Afreximbank and oil producers launch Africa Energy Bank with $5bn authorised capital, eye first financing in 2027

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) have formally established the Africa Energy Bank (AEB) in Abuja, Nigeria, with $5bn in authorised capital to finance African oil, gas and other energy projects.

The announcement was made at the institution’s inaugural general meeting on October 31, which appointed Egyptian banker Helmy Ghazi as its first president and constituted its board of directors, according to the joint statement.

The $5bn represents authorised capital, not funds already received or available for lending. An initial subscription tranche of $1.25bn is planned, with more than $500mn reportedly available to begin operations, according to Sika Finance. The founders have not disclosed a reconciled breakdown of subscriptions or paid-in equity.

When Nigeria won the bid to host the bank in July 2024, each African member country was expected to contribute at least $83mn, for a total of around $1.5bn, with Afreximbank and APPO as founder members expected to match that amount. Nigeria, Angola and Ghana had paid in their shares by April 2025, covering 44% of the minimum required from APPO members.

Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, said the minimum capital required for the bank’s launch had been mobilised, its founding charter ratified by the necessary participating countries and external auditors appointed, Valuechain reported.

The AEB will operate as an independent supranational pan-African financial institution, attracting investment from governments, national oil companies, financial institutions and private investors. Its mandate covers exploration and production, transportation, processing, refining and distribution.

The founders estimate Africa’s energy investment requirements at $200bn, arguing that declining international financing for fossil fuels threatens development of the continent’s resources. The bank aims to reduce dependence on imported petroleum products, expand domestic processing capacity and promote intra-African energy trade.

Côte d’Ivoire’s Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Mamadou Sangafowa-Coulibaly, who holds APPO’s rotating presidency, was elected chairman of the bank’s general assembly for one year.

The bank is scheduled to begin operations on January 4, 2027, according to Sika Finance. APPO Secretary-General Farid Ghezali previously told S&P Global Energy that the institution aimed to finance at least three projects in 2027. No initial borrowers or approved financing have been announced.

Ghezali told African Energy Week in Cape Town on October 13 that the bank would prioritise projects in four areas: export infrastructure, domestic infrastructure, clean cooking and power, using a corridor-based approach to support regional economic development, NewsBase reported. He said export commitments should not come at the expense of domestic supply. APPO and the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) also plan to harmonise transit tariffs and gas contracts across member states.

At the same forum, African Energy Commission (AFREC) executive director Rashid Ali Abdallah said funding had focused largely on export terminals, leaving cross-border pipelines struggling to secure finance, while GECF analyst Abubakar Abbas estimated that Africa would need at least $1 trillion over the next 30 years to develop its gas resources, NewsBase reported.

Ghezali said in February that the bank aimed to raise $15bn within three years, with a first phase built around ten projects in countries including Nigeria, Angola and Libya.

The launch follows repeated postponements. APPO had targeted a start by June 2024, and later dates in January and June 2025 and June 2026 also slipped. Nigeria handed over the bank’s Abuja headquarters in February 2026.

See IntelliNews: African Energy Bank to finance gas projects from early 2027