By Olga Rosca

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a €5 million(US$5.7million) loan to Aquila Part Prod Com S.A. with an option to buy up to €5 million worth of shares from the company’s founding shareholders.

Aquila is the largest consumer goods distributor in Romania and Moldova. It runs 14 distribution centres, four logistics hubs, a 1,647-strong fleet of vehicles and a network of 67,000 points of sale. The company employs 3,000 people.

Last month, Aquila raised €74 million in the biggest initial public offering (IPO) on the Bucharest Stock Exchange in four years.

The EBRD’s financing will help the company to expand its own brand portfolio, implement warehouse automation and enterprise resource planning software to manage and integrate financial, supply-chain, operational, commercial, reporting, manufacturing and human-resource activities.

The funds will also help meet working capital needs.

The investment will improve the reach of Aquila’s own brands, enhance warehouse productivity and advance the company’s digitalisation.

In addition, with the EBRD’s help, the company will implement a comprehensive corporate governance action plan.

The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Romania. It has invested more than €9.4 billion through 481 projects in the country to date, with 77 per cent of that in the private sector.