NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

THE investment profile of the pan-African bank, Ecobank Group, may have risen with the signing of a syndicated loan facility with IHS Holding Limited, for the mobile tower investment and solar energy projects in Cameroun and Côte d’Ivoire.

The investment banking arm of the pan-African bank- Ecobank Capital, successfully raised the $202 million syndicated credit facility on behalf of IHS Holding- Africa’s largest independent mobile infrastructure provider.

According to a statement from the bank, the facility will be used as part of IHS’s acquisition strategy of MTN Group Limited’s 1,757 mobile network towers in Cameroun and Côte d’Ivoire and ensure the continuation of the firm’s solar energy and build-to-suit programmes for other wireless operators.

A breakdown of the facility details showed that $102 million was for projects in Cameroun, which would be disbursed in two tranches of $62 million in five years and $40 million in seven years.

In Côte d’Ivoire, the facility is $100 million and would be disbursed in a single five-year tranche, while Ecobank Capital acted as the Mandated Lead Arranger for the funding in both countries.

Other participating banks and organisations for both countries included UBA, Orabank, Ecobank Group, Bank of Africa, Banque Nationale d’Investissement Allen and Overy LLP and Linklaters LLP.