Nov 2008 Financial News

Guardian Holdings sells off Prometheus energy fund

Nov 20, 2008

Right now attracting financing in the international markets was a challenge.

Guardian Holdings Ltd has divested itself of its energy fund, Prometheus. The fund was sold to US global private equity firm, Denham Capital Management two weeks ago.

Prometheus was launched in 2005 as a partnership between RBTT and Guardian Holdings with a capital base of US$50 million. It was set up to provide an alternative source of financing for the local energy sector and to take equity positions in projects or companies. RBTT withdrew from the fund about a year its formation as the relationship waned. Kristine Gibbon-Thompson, former vice president of business development at Guardian Holdings, has also moved on to Denham Capital.

In August, Denham announced that it would invest up to US$50 million in CariSal, an investment holding company that includes CariSal Unlimited, a firm being set up on the New Pt Lisas Industrial Estate, Couva, to produce calcium chloride and caustic soda. CariSal, which was formed in September 2005, aims to become a leading supplier of caustic soda, calcium chloride and other related products to markets in Trinidad, the Caribbean, Latin America, North America and West Africa.The facility was scheduled to begin operation in early 2010 with a production of 100,000 metric tonnes of caustic soda, 70,000 metric tonnes of pure pellet and 78,000 metric tonnes of pure flake calcium chloride each year. The products are intended for use in oilfield services, road construction, ice-melt and other markets.

Gibbon-Thompson said that right now attracting financing in the international markets was a challenge. She said that there would probably be a pick up between January and February but there would be delayed financing for the Carisal plant. Locally, the challenge with funding was that it was capped at US$100 million. She predicted that what will probably happen is that Denham will probably have to tap into the private placement market and look for creative solutions.


Source:
Asha Javeed
Trinidad Guardian
Thursday November 20, 2008
http://www.guardian.co.tt/bussguardian7.html