Completed Mixed AidData Chinese Aid

China Eximbank provides $323.2 million preferential buyer’s credit for Phase 1 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project (Linked to Record ID#61221)

$323.27M USD

Funder	Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank)
Recipient Organization	Government of Equatorial Guinea
Country	Equatorial Guinea
Start Date	Mar 26, 2010
End Date	Nov 30, 2026
Duration	6,093 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`2108`

Grant Description

China Eximbank provides $323.2 million preferential buyer’s credit for Phase 1 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project On March 26, 2010, China Eximbank and the Government of Equatorial Guinea signed a $323,274,071 preferential buyer’s credit (PBC) agreement {CHINA EXIMBANK PBC NO. (2010) 9 TOTAL NO. (116)} for Phase 1 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project.

The President of China Eximbank and the Finance Minister for Equatorial Guinea signed the agreement.

The proceeds of the loan were used to finance a $323,274.071 commercial (EPC) contract between the Government to Equatorial Guinea and Sinohydro Bureau 6 Co., Ltd. (中国电建水电六局), which was signed on June 20, 2009.

According to Caja Autónoma de Amortización de la Deuda Pública within Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Finance and Budget, the China Eximbank loan for Phase 1 of the Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project had disbursed $293,256,502 as of December 31, 2019 and the borrower had made principal ($68,426,517.11) and interest ($25,983,995.45) payments worth $94,410,512.56 as of December 31, 2019.

The loan's principal amount outstanding was $224,829,984.89 as of December 31, 2019.

The project involved the construction of three new substations and a dispatch center, the construction and renovation of 203 box-type substations, the installation of 764 km of high, medium and low voltage cables, and the installation 110 km of road lighting in Bata City.

Sinohydro Bureau 6 Co., Ltd. (also known as China Water Resources and Hydropower Sixth Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd) -- a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Power Construction Group Corporation -- was the contractor responsible for project implementation. A groundbreaking ceremony for this project took place on October 12, 2009.

Construction was reportedly completed in 2013.

Then, in November 2014, the substations and dispatching center were put into operation, delivering power from the China Eximbank-financed Djibloho Hydropower Station (see Record ID#995) to the national grid. The project was officially handed over to the local authorities on February 19, 2015.

📋 Staff Comments

The Chinese project title is 的巴塔电网改造和扩建工程 or 建的巴塔电网改扩建项目. The Spanish project title is el Proyecto de Expansion y Modernizaci6n de la Red de Transmision Electrica en la Ciudad de Bata.
The loan's face (commitment) value is recorded as $299,999,584 and as $323,274.071 in various official sources, including the Ministry of Finance Statements on Equatorial Guinea's External Debt Situation (see https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/20hjuaclx0huk36o4oqnf/Ministry-of-Finance-Statements-on-Equatorial-Guinea-s-External-Debt-Situation-2009-2019.xlsx?rlkey=sj7qii1zooaiwdi649d1yri1k&dl=0) and ‘Cuadro General de la deuda al 31/12/2019’ from the Caja Autónoma de Amortización de la Deuda Pública within Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Finance and Budget. This discrepancy warrants further investigation.
China Eximbank also financed Phase 2 of Bata City Power Grid Expansion Project (as captured via Record ID#61221).
The borrower made debt service payments to the lender from an escrow account (ID#136000010000719160). See https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pk6rsp7qlg3uigv79jk4t/ordenes_de_pago_2020.pdf?rlkey=woy2yflgemcgvglz4392qg3qm&dl=0

📚 Sources & References

http://www.sasac.gov.cn/n1180/n1226/n2410/n314289/11740126.html, http://eng.sinohydro.com/en/idems/newsShow.asp?ArticleID=139&ClassID=2
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