THE World Bank Group has said it would provide $517 million to Ghana in debt and guarantees to support the $7.7 billion Sankofa oil and gas project being developed by Italy’s oil giant ENI and upstream trader Vitol Ghana. The finance adds to a $700 million guarantee package and brings its total financing to around $1.217 billion for the offshore project, whose gas component is set to open in 2018, a statement said.

The Bank’s investment arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), has committed a loan of $235 million to Vitol Ghana and is arranging another $65 million in debt. Guarantees by the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, another Bank institution, will support Vitol Ghana’s commercial borrowing needs for the project and will be issued for up to 15 years.

Source: Vanguardngr.com