(Sukuk.net - Arab News) Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the private sector development arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, concluded the signing ceremony for Aden Sugar Refinery, member of the Midroc Al-Amoudi in Yemen, at the IDB headquarters here on Tuesday. ICD CEO and General Manager Khaled Al-Aboodi and Abdurrahman Omar Al-Amoudi, the deputy president of Midroc Al-Amoudi Group, signed the deal. High-ranking officials of ICD, IDB, Yemen government and syndicating banks project management were among those present.

Mohammed Hussain Al-Amoudi, owner of Midroc Oil and Gas Sector Companies, has sponsored the project, which has a total capacity of one million ton per annum and employs around 300 people. This will be the first sugar refinery in Yemen.

ICD is acting as the 'Lead Arranger' of a $120 million Ijara facility for financing the equipment of the project, which will be located at Aden Free Zone, Yemen. The syndicate of banks includes Europe Arab Bank, the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) and Boubyan Bank.

Al-Aboodi said the ICD was not affected directly by the global financial crisis. He added that the crisis has led to an increase in financing requests submitted to ICD, which continue to support projects but with more precautions, especially for new ones.

He also said that ICD was currently focusing on financing existing projects and that ICD investments are well selected and regulated.

"ICD studies the possible opportunities according to its available resources and mainly targets projects with great development impacts," he added.

Al-Amoudi said that the project would have a great socio-economic development impact on the Yemeni government and its people.
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