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• UKEF is supporting a GE Oil & Gas contract worth US$850 million
• the contract will support jobs in the Aberdeen and Bristol areas
• it is the first time a European export credit agency has supported a financing structure of this kind, and is UKEF鈥檚 first direct loan for a project in Africa

GE Oil & Gas, which is headquartered in the UK, is providing subsea production systems to the project, which will develop oil and gas fields approximately 60km offshore from the western side of Ghana鈥檚 coast. Following first gas production in 2018, the new fields are expected to continuously feed Ghana鈥檚 thermal power plants for more than 20 years.

Rt Hon. Greg Hands MP, Minister for Trade and Investment, said:

The Offshore Cape Three Points Project will greatly improve Ghana鈥檚 energy security. Thanks to the UK Government鈥檚 support, via UK Export Finance, and our global leadership in oil and gas, UK companies are ideally placed to support Ghana鈥檚 future development and seize the huge export potential that brings.

Lorenzo Simonelli, President and CEO of GE Oil & Gas, said:

This contract represents GE鈥檚 ability to invest to build local partnership, resource and infrastructure capabilities, and will utilise engineering and manufacturing expertise from the UK, across the supply chain. Export credit agency financing is an important source of support for our customers, and the MoU signed with UKEF in 2015 has helped to support this success.

The Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) project will develop gas reserves expected to generate an additional 1,100MW of power for Ghana, which will alleviate the country鈥檚 reliance on energy imports, providing long-term energy security and supporting Ghanaian industrial development. This transformational natural gas project will help the country achieve its COP21 commitments for climate mitigation by displacing heavy fuel oil use with gas 鈥� equivalent to taking 1.2 million cars off Ghana鈥檚 roads each year or planting 152 million trees.

Support for the contract is a result of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between GE and UKEF in 2015, affirming UKEF鈥檚 support for GE and GE鈥檚 commitment to continued investment in its UK operations.

UKEF will provide US$400 million of support to the OCTP project, including a loan under its Direct Lending Facility. This will be UKEF鈥檚 first direct loan for a project in Africa. UKEF support will finance the specialised systems and equipment, a significant proportion of which has been sourced from the UK.

OCTP is understood to be the world鈥檚 first upstream oil and gas development transaction where a European export credit agency (ECA) has supported a major hybrid finance structure comprising both project finance and reserve-based lending. As the sole ECA, UKEF played a pioneering role in establishing this precedent, reinforcing its growing reputation as one of the world鈥檚 most innovative and flexible ECAs. The transaction has been named Project Finance International鈥檚 African Oil & Gas Deal of the Year for 2016.

Total investment in the development of the OCTP are estimated to be US$7.9 billion over the life of the project, represents the largest foreign direct investment in Ghana鈥檚 history. UKEF鈥檚 support is provided as part of a larger US$1.35 billion financing package alongside that of the International Finance Corporation and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency of the World Bank Group, as well as commercial banks HSBC Bank plc, Standard Chartered Bank, Soci茅t茅 G茅n茅rale (London Branch), ING Belgium SA/NV, Natixis, Bank of China, Singapore Branch, Mizuho Bank Ltd and MUFG (Europe) N.V.

Notes for editors

1. UK Export Finance is the UK鈥檚 export credit agency and a government department, working alongside the Department for International Trade as an integral part of its strategy and operations.

2. Autumn Statement 2016 doubled UKEF鈥檚 capacity to support exports to 拢5 billion and increased its capacity for support in individual markets by up to 100%.

3. UKEF exists to ensure that no viable UK export should fail for want of finance or insurance from the private market. It provides finance and insurance to help exporters win, fulfil and ensure they get paid for export contracts.

4. Sectors in which UKEF has supported exports include: aerospace, construction, oil and gas, mining and metals, petrochemicals, telecommunications, and transport.

5. UKEF has a regional network of 24 export finance managers supporting export businesses.

6. UKEF supports exporters with a range of products that include: * Bond insurance policy * Bond support scheme * Buyer & supplier credit financing facility * Direct lending facility * Export insurance policy * Export refinancing facility * Export working capital scheme * Letter of credit guarantee scheme

7. Find the latest information on UKEF鈥檚 country cover positions