China Eximbank provides RMB 1.08 billion seller's credit to Harbin Electric Company for Phase I of the 212MW El-Jaili (Garri/Qarre) Gas Power Plant Construction Project (Linked to Record ID#2163, #55858)

Project narrative

On November 16, 2000, Harbin Electric International Company Limited (HEC; formerly known as Harbin Power Equipment Co. Ltd. or HPEC) and Sudan's Ministry of Energy signed a framework agreement in which the Chinese company pledged to finance and build Phase I of the 212MW El-Jaili (Garri/Qarre) Gas Power Plant Construction Project. Then, on October 15, 2001, China Eximbank signed an RMB 1.08 billion ($128 million) seller's credit agreement with HEC to finance the Chinese company's commercial contract with the Sudan National Electricity Corporation (NEC). The borrowing terms of the loan are unknown. However, it is known that the loan was secured with (i.e. collateralized against) future revenues from oil export receipts. It is also known that China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) provided credit insurance for the loan. The total project cost was about $150 million. The Government of Sudan reportedly contributed $18 million for the completion of the El-Jaili Refinery, which provides the gas inputs for the El-Jaili (Garri/Qarre) Gas Power Power Plant. The project involved the construction of a combined cycle power plant, a 100-km electricity transmission line, a new substation, and the expansion of an old substation. The project site is located in El-Gaili (or Al Jaily or El-Jaili), about 80 km north of Khartoum. Harbin Electric Company Limited (HEC) was the contractor responsible for implementation. Construction began on March 28, 2003. Three gas turbines were successfully connected to Sudan's power grid by July 5, 2003. China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing and Sudanese Electricity Minister Ali Temim Fertak officially inaugurated the Qarre I plant on January 5, 2004.