China Eximbank provides $299.9 million buyer’s credit loan for Phase 1 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project (Linked to Project ID#484, #61221)

In 2006, China Eximbank and the Government of Equatorial Guinea signed a $2 billion oil-backed buyer’s credit facility agreement for various infrastructure projects (captured in Project ID#484). All subsidiary loans approved under this facility agreement carry the following terms: a 5.5% interest rate, 5 year maturity, and 2 year grace period. Then, on March 26, 2010, China Eximbank and the Government of Equatorial Guinea signed a $299,999,584 subsidiary buyer’s credit loan agreement for Phase 1 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project. The President of China Eximbank and the Finance Minister for Equatorial Guinea signed the agreement. The proceeds of the loan were used to partially finance a $323 million commercial (EPC) contract between the Government to Equatorial Guinea and Sinohydro Bureau 6 Co., Ltd. (中国电建水电六局), which was signed on June 20, 2009. This project involved the construction of three new substations and a dispatch center, the construction and renovation of 203 box-type substations, the installation of 764 km of high, medium and low voltage cables, and the installation 110 km of road lighting in Bata City. Sinohydro Bureau 6 Co., Ltd. (also known as China Water Resources and Hydropower Sixth Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd) -- a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Power Construction Group Corporation -- was the contractor responsible for project implementation. A groundbreaking ceremony for this project took place on October 12, 2009. Construction was reportedly completed in 2013. Then, in November 2014, the substations and dispatching center were put into operation, delivering power from the China Eximbank-financed Djibloho Hydropower Station (see Project ID#995) to the national grid. The project was officially handed over to the local authorities on February 19, 2015. According to Caja Autónoma de Amortización de la Deuda Pública within Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Finance and Budget, the China Eximbank buyer’s credit loan for the project had disbursed $293,256,502 as of December 31, 2019 and the borrower had made principal ($68,426,517.11) and interest ($25,983,995.45) repayments worth $94,410,512.56 as of December 31, 2019. China Eximbank also financed Phase 2 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project (captured via Project ID#61221)

Additional details

1. The Chinese project title is 的巴塔电网改造和扩建工程 or 建的巴塔电网改扩建项目. 2. The face value of the loan is drawn from ‘Cuadro General de la deuda al 31/12/2019’ from the Caja Autónoma de Amortización de la Deuda Pública within Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Finance and Budget.

Number of official sources

17

Number of total sources

25