OREANDA-NEWS. June 18, 2014. Ecuador will sign two financing deals totaling USD 9 billion with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China in the coming months for the construction of an oil refinery, a top government official said.

The 200,000 barrel-per-day Pacifico Refinery is being developed by a consortium of state-run oil firms including Petroecuador, Venezuela's PDVSA, and China's CNPC. Operations are expected to begin in 2017.

An initial loan of USD 2 billion will go to Petroecuador and will be signed by August, Strategic Sectors Minister Rafael Poveda told reporters during a meeting with foreign correspondents hosted by President Rafael Correa.

The second loan, for USD 7 billion, will be signed by September and granted to the consortium, Poveda said.

The Industrial and Commercial Bank will provide the funds, he said, but declined to offer details on the terms of the financing.

PDVSA and CNPC will make investments based on their respective ownership of 19 percent and 30 percent. The total cost of the facility, located near Manta on Ecuador's Pacific coast, is seen at \\$10 billion.

China has become Ecuador's biggest financier since the South American country defaulted on \\$3.2 billion in bonds in 2008. (Reporting by Alexandra Valencia, writing by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Tom Brown.