Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) announced that it will provide US$28mn subordinated loan facility to independent Tunisian energy company Topic SAs to develop Halk El Menzel offshore oil concession block, also known as Helm Project, in northern Tunisia
Topic said that the subordinated loan note has a 30 month tenor and the project is expected to start oil production in January 2018.
Commenting on the investment, Andrew Alli, CEO and President of AFC, said, “AFC is delighted to be investing in Tunisia's natural resources sector and supporting the creation of high skilled jobs.”
“AFC has a long-standing commitment to building and developing African economies that require investment in key economic sectors,” Alli added.
The Helm project is a low-cost development capital expenditure project that covers an offshore area of 570 sq km in the gulf of Hammamet in northern Tunisia, which is a significant petroleum province for the country.
Topic estimated the total cost of the project to be US$157.5mn.
The project aims to achieve first oil that will be used for transport, installation, start up and commissioning, first well drilling including acquisition of critical production installations, floating storage and offloading units, repair, upgrade of the existing buoy, supply of topside facilities and completion of a wellhead platform.
AFC, a pan-African multilateral development finance institution and project developer, is an active investor investing in Africa’s natural resources for a long time. The corporation said that it will continue to seek investment in high quality projects in the region, such as the Helm project, with providing technical and commercial support.
Alli remarked, “Tunisia has made significant progress by embarking on reforms that will drive private-sector growth and encourage investment. AFC looks forward to continuing to support the country as it enters the next growth chapter.”
