Africa Energy Bank to Begin Project Financing 2027

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Africa Energy Bank (AEB) is expected to become operational before the end of 2026 and begin financing energy projects in early 2027, the Secretary-General of the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO), Mr Farid Ghezali, has said.

Mr Ghezali disclosed this during a technical panel at the Gas Exporting Countries Forum–African Energy Commission Strategic Forum held as part of African Energy Week 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa.

The bank, established through a partnership between APPO and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), will adopt a corridor-based financing model to support projects that promote regional economic development.

Its priorities will cover four areas: export infrastructure, domestic energy infrastructure, clean cooking and power generation.

Mr Ghezali said African countries should pursue energy exports without undermining domestic supply, stressing the need to meet local demand alongside international market commitments.

“I come from a country where you cannot export any drop of gas if the domestic demand is not satisfied,” he said.

Several delays have held back the launch of the energy lender with the recent September target missed after a planned April start was pushed back to June before APPO members were again mobilised around a third-quarter deadline.

The APPO scribe also said funding has remained a major challenge even when the Nigerian government said the headquarters of the bank was ready since 2025.

In June, it was reported that 91 per cent of the capital had been raised and that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) would make up the balance.

The African Energy Bank is designed to unlock the $200 billion needed for midstream-downstream projects by 2030 with the goal of raising $15 billion in just three years of its operations.

The lender is expected to offer competitive regional pricing through a unified intra-African oil and gas pricing system, potentially saving African countries up to 30 per cent on energy imports and generating an estimated $1.4 billion in savings. It is also designed to provide direct access to investors.

APPO outlined a three-phase roadmap for the bank, beginning with the launch of the African Energy Bank platform, with the first phase involving 10 pillar projects across countries such as Nigeria, Angola and Libya.

The second phase, initially scheduled for 2027, will focus on establishing regional oil and gas trade while incorporating the principles of the Bassari Declaration, which targets 15 per cent local content.

By 2030, the third phase is expected to transform the African Energy Bank into a fully established African financial hub, with plans to mobilise $200 billion.