Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On September 20, 2018, Zhejiang Ocean Family Co., Ltd (大洋世家) and the Government of Kiribati signed an agreement regarding potential cooperation in the fisheries sector. Then, in February 2019, China's NDRC approved a proposal by Zhejiang Ocean Family Co., Ltd (大洋世家) to build five large-scale tuna fishing boats in Kiribati and carry out fishing operations in the waters of Kiribati. Approximately one month later, on March 30, 2019, Zhejiang Ocean Family Co., Ltd and the Government of Kiribati signed a joint venture agreement to establish the Kiribati Tuna Fishing Co., Ltd. (基里巴斯金枪鱼捕捞有限公司，英文名称为). Kiribati Tuna Fishing Co., Ltd. was legally incorporated as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) on July 9, 2019. It is jointly owned by Zhejiang Ocean Family Co., Ltd (51% equity stake) and the Government of Kiribati (49% equity stake) and responsible for implementing a Tuna Fishing Project. The total cost of the Tuna Fishing Project is RMB 1 billion and it is being financed with a mix of debt and equity. China Eximbank issued a loan to Kiribati Tuna Fishing Co., Ltd., which is backed by a Sinosure credit insurance policy that provided $100 million of overseas investment (debt) insurance cover. The purpose of the Tuna Fishing Project is to build five large-scale tuna fishing boats in Kiribati and carry out fishing operations in the waters of Kiribati. As of February 2023, there was no evidence of project implementation.
Staff comments
1. The precise monetary value of the China Eximbank loan that was issued for the Tuna Fishing Project is unknown. For the time being, AidData adopts the conservative assumption that the project is being financed according to a debt-to-equity ratio of 70:30, which implies that the face value of the China Eximbank loan is equivalent to RMB 700 million. This issue warrants further investigation. 2. The precise date on which the China Eximbank loan was issued is unknown. For the time being, AidData assumes that the loan was issued at the time that the SPV was created (July 9, 2019). This issue warrants further investigation. 3. Kiribati Tuna Fishing Co., Ltd. should not be confused with a separate SPV called Kiritimati Island Fish Limited (圣诞岛渔业有限公司), which is a joint venture of Zhejiang Ocean Family Co., Ltd (40% equity stake), the Government of Kiribati (30% equity stake), and Golden Ocean Fish (Fiji) Limited (30% equity stake). The groundbreaking ceremony for the Tarawa base fishing project being implemented by Kiritimati Island Fish Limited took place in September 2021. It is unclear how this project is being financed. This issue merits further investigation. See https://pdf.dfcfw.com/pdf/H2_AN202106281500540089_1.pdf and http://www.zheyu.cn/news_more.asp?id=438&classid=8. 4. The Chinese project title is 基里巴斯远洋渔业捕捞项目 or 大洋世家渔业合作项.