Ex-Im Bank Offers 15-Year Repayment Terms to Support U.S. Exports for Renewable Energy and Water Projects
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) is now offering export financing on repayment terms of up to 15 years for U.S. exports of goods and services to be used in certain renewable energy and water projects. Effective as of July 1, the longer repayment terms are available in accord with an agreement of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that permits export credit agencies of OECD countries to offer enhanced terms for renewable energy and water projects.
Eligible for the 15-year repayment term are U.S. exports for the following renewable energy projects: wind, solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, geothermal, ocean thermal, tidal and tidal stream power, wave power, and bio-energy. Also eligible for the 15-year term are U.S. exports for water and wastewater projects.
Ex-Im Bank's offering of the 15-year repayment term for U.S. renewable energy and water-related exports is a significant enhancement for U.S. exporters in these sectors, said Ex-Im Bank Board Member Linda Conlin, who heads Ex-Im Bank's Environmental Exports Program. We believe that this enhancement further strengthens the ability of U.S. environmental exporters to compete internationally, and it will help to support highly skilled U.S. jobs in these industries.
This action will allow U.S. environmental technology firms to compete successfully in the global arena by making water and wastewater projects more commercially viable and by reducing the need for tied aid that foreign governments have used in the past to eliminate competition, said Dawn Kristof, president of the Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association Inc.
With this kind of forward-thinking government leadership, the United States will continue to be a net exporter of solar energy, said Rhone Resch, president of the Solar Energy Industries Association. Progressive export financing terms are essential for U.S. companies to remain competitive in the global solar industry, which is currently growing at 45 percent each year. We applaud Ex-Im Bank for its initiative in supporting a robust U.S. solar industry.
In response to recommendations from U.S. renewable energy and water industries, Ex-Im Bank encouraged the OECD to permit export credit agencies to offer the extended repayment terms for these environmental exports. In June 2005, the OECD agreed to extend the maximum repayment term from the previous limits for these sectors to 15 years. The OECD agreement permits the 15-year term for a two-year trial period beginning July 1, 2005.
Ex-Im Bank, the official export credit agency of the United States, is in its 71st year of helping finance the sale of U.S. exports, primarily to emerging markets throughout the world, by providing loan guarantees, export credit insurance and direct loans. In fiscal year 2004, Ex-Im Bank supported $17.8 billion of U.S. exports to markets worldwide. For more information, visit www.exim.gov