SEF IDS HOLDINGS LIMITED SUMMARY OF PROJECT INFORMATION (SPI)      Project Name   	Guyana-IDS Holdings     Region   	Latin America and Caribbean     Sector   	General Manufacturing     Project No.	008192      Projected Board Date	June 16, 1997      Company Name   	IDS Holdings Limited (IDS)     Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders     IDSs ownership consists of 10 shareholders of which four Singh brothers control 60% of the shares and the equipment supplier 20%. The equipment supplier is Lohia Starlinger Ltd.(LSL), an Indian company, which is in partnership with Maschinenfabrik Starlinger of Austria and Windmoller and Holscher of Germany.     Project Cost Including Proposed IFC Investment     The total cost of the Project is US$5 million.  IFC will invest up to US$1 million in long term debt.     Location of Project and Description of Site     The plant is located in an industrial zone at the outskirts of Georgetown, the capital city of Guyana.  The 135,000 sq. foot property comprises a covered structure which houses the production facilities along with an adjacent building which contains administration offices as well as living quarters for the Managing Director and resident guests. Standby power facilities are located in a small building 60 feet from the main structure.  The site includes ample additional cleared land available for future expansions.  The site is bordered by industrial and commercial properties, a highway, a cemetery and canals.     Description of Company and Purpose of Project     IDS Holdings Inc. was incorporated in 1993 to manufacture polysacbags, for the domestic and export markets, using imported polypropylene granules which are extruded, converted into tapes, then woven into fabric.  IDS is the only manufacturer of such bags in Guyana and is capable of producing 12 million meters of fabric annually of which total domestic demand represents about 60% of capacity.  IDS uses state-of-the-art equipment from Lohia Starlinger Ltd.(LSL), an Indian company and a shareholder, and operated at about 50% of plant capacity (on average 1.5 shifts, 5/days/wk.) during its first year of operations in 1996 with the development of export markets.    IDS is seeking funding to complete the project and improve competitiveness by improving efficiency.  This includes the introduction of (i) a machine to produce plastic liners, (ii) a recycling machine, (iii) an automated cutting and stitching machine, (iv) a computerized inventory and accounting system.  The funding will also provide additional working capital and allow the company to restructure its expensive short term debt.  The benefits of the project include: i) labor savings because of automating the cutting and sewing operations; ii) less wastage of raw material through the recycling process; iii) lower raw material cost due to the in-house production of liners, (iv) lower unit production cost because of higher production levels; and (v) lower finance charges.     Environmental Category and Issues     This is a category B project according to IFCs environmental review procedure.  Environmental issues associated with this project include liquid effluents, disposal of solid wastes, employee exposure to fumes, and fire protection.  There are no significant air emissions.  Liquid effluent consist of sanitary waste which is treated in septic tanks.  Ample ventilation and required use of safety equipment protects workers from unhealthy exposure to fumes.  Plastic scrap will be recycled as part of the proposed investment.  The project is expected to comply with local laws and World Bank environmental guidelines and policies.    The Environmental Review Summary for this project was released at the World Bank Public Information Center on May 8, 1997.    Date SPI sent to PIC			May 15, 1997    For Additional Information contact:  Corporate Relations Unit-   telephone:  (202) 473-7711   facsimile:   (202) 974-4384      L:\CLASEF\GYREACH\IDS\IDS_SPI.DOC   May 14, 1997 5:32 PM  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).