Timeline: $5bn Africa Energy Bank raise 45% initial fund

African oil-producing nations have secured 45 per cent of the initial $5 billion required to establish the Africa Energy Bank (AEB), aimed at financing oil projects across the continent in response to a lack of funding from international markets.

Here is the timeline of the project

May 15, 2022: During the 42nd session of the APPO Ministerial Council in Luanda, Angola, a resolution was passed, instructing the APPO Secretary-General and the Director of the Africa Energy Investment Corporation (AEICORP) to negotiate with Afreximbank on the creation of the Africa Energy Bank.

September 7, 2023: Ghana confirmed its readiness to host the Africa Energy Bank (AEB), joining Nigeria, Algeria, South Africa, Benin, Cote D’Ivoire, and Egypt, although Egypt later withdrew, in the bid to host the Bank’s headquarters.

March 2024: APPO Secretary-General Ibrahim announced that the Bank had begun receiving contributions from APPO member states.

June 3, 2024: The signing ceremony for the Establishment Agreement and Charter of the Africa Energy Bank took place in Cairo.

July 4, 2024: Abuja, Nigeria, was chosen to host the headquarters of the AEB during the 45th Extraordinary Session of the APPO Ministerial Council.

July 5, 2024: APPO sent a formal communication to Nigeria to discuss fast-tracking the establishment of the Bank.

July 8 & 9, 2024: APPO held an executive retreat to deliberate on the future of Africa’s oil and gas industry amidst the energy transition and the role of the AEB in addressing funding challenges within the sector.

July 11, 2024: At the 18th ordinary meeting of the APPO executive board in Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, Ibrahim confirmed the Bank’s inauguration would take place in September 2024.

July 17, 2024: Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, revealed that the AEB’s initial $5 billion fund would grow to $120 billion over the next three to five years.

October 3, 2024: Member states secured 45 per cent of the initial $5 billion needed to establish the Africa Energy Bank, which aims to fund oil projects across the continent, addressing the shortfall of international financing.