Ex-Im approves $500 million to finance Mongolian mine project

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 16, 2013) — The board of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has voted to authorize an approximately $500 million direct loan to finance the continued development of a Mongolian mine that upon completion will generate approximately 30 percent of the Mongolian GDP.

Additionally, Ex-Im Bank’s financing will support approximately 2,000 U.S. jobs across the United States, according to Bank estimates derived from Departments of Commerce and Labor data and methodology.

“This transaction will not only support good jobs and bolster our economy here in America, it will also provide a lift to the Mongolian economy and directly impact the country’s GDP,” said Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg. “Moreover, by using American-made products in this large project, the financing will support thousands of U.S. jobs in states like Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New York, and Texas. This transaction is even more proof of the value of exports in continuing to help the U.S. economy grow.”

The Oyu Tolgoi mine, which is located in the South Gobi region approximately 550 kilometers south of the the capital city Ulaanbaatar, is an open-pit and underground copper mine that will produce concentrate containing copper, gold, and silver. Once developed, the mine will rank as one of the largest copper mines in the world. It will also count as one of the most important capital projects in Mongolia.

The mine is operated by Oyu Tolgoi LLC, which is jointly owned by Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. of Canada and Erdenes Oyu Tolgoi LLC of Mongolia. Leading global mining company Rio Tinto holds a majority stake in Turquoise Hill.

Ex-Im Bank has worked closely with the other lenders and sponsors to ensure that the project was planned to minimize the impacts on the local residents and environment in compliance with Ex-Im Bank’s strict Environmental Procedures and Guidelines and Mongolian law.

One U.S. small business that will benefit from the project is CC Solutions LLC, a Yonkers, N.Y.-based company that is a specialist in export credit agency administration. The company’s proprietary software, MTS, has processed nearly $1 billion in Ex-Im Bank disbursements across the world.

“The financing of this and other projects by Ex-Im Bank has allowed our company to provide high-value professional services, leading to permanent and partial employment for five people in the United States,” said Valerie Colville, principle of CC Solutions. “The Mongolian economy will benefit tremendously from the development of the Oyu Tolgoi project. Significant mineral deposits will be recovered in a responsible and environmentally-sound manner, and the proceeds will be used for the human and social development of the people of Mongolia.”

Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that creates and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. In the past five years (from Fiscal Year 2008), Ex-Im Bank has earned for U.S. taxpayers nearly $1.6 billion above the cost of operations. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees, export-credit insurance and financing to help foreign buyers purchase U.S. goods and services.

Ex-Im Bank approved $35.8 billion in total authorizations in FY 2012 – an all-time Ex-Im record. This total includes more than $6.1 billion directly supporting small-business export sales – also an Ex-Im record. Ex-Im Bank’s total authorizations are supporting an estimated $50 billion in U.S. export sales and approximately 255,000 American jobs in communities across the country. For more information, visit www.exim.gov.