October 6, 2026
The Secretary-General of the Organization of African Petroleum Producing Countries, Farid Ghazali, announced that the “African Energy Bank” will begin its work within the next few weeks, thus becoming the first specialized banking institution in the world concerned with financing energy sector projects.
In an interview with “Al Sharq Bloomberg” on the sidelines of the Africa and Mediterranean Energy and Hydrogen Conference in Algeria, Ghazali explained that the bank will start with a basic capital of no less than $500 million, with a strategic plan to gradually raise this capital to reach $5 billion by heading to the markets to attract additional financing.
The bank is the result of a joint project between the Organization of African Petroleum Producing Countries and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), which had signed a memorandum of understanding to establish it in mid-2024. The new bank will focus on financing regional projects in the oil and gas sectors, with special priority given to cross-border projects.
Ghazali stated that the list of projects nominated for funding includes vital gas pipelines, most notably the trans-Saharan gas pipeline linking Nigeria, Niger and Algeria, in addition to the Central African pipeline, which extends across the territories of six countries.
The Secretary-General stressed that this banking institution will play a pivotal role in enhancing the ability of African countries to develop and finance oil and gas projects, in light of the challenges represented by the limited financial resources necessary to establish the infrastructure required to exploit the continent’s huge energy reserves.
African countries are seeking to raise the level of their oil production to reach about 12 million barrels per day by 2030, compared to the current level of about 8 million barrels per day, with the support of new projects implemented by several countries, including Mauritania, Senegal, Namibia, and Mozambique.
In the same context, Ghazali indicated that the bulk of this additional production will be allocated to meet local demand and support the path of economic development on the continent, adding that providing sufficient infrastructure will enable Africa to increase its production and maximize the use of its resources through cooperation with other financial institutions.
Ghazali concluded by emphasizing that Africa has reserves exceeding 700 billion cubic meters of gas that can be produced and marketed to meet local needs or for export, pointing out that the continent is witnessing, in light of the current data, increasing interest from foreign investors and companies.
