The Minister of Finance, Luis Caputo, signed this afternoon, together with the Regional Director for Argentina and Brazil at Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Philippe Orliange, the first loan agreement of the “Water and Sanitation Development Program” of Belgrano Plan for USD 70 million, 5.23% interest rate, 15-year period (5-year grace period). This is the first financing agreement between the AFD and Argentina.

This loan will serve as a complement to the USD 200-million financing contributed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for the above-mentioned Program, which is aimed at extending the coverage of potable water and sewage systems and at improving the environmental, sanitation and hygiene conditions through the management of water and sanitation providers of the Belgrano Plan region. The following officials attended the execution of the agreement: the Ambassador of France in Argentina, Pierre Henri Guignard; the Director of AFD in Argentina, Juliette Grudman; the Chief of Cabinet of the Ministry of Finance, Pablo Quirno; and the Undersecretary of International Financial Relations, Martin Soto.

This will enable to meet the Government’s targets as regards potable water and sanitation, which are aimed at reaching 100% potable water coverage and 75% sewage service coverage for 2019. In this sense, the loan will finance environmental, social, water and sanitation studies, as well as the strengthening of service providers and investment at a local level in infrastructure of potable water and sanitation. These projects will be executed within the Belgrano Plan area, which includes the Provinces of Catamarca, Chaco, Corrientes, Formosa, Jujuy, La Rioja, Misiones, Salta, Santiago del Estero and Tucuman.

The AFD had its first mission in Argentina in October 2016, when different projects were submitted to the investment sectors of the Agency. Since then, the Ministry of Finance has maintained a constant dialogue in order to make progress in the analysis and negotiation of the financing alternatives offered and to coordinate the technical missions of French experts in the country. For this reason, the AFD decided to establish an office in Argentina.

AFD is a financial institution and it provides technical and financing assistance both in developing and emerging countries and in the French overseas provinces. As a public organization, it depends on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development and on the Ministry of Finance of France.

January 29, 2018
The Chief of Cabinet of the Ministry of Finance, Pablo Quirno, and the Ministry of Economy of the Province of Buenos Aires, Hernán Lacunza, signed together with the Deputy Director General for Investment of Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), Ghanem Sulaiman Al-Ghenaiman, a financing agreement for 51 million dollars aimed at the construction of a water treatment plant in the City of La Plata.

In this sense, Quirno highlighted: “With the execution of this agreement we continue developing the potential modernization of our infrastructure, crucial in a Province such as Buenos Aires, and improving the living conditions of the population”.

The subscription of the loan for the “Water Provision in La Plata Project, Construction of a Water Treatment Plant” was also attended by the Undersecretary of International Financial Relations, Martín Soto. It was negotiated under a co-funding scheme with the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF).

The project will be financed with USD 51 million contributed by the FKAED (with an interest rate of 2.5%, a 24-year term and a 4-year grace period), USD 119 million by the CAF and USD 41.65 million of local contribution.

The new water treatment plant will improve the provision of potable water for the City of Buenos Aires, Berisso and Ensenada, through the construction of a new water treatment system in addition to the existing one. This way, the project will extend the water provision capacity from 2,500 to 10,000 m3/h, directly benefitting 480,000 users and improving the quality of the water by reducing nitrate levels.

The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development is the first Middle Eastern institution to have an active role in international development by extending the lending terms to finance projects. In addition, it provides technical assistance to finance the costs of feasibility studies for projects as well as training.

The event was also attended by the Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the KFAED, Abdullah Al-Musaibeeh; the National Director of Bilateral External Financing Projects, Matías Mana; the Undersecretary of Financing of the Province of Buenos Aires, Sebastián Katz; the Provincial Director of Multilateral Organizations and Bilateral Financing, Julián Amendolaggine; the National Director of Bilateral Economic Negotiations, Daniel Polski; the Argentine Ambassador in Kuwait, Jorge Biga; and the Director of Bilateral Economic Negotiations with Africa and Middle East, Patricia Fabro.

The Chief of Cabinet of the Ministry of Finance, Pablo Quirno, and the Undersecretary of International Financial Relations, Martín Soto, participated this morning in the 4th Meeting of the Strategic Dialogue Mechanism for the Economic Cooperation and Coordination between Argentina and China. At the meeting, held at Palacio San Martín, they highlighted the progress made in the financial relations between both countries.

Within this framework, Quirno talked about the Argentine macroeconomic situation and Soto about the ongoing projects signed with China and about the 2017-2021 China-Argentina Comprehensive Five-year Project for Cooperation in Infrastructure.

The Meeting is part of the activities in which the Minister of Finance participates to promote the financing of infrastructure projects in the country and to increase the number of International Credit Organizations that finance operations in Argentina.

In April 2017, officials from the Ministry of Finance traveled to Beijing to participate in the 3rd edition of the China-Argentina Strategic Dialogue for the Economic Cooperation and Coordination, where the 2017-2021 China-Argentina Comprehensive Five-year Project for Cooperation in Infrastructure was signed.

Within the most important activities developed during said trip, we can mention the execution of the loan agreement for preferential buyer credit for the Photovoltaic Park Project Cauchari Solar I, II and III together with the Export – Import Bank of China.

January 4, 2018
Argentina issued bonds in the international market for a total amount of USD 9 billion in 3 parts:

• USD 1.75 billion in 5-year bonds, at a yield of 4.625% (4.625% coupon)
• USD 4.25 billion in 10-year bonds, at a yield of 6% (5.875% coupon)
• USD 3 billion in 30-year bonds, at a yield of 6.95% (6.875% coupon)

These rates are the lowest in Argentine history for bond issuances in dollars in the international market, and they represent 100 basis points below the rates of similar bonds issued in January 2017.

The demand for Argentine bonds totaled USD 21.4 billion, 2.4 times the amount issued, with the participation of more than 450 investors from North America (46%), Europe (35%), Asia (11%), and other regions (8%). The issuance was led by Citigroup, Deutsche Bank Securities, HSBC, BBVA and Santander.
“We are more than satisfied with this new issuance, because we have achieved, once more, a significant reduction of our financing cost with the lowest rates in our history. This shows that investors have more enthusiasm and confidence in the economic and political situation of the country”, Minister of Finance Luis Caputo said.

“This financing covers about 1/3 of needs for 2018 and more than 50% of infrastructure investment included in the budget for this year, which is very important for the development of our country”, Mr. Minister added.