in manycases. For example, Turkey has a strong PPP
model for its hospital business. Hospital management consists of building a hospital, hiringdoctors and receiving treatment fees frompatients. However, it is difficult for overseas
operators to enter such a market and conduct
healthcare business. In the case of Turkey, its
PPP model allows for project developer toreceive a certain amount of fees so long as they
construct a hospital building and maintain

The Ertuğrul Ship Incident

On September 16, 1890, the Turkish warship Ertuğrul was stranded
by a typhoon off Kii-Oshima Island in Kushimoto Town, Wakayama Prefecture. The islanders of Kii-Oshima carried out desperate rescue operations without regard for their own safety and were able to rescue 69 sailors and officers in the shipwreck which caused 587 victims. It is said thatthe large amount of donations received from the Japanese people who
learned of the accident in the press deeply impressed the Turkish people.
At present, a memorial ceremony is held every year at a cenotaph built inKushimoto Town. The photo shows the 2015 ceremony (source: Jiji Press).

May 2020 │ JBIC Today3FeatureFeature― Is it true that Turkey also shares deep ties
with Africa?

the system to operate medical business. This
makes it easy for overseas companies to enter
the healthcare sector in Turkey. As the Turkish
government does not have ample funds, they
have instead created an environment where
foreign companies can easily enter to establish
basic infrastructure such as hospitals. JBIC
also signed a loan agreement three years ago
for the İkitelli Hospital PPP project involving
a Japanese company (see the project case on
page 5).

Leveraging Turkish networks
to expand business in othercountries― How is the economic environment in Turkey?
Tamaki The current economic environmentis by no means good, but in the long run,Turkey has a geographical advantage and is in
the process of forming friendlier relations with

its former rivals Russia, Iran and Qatar. Thishas created a favorable environment where
Japanese companies can safely establish partnerships there.
The Middle East is located at the junction of Europe, Asia and Africa. Istanbul in
Turkey serves as a link between Europe andAsia. In addition, as Africa is situated just to
the south of Turkey, people, goods and money
have been flowing through the country as partof the Silk Road for many years. Furthermore,
Turkey was able to become a great and wealthy
empire because it is blessed with a naturalenvironment that features abundant sunlight,
rain and rivers. Although Turkey has been
dominated by different empires at different
times, this historical background has fosteredpeople who are proficient in interacting withother cultures. They have been called Persian,Phoenician or Turkish merchants over theyears, and have come to be known as people
proficient in commerce.

Uchino Turkish people have recently been
making headway in Africa by taking advantageof their strong proficiencies in risk-taking andtheir ability to interact with various cultures.
Under President Erdogan, the Turkish government has also deepened its ties with African countries, and Turkish embassies on thecontinent have more than tripled in the past
decade. Furthermore, Turkish Airlines is currently one of the leading airlines in terms ofthe number of African destinations it services.
As a result, many Turkish companies are doing
business in Africa, especially those in the construction industry.

This project entails the construction of Ikitelli Hospital in Ikitelli
district, Istanbul, which will be one of the largest hospital complexes
in Turkey (with 2,682 beds), by Istanbul PPP Saglik Yatirim A.S. (IPSY), a
Turkish corporation funded by Sojitz Corporation and Ronesans Holding
A.S., a major Turkish construction company. The operation and manage-

responsible for providing medical services. This is a large-scale hospital

Turkey is gaining worldwide attention as a base for the manufacturing and export of automobiles. Based on this background, Nippon
Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) constructs and operates a car logistics terminal in the Körfez district of Kocaeli Province located approximately 70 km east of Istanbul. This project is implemented by a joint
venture between NYK Line and a subsidiary of OYAK, a leading Turkish
conglomerate. JBIC has signed a loan agreement with this joint venture
to finance to this project in collaboration with a private bank. OYAK
maintains several prominent affiliated companies such as the largest
steel company in Turkey. Through this loan, it is also expected that Japanese companies will expand and diversify their opportunities to collaborate with OYAK’s affiliates.

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

Project financing for Ikitelli Hospital PPP project

In Turkey, there are a number ofconglomerates that Japanese companies trust
as partners, and these conglomerates are proactively trying to expand overseas. Until now,
Japanese companies and Turkish conglomerates have formed consortiums to collaborate inprojects, such as infrastructure construction,
not only in Turkey, but also in the Middle
East, Russia and Central Asia. JBIC has also
supported some of these projects. Moreover,there are some projects in Africa where Japanese and Turkish companies work together.
We will provide more support than everto projects where Japanese and Turkish companies can cooperate not only in Turkey, butalso in third countries including Africa.
Tamaki We are also actively supporting theTurkish government. For example, when the
Turkish government issued yen-denominatUchino

export and import bank supporting corporate
trading activities in the same way as JBIC. We
hope to collaborate with such government
financial institution to provide financing support to businesses outside of Turkey.

Project Case

ment of this hospital will be implemented in the form of PPP (public-pri-Loan for car logistics terminal operation project

4

that our support will help to stabilize Turkey,
which is very important from a topographicalstandpoint, as well as the region where thecountry belongs.
Furthermore, Turkey also has its own― Are Japanese companies starting to invest
in Africa in cooperation with Turkey?

Project Case

Signed on: October 4, 2019 Loan amount: up to US$44 million (JBIC’s portion)

ed bonds (Samurai Bonds) in Tokyo to raise
funds, we supported them by guaranteeing
their bonds. We provide such support because
we recognize that Turkey is an importantbusiness partner for Japanese companies andvate partnership) by IPSY, while the Turkish Ministry of Health will be
PPP project in Turkey in which the Sojitz Corporation will participate as
an investor and engage in its operation and management for the next
25 years. During this period of time, Sojitz will provide knowledge andexperience of the operation and management of Japanese hospitals. This project is the first hospital PPP project in Turkey where JBIC and Japanese companies are involved.
Signed on: July 20, 2017 Loan amount: approximately 81.3 billion yen (JBIC's portion)

JBIC opens Representative Office in Istanbul
JBIC opened a new office in Istanbul on March 19, 2020.
Below is an interview with Chief Representative andRepresentative.
― What is the attractiveness of the Turkish
market?

― What is the purpose of opening an officein Istanbul?

Turkey is a promising market with apopulation of over 80 million including middle class consumers with purchasing power.
It connects with Europe, the Middle East,
Russia, Central Asia and Africa, serving as afoothold for doing business in each region.
Since the 2000s, Turkey has established itself
as an export base to Europe, with approximately 60,000 foreign companies entering themarket.
Especially in recent years, the number
of Turkish companies actively expanding into
Africa has been increasing. We believe thatcooperation with such Turkish companies will
pave the way for Japanese companies to enter
Africa.

We aim to contribute to promoting Japanese companiesʼ investment in Turkey as wellas their collaboration with Turkish companies
at an early stage of project development andfrom a location closer to our clients.
We view Turkey as a “CORE”, whichmeans Turkey is a “Center Of Regional Economy” and a place where “Collaboration with
Reliable Partners” can be expected. However,
the attractiveness of Turkey as an investment
destination or the potential of Turkish companies as business partners in entering third
countries are not yet widely recognized inJapan. Through the launch of an office inIstanbul, we hope to take more opportunities
than ever to promote the attractiveness andpotential of Turkey.

― Do you have a message for Japanese companies considering business in Turkey?

We have various financial tools to support
Japanese companies do business here, as well
as a network with the Turkish government,
banks and private companies. We will not only
provide financial support, but also assist ourclients in solving the issues they face, based on
our knowledge and experience gained throughprojects where we were involved. We are happy
to receive requests for consultation from ourclients. (SUZUKI Ryuta, Chief Representativeand MIYAZAKI Momoi, Representative)

Address: Esentepe Mahallesi, Büyükdere Cad. No: 199/95,
Levent 199, Kat (Floor) 20-34394 Şişli/İstanbul, Turkey
Phone: +90-212-337-4060 Fax: +90-212-270-0700

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

5FeatureFeatureTurkey also boasts a labor market
with an ample number of young andhighly skillful workers. As many Turkish
workers are disciplined and obedient, they
are capable of contributing to Japanesemanufacturers of high value-added products. One example of this is the Japanese
automobile factory in Turkey. Although
there are various ways to evaluate the performance of factories, their Turkish factorySpecial Feature Turkey, a regional superpower surrounded by Europe, Arab states & Persia

JBIC Interview
Hopes for strengthened cooperation for business expansion
from Turkey into third countries

gains highest reputation among all of theirneighboring countries.

As for Turkeyʼ s connections withTurkey is also attractive as a consumer

JBIC, I recall that the Export-Import Bank

Another advantage is that Turkish

market. Turkey has a strong consumer baseof Japan, which is a former organization ofbusiness people maintain very good rela-thanks to having a population of over 80

JBIC, provided a loan of 23 billion yen totionships with neighboring countries. Thismillion people whose average age is in theTurkey in 1993. More recently, JBIC has

network can be used by Japanese compa-

early 30s.

provided various support including theautomobile factories across the world.

nies when expanding their businesses tocountries around Turkey.

There are also expectations for collaboration with Japanese companies for proj-

guarantee for Samurai Bonds issued by theTurkish government.

ects in third countries. The leaders of both

JBIC is indispensable for coopera-

countries signed the Joint Declaration ontion between the two countries and for

the Establishment of Strategic Partnerships

the development of business not only inin 2013 and have since suggested partner-

Turkey, but also in third countries. We also

An extremely powerful synergy canships to promote third-country projects. In

welcome the establishment of a JBIC rep-

be expected by mixing Japanʼs technology

particular, business collaborations are ex-resentative office in Istanbul. In the future,

Turkey and Japan have developed a rela-and capital with Turkeyʼs young, talented

pected in Africa and Central Asia, and we

we look forward to further support fromThe first Japan-Turkey Joint Econom-

tionship. Furthermore, discussions haveworkforce and its strong network withhope to accelerate discussions to that end.

JBIC.

ic Committee Meeting was held in 1987

been underway since 2014 regarding an

to promote the economic partnership

Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)

Turkey's Ambassador to Japan talks about the attractiveness of Turkey and its potential
for future business development.

Trade with Japan is worth
US$4 billion annually

between Turkey and Japan. Following an

expanding into third countries in collabo-

investment agreement signed in 1993,

ration between the two nations.

between both nations to further strengthen
economic relations.

A country blessed with young,abundant workforce
and geographical advantages

Expectations for a further
strengthening of our relationshipWe believe that there are many ben-According to Turkish data, there are

efits for Japanese companies to invest in

currently 248 Japanese companies oper-

Turkey. First, Turkey is close to Europe,ating in Turkey. As of 2019, the value ofAsia, Middle East and Africa, and its geo-

exports from Japan to Turkey was approx-

graphical features make it possible to accessimately US$3.5 billion and that from Tur-

many countries via only a short flight. In

key to Japan was US$500 million, totaling

addition, Turkey has established a customs

US$4 billion. However, given the size ofunion with the EU, simplifying the export

the economies in both countries, we be-process from Turkey.

lieve this amount is small. We will enhance

Looking at the manufacturing in-various strategic partnerships, including

dustry, Turkey is situated at a place where

those for Turkish and Japanese companies

raw materials and intermediate goods caneasily be obtained. Itʼs also an attractive

His Excellency Dr.
Hasan Murat Mercan,

Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Japan6

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

manufacturing base with great accessibility
to Russia and Europe, which are major
product consumers.
May 2020 │ JBIC Today

7

The Focus

Our Global Challenges
Business of “Yamato (Thailand) Co., Ltd.” is going very well.
Their meat-processing business is expanding,and they've received financing from JBIC in collaboration with the 77
Bank, Ltd.

Learning the way to achieve the best and fastest successfrom local “prosperous companies”― YAMATO Co., Ltd.
YAMATO Co., Ltd., which operates yakiniku (Japanese barbecue) and cold noodle restaurants
in Iwate and Miyagi prefectures, entered Thailand about 15 years ago. President MIDORIKAWA
Chieko talks about many twists and turns they experienced there.

Starting a
new businessafter learning
the local
marketWhy did Yamato choose to expand to Thailand in the first place? Midorikawa Chieko, thepresident of Yamato, reflects back 15 years ago
saying, “It all started with a visit to Bangkok toimport pineapples.”At the time, as BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) had prevented the importation ofAmerican beef, Australian beef (Aussie beef) wasused instead. Nowadays, Aussie beef is raised oncompound feed, exhibiting a high quality thatʼs
acceptable to Japanese consumers. However, atthat time, the Aussie beef was known for having
a chewy texture because beef cattle were grassfed.
“Then, we wondered if any natural enzymes
could be used to make the meat tender andfound that pineapple had such an effect.”

Importing Thai pineapples
to improve meat quality
Pineapple contains proteolytic enzymes,
which can help soften meat through marination.
Yamato first tried importing pineapples fromThailand through an importer in Sendai, Japan.
However, they found that the portion of usablepineapple was so small that President Midorikawa felt it wouldʼve been cheaper to just buy themin Japan.
After telling this to a Thai supplier, thesupplier invited Yamato to visit the production
plants before terminating the transaction.
In response to this invitation, President Midorikawaʼs husband (the former president) flew
to Thailand. He acknowledged the quality of thepineapple and decided to import it. Thereafter,

MIDORIKAWA Chieko
YAMATO Co., Ltd.
President

8

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

he was attracted by Bangkok and decided tolaunch a business there for growing bananas andornamental foliage plants. However, a typhoonin 2011 caused a flood that completely wipedout their business.
President Midorikawa thought that the former president would decide a withdrawal fromThailand to focus more on their domestic business, but he did not give up his Thai business.
He proclaimed that he wanted to open a Yamato
restaurant in Thailand, which was their main
business.
“We immediately set up a local subsidiary and started preparing for the launch of therestaurant.”
But things proved quite challenging rightfrom the start. Six months later, with sales stillsluggish, the former president passed away. President Midorikawa inherited his entire business.
One saving grace was that the management
policy of the former president was still in place.
When he run a business, he took an approach
to pass his work onto his employees at somepoint after launching a business and navigating
it through its initial stages. After that, he avoided
any interference with the way his employees were
implementing operations. Although this could
sometimes be a difficult policy to maintain, it
led to development of skills and experience of
their employees, which enabled the company tocontinue its domestic operations without difficulties even after the former president had passed
away. However, their Bangkok business was stilla source of concern. Due to the geographicaldistance between Iwate and Thailand, many of
their employees were worried about running anoverseas business, and various people including
their business partners advised a withdrawal fromThailand.
“On top of that, I think there were many
concerns about whether a female president

would be capable enough or not. As the former
president died suddenly forcing me to take overthe business immediately, our business partners
probably hoped that I wouldnʼt just exacerbate
the situation.”
President Midorikawa also mentioned,“I thought it might be easy to withdraw fromThailand, but questioned whether we should
give up so quickly.” Closing their Thai businesswouldʼve also damaged their core operations,because they would have been unable to recoverinvestment that had been made up to that point.
Even if they had decided to sell the business, thatwouldʼve resulted in recovering only 1/10th of
the investment they had made. After consultingwith the president of the Thai subsidiary, they
concluded they just had to move on. Then, theydecided to learn from other successful Japanesecompanies in Thailand about how they do business there.
“ I sought advice from a chain of Japanese-style bar (Izakaya) restaurants operating in
the area.”Entering the meat-processing businessand marketing to local restaurants
The first advice they received was businesscan be difficult unless you get local customers.
Initially, Yamato targeted Japanese customers
such as expatriates. However, in the case of thechain of Izakaya restaurants, most of the customers were Thai customers. Although the prices
werenʼt cheap, they were surprisingly very busy.
“They also suggested using SNS to bring inThai customers.”
Yamato already had contracts with somecompanies to promote their restaurant, but theyterminated those contracts by paying penalties
in order to revamp their strategy for the local
business. They also revised their menu to suit the
local palate.
“Because we were confident in the taste of
our food, we tried switching up the condiments.”
Thai restaurants generally provide three
types of condiments at tables: sweet, sour andspicy. Customers then usually use these to adjust
the taste based on their own preferences. Yamato

incorporated this habit into their restaurant. The
benefits were immediate, and six months later,
sales began to increase noticeably.
After getting their restaurant on track, they
started meat-processing business for other local
restaurants. Since then, their food-processing
business has continued its growth, and in June2019 they received financing from JBIC in collaboration with The 77 Bank, Ltd.
“Thanks to that, we were able to add more
freezers and vacuum machines. This allowed us
not only to expand our meat-processing capacity,
but also to process other ingredients, which enabled us to further focus on finding new business
partners.”
They also hope to expand into other countries in the future. Yamato is currently hiring
Vietnamese technical trainees at Yamato Food
Service Co., Ltd., which is their subsidiaryengaged in food-processing. But these workers
can only work in Japan for one year. After that,these workers have to return to their country. It
is a shame that they do not have an opportunity
to utilize their skills learned in Japan. If Yamato
expands into Vietnam, they can provide theseVietnamese trainees with a place for work. We
can expect Yamato to continue to take on new
challenges.

It's not aboutcatering toJapanese,but more
importantto focus on
localsCold noodles are a popular menu item among customers.
The noodles are served with the same taste as in Japan.

Corporate Data
YAMATO Co., Ltd.
Founded 1986
Total capital 3 million yen
Business Restaurants, school lunches
Headquarters 11-2, Kitaoniyanagi 15 Chiwari, Kitakami City, Iwate Prefecture
Relation with JBIC
Yamato received cross-border loan to their local subsidiary in order to strengthen their restaurant and meatprocessing business in Bangkok.

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

9Project Frontline

Latest Report From Young Staff

Project financing for onshore wind farm in MoroccoMin 2012. Thereafter, however, this project has taken time to start due

newable energy projects that Japanese companies aim to participate

to reasons on the side of Morocco, which resulted in the need toin. Various countries are hoping to obtain financial support fromexpedite the whole process for launching the project, including theJapan. JBIC will continue to promote Japan’s infrastructure export

preparation of financial agreements. Under such circumstances, instrategy, contributing to maintaining and improving the interna-

the fall of 2018, Mitsui requested JBIC to resume structuring projecttional competitiveness of Japanese industries.” (Abe)financing as early as possible.
orocco, located in northwest Africa, has experienced eco-

“I immediately set off to Morocco with our Director, Abe, tonomic growth in recent years driven by the manufacturinghold discussions with Mitsui, EDFR and Moroccan government of-of clothes, automobiles and rolling stocks, in addition to its conven-ficials. In the summer of 2019, various parties including sponsors

tional mining of mineral resources development. The government

and lenders gathered in Paris to discuss topics such as terms andof Morocco aims to raise the ratio of renewable energy to 52% ofconditions of a loan, which led to substantial progress in the pro-

total power generation by 2030 in order to meet growing electricity

cess to close the agreement. In just a few months following thesedemand while reducing environmental impact.

discussions, we were able to build consensus on basic loan terms,

With this background, Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Mitsui) and EDF Renouvelables, S.A. (EDFR), a French renewable energy company,

Wind turbines to be installed in Taza, northern Morocco.

JBIC is working on a variety of projects around the world.
Young staff members report on the significance of the latest projects and the role of JBIC.

profileaccelerating progress towards a signing of the loan agreement.”

ABE Ryoichi(Nishida)

established a project company (PETS) to build, own and operate an“The number of renewable energy projects in Africa led byonshore wind farm with a generating capacity of 87.21 MW in TazaJapanese companies is not large. In that sense, this project has great

in northern Morocco. Generated electricity will be sold to Officesignificance. Meanwhile, European companies have a great presence

National de l’Électricité et de l’Eau Potable for 20 years after thein Africa, and this project will help to promote collaboration be-completion of construction.

tween European and Japanese companies in Africa.

The concession for this project was obtained by Mitsui and EDFR

Other African countries such as Egypt and Kenya also have re-Director

NISHIDA Ryohei
Deputy Director (then)Division 2
New Energy and Power Finance Department 1
Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group“We’re delighted to have been able to contribute to low-carbon infrastructure export initiatives
promoted by the Japanese government. We will continue to support the overseas expansion ofJapanese companies that promote the export of such low-carbon infrastructure.” (Nishida)

110 billion yen loan for a fertilizer plant in Bangladesh,one of the “Economic Frontier” markets

Loan for a Japanese company manufacturing solar panel sheet glasses
in the United States and Vietnam

PTroduction of crops such as rice and jute is a major industry of
Bangladesh which is blessed with abundant water resourcesfrom the Ganges River. Bangladesh relies on import of approximately 1.5 million tons of fertilizer to satisfy its annual demand of 2.5

Plant of NSG where high-performance glasses are produced andwind power generation etc. is expanding worldwide. Amid

R&D activities are conducted, provided clues to resolve such issues.”

Chinese companies dominating the solar panel market, First Solar,

Conceptual drawing of
the fertilizer plant.

million tons. For this reason, Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), a state-run chemical corporation, planned to build thehe use of renewable energy like solar photoelectric generation,(Tamiya)Inc. (First Solar) is the only U.S. company to maintain a large market

In August 2019, loan agreements totaling US$154 million (JBIC

share. First Solar globally manufactures and sells thin-film solar mod-portion) was signed. “Amid the trends of Environmental, Social and“In recent years, Bangladesh has achieved economic growth,ules that are resistant to changes in climate and capable of provid-

Governance (ESG) investment, these loans have great significance inwith real GDP growth exceeding 7%, and JBIC now recognizes theing stable output, by using transparent conductive oxide glasses (TCO

helping to protect the global environment. NSG aims to strengthen

A company which won the bid for building the fertilizer plant

country as one of the ‘economic frontier’ markets. Under such cir-glasses) manufactured by Nippon Sheet Glass Company, Ltd. (NSG).

the development and sales of value-added (VA) products such as

was Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI). JBIC signed a buyer’s

cumstances, a loan of 110 billion yen to Bangladesh has great sig-

Having a long-term supply contract with First Solar for TCO

TCO glasses as part of their business strategy. I feel extremely hon-credit (export loans) loan agreement with BCIC to support the ex-

nificance. Based on this experience, we wish to continue supporting

glasses, NSG has decided to establish a new production facility forored to support one of their enhanced businesses. I wish to continue

port of the plant by MHI, bringing the total co-financing amount up

the export and overseas business expansion by Japanese companies

TCO glasses in the United States and to expand existing production

working on providing finance to projects in various fields.” (Utsu-

to approximately 110.3 billion yen.

into other economic frontier markets.” (Morimoto)facilities in Vietnam in response to increased production of high-per-nomiya)largest and most advanced fertilizer plant in the country.

“Although JBIC has provided loans to Bangladesh in the past,
the amount of the loan this time was quite large and it was firstformance modules by First Solar. A loan request for this business was

profilemade to JBIC in the summer of 2018.

time for BCIC to obtain external loan. In light of this, we started byThis was the first loan for the glass industry that JBIC has pro-explaining JBIC’s financing scheme, but we were unable to receive

vided in quite some time. “As this industry is rapidly changing, we

responses from the Bangladesh government due to their internal

were required to solve various issues quickly. Visiting the Maizuru

profilecoordination process.
In order to overcome this situation, we visited the capital Dhaka
in June 2019 to build mutual trust through talks with the government and BCIC. Significant progress was made soon after all issues
were clarified, and the loan agreement was finally signed in November.” (Fujii)
The construction of the fertilizer plant will start in 2020 and will
be completed in 2023. The plant is expected to significantly increase
domestic production (self-sufficiency) of ammonia and urea fertilizers, which are important for the agricultural sector in Bangladesh.

10

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

MORIMOTO Soichiro
Deputy Director

UTSUNOMIYA Toshio TAMIYA Shintaro

FUJII Haruna

Division 2
New Energy and Power Finance Department 2
Infrastructure and Environment Finance Group“It was very rewarding for me to have contributed to an important project aimed at supporting
the fast-growing Bangladesh economy.” (Fujii)

Deputy Director

Solar panels of First
Solar. The company
manufactures the latest
high-efficiency solar
panels using TCO glasses.

Division 1
Corporate Finance Department
Industry Finance Group“I was in charge of the entire transaction ranging from the start of negotiations to the disbursement procedures, which contributed to my own personal growth.” (Tamiya)

May 2020 │ JBIC Today

11

JBIC Today May 2020
【Published by】
Press and External Affairs Division, Corporate Planning Department,
Corporate Planning Group,Japan Bank for International Cooperation
4-1,Otemachi,1-chome Chiyoda-ku,Tokyo 100-8144,Japan
Tel.+81-3-5218-3100 URL: https://www.jbic.go.jp/en/
Cover photo : PIXTA
Some of the photos shown here are used under license from Shutterstock.
*No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of JBIC.