Global logistics: Ex-Im Bank to support U.S. exports to India

The board of directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im) have approved a $917 million export finance guarantee to support U.S. exports from Bucyrus International, located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and other U.S. vendors, to the Sasan Power, Ltd. coal-fired power plant in Madhya Pradesh, India.

“The board’s approval of the Sasan power project resulted from carefully balancing the need to support American jobs and energy exports, while simultaneously encouraging development of renewable energy facilities,” said Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg. “We are pleased that Reliance Power, under the leadership of Anil Ambani, is taking steps to reduce the environmental effects of their activities and has long term plans which include power production with renewable energy alternatives.”

The companies, including Bucyrus, will sell and export mining and associated equipment to Sasan Power for the 3,960-megawatt power plant. According to the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, the project will support approximately 1,000 jobs at Bucyrus and its suppliers throughout the United States.

Earlier this month, Indian industrialists were championing the region’s logistical advantages and trade opportunities for U.S. shippers. Among them was Ram Ramakrishnan, executive director, Bajaj Electrical.
“While everyone seems to be concentrating on penetrating the China market, India has been quietly capturing share from forward-thinking multinational’s,” he said.

Speaking the Supply Chain Executive Summit in Houston recently, he added that India’s reverse logistics concentration is also an advantage.

“We were ‘sustainable’ long before the word became a cliché,” he said. “And our workforce is paid fair wages and treated with world class respect.”

According the Ex-Im spokesmen, approval followed a thorough, three-month financial, technical and environmental due diligence review conducted by Bank specialists.

In July, Reliance Power, Ltd., the owner of Sasan Power, signed a memorandum of understanding with Ex-Im Bank indicating its commitment to build a new 250-megawatt renewable energy facility, which will rank among the largest renewable energy projects in India. Moreover, the Sasan project will comply with Ex-Im’s new environmental guidelines that limit carbon emissions to 850 grams of CO2 per kilowatt hour.