Albania to borrow 250 million Euros for 2009 budget

TIRANA, March 5 – Albanian Finance Ministry says it will borrow 250 million Euros from Deutsche Bank and Greece’s Alpha Bank to basically fund the construction of the new Kosova highway and also to cope with any negative impact of the global financial crisis.
The two banks were declared the winners with the best offer in an international tender with seven bidders, according to a statement from the Finance Ministry.
The loan, for which there were given no details, is expected to fund the budget investment projects, a move that was also made the previous year with a 230 million euro loan.
Finance Minister Ridvan Bode said the loan would help the government for its investment and also as a tool to cope with effects of the global crisis in the international markets.
As the total amount of the three-year maturity loan could not be secured only from the winners alone Albanian authorities authorized Deutsche Bank and Alpha Bank to create a syndicate loan together with Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank and Credit Suisse, ranked after them in the tender, to collect the money.
The interest rate would be set after the amount was secured, according to the minister.
The ministry said it would give the mandate to these banks to secure the requested financing, also asking them to include in that funding Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank and Credit Suisse, according to the statement.