Dutch construction specialist IHC Merwede has signed a €200mn working capital finance facility with five international banks for the development of two pipe-laying ships.

ABN Amro, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, ING and Rabobank are providing the loan. Credit insurer Atradius is supporting the deal with a working capital guarantee; this is the the largest financing facility covered by the Dutch state.

IHC Merwede will use the proceeds of the facility to construct the pipe-laying vessels for its Malaysian customer SapuraCrest.
The ships are part of a recent offshore order worth €450mn and will install pipelines in Brazilian waters, where large quantities of oil have recently been discovered, ICH Merwede says in a statement.

The delivery dates for the vessels, which will be built in The Netherlands, have been set for May and August 2014 respectively.

Johan Schrijver, chief executive officer of Atradius says: “Our coverage has made a competitive financing package possible, and due to this, the order has been awarded to a Dutch company. This puts our country on the map as an export nation.”