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Article

1 Jun 2011

Author:
BBC News

EIB freezes Glencore lending on governance concerns

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has frozen all new loans to commodities trading giant Glencore and its subsidiaries, citing "serious concerns" over the group's corporate governance. In 2005 the EIB provided a $50m…loan to Mopani Copper Mines, a Zambian subsidiary of Glencore. But Mopani has since been accused by some campaign groups of tax evasion and of causing widespread pollution.Glencore has denied the allegations…In a statement…[the EIB] said: "Due to serious concerns about Glencore's governance which have been brought to light recently and which go far beyond the Mopani investment, the President of the EIB has instructed the services to decline any further financing request from this company or one of its subsidiaries."A Glencore spokesman said: "We welcome the EIB taking a close look at Mopani, since we are confident that we will be completely exonerated…”