Denys Denya is Afreximbank vice-president in charge of finance, credit risk, administration and banking services

CAIRO headquartered trade finance institution, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has extended close to US$40 million to the country’s two fertiliser companies, Sable Chemicals and Windmill, for working capital and recapitalisation, it has been learnt.
Partly owned by government and TA Holdings, the Kwekwe-based Sables Chemicals is the sole manufacturer of ammonium nitrate fertiliser in the country while Windmill is a 100 percent privately owned fertiliser producer.
Denys Denya, the Afreximbank vice-president in charge of finance, credit risk, administration and banking services, told the Financial Gazette’s Companies & Markets (C&M) on the sidelines of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Zimbabwe’s Winter School in Dubai, the second biggest emirate of the United Arab Emirates, that the bank availed US$24 million project finance to Sables Chemicals and US$12 million capital injection to Windmill two weeks ago.
The three day Winter School, held at the Grand Hyatt Dubai Towers, from August 7-9, ran under the theme: “Expanding horizons, elevating minds-Unlocking Zimbabwe’s tourism and investment potential”, with the aim of showcasing Zimbabwe as a viable tourist and investment destination.
This was the first Winter School to be held outside Zimbabwe since the formation of the institute in 1918.
Denya said the gesture was a sign that Afreximbank had confidence in the future of Zimbabwe’s beleaguered companies, which have failed to secure funding from liquidity-starved domestic banks.
Local banks have been finding it difficult to lend long-term due to the predominance of short-term deposits in the market, and attempts to seek foreign lines of credit have been frustrated by the country’s high risk profile.
Most Zimbabwean companies are struggling to repay loans they borrowed from local banks due to punitive interest rates obtaining in the economy.
Denya said Afreximbank was committed to helping the country revive its economy and could give long-term credit facilities of up to seven years.
He however said no company from Zimbabwe had sought such a facility. Instead, Zimbabwean companies surprisingly preferred loans of up to three years.
“We have been doing good business with companies in Zimbabwe and we have not lost money in there,” said Denya.
“Only last week, we finalised a deal with fertiliser manufacturing companies called Sables Chemicals and Windmill. We provided about US$24 million to Sables Chemicals and about US$12 million to Windmill.
“We can lend up to seven years but Zimbabwe companies are not coming up with long-term deal structures. You find that not even one company in Zimbabwe has applied for long-term financing. None of the deals is above three years.”
Afreximbank has been giving Zimbabwe a lot of support over the past years, in bigger amounts targeting sectors like minerals and financial services sectors, among many others.
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