Two units of agricultural commodity trading giant Olam Agri have clinched a US$1.85bn facility incorporating both conventional and Islamic financing, backed by a group of international lenders.
The three-year deal comprises a US$1.6bn conventional facility and a US$250mn Islamic tranche for the Singapore-headquartered company. Olam Global Agri and Olam Global Agri Treasury are borrowers under the conventional portion and purchasers for the Islamic portion.
For the conventional tranche, ANZ Bank, BBVA, BNP Paribas, ING Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo and Natixis are senior mandated lead arrangers (MLAs), while First Abu Dhabi Bank acts as MLA and HSBC as facility agent.
Dubai Islamic Bank is senior MLA and investment agent for the Islamic tranche. Proceeds are to be used for general corporate purposes.
Olam Agri, an Olam Group subsidiary focused on food, feed and fibre, is part-owned by Salic International Investment Company, which is wholly owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
Salic initially took a minority stake in Olam Agri in late 2022, and announced in February this year it had reached an agreement to take 80% ownership of the company, subject to regulatory approvals.
Salic also has a call option to require the remainder of the company within three years, it added. The move followed a structural overhaul at Olam, launched after a 2019 strategic review.
Last year, Olam Agri agreed a US$550mn revolving credit facility with a group of international banks.
It also clinched its first shariah-compliant financing facility, which totalled US$625mn, and its first export credit agency-backed deal with Italy’s Sace, in April and March respectively.
