China Eximbank provides $64.3 million preferential buyer’s credit for N'djili Airport Runway Rehabilitation Project

On October 26, 2011, Sinohydro signed an EPC contract for the N'djili Airport Runway Rehabilitation Project. Then, on March 13, 2012, China Eximbank and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo signed a $64,347,960.83 preferential buyer’s credit (PBC) agreement [China Eximbank PBC n° (2011) 37 Total n°(188)] for the N'djili Airport Runway Rehabilitation Project. The proceeds from the PBC were to be used to finance 85% of the cost of the EPC contract with Sinohydro. The remaining 15% will be financed by the DRC’s Civil Aviation Administration. The exact borrowing terms of the loan are unknown, but a Public Debt Audit published by the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2013 identifies the grant element of the loan as 35.15%. According to Government of the DRC's Aid Management Platform (AMP), this loan had disbursed $32,522,038.32 as of July 2019. The project involved the refurbishing of an existing runway at the N'djili Airport that is 4,000 meters long and 60 meters wide. It also involved repairs to the airport’s navigation aid system. Sinohydro was the contractor responsible for project implementation. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on April 27, 2012 and the project was completed on October 3, 2012.

Additional details

1. In the database of Chinese loan commitments that SAIS-CARI released in July 2020, it records the face value of this loan as $60 million. AidData relies on the face value that the Office of the President reported in the Journal Officiel de la République Démocratique du Congo. 2. This project is also known as the N’Djili Airport Runway Refurbishment Project. The French project title is La réhabilitation de la piste de l’Aéroport International de N’djili. The Chinese project title is 金沙萨恩吉利国际机场跑道改造项目 or 恩吉利国际机场跑道 or 恩吉利机场跑道修复工程举.

Number of official sources

11

Number of total sources

19