CDB provides $117 million loan for Pedras Negras Farm Project (Linked to Record ID#67)

Project narrative

In 2009, China Development Bank (CDB) and CITIC Construction officials visited Malanje Province in Angola to obtain information about the province’s potential, including its water resources, arable land, soil fertility and most important crops. Then, on October 29, 2010, CITIC Construction and Angola’s Ministry of Agriculture signed a $120 million commercial contract for the Pedras Negras Farm Project. Then, in 2011, China Development Bank approved a $117 million subsidiary loan for this project through a larger $1.5 billion line common terms agreement that it signed with the Government of Angola (as captured via Record ID#67). The proceeds of the loan were to be used by the borrower to finance the commercial contract that was signed on October 29, 2010. The first three years of the project (and CITIC contract period) were used to clear land, build farm infrastructure, and conduct plant experimentation; the final two years of the project (and CITIC contract period) were used to train Angolan farmers in technology and land management. The Pedras Negras farm in Malanje Province covers an area of about 10,000 hectares and harvests over 10,000 tons of maize, beans, and soybeans per harvest season. It is reportedly is one of the most advanced and modern farms in Angola. CITIC Construction was the contractor responsible for implementation. However, Gesterra, a land management company owned by the Angolan Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development, and Fisheries, was also involved in the management of the project. Site reclamation began in August 2010, but the project did not officially commence until October 14, 2011. An inauguration ceremony for the project was held on August 30, 2012, but the project was not officially handed over to the Angolan authorities until November 2016.