News

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Companies located in Massachusetts and New York are selling $23 million of equipment to Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (OMA) in Mexico to strengthen the security of Mexican airports, backed by enhanced financing from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank).

Reveal Imaging Technologies, Inc., Bedford, Mass., and L-3 Communications, New York, N.Y., are selling baggage handling and security inspection systems to OMA, operator and manager of 13 airports in Mexico, to be installed at seven of the airports: Zihuatanejo, Monterrey, Acapulco, Ciudad Juarez, Culiacan, Chihuahua, and Mazatlan.

Under its Transportation Security Exports Program (TSEP), Ex-Im Bank is guaranteeing a medium-term loan from UPS Capital Business Credit® to support the export sale. TSEP offers extended financing terms to encourage the use of U.S.-made products in foreign transportation security projects.

By working with UPS Capital to provide enhanced financing terms to OMA, we can support U.S. exports that otherwise might not go forward, help sustain American jobs, and help Mexico strengthen the security of its airports and the safety of all who use them, said Ex-Im Bank Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg.

Hochberg said the U.S. government gives high priority to programs that bolster the security of systems moving passengers and cargo between countries.

This public-private partnership between the Ex-Im Bank and UPS Capital bolsters the volume of U.S. exports, not just to Mexico but to emerging markets around the world, and is a powerful catalyst for driving the sales of U.S.-made goods, said Bob Bernabucci, president of UPS Capital. And as a key player in global trade, growth in all exports contributes to UPS's business of serving the logistics needs of our customers.

Ex-Im Bank's TSEP program offers local cost coverage up to 30 percent of the net contract value, and repayment terms of up to 10 years, for U.S. transportation security exports.

OMA is committed to security in our airports. The baggage handling system with high tech equipment will place us at the level of the best airports in the world, said Jose Luis Guerrero Cortes, OMA's chief financial officer. The project for equipping all 13 airports requires a total investment of approximately Ps. 500 million, part of which will be financed with debt. Contracting the long-term US$23 million loan from UPS Capital Business Credit is an important step forward in carrying out this major project.

In addition to enabling OMA to upgrade equipment at the airports it operates, the loan also helps spur sales for U.S. exporters.

The flexible financing provided by UPS Capital and the support of the U.S. Export-Import Bank are valuable tools to L-3 as it continues to grow in the important and dynamic Latin American region, said Thomas M. Ripp, president of L-3 Security & Detection Systems.

Ex-Im Bank, an independent, self-sustaining federal agency, helps create and maintain American jobs by filling gaps in export financing and strengthening U.S. export competitiveness. In fiscal year 2010, the Bank authorized a record high of approximately $24.5 billion in loans, guarantees and insurance, including more than $5 billion in authorizations for small businesses. More information about Ex-Im Bank is available at www.exim.gov, and via the Bank's Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/eximbankus.