Egypt's Citadel secures $150 mln finance facility

Sun Nov 13, 2011 8:58am GMT

CAIRO Nov 13 (Reuters) - Egyptian private equity firm Citadel Capital secured a $150 million, 10-year financing facility from a U.S. government development finance institution, the company said on Sunday.

The funds from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) take Citadel's long-term capital to $325 million, including a recent rights issue, Citadel said in a statement.

The firm, which focuses on the Middle East and north Africa, reported a net loss for the first half of 2011 and is scaling back investments outside its existing projects until Egypt's political and economic outlook becomes clearer.

The country is gearing up for elections after the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak in February in a popular uprising that caused a flight of foreign investors and tourists.

The financing "addresses the shortage of credit in Egypt, where investment in important infrastructure sectors has been stymied by political uncertainty", Citadel cited OPIC Chief Executive Elizabeth Littlefield as saying. (Reporting by Tom Pfeiffer; Editing by Robert Birsel)