Completed Mixed AidData Chinese Aid

China Eximbank provides $12.31 million buyer’s credit loan for Alamata-Combolcha-Kotebe Substations Equipment Supply Project (Linked to Record ID#45047)

$12.31M USD

Funder	Export-Import Bank of China (China Eximbank)
Recipient Organization	Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE)
Country	Ethiopia
Start Date	Jul 11, 2008
End Date	Apr 15, 2030
Duration	7,948 days
Number of Grantees	1
Roles	Recipient
Data Source	AidData Chinese Aid
Grant ID	`92217`

Grant Description

China Eximbank provides $12.31 million buyer’s credit loan for Alamata-Combolcha-Kotebe Substations Equipment Supply Project In November 2006, China Eximbank and the Government of Ethiopia’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Development signed a $500 million buyer’s credit facility agreement (互惠贷款) — also known as a master loan framework agreement and a master facility agreement — for an unspecified set of development projects.

📋 Loan / Grant Terms

💰 Loan Amountfacility agreement (captured via Record ID#45047) carried the following borrowing terms: a 13-year maturity

📅 Maturity13 years

⏳ Grace Period4 years

All of the subsidiary loans were secured with (i.e., collateralized against) Ethiopia's export receipts to China, which at the time primarily consisted of sesame seed export receipts.

The buyer’s credit facility agreement also required that all Ethiopian exports (export receipts) to China to be overseen by the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), the country’s largest state-owned financial institution.

As a source of collateral, the borrower was required to maintain a minimum cash balance in a debt service reserve account (DSRA) at the CBE.

The cash balance of the DSRA (escrow account) was $284,368,041 as of June 30, 2011, $308,914,767 as of June 30, 2012, $300,000,000 as of June 30, 2016, $300,000,000 as of June 30, 2017, $300,000,000 (ETB 8,260,410,000) as of June 30, 2018, $300,000,000 as of June 30, 2019, ETB 10,599,600,000 as of June 30, 2020, ETB 8,058,726,059 as of June 30, 2021, ETB 10,722,750,953 as of June 30, 2022, and ETB 9,832,603,839 as of June 30, 2023. 16 subsidiary loans for 16 different projects were reportedly approved under the buyer’s credit facility agreement. 16 subsidiary loans for 16 different projects were reportedly approved under the buyer’s credit facility agreement.

According to the Government of Ethiopia’s Aid Management Platform (AMP), China Eximbank, CBE and the Government of Ethiopia signed a subsidiary buyer’s credit loan worth ETB 113,418,851 ($12,307,813.34) for the Alamata-Combolcha-Kotebe Substations Equipment Supply Project on July 11, 2008. The loan's first and last scheduled principal payment dates were December 31, 2011 and January 21, 2021, respectively.

Its first and last scheduled interest payment dates were July 1, 2009 and January 21, 2022, respectively.

The borrower was expected to use the proceeds of the loan to finance approximately 85% of the cost of a commercial (EPC) contract between the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) — an Ethiopian state-owned enterprise — and an unknown contractor.

According to the Government of Ethiopia’s AMP, the ETB 113,418,851 loan achieved a 93% disbursement rate, with China Eximbank making 4 loan disbursements (worth ETB 105,287,248) between 2010 and 2012: an ETB 43,591,509 disbursement on April 8, 2010, an ETB 16,068,027 disbursement on July 7, 2011, an ETB 2,445,704 disbursement on October 10, 2011, and an ETB 43,182,007 disbursement on January 8, 2012.

The project involved the supply of equipment to support the Alamata substation, the Combolcha (Kombolcha) substation, and the Kotebe substation.

The ultimate purpose of the project was to evacuate power generated by Tekeze hydro power plant from Alamata substation to the main load center at Kaliti via Kombolcha II substation and the Kotebe substation. The project reached completion, but its precise commencement and completion dates are unknown.

It was originally scheduled to reach completion on March 1, 2011.

📋 Staff Comments

This project is also known as the Alamata-Kombolcha-Kotebe Substations Project.
For loan and debt rescheduling records with variable interest rates, AidData calculates the all-in interest rate at T0 based on the reference rate (such as LIBOR or EURIBOR) on the loan start date, plus any known margin. Please see the methodology for additional details. For this record, the margin was taken as the midpoint between the margin range.
This buyer's credit loan from China Eximbank is not included in the database of Chinese loan commitments that SAIS-CARI released in 2020 and re-released in 2021. Nor is it included it in the China’s Overseas Development Finance Dataset that Boston University's Global Development Policy Center published in December 2020.
The AMP system identification number for this project is 8714327100842. 1 Ethiopian Birr (ETB) was equal to 0.11 United States Dollars (USD) in June 2008, which implies that the ETB 113,418,851 loan commitment recorded in the AMP was worth USD 12,476,073.61 at that time that it was contracted. However, AidData relies on the USD face value of the loan reported by MOFED through the following

📚 Sources & References

https://www.sciedupress.com/journal/index.php/jms/article/viewFile/25488/16079.5. In the absence of project commencement and completion dates
AidData has used the first loan disbursement date as a proxy for the project commencement date and the last loan disbursement date as a proxy for the project completion date. This issue warrants further investigation.6. According to CBE's financial statements for the year ending on June 30, 2012 (https://www.combanketh.et/cbeapi/uploads/2011_12_2037357399.pdf), 'CBE is the administrator of the total loan of USD 499,222,780, granted by EXIM Bank of China to the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO) and Muger Cement Enterprise (MCE). The said loans are repayable by EEPCO and MCE to CBE in Birr over a period of ten years.'7. The loan identification number in the Government of Ethiopia’s Debt Management and Financial Analysis System (DMFAS) is 20776005 and the corresponding project name in DMFAS is ‘ALAMATA-COMBOLCHA-KOTEBE-KALIT’. See https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/7nrczfanixvivmiyzqx3i/MOFED-Loan-Level-Data-on-Borrowing-Terms-and-Loan-Performance-September-2024_OTHER_PUBLIC.xlsx?rlkey=5sqhh9ii4t3x8cmz0jf6s7cod&dl=08. As of September 2024, the Government of Ethiopia recorded the loan's all-in interest rate as 2.14% in DMFAS (see https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/7nrczfanixvivmiyzqx3i/MOFED-Loan-Level-Data-on-Borrowing-Terms-and-Loan-Performance-September-2024_OTHER_PUBLIC.xlsx?rlkey=5sqhh9ii4t3x8cmz0jf6s7cod&dl=0), which suggests the possibility of a debt rescheduling involving an interest rate reduction. This issue warrants further investigation. Sources: ALAMA T A-COMBOLCHA-KOTEBE SUBST A TIONS EQUIPMENT SUPPL Y CONTRACT
ADDENDUM TO AUGUST 2016 RAP
Infrastructure Development in Ethiopia and Its Impact on Economic Diplomacy With China
List of Ethiopia- China Cooperation Major Projects from Ethiopia's Ministry of Finance September 2024
MOFED Loan-Level Data on Borrowing Terms and Loan Performance September 2024_OTHER_PUBLIC Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.

All Grantees

Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE)

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