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Overview

Bank of China contributes to $1.5 billion syndicated loan to Sonangol for general corporate purposes in October 2009

Commitments (Constant USD, 2023)$138,731,777
Commitment Year•2009Country of Activity•AngolaDirect Recipient Country of Incorporation•AngolaSector•Industry, Mining, ConstructionFlow Type•Loan

Status

Project lifecycle

Pipeline: Commitment

Pipeline: PledgePipeline: CommitmentImplementationCompletion

Timeline

Key dates

Commitment date
Oct 1, 2009
Last repayment (originally scheduled)
Mar 31, 2013

Stakeholders

Organizations involved in projects and activities supported by financial and in-kind transfers from Chinese government and state-owned entities

Ultimate beneficial owners

At least 25% host country ownership

Funding agencies

State-owned Commercial Banks

  • Bank of China (BOC)

Cofinancing agencies

Private Sector

  • Banco BAI Europa S.A
  • Banco BPI, S.A.
  • Banco Espírito Santo, S.A. (BES)
  • BNP Paribas S.A.
  • BRED Banque Populaire
  • Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CACIB) (Crédit Agricole CIB) (Formerly Calyon) (Formerly Crédit Agricole Indosuez (CAI))
  • DZ Bank AG
  • GML Capital LLP
  • HSBC (Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation)
  • ING Bank N.V.
  • MediCapital Bank Plc
  • MUFG Bank, Ltd. (Formerly Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU))
  • Natixis
  • Société Générale S.A. (SocGen or Societe Generale)

State-owned Commercial Banks

  • Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC)

Receiving agencies

State-owned companies

  • Sonangol E.P.

Collateral providers

State-owned companies

  • Sonangol E.P.

Loan description

Bank of China and ICBC contributions to USD 1.5 billion syndicated pre-export term facility agreement for general corporate purposes for Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola

Grant element•9.3476%Interest rate (t₀)•3.62%Interest type•Variable Interest RateLoan tenor•6-month rateMaturity•3.5 years

Collateral

Sonangol’s receivables from exports of oil to China.

Narrative

Full Description

Project narrative

In October 2009, Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola (Sonangol) — Angola's state-owned oil company — signed a $1.5 billion syndicated pre-export term facility (loan) agreement with 12 banks for general corporate purposes. Members of the syndicate included ICBC, Bank of China, Calyon, Banco Espírito Santo, BNP Paribas, Société Générale, Banco BPI, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, HSBC, ING, Natixis, DZ Bank, MediCapital Bank, Bred Banque Populaire, GML Capital, and Banco BAI Europa. Calyon underwrote the loan, while Banco Espírito Santo, BNP Paribas and Société Générale joined during senior syndication, each of them committing $150 million. Banco BPI and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ were mandated lead arrangers, while HSBC, ING and Natixis were lead arrangers. ICBC and Bank of China committed as arrangers, DZ Bank and MediCapital Bank as lead managers and Bred Banque Populaire, GML Capital and Banco BAI Europa served as managers. The loan carried a 3.5-year maturity and an interest rate of 6-month LIBOR plus a 3% margin. The loan was secured by (i.e. collateralized against) Sonangol’s receivables from exports of oil to China.

Staff comments

1. AidData has estimated the loan's all-in interest rate -- at the time it was issued -- by adding 3% to average 6-month LIBOR in October 2009 (0.58966%). 2. A pre-export finance (PXF) facility an arrangement in which a commodity (e.g. oil) producer gets up-front cash from a customer in return for a promise to repay the customer with that commodity (possibly at a discount) in the future. PXF funds may be advanced by a lender or syndicate of lenders to a commodity producer to assist the company in meeting either its working capital needs (for example, to cover the purchase of raw materials and costs associated with processing, storage and transport) or its capital investment needs (for example, investment in plant and machinery and other elements of infrastructure). PXF facilities are usually secured by (1) an assignment of rights by the producer under an ‘offtake contract’ (i.e., a sale and purchase contract between the producer and a buyer of that producer of goods or commodities), and (2) a collection account charge over a bank account into which proceeds due to the producer from the buyer of the goods or commodities under the offtake contract are credited. There are two key documents in prepayment finance transactions: a contract providing for the advance payment by the offtaker to the producer for the purchase of goods/commodities (the 'Prepayment Contract'), and a loan agreement between a lender and the offtaker (the 'Offtaker Loan Agreement') under which the advance payment is financed. 3. The loan was also known as a receivables purchase agreement facility. It was guaranteed by Sonangol EP (exploration and production). 4. The size of Bank of China’s contribution to the lending syndicate is unknown. For the time being, AidData assumes equal contributions ($100 million) across the 15 known members of the syndicate. This issue warrants further investigation. 5. During general syndication, lenders were offered top tickets of $100 million (mandated lead arranger) and $75 million (lead arranger) for respective fees of 200 basis points and 175 basis points.