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Overview

Bank of China contributes to a CAD 200 million syndicated secured credit facility to Sunshine Oilsands Ltd. for the final construction of the West Ells SAGD project (Linked to Record ID#93853)

Commitments (Constant USD, 2023)$24,095,842
Commitment Year•2012Country of Activity•CanadaDirect Recipient Country of Incorporation•CanadaOverseas Jurisdiction•CanadaSector•Industry, Mining, ConstructionFlow Type•Loan

Status

Project lifecycle

Completion

Pipeline: PledgePipeline: CommitmentImplementationCompletion

Timeline

Key dates

Commitment date
Nov 13, 2012
End (actual)
Jan 1, 2015
Last repayment (originally scheduled)
Oct 10, 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 (Canada)

Cofinancing agencies

Private Sector

  • Bank of America Canada
  • Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank)
  • HSBC Bank Canada
  • Morgan Stanley Senior Funding Inc.
  • Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD Bank Group)
  • UBS Bank (Canada)

State-owned Banks

  • ATB Financial

State-owned Commercial Banks

  • Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) (Canada) (ICBC (Canada))

Receiving agencies

Private Sector

  • Sunshine Oilsands Ltd.

Loan description

BOC and ICBC contribution to CAD 200 million syndicated secured credit facility to Sunshine Oilsands Ltd. for the final construction of the West Ells SAGD project

Interest type•UnknownMaturity•1 years

Narrative

Full Description

Project narrative

On October 12, 2012, the Bank of China's (BOC) Canadian subsidiary contributed an estimated CAD 22.22 million to a CAD 200 million syndicated secured credit facility to Sunshine Oilsands Ltd. for the completion of final construction of the West Ells project, the funding of the front end portion of the Thickwood project, and program and regulatory development to expand capacity for the West Ells, Thickwood and Legend Lake projects. The credit facility was larger than originally expected due to support from a number of outside institutions, including the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's (ICBC) Canadian subsidiary (captured at Record ID#93853). The loan had a maturity date of October 10, 2013, nearly one (1) year after the closing of the loan, although extensions were possible based on lender agreement. The interest rate is unknown. The loan was terminated on October 10, 2013, after the credit facility's maturation. The West Ells SAGD facility began operation in 2015, producing about 1,700 bbl/day of bitumen until the COVID-19 pandemic, during which the facility shut down through 2020-2021. Natural disasters and other unclear obstacles have prevented full construction of the facility's planned expansions. The facility currently produces about 1,000 bbl/day of bitumen. Sunshine Oilsands Ltd. predicted its facilities at West Ells, Thickwood, and Legend Lake to produce 200,000 bbl/day combined of bitumen when completed.

Staff comments

1. The exact contributions of Bank of China (BOC) and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) to the CAD 200 million loan are unknown. For the time being, AidData assumes that all 9 members of the lending syndicate contributed equal amounts (CAD 22,222,222). 2. ATB Financial is referred to as Alberta Treasury Branches in contemporary sources. 3. The current state of bitumen production at West Ells is unclear, as is current progress on the facility's expansion plans.