A coalition of oil-producing African countries is seeking $5bn to launch an “energy bank” that would fund projects on the continent, as frustration grows over the reluctance of western institutions to bankroll fossil fuel initiatives because of environmental concerns.
The 18-member African Petroleum Producers’ Organization hopes the lender can begin operating in early 2025, according to Haytham El Maayergi, executive vice-president of global trade at the African Export-Import Bank, a partner in the project.
Africa’s oil producers have encountered funding restrictions from traditional western backers, including multilateral institutions whose rules increasingly bar them from oil and gas investing. The World Bank stopped financing upstream oil and gas projects in 2019 while the African Development Bank, which has the US as its number two shareholder, does not put money into fossil fuel projects.