Inside Africa

Conversations on opportunities, challenges and trends

Africa is growing at a rapid pace. Investment opportunities abound. But with every opportunity comes challenges.

Inside Africa explores the hot topics affecting companies doing business in Africa. Our lawyers examine the key trends and risks affecting a range of sectors, from the adoption digital technologies and the rise of renewables, to integrating mining supply chains and the construction of critical transport infrastructure.

Our finance, construction, corporate, tax, regulatory, and disputes lawyers provide key thought leadership on the critical issues facing lenders, borrowers, investors, operators, developers, service providers, governments, and local lawyers as they work to underpin growth across all regions of the continent.

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Sovereign Guarantees for Energy Projects in Africa

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Inside Africa video series

Sovereign Guarantees for Energy Projects in Africa

Investors may be wary of of committing funds to energy projects in Africa because they perceive the risks to be too great.

Global | Video | March 04, 2024

State for clarity: Investor – State arbitration in Africa

High levels of political and economic instability in some African countries can often give rise to disputes between investors and the state when it comes to the development and operation of energy, mining and infrastructure projects across the continent.

Global | Video | January 04, 2024

Managing ESG disputes risks in Africa

ESG-related disputes are rising all around the world, and Africa is no exception. Although one of the most well-known risks relates to greenwashing - where a company is alleged to have overstated their ESG credentials - there are many other ways in which companies, particularly investors in Africa, may face potential ESG litigation risks.

Global | Video | December 06, 2023

Investing in conflict zones: Navigating and managing risk

From termination rights, rights to delay, suitable warranty protection, relevant insurance and rights and obligations, there are a number of factors to consider when investing in a conflict-affected region.

Global | Video | November 22, 2023

Battery storage in Africa: Trends and challenges

BESS projects are a solution to a number of inherent issues and challenges that many African jurisdictions face from a power supply perspective. Looking at jurisdictions like South Africa, for example, which is currently facing power challenges at present, you can see the case of BESS solutions (amongst other things) in addressing the power crisis.

Global | Video | September 27, 2023

Mining finance trends in Africa

The UN estimates that Africa is home to 30 percent of the world’s mineral resources, including many of the critical minerals that drive the energy transition, such as cobalt, nickel, lithium, and graphite, and a number of rare earth metals (key to the production of the permanent magnets used in electric vehicles and in wind turbines).

Global | Video | September 08, 2023

Experience highlights

North Africa

Led by our offices in France and in Casablanca, Morocco, we have an established presence in North Africa, dating back 20 years. Our clients include leading domestic and international corporates, financial institutions and state entities.

We advise on local and international law and are particularly strong in energy, infrastructure, telecommunications, financial institutions and real estate. We established our Casablanca office in Morocco in 2011 and in the same year were recognised as ‘the leading international law firm in the Moroccan market’ in Legal 500, and have maintained our Tier 1 ranking since. As the top international practice in Morocco, we are recognized for our work in corporate, M&A and securities, and we are helping many leading North African clients in financial institutions, infrastructure and other sectors to expand into southern Africa.

Our work highlights include

Africa’s Largest Renewable Energy Transaction, Egypt \| Advising Infinity Power in connection with its acquisition of the entire shareholding of Lekela Power (Lekela), an Africa based wind power platform, from a consortium led by Actis and Mainstream funds. We supported Infinity Power through the negotiations on this milestone transaction, which was funded in part through an innovative debt structure provided by Absa Bank Limited (acting through its Corporate and Investment Banking Division) and The Mauritius Commercial Bank Limited.	Egypt Solar \| Advising a consortium of lenders, led by International Finance Corporation (IFC), on the US$653 million financing of 13 solar power projects in Egypt through the FiT scheme. The projects will form part of the Benban Solar Park, which, once complete, will be the largest solar installation in the world. Won Global Multilateral Deal of the Year and MENA Infrastructure Programme of the Year from Project Finance International magazine (PFI) 2017.
Container Terminal 3, Morocco \| Advising Banque Central Populaire (BCP) group on the €133 million financing of part of the construction costs of Container Terminal 3 (TC3) at the Tanger Med 2 port in Morocco, operated by Tanger Alliance.	Zenata greenfield project, Morocco \| Advising the Emirati group Al-Futtaim on extending the Zenata greenfield project, a new city with a commercial zone located by the sea front near Casablanca. This is one of the most ambitious greenfield projects in the region with significant commercial potential and an opportunity for Al-Futtaim to develop its business in Morocco.
Seawater desalination plant, Morocco \| Advising a consortium comprising Spanish company Abengoa and investment fund InfraMaroc (CDG Group), on the structuring, drafting and negotiation of contractual documentation relating to a seawater desalination plant in Morocco. The project will allow the region to possess an agricultural water supply at extremely competitive prices.	Sokhna Port, Egypt \| Advising DP World in relation to its acquisition of 90% of Egyptian Container Handling Company S.A.E, the owner of Sokhna Port Development Company S.A.E, the concession holder and operator of Sokhna Port on the Red Sea coast.
Akwa Group and Chevron partnership \| Advising Akwa Group on the expansion of the partnership between Akwa Group and Chevron to 14 African countries covering North Africa, Central Africa and West Africa. Akwa Group is a major energy player in Morocco.	5 PV power plants, Tunisia \| Advising the Tunisian Government and GIZ on the implementation of the Tunisian Solar Plan for the production of electricity from renewable energy sources and the 2030 energy strategy.
Algiers Commuter Rail Services, Algeria \| Advising the Algerian Government and the National Company for Rail Transport Government of Algeria (SNTF) as regards attracting an international rail operator to run its suburban rail system in Algiers, including the drafting, negotiation and implementation of an operating contract (on a PPP basis).	First solar and wind IPPs, Tunisia \| Advising on the first solar and wind IPPs in Tunisia, in particular advising on bankability risk allocation issues. We are also assisting with the tender relating to the award under the concessions regime of five PV power plants for an aggregate capacity of 500 MW, and on the concession agreement, the power purchase agreement, the direct agreements and land agreement for these.
Container Terminal, Egypt \| Advising P&O Ports (as international investor and operator) on the proposed greenfield development of a new US$600 million greenfield transhipment container terminal at the mouth of the Suez Canal (being the first major BOT port concession agreement with the Government of Egypt).	Afriquia Gaz, LNG sales with Sound Energy, Morocco \| Advising Afriquia Gaz SA, a Moroccan leader in liquid petroleum gas distribution, on signing a 10-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply contract with Sound Energy, as well as a £2m equity subscription agreement with the upstream gas company. The binding agreement covers delivery from Sound Energy to Afriquia Gaz of a daily quantity of between 475 and 546 cubic meters of LNG from the TE-5 well in Tendrara in Morocco.
Dem Arzew desalination and power project, Algeria \| Advising Black & Veatch in connection with its participation in a project to develop, finance, construct, own and operate a desalination facility to generate 200MW (approx.) of electric power and produce 40,000 cubic meters (approx.) per day of finished water.	Suez Canal Container Terminal, Egypt \| Advising IFC on a proposed loan to Suez Canal Container Terminal (SCCT), a project company which is majority owned by APM Terminals, alongside the Suez Canal Economic Zone and Cosco Shipping.
	First-in-market green hydrogen project, Egypt \| Advising a major independent oil company taking the largest equity interest in a first-in-market hydrogen Project in Egypt.

West Africa

We have extensive experience of working on project finance transactions in West Africa, particularly in Ghana and Nigeria. We have worked closely with governments throughout the region, and helped a wide variety of firms and institutions realise transformative projects, including major road, rail and shipping infrastructure. We are particularly familiar with the region’s mining, commodities, oil and gas actors, and the funding agencies that support them.

Our work highlights include

Simandou iron ore mine and related infrastructure, Guinea \| Advising Winning Consortium Simandou on all aspects of its investment in Guinea to build a rail and port infrastructure to support its Simandou iron ore mine. Our role includes advising on joint venture arrangements with Simfer (a consortium led by Rio Tinto), project and investment agreements with the Government of Guinea, funding arrangements with Chinese SOE investors including Baowu and Chinalco, and project development agreements including transshipment arrangements.	158MW wind power project, Senegal \| Advising the sponsors, French renewable energy company Sarréole and private equity fund Lekela power, on the project financing of the 158MW wind power project located in Taiba N’Diaye, Senegal
Presidential Power Initiative, Nigeria \| Advising FGNPC and the Ministry of Finance in relation to the development and financing of the Presidential Power Initiative, a transformational power distribution and transmission upgrade project across Nigeria.	Azura-Edo power plant, Nigeria \| Advising African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM), one of Africa’s leading infrastructure equity investment managers and a member of Old Mutual Alternative Investments, on all aspects of the sale of its minority stake in the Azura-Edo power plant in Nigeria.
Compagnie Des Bauxites de Guinea \| Advising CBG (which is owned by Rio Tinto, Alcoa, Dadco and the State of Guinea) in connection with the c.$800m expansion of its Sangaredi bauxite mine in western Guinea and its most recent $200m financing of its shared railway infrastructure, which closed in Q4 2020.	50MW solar PV plant, Mali \| Advising Investec Asset Management Proprietary Limited (Investec) as mandated lead arranger and a consortium of lenders in relation to the senior and mezzanine financing facilities on a 50MW solar PV plant in Sikasso, Mali, for the first French green Independent power producer, Akuo Energy.
Ecobank Ghana Limited \| Advising Ecobank Ghana Limited on arranging the advance of a USD199, 764,912.86 guarantee facility with a syndicate of 11 lenders to Newmont Golden Ridge Limited and Newmont Ghana Gold Limited to secure the borrowers’ obligations under reclamation security agreements they had in place with the Ghanaian Environmental Protection Agency.	OCTP block, Ghana \| Advising Eni on the development of oil and gas resources in the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) block. This US$6bn offshore oil and gas project will be a major boost to oil and gas production in Ghana.
US$2.5bn RBL refinancing, Ghana \| Advising Tullow Oil plc in relation to its US$2.5 billion reserves based facilities, provided by a consortium of 18 commercial banks provided US$2.4 billion of the facilities, and International Finance Corporation has provided a separate US$100 million facility. This was awarded Best Oil and Gas Deal of the Year at EMEA Finance’s Project Finance Awards 2017.	Kamsar oil refinery, Guinea \| Advising the lenders in relation to the financing of the Kamsar oil refinery in Guinea, including senior and subordinated tranches and intercreditor arrangements.
Project Gujeni, Nigeria \| Advising a syndicate of lenders including commercial lenders and a development finance institution in relation to putting in place the financing to a subsidiary of African Industries Group for the development and operation of an iron-ore mine and construction and operation of a direct reduced iron plant (DRI Plant) located in Gujeni, Nigeria.	LNG supply project, Benin \| Advising Total, the Second-Largest Private Global LNG Player on the development of Benin's supply project for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG-Gas).
Helios Towers, Senegal \| Advising International Finance Corporation (IFC), Société Générale (SG) and BNP Paribas (BNPP) in respect of two separate facilities to Helios Towers Senegal SAU, a subsidiary of the LSE-listed telecoms tower company Helios Towers PLC, as borrower.	Lekki Port project, Nigeria \| Advising the lenders, development finance institutions and export credit agencies on the US$1.6billion project financing of Lekki Port, a new greenfield port in the Lagos free trade zone. This was named Africa Transport Infrastructure Deal of the Year by Project Finance International.
Energy storge system, Senegal \| Advising developers on the development, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of a standalone energy storage system of 40 MW (BESS) situated in Senegal.	Atuabo Free Port Project, Ghana \| Advising the lenders including, Standard Chartered Bank, Standard Bank and International Finance Corporation on their project financing of the Atuabo Oil and Gas Free Port in Ghana. The port will serve as an oil and gas logistics hub, servicing the offshore industry in Ghana.
Port of Libreville, Gabon \| Advising Singaporean-company Portek International on the renegotiation of the Concession of the Port of Libreville including leading the in-country negotiation with the government of Gabon.	Port of Dakar Container Terminal, Senegal \| Advising Standard Chartered Bank and African Development Bank on the financing of the first PPP concession project entered into by Dakar Port Authority. The project consists of the refurbishment, expansion and operation of Senegal’s only container terminal. Named Africa Transport Infrastructure Deal of the Year by Project Finance International.
Hydropower in Singrobo, Côte d'Ivoire \| Advising a pool of lenders lead by African Development Bank on the project financing of the 44MW hydropower project located in Singrobo, approximately 140KM north from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.	Addax biofuels and power project, Sierra Leone \| Advising the lenders including FMO, EAIF, AfDB, DEG, ICF-Debt Pool LLP and the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa Limited in relation to the project financing of the Addax power and biofuels project. This project was the first energy project to be project financed in Sierra Leone.
	Formation of sub-Saharan and Asia (EARF) \| Advising an initial senior investor group in connection with the formation of the Energy Access Relief Fund (EARF), a first-of-its-kind relief fund to protect energy access in the wake of COVID-19 for nearly 20 million people in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. The EARF was launched with a first close of US$68 million and a target of over US$80 million.

Central Africa

The team has advised on dozens of award-winning financings in key Central African markets including Cameroon. Our work in the region is heavily connected to the mining and commodities industries, their operations, and the port and rail infrastructure that supports them.

We have significant and hands-on experience in the application of the African business laws under OHADA (Organisation for the Harmonisation of Companies Law in Africa) and the interface issues between it and local law.
Our work highlights include

US$180m sale of assets, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea \| Advising Tullow Oil plc (Tullow) on the US$180 million sale of assets in West Africa to Panoro Energy ASA (Panoro). Tullow has signed two separate sale and purchase agreements with Panoro for the sale of its assets in Equatorial Guinea and the Dussafu asset in Gabon.	Shalina on financing agreement with Trafigura, DR Congo \| Advising Shalina Resources a leading and established vertically integrated copper and cobalt producer with assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), on a US$600 million financing agreement with global commodity trading company Trafigura Pte. Ltd.
Nachtigal Hydro Power Company, Cameroon \| Advising Africa50, the pan-African infrastructure investment platform, on the acquisition from the government of Cameroon of 15% of the equity stake in the Nachtigal Hydro Power Company (NHPC), which runs the Nachtigal hydropower project in Cameroon.	RTR copper and cobalt project, DR Congo \| Advising Eurasian Resources Group and its subsidiary Metalkol S.A. on the construction and financing its RTR copper and cobalt project in the Kolwezi region of the DRC, using a Chinese EPC contractor and accessing financing from Chinese banks, with Sinosure cover, through the EPC contractor.
Mbalam – Nabeba Iron Ore Project, Cameroon \| Advising the sponsors, Sundance Resources Limited, on the financing of two iron ore mines (production target 35 Mtpa) and associated greenfield rail and port infrastructure and logistics services to transport the ore to market. The project involves a 540km rail line including a cross border spur into the Republic of Congo, and a new deep water port terminal at Kribi on the Cameroon coast.	Ngovayang iron ore project, Cameroon \| Advising Legend Mining in relation to its sale of its Ngovayang iron ore project in Cameroon to Jindal Steel and Power, including advising on how to deal with Cameroonian interested parties and associated historical contractual arrangements and all Australian regulatory issues.
Sale of AES Sonel, Cameroon \| Advising for several years until and including on the sale of its shareholding as the majority private investor and operator of AES SONEL the national power company of Cameroon including on the renegotiation of the concessions arrangements, relation with the Government as co-shareholder and the regulatory authority.	CDM Landfill Gas Project, Cameroon \| Advising the trading JV of a major French bank and an industry company in relation to the development of the landfill gas project which qualifies as a CDM project under the Kyoto Protocol.
Kribi port infrastructure, Cameroon \| Advising Necotrans on the partnership contract with the Kribi Port Multi Operators (KPMO) consortium, consisting of nine local operators, for the operation and maintenance of the multipurpose terminal at the deep-water port of Kribi in Cameroon.	Financing new gas and HFO power stations, Cameroon \| Advising AES Sonel on the development and project financing of two 216MW and 86MW gas and HFO powered in Cameroon (US$470 million).
Djermaya Solar project, the first IPP in Chad \| Advising the project company, Djermaya CDEN Energy S.A.S., on the development and financing of phase 1 of a solar project with a total capacity of approximately 34 MWp to be located 30 kilometres north of N’Djamena, Chad. The project consists of the development, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of a 60MW greenfield solar photovoltaic plant developed in two phases, a transmission line and associated interconnection facilities.	Telecoms infrastructure, DRC \| Advising Eastcastle Infrastructure on all aspects of its state-of-the-art build to suit operations and tower acquisitions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including in relation to acquisition and capex financings from the International Finance Corporation, Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund and the Standard Bank of South Africa.
ESI builds solar PV plant for rural electrification, DR Congo \| Advising ESI SpA with the construction of a solar photovoltaic plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo and on its collaboration with The AVSI Foundation, a non-profit that develops projects for cooperation, development and humanitarian aid in 33 countries.	Etoile and Mutoshi Cobalt / Copper Projects, DRC \| Advising Shalina Resources Limited in relation to the financing and development of all aspects of the development of Etoile I and II and Mutoshi. We started with a simple US$8m loan from Standard Bank, financings from Rawbank and Equity Bank, a full project financing from FBN and AFC and now to a US$600 million financing agreement with Trafigura//TDB.
Kamoa Copper Project, DRC \| Advising Kamoa Copper S.A. on the US$200M financing in relation to phase three of the expansion of its operations at the world-class Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex (Kamoa) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).	Mining code negotiation, DRC \| Advising a group of leading international mining companies, representing 85% of the mining industry in the DRC, in their negotiations with the DRC government in the context of the 2018 Reform of the mining code aimed at calling into question the existing arrangements.

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Contacts

Laura Kiwelu

Partner

laura.kiwelu@nortonrosefulbright.com

London

T: +44 20 7444 2603

Martin McCann

Partner

martin.mccann@nortonrosefulbright.com

London

T: +44 (20) 74443573

Bayo Odubeko

Partner

bayo.odubeko@nortonrosefulbright.com

London

T: +44 (20) 74442745

Christophe Asselineau

Partner

christophe.asselineau@nortonrosefulbright.com

Paris

T: +33 (1) 56595234

Madhavi Gosavi

Head of Banking and Finance, EMEA

madhavi.gosavi@nortonrosefulbright.com

London

T: +44 (20) 74443578

Daniel Metcalfe

Partner

daniel.metcalfe@nortonrosefulbright.com

London

T: +44 (20) 74442551

Africa’s Largest Renewable Energy Transaction, Egypt \| Advising Infinity Power in connection with its acquisition of the entire shareholding of Lekela Power (Lekela), an Africa based wind power platform, from a consortium led by Actis and Mainstream funds. We supported Infinity Power through the negotiations on this milestone transaction, which was funded in part through an innovative debt structure provided by Absa Bank Limited (acting through its Corporate and Investment Banking Division) and The Mauritius Commercial Bank Limited.	Egypt Solar \| Advising a consortium of lenders, led by International Finance Corporation (IFC), on the US$653 million financing of 13 solar power projects in Egypt through the FiT scheme. The projects will form part of the Benban Solar Park, which, once complete, will be the largest solar installation in the world. Won Global Multilateral Deal of the Year and MENA Infrastructure Programme of the Year from Project Finance International magazine (PFI) 2017.
Container Terminal 3, Morocco \| Advising Banque Central Populaire (BCP) group on the €133 million financing of part of the construction costs of Container Terminal 3 (TC3) at the Tanger Med 2 port in Morocco, operated by Tanger Alliance.	Zenata greenfield project, Morocco \| Advising the Emirati group Al-Futtaim on extending the Zenata greenfield project, a new city with a commercial zone located by the sea front near Casablanca. This is one of the most ambitious greenfield projects in the region with significant commercial potential and an opportunity for Al-Futtaim to develop its business in Morocco.
Seawater desalination plant, Morocco \| Advising a consortium comprising Spanish company Abengoa and investment fund InfraMaroc (CDG Group), on the structuring, drafting and negotiation of contractual documentation relating to a seawater desalination plant in Morocco. The project will allow the region to possess an agricultural water supply at extremely competitive prices.	Sokhna Port, Egypt \| Advising DP World in relation to its acquisition of 90% of Egyptian Container Handling Company S.A.E, the owner of Sokhna Port Development Company S.A.E, the concession holder and operator of Sokhna Port on the Red Sea coast.
Akwa Group and Chevron partnership \| Advising Akwa Group on the expansion of the partnership between Akwa Group and Chevron to 14 African countries covering North Africa, Central Africa and West Africa. Akwa Group is a major energy player in Morocco.	5 PV power plants, Tunisia \| Advising the Tunisian Government and GIZ on the implementation of the Tunisian Solar Plan for the production of electricity from renewable energy sources and the 2030 energy strategy.
Algiers Commuter Rail Services, Algeria \| Advising the Algerian Government and the National Company for Rail Transport Government of Algeria (SNTF) as regards attracting an international rail operator to run its suburban rail system in Algiers, including the drafting, negotiation and implementation of an operating contract (on a PPP basis).	First solar and wind IPPs, Tunisia \| Advising on the first solar and wind IPPs in Tunisia, in particular advising on bankability risk allocation issues. We are also assisting with the tender relating to the award under the concessions regime of five PV power plants for an aggregate capacity of 500 MW, and on the concession agreement, the power purchase agreement, the direct agreements and land agreement for these.
Container Terminal, Egypt \| Advising P&O Ports (as international investor and operator) on the proposed greenfield development of a new US$600 million greenfield transhipment container terminal at the mouth of the Suez Canal (being the first major BOT port concession agreement with the Government of Egypt).	Afriquia Gaz, LNG sales with Sound Energy, Morocco \| Advising Afriquia Gaz SA, a Moroccan leader in liquid petroleum gas distribution, on signing a 10-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply contract with Sound Energy, as well as a £2m equity subscription agreement with the upstream gas company. The binding agreement covers delivery from Sound Energy to Afriquia Gaz of a daily quantity of between 475 and 546 cubic meters of LNG from the TE-5 well in Tendrara in Morocco.
Dem Arzew desalination and power project, Algeria \| Advising Black & Veatch in connection with its participation in a project to develop, finance, construct, own and operate a desalination facility to generate 200MW (approx.) of electric power and produce 40,000 cubic meters (approx.) per day of finished water.	Suez Canal Container Terminal, Egypt \| Advising IFC on a proposed loan to Suez Canal Container Terminal (SCCT), a project company which is majority owned by APM Terminals, alongside the Suez Canal Economic Zone and Cosco Shipping.
	First-in-market green hydrogen project, Egypt \| Advising a major independent oil company taking the largest equity interest in a first-in-market hydrogen Project in Egypt.

Simandou iron ore mine and related infrastructure, Guinea \| Advising Winning Consortium Simandou on all aspects of its investment in Guinea to build a rail and port infrastructure to support its Simandou iron ore mine. Our role includes advising on joint venture arrangements with Simfer (a consortium led by Rio Tinto), project and investment agreements with the Government of Guinea, funding arrangements with Chinese SOE investors including Baowu and Chinalco, and project development agreements including transshipment arrangements.	158MW wind power project, Senegal \| Advising the sponsors, French renewable energy company Sarréole and private equity fund Lekela power, on the project financing of the 158MW wind power project located in Taiba N’Diaye, Senegal
Presidential Power Initiative, Nigeria \| Advising FGNPC and the Ministry of Finance in relation to the development and financing of the Presidential Power Initiative, a transformational power distribution and transmission upgrade project across Nigeria.	Azura-Edo power plant, Nigeria \| Advising African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM), one of Africa’s leading infrastructure equity investment managers and a member of Old Mutual Alternative Investments, on all aspects of the sale of its minority stake in the Azura-Edo power plant in Nigeria.
Compagnie Des Bauxites de Guinea \| Advising CBG (which is owned by Rio Tinto, Alcoa, Dadco and the State of Guinea) in connection with the c.$800m expansion of its Sangaredi bauxite mine in western Guinea and its most recent $200m financing of its shared railway infrastructure, which closed in Q4 2020.	50MW solar PV plant, Mali \| Advising Investec Asset Management Proprietary Limited (Investec) as mandated lead arranger and a consortium of lenders in relation to the senior and mezzanine financing facilities on a 50MW solar PV plant in Sikasso, Mali, for the first French green Independent power producer, Akuo Energy.
Ecobank Ghana Limited \| Advising Ecobank Ghana Limited on arranging the advance of a USD199, 764,912.86 guarantee facility with a syndicate of 11 lenders to Newmont Golden Ridge Limited and Newmont Ghana Gold Limited to secure the borrowers’ obligations under reclamation security agreements they had in place with the Ghanaian Environmental Protection Agency.	OCTP block, Ghana \| Advising Eni on the development of oil and gas resources in the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) block. This US$6bn offshore oil and gas project will be a major boost to oil and gas production in Ghana.
US$2.5bn RBL refinancing, Ghana \| Advising Tullow Oil plc in relation to its US$2.5 billion reserves based facilities, provided by a consortium of 18 commercial banks provided US$2.4 billion of the facilities, and International Finance Corporation has provided a separate US$100 million facility. This was awarded Best Oil and Gas Deal of the Year at EMEA Finance’s Project Finance Awards 2017.	Kamsar oil refinery, Guinea \| Advising the lenders in relation to the financing of the Kamsar oil refinery in Guinea, including senior and subordinated tranches and intercreditor arrangements.
Project Gujeni, Nigeria \| Advising a syndicate of lenders including commercial lenders and a development finance institution in relation to putting in place the financing to a subsidiary of African Industries Group for the development and operation of an iron-ore mine and construction and operation of a direct reduced iron plant (DRI Plant) located in Gujeni, Nigeria.	LNG supply project, Benin \| Advising Total, the Second-Largest Private Global LNG Player on the development of Benin's supply project for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG-Gas).
Helios Towers, Senegal \| Advising International Finance Corporation (IFC), Société Générale (SG) and BNP Paribas (BNPP) in respect of two separate facilities to Helios Towers Senegal SAU, a subsidiary of the LSE-listed telecoms tower company Helios Towers PLC, as borrower.	Lekki Port project, Nigeria \| Advising the lenders, development finance institutions and export credit agencies on the US$1.6billion project financing of Lekki Port, a new greenfield port in the Lagos free trade zone. This was named Africa Transport Infrastructure Deal of the Year by Project Finance International.
Energy storge system, Senegal \| Advising developers on the development, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of a standalone energy storage system of 40 MW (BESS) situated in Senegal.	Atuabo Free Port Project, Ghana \| Advising the lenders including, Standard Chartered Bank, Standard Bank and International Finance Corporation on their project financing of the Atuabo Oil and Gas Free Port in Ghana. The port will serve as an oil and gas logistics hub, servicing the offshore industry in Ghana.
Port of Libreville, Gabon \| Advising Singaporean-company Portek International on the renegotiation of the Concession of the Port of Libreville including leading the in-country negotiation with the government of Gabon.	Port of Dakar Container Terminal, Senegal \| Advising Standard Chartered Bank and African Development Bank on the financing of the first PPP concession project entered into by Dakar Port Authority. The project consists of the refurbishment, expansion and operation of Senegal’s only container terminal. Named Africa Transport Infrastructure Deal of the Year by Project Finance International.
Hydropower in Singrobo, Côte d'Ivoire \| Advising a pool of lenders lead by African Development Bank on the project financing of the 44MW hydropower project located in Singrobo, approximately 140KM north from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.	Addax biofuels and power project, Sierra Leone \| Advising the lenders including FMO, EAIF, AfDB, DEG, ICF-Debt Pool LLP and the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa Limited in relation to the project financing of the Addax power and biofuels project. This project was the first energy project to be project financed in Sierra Leone.
	Formation of sub-Saharan and Asia (EARF) \| Advising an initial senior investor group in connection with the formation of the Energy Access Relief Fund (EARF), a first-of-its-kind relief fund to protect energy access in the wake of COVID-19 for nearly 20 million people in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. The EARF was launched with a first close of US$68 million and a target of over US$80 million.

US$180m sale of assets, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea \| Advising Tullow Oil plc (Tullow) on the US$180 million sale of assets in West Africa to Panoro Energy ASA (Panoro). Tullow has signed two separate sale and purchase agreements with Panoro for the sale of its assets in Equatorial Guinea and the Dussafu asset in Gabon.	Shalina on financing agreement with Trafigura, DR Congo \| Advising Shalina Resources a leading and established vertically integrated copper and cobalt producer with assets in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), on a US$600 million financing agreement with global commodity trading company Trafigura Pte. Ltd.
Nachtigal Hydro Power Company, Cameroon \| Advising Africa50, the pan-African infrastructure investment platform, on the acquisition from the government of Cameroon of 15% of the equity stake in the Nachtigal Hydro Power Company (NHPC), which runs the Nachtigal hydropower project in Cameroon.	RTR copper and cobalt project, DR Congo \| Advising Eurasian Resources Group and its subsidiary Metalkol S.A. on the construction and financing its RTR copper and cobalt project in the Kolwezi region of the DRC, using a Chinese EPC contractor and accessing financing from Chinese banks, with Sinosure cover, through the EPC contractor.
Mbalam – Nabeba Iron Ore Project, Cameroon \| Advising the sponsors, Sundance Resources Limited, on the financing of two iron ore mines (production target 35 Mtpa) and associated greenfield rail and port infrastructure and logistics services to transport the ore to market. The project involves a 540km rail line including a cross border spur into the Republic of Congo, and a new deep water port terminal at Kribi on the Cameroon coast.	Ngovayang iron ore project, Cameroon \| Advising Legend Mining in relation to its sale of its Ngovayang iron ore project in Cameroon to Jindal Steel and Power, including advising on how to deal with Cameroonian interested parties and associated historical contractual arrangements and all Australian regulatory issues.
Sale of AES Sonel, Cameroon \| Advising for several years until and including on the sale of its shareholding as the majority private investor and operator of AES SONEL the national power company of Cameroon including on the renegotiation of the concessions arrangements, relation with the Government as co-shareholder and the regulatory authority.	CDM Landfill Gas Project, Cameroon \| Advising the trading JV of a major French bank and an industry company in relation to the development of the landfill gas project which qualifies as a CDM project under the Kyoto Protocol.
Kribi port infrastructure, Cameroon \| Advising Necotrans on the partnership contract with the Kribi Port Multi Operators (KPMO) consortium, consisting of nine local operators, for the operation and maintenance of the multipurpose terminal at the deep-water port of Kribi in Cameroon.	Financing new gas and HFO power stations, Cameroon \| Advising AES Sonel on the development and project financing of two 216MW and 86MW gas and HFO powered in Cameroon (US$470 million).
Djermaya Solar project, the first IPP in Chad \| Advising the project company, Djermaya CDEN Energy S.A.S., on the development and financing of phase 1 of a solar project with a total capacity of approximately 34 MWp to be located 30 kilometres north of N’Djamena, Chad. The project consists of the development, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of a 60MW greenfield solar photovoltaic plant developed in two phases, a transmission line and associated interconnection facilities.	Telecoms infrastructure, DRC \| Advising Eastcastle Infrastructure on all aspects of its state-of-the-art build to suit operations and tower acquisitions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including in relation to acquisition and capex financings from the International Finance Corporation, Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund and the Standard Bank of South Africa.
ESI builds solar PV plant for rural electrification, DR Congo \| Advising ESI SpA with the construction of a solar photovoltaic plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo and on its collaboration with The AVSI Foundation, a non-profit that develops projects for cooperation, development and humanitarian aid in 33 countries.	Etoile and Mutoshi Cobalt / Copper Projects, DRC \| Advising Shalina Resources Limited in relation to the financing and development of all aspects of the development of Etoile I and II and Mutoshi. We started with a simple US$8m loan from Standard Bank, financings from Rawbank and Equity Bank, a full project financing from FBN and AFC and now to a US$600 million financing agreement with Trafigura//TDB.
Kamoa Copper Project, DRC \| Advising Kamoa Copper S.A. on the US$200M financing in relation to phase three of the expansion of its operations at the world-class Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex (Kamoa) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).	Mining code negotiation, DRC \| Advising a group of leading international mining companies, representing 85% of the mining industry in the DRC, in their negotiations with the DRC government in the context of the 2018 Reform of the mining code aimed at calling into question the existing arrangements.

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