Press Release Africa50 and the Orabank Group Signed a €75
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Press release Africa50 and the Orabank Group signed a €75 million syndicated bridge loan to finance the construction of Malicounda power plant in Senegal Lomé, March 4th, 2021 – Africa50, the pan-African infrastructure investment platform, its partners and Oragroup, the holding company of Orabank, the pan-African bank, today announced a bridge loan of 50 billion CFA francs (€75 million) contracted with Orabank Senegal, Orabank Benin, Orabank Burkina and several other commercial banks within the WAEMU zone. This bridge loan will help to get the Malicounda power plant operational before the end of the year. Africa50 and its partners are also in the process of raising long-term senior debt for the project to swap the bridge loan. The Malicounda project consists in building and operating of a 120MW combined cycle power plant, located in Malicounda, 85 kilometers from Dakar. Shareholders of the plant are Melec Powergen (MPG), Africa50, and Senelec, the national electricity company. The closing of the bridge loan reflects the strong partnership between all stakeholders in each of their fields of expertise. Africa50 leads the financial aspects of the project and was responsible for finding the provider of the bridge loan, structuring the terms of the financing and close the transaction within an 1-month timeframe. MPG, the lead co-developer, share their expertise in energy engineering, combined with its increased knowledge of plant operations in the regional market and Senelec provides their institutional support. Oragroup, the holding company of the Orabank banking franchise, well established in in twelve countries across Central and West Africa, has structured and arranged the syndication of the bridge loan with a pool of banks in the WAEMU zone. Through this transaction, the Orabank Group confirms its leadership to arrange, finance and syndicate large-scale infrastructure projects especially in the energy sector. The African Development Bank, which has been mandated as lead arranger for the senior debt, facilitated discussions with Oragroup and will continue to play a crucial role in raising long-term debt for the project. 1 About the Malicounda Power Plant Project in Senegal ➢ The project contributes to Senegal's energy transition towards cleaner, more reliable and cheaper electricity production. ➢ The transaction will allow the partners to maintain the completion date as expected by the end of 2021. ➢ With this bridge loan, Africa50 confirms the greater contribution of local banks in the funding of infrastructure projects in Africa. The total cost of the project is FCFA 100 billion (€150 million) which gave room to start the construction phase in October 2019 entirely funded by shareholders' equity, while waiting for senior debt to be raised at a later stage. The Malicounda power plant follows the Senegalese government's strategic plan for the development of the electricity sector and aims to produce more than 956 GWh per year. The electricity generated will be sold to Senelec under a 20-year power purchase agreement and will increase the country's production capacity by around 17% , reducing costs by approximately 14%, and by then inducing a significant drop in customers prices. In addition, the plant will use more efficient and environmentally friendly technologies compared to older open-cycle plants. The plant can also operate with natural gas as fuel. As such it can smooth the use of intermittent renewable electricity into the country's grid, in line with Senegal's renewable energy transition policy. In terms of socio-economic benefits, the project will create nearly 150 direct jobs, and the additional energy produced is expected to increase the national production which would result in more 76,000 jobs. The plant is expected to be operational in 2021. About Oragroup Oragroup operates in 12 countries in West and Central Africa (Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Chad, Gabon, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo) and in four monetary zones (WAEMU, CEMAC, Guinea Conakry and Mauritania). With 157 banking branches and 2,077 employees, Oragroup offers more than 500,000 customers (large national and international companies, SMEs and individuals) a wide range of banking products and services based on the principles of proximity and responsiveness. 2 By striving for financial inclusion through the launching of innovative solutions, Oragroup focuses to reach people who don’t have a bank account. This commitment is reflected in its CSR policy, which is fully integrated in its strategy and a top priority for its management, focusing on energy transition, environmental and social risk management, and the well-being of its clients and employees. For more information, please visit www.orabank.net and our integrated reporting on https://reporting.orabank.net/ but also on LinkedIn, @GroupOrabank on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Also explore KEAZ, Orabank Group's new digital platform. PRESS CONTACTS Oragroup – Communication Director 35°Nord – Press relations agency Ndèye Bineta Delphine Ndiaye Candice Tisserand +228 92 52 08 04 / +228 99 86 41 44 +33 (0) 6 49 58 26 05 [email protected] [email protected] Africa 50 – Head of Communications Fleur Tchibota [email protected] +212 666 17 10 99 3 .