Afreximbank to Set up $1 Billion Oil Service Financing Facility in Guyana
President Oramah highlighted the transformative potential of Guyana's estimated 12 billion barrels of crude oil reserves. Emphasising the transformative power in proactive resource management, he advised Guyana to aggressively harness and build capital from its oil resources.
He said, "Given the level of oil production in Guyana and its offshore location, I estimate that the oil service sector would amount to 5 to 8 billion US dollars annually. But where will it go? Most of it would be paid to oil service companies abroad, if Guyana does nothing to avoid that. A 50% retention in Guyana would increase Guyana's GDP by 29% to 47%.' As such, he called for robust local content policies that would enable Guyanese entrepreneurs to become significant players in the oil value chain.
Based on Afreximbank's rich history of supporting commodity-dependent economies, President Oramah shared insights to complement the ongoing efforts of the Guyanese government. He acknowledged the inherent risks associated with dependency on a single commodity and laid stress on the importance of diversification.
He cautioned, 'The commodity market is prone to volatility and cyclicality; hence, the reliance on crude revenues as a primary source of government funding could expose the national economy to volatile commodity markets." As such, he advised the government to secure long-term off-take contracts with oil service companies, which will enhance market access and price stability.
In the spirit of deepening Afri-Caribbean partnership, President Oramah remarked that skilled oil service companies from Ghana, Egypt, and South Africa, are "ready and willing to support Guyanese... And of course, Afreximbank is there to underwrite the marriage.'
He added that: 'These measures are necessary if Guyana and other new entrants in the Caribbean and Africa are to avoid the painful "Dutch Disease. We make these suggestions based on the three long decades of financing oil and gas activities across Africa. We have witnessed oil-dependent economies transform for better or worse through these periods. In all these, the difference reflected the policy choices the leaders made.'
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.
Follow us on:
X: apo-opa.co/436nryI
Facebook: apo-opa.co/3ENmLEu
LinkedIn: apo-opa.co/4bcByVp
Instagram: apo-opa.co/3Xb0g2y
About Afreximbank:
African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. For over 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa's trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA. Working with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank is setting up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to support countries effectively participating in the AfCFTA. At the end of December 2023, Afreximbank's total assets and contingencies stood at over US$37.3 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$6.1 billion. Afreximbank has investment grade ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody's (Baa1), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB). Afreximbank has evolved into a group entity comprising the Bank, its impact fund subsidiary called the Fund for Export Development Africa (FEDA), and its insurance management subsidiary, AfrexInsure (together, "the Group"). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.
For more information, visit: www.Afreximbank.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
5 hours ago
- Zawya
Rule of law is Africa's new gold: African Development Bank Group's (AfDB's) Adesina calls for bold legal and governance reforms to unlock prosperity
'When Africa stands for the rule of law, the world will stand with Africa,' the President of the African Development Bank Group ( Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has told more than 1,200 lawyers, judges, and government officials attending the Kenya Law Society's 2025 Annual Conference. Delivering the closing keynote, title Public Finance, Governance, Justice and Development, Dr. Adesina drew a clear link between judicial independence, sound public finance, and sustainable economic growth. He stressed that Africa's true wealth lies not only in its natural resources but also in its ability to govern them transparently, enforce contracts fairly, and ensure justice for all citizens. Turning challenges into opportunities Africa faces a $100 billion annual gap in foreign direct investment, he noted, a situation compounded by weak rule of law rankings, debt vulnerabilities, and predatory 'vulture fund' cases. These involve investors buying national debt at a discount on secondary markets, then exploiting weak legal systems to sue debtor nations for full repayment — plus backdated interest and legal fees. 'Evidence suggests that foreign direct investments move more to countries that have political stability, stable democracies, transparency, and low levels of corruption,' Adesina said during the conference held at Kenya's coastal town of Diani, some 35 kilometres south of Mombasa. Other key drivers, he added, include an independent and transparent judiciary, strong regulatory frameworks, public accountability, efficient public service, competition policy, and respect for intellectual property rights. He also underlined the vital connection between justice and development, arguing that access to justice must be universal. This means legal aid, digitised courts, and grievance mechanisms that bring the law closer to citizens. 'Justice is not a byproduct of development — it is the foundation of development,' he declared. Adesina urged African nations to: Strengthen judicial independence and transparency to attract global capital. Reform natural resource laws to ensure benefits reach communities, not elites. Develop sovereign wealth funds to safeguard prosperity for future generations. Build strong African arbitration systems to settle disputes locally and fairly. He challenged Africa's lawyers, judges, and arbitrators to rise as 'guardians of promise and stewards of destiny' by enforcing constitutional safeguards on public finance. He called on the Kenya Law Society members to champion ethics and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles, digitise court systems, improve legal infrastructure, and protect national assets from predatory debt practices. Adesina's keynote culminated a 3-day conference focused on corporate governance, protecting constitutionalism and the rule of law, responsible public finance management, and digitalization of legal systems. The closing ceremony included the participation of Kenya's legal luminaries and government, including Kenya's Chief Justice Martha Koome, Kenya Law Society President Faith Odhiambo, Mombasa County Governor Abdulswamad Nassir and the AfDB's Director General of East Africa Alex Mubiru. Solutions in motion The African Development Bank supports its regional member countries to address governance, public finance, and justice challenges. In Rwanda and Côte d'Ivoire, Bank support to create and modernise specialised commercial courts has reduced dispute resolution times by nearly half, unlocking more than $1 billion in investment. In Seychelles, Bank-backed constitutional reforms require all sovereign borrowing to receive parliamentary approval — contributing to a fall in the debt-to-GDP ratio from over 100% to below 55%. In Kenya, Bank-supported procurement and debt transparency reforms, including parliamentary oversight of public borrowing, are safeguarding public funds. Known as Africa's 'Optimist-in-Chief,' Adesina urged the continent's legal community to recognise that they hold the keys to turning governance into growth and making development a daily reality rather than a distant promise. 'Let us make a choice that history will record, and generations will remember,' he said. 'As lawyers, justices and guardians of the law, I urge you to uphold the rule of law, to execute justice with fairness and righteousness.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB). About the African Development Bank Group: The African Development Bank Group is Africa's premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 41 African countries with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states. For more information:
Crypto Insight
12 hours ago
- Crypto Insight
Bitcoin and Ether ETFs post $40B volume in ‘biggest week ever'
US-based spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) just logged their strongest week of combined trading volume yet, according to an ETF analyst. 'Biggest week ever for them, thanks to Ether ETFs stepping up big,' ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said in an X post on Friday. Ether ETFs were 'asleep' for 11 months, says Balchunas 'Ether ETFs' weekly volume was about $17b, blowing away record, man did it wake up in July,' Balchunas said. It came the same week Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $124,000 on Thursday, while Ether came close to reclaiming its November 2021 high of $4,878 on the same day, reaching $4,784 — just 1.94% below — according to CoinMarketCap. Since Thursday, Bitcoin has fallen 5.52% from its all-time high, trading at $117,659, while Ether has dropped 6.20% from its Thursday high, trading at $4,486. However, MN Trading Capital founder Michael van de Poppe said, 'There's way more to come for this cycle.' Ether ETFs take a sharp turn On Monday, spot Ether ETFs recorded their biggest day of net inflows ever, with flows across all funds totalling $1.01 billion. Across the first two weeks of August, they've recorded more than $3 billion in net inflows marking their second-strongest monthly performance to date. Balchunas said it was almost as if Ether ETFs were 'asleep' for the past 11 months and 'then crammed' one year's worth of activity into six weeks. While there was excitement ahead of their July 2024 launch, Ether ETFs initially saw lackluster demand, sparking speculation that Wall Street had yet to find a clear use case for the asset. Meanwhile, Bitcoin ETFs reached new highs of $73,679 just two months after launching in January 2024. Analysts are now drawing parallels between Ether's recent price surge and Bitcoin's post-ETF rally. 'This move is comparable to the BTC ETF launch, when Bitcoin continued to rally upward,' van de Poppe said, adding, 'The ETFs have a massive impact and there's a lot to come for Altcoins.' However, some analysts warn that investors must be patient before Ether reaches a new all-time high. Nansen analyst Jake Kennis said in comments shared with Cointelegraph that a new all-time high for Ether may be weeks or months away, despite ETH currently sitting only a few hundred dollars off a new record price. Source:
The National
14 hours ago
- The National
Oil prices fall more than 1% amid Trump-Putin summit in Alaska
Oil prices fell by more than 1 per cent to end the week lower as leaders of the US and Russia held a meeting in Alaska to end the Ukraine war that has shaken oil markets for more than three years with supply concerns. Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, settled 1.48 per cent lower at $65.85 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate – the gauge that tracks US crude – was down 1.81 per cent at $62.8 a barrel. For the week, Brent dropped 1.1 per cent, while WTI eased 1.7 per cent. Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump met in Alaska on Friday to hold discussions to end Ukraine war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and disrupted global financial and commodity markets. However, the summit ended without a ceasefire deal but Mr Trump described his meeting with his Russian counterpart as 'productive', adding that they 'really made some great progress' on ending the war. 'There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say, a couple of big ones that we haven't quite got there, but we've made some headway,' Mr Trump told reporters. 'I've always had a fantastic relationship with President Putin, with Vladimir.' Mr Trump offered no further details of their discussions in an interview with Fox News after the meeting, but raised the possibility of another summit that included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensk yy. "While there was no ceasefire, US President Trump made also clear that he doesn't plan to penalise the largest buyer of Russian oil, China," Giovanni Staunovo, a strategist at Swiss bank UBS told The National. "I guess market participants will today track comments from European leaders, but for now Russian supply disruption risks will remain contained." Oil markets were heavily affected after war broke out between Russia and Ukraine more than three years ago. Oil prices surged to $140 a barrel in March 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent sanctions by the US and the UK on the import of crude from Moscow. However, prices fell in the subsequent months, amid a number of factors impacting markets, including concerns of a global economic slowdown, high inflation and a China slowdown. A ceasefire deal between Ukraine and Russia could have a bearish effect on oil markets as more Russian oil could flow into global markets if sanctions are eased on Moscow. However, if the peace agreement is not reached between the two countries, it will support oil prices by limiting Russian supply. 'US crude recently breached the $65 support and is consolidating in a medium-term bearish zone, where ample supply and cloudy demand argue for further downside – though a softer dollar is cushioning the slide,' said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. Supply forecast for 2025 The International Energy Agency this week raised its forecast for oil supply growth this year following a decision by the Opec producer group to hike production and lowered its demand forecast due to lacklustre demand across the major economies. The IEA expects world oil supply to rise by about 370,000 barrels a day to 2.5 million barrels a day in 2025 and by 620,000 bpd to 1.9 million bpd in 2026, after the eight Opec members this month decided to raise production by another 547,000 bpd in September, fully unwinding the 2.2 million bpd cuts agreed to in November 2023. World oil demand will rise by 680,000 bpd this year, down from 700,000 bpd previously forecast, the Paris-based agency said. 'The latest data show lacklustre demand across the major economies and, with consumer confidence still depressed, a sharp rebound appears remote,' the Paris-based agency said. Consumption in emerging and developing economies has been weaker than expected, with China, Brazil, Egypt and India all revised down compared with last month's IEA report.
