The company overseeing Uganda’s EACOP crude pipeline has secured its first round of external financing from a group of institutions, including commercial banks and Afreximbank, according to a statement from EACOP Ltd .
Standard Bank, Stanbic Bank Uganda, KCB Bank Uganda, and Saudi Arabia’s Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector are among the financiers backing the project.
EACOP Ltd. described the completion of this first tranche as a major milestone but did not disclose the total financial support secured.
In October, Uganda’s energy minister told Reuters that EACOP’s development partners were injecting additional funds to keep the $5 billion project moving as debt financing remained challenging.
Minister Ruth Nankabirwa traveled to Beijing to engage potential Chinese financiers, who were seen as critical to EACOP’s success after several Western banks, including BNP Paribas, Société Générale, and Barclays, withdrew under pressure from climate activists.
EACOP, which will transport crude from Uganda’s oilfields to Tanzania’s Tanga port, forms part of a broader $15 billion energy investment led by TotalEnergies, China’s CNOOC, and other partners to develop the Kingfisher and Tilenga oil discoveries near Lake Albert.
A source familiar with the financing deal told Reuters on Wednesday that funders have pledged to cover the full $5 billion project cost, with Chinese investors also committing their support.
“The oil companies involved will contribute both equity and debt, and Chinese financiers are now on board,” the source confirmed.
Source:reuters.com
