Nlb Supports the Largest Petrol’s Expansion in Decade

As the leading bank in the market for the organization of syndicated loans and issuance of securities, the NLB continues to successfully support and finance the expansion of Slovenian companies in the region. The bank has signed a syndicated loan agreement with Petrol d.d. Ljubljana, to finance their acquisition of a 100% business share in the company Crodux Derivati Dva d.o.o., totalling EUR 200m.

The international syndicated loan was organized together with Privredna Banka Zagreb. Banka Intesa Sanpaolo, UniCredit Banka Slovenia, SID banka and SKB banka were also part of the syndicate.

Blaž Brodnjak, CEO, NLB d. d.: “In the region of South-Eastern Europe, there are no global players. This is a specific and competitive environment, which offers great opportunity to local and regional players, provided they have the potential and a vision of what they want to do. Slovenia is therefore reaffirming its “Made in Slovenia” brand. Recent transactions carried out by Slovenian companies are once again returning Slovenian capital to a more significant extent. For instance: Petrol is becoming the second strongest oil trader in Croatia, and NLB the third strongest bank in Serbia.

»NLB remains a reliable partner for Slovenian economy both at home and in expanding Slovenian companies’ activities in international markets. We provide our clients with long-term sources of financing and advise them in proper structuring. We, therefore, support all projects that are important for the economic development of Slovenia, as well as the entire region, « said Andrej Lasič, assistant to NLB’s Management Board for Corporate and Investment Banking, at the end of the process. “We are proud to have successfully concluded the project with the team and in cooperation with a foreign partner bank, thus deepening our long-term cooperation with the Petrol Group, which will significantly increase the presence of the Slovenian companies in the markets of South East Europe,« he added.

The acquisition of Crodux Derivati Dva d.o.o. is Petrol’s largest transaction in the last 10 years. With it, the Petrol Group will acquire 93 service stations in Croatia. The total number of Petrol’s points of sale will increase to over 200, and the Petrol Group’s market share will grow from 13% to 23%. According to the Petrol Group, the acquisition will also enhance their role as an important link in increasing energy independence and efficiency, CO2 savings, the share of renewable energy sources and sustainable mobility in the region.

Blaž Brodnjak, CEO, NLB d. d.: “NLB is a regional systemic institution. We are among the top 3 largest banking institutions in six countries of the region. There is no comparable banking group in such strategic position as we are, with such geographical footprint and such meaningful operation. By providing adequate long-term sources of financing, we can support key projects that are important for the development, and thus improve the quality of life in the region.”

»By combining two strong brands, we will offer our customers, employees and shareholders the best of both worlds and, as a leading partner in the energy transition, continue to build a forward-looking ecosystem of sustainable and, above all, modern and digitised services. We plan to transfer best practices to become the leading provider of fuels and sustainable energy solutions in Croatia by 2025. With today’s acquisition, this country has become our second home,« explained Nada Drobne Popović, President of the Management Board of Petrol d.d., Ljubljana.

Blaž Brodnjak, CEO, NLB d. d.: “Cross-border financing is getting an increasingly important role in NLB, on the one hand due to excess liquidity, and on the other hand due to the limitations of the Slovenian market and the desire to expand cooperation with existing and new customers. In the markets of South-Eastern Europe, where we operate, we actively support the development of all strategic projects and especially the logistics infrastructure, as we are aware that it is of key importance for the decentralized development of individual countries. We want to participate in all major infrastructure projects in the region as one of the key financial partners and thus contribute to raising the quality of life in the region that is our home.”