Ecuacobre-FV S.A. Summary Of Project Information (SPI)       Project Name:    ECUADOR: FV-Ecuacobre      Region:Latin America and Caribbean   Sector:   Project No:009364   Projected Board Date:April 28, 1999   Company Name:Ecuacobre-FV S.A.   Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders    	The major shareholder is FV S.A. of Argentina, the leading Argentine brass and metal fixtures producer which directly and indirectly owns more than 72% of Ecuacobre and Franz Viegener S.A.  It also provides continuous technical support to the Group operations in Ecuador.     Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment    	The estimated cost of the project, including the interest during construction, working capital requirement and contingencies, is US$17 million.  The proposed IFC investment includes an "A" Loan of up to US$5 million and a "C" Loan of up to US$4 million.    Location of project and Description of site    	The manufacturing facilities are located in Sangolqui, about 40 km out of Quito, Ecuador.    Description of Company and Purpose of Project    	Ecuacobre-FV is the sole manufacturer of faucets and brass fixtures in Ecuador, with a market share of about 60% in terms of volume.  Franz Viegener S.A. started the production of sanitary ware in 1997 and currently holds more than 10% of the market share.  Both are small-sized companies with consolidated 1998 sales of US$9.2 million. The FV Group is undertaking a modernization and expansion program in order to respond to an anticipated growth in demand and to replace part of the country''s imports.  The project will install new equipment, reduce bottlenecks and replace short-term debt with IFC''s long-term financing.    	The project will also encourage the Group to improve its environmental and health-related practices and facilities up to international standards.      Environmental Category and Issues    	This is a category B project according to IFC''s environmental review procedure.  The potential environmental, health and safety impacts associated with this project are air emissions, liquid effluents treatment and disposal, solid and hazardous waste disposal, employee exposure to hear, noise and chemical substances, employee training and fire safety and emergency preparedness.  Ambient air emissions from the foundry area will be minimized by the incorporation of an extraction system including a wet precipitator for particulates and stack emissions are in compliance with applicable World Bank guidelines for stack air emissions.  Ecuacobres process effluents will be treated at a dedicated wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) which will be upgraded with new filter presses.  Most of the effluents generated during the manufacturing process will be recirculated into the process. The solid waste generated at the facilities will be either collected and disposed at a municipal landfill or collected for recycling purposes.  Domestic solid waste will be collected and disposed of according to local regulations.  Ecuacobre implements a basic training program under the guidance of the Ecuadorian Institute of Social Health.  The training program includes industrial health and safety, personal protective equipment and fire safety, refresher courses are provided every two years.  Ecuacobre provides its employees with annual medical check-ups.     The  is  from the InfoShop.       Host country location of environmental documents    Ecuacobre-FV S.A. Km25 Autopista "Los Chilos" (via Sangolqui-Amaguaña)      Date SPI sent to InfoShop March 24, 1999   This Summary of Project Information is prepared and distributed to the public in advance of consideration of the proposed transaction by the Corporations Board of Directors.  It is provided for the purpose of enhancing the transparency of IFCs activities and should not be construed as presuming the outcome of IFC Board consideration.    For Additional Information contact:  Corporate Relations Unit -   telephone: (202) 473-7711   facsimile: (202) 974-4384  Environmental documents for this project are available at http://www.ifc.org and from the World Bank InfoShop (http://www.worldbank.org/html/pic/aboutinfo.html).