KB Kookmin Bank has completed the signing of a financial agreement on Canada's natural gas pipeline project financing (PF), worth 240 million Canadian dollars, a bank spokesman said on May 12.
KB Kookmin Bank has successfully completed two financial supports for its superior overseas infrastructure projects despite the shrinking of overseas projects due to the aftermath of the COVID-19 and has been actively moving into overseas infrastructure markets since last year.
The deal is a loan to an 8 billion Canadian dollars project to build a 667-kilometer Costal Gaslink Pipeline in western British Columbia state in Canada.
A total of 27 global financial institutions, including five major Canadian banks, including Royal Bank of Canada, participated, and KB Kookmin Bank was the only Korean bank to be named.
Costal GasLink Pipeline is an essential facility connecting gas fields and LNG liquefied terminals in western Canada. It is expected to serve as a key function for cheap Canadian natural gas exports.
Long-term use contracts have been signed with global energy companies Shell, Korea Gas Corporation (KoGas), PetroChina, Malaysia's Petronas, and Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation for safe operation, which are expected to begin in 2022.
KB Kookmin Bank participated in the financial support, considering the role of financial support for KoGas' strategy to secure national energy resources, its value as a key infrastructure asset for Canada's natural gas export project, and its stable business structure based on long-term contracts with leading LNG companies.
Meanwhile, KB Kookmin Bank signed a $100 million Equity Bridge Loan financial agreement for the UAE plant project in late April.
An official of KB Kookmin Bank said, "We think it is meaningful that we have successfully carried out global landmark deals amid a sharp drop in overseas project supplies due to the outbreak of COVID-19. We plan to continue seeking the robust growth of the global IB sector through financial support centered on blue-chip infrastructure assets in the future."
