The EBRD has taken an equity stake of up to 15 percent in the Ukrainian subsidiary of Polish company Barlinek to support its cross-border expansion, according to EBRD press-release.
The company is currently setting up production facilities in Ukraine with the support of EBRD loans it has received in recent years. The equity investment comes on top of these loans.
Barlinek is the leading Polish floorboard manufacturer with a strong market presence also in Western Europe. With an EBRD loan of ?39.9 million - half of which was syndicated - the company is already expanding its operations in Ukraine and Russia, where a construction boom has generated high demand for Barlinek’s products. A new, recently commissioned plant in Vinnytsia, central Ukraine, with a production of 2 million square metres of floorboards will ease capacity constraints and allow for the company’s further growth.
