Azura Edo IPP

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The Azura-Edo IPP is a 450-500 MW gas-fired open cycle power plant located in the North Eastern outskirts of Benin City in Edo, Nigeria (“the Project”), with an estimated project cost of US$[622] million. The Project will be adjacent to an existing 450 MW state-owned thermal power plant (Ihovbor) and will benefit from proximity to: (i) the Escravos Lagos Pipeline System (“ELPS”), a 1 billion scfd gas trunk line currently being expanded to double its capacity; (ii) the existing Benin Main Substation and the new Benin North Substation (being built); and (iii) the largest and most critical node in the country’s transmission network. The Project also comprises the construction of a short transmission line (<1 km) to the adjacent Benin North Substation, and a short pipeline spur (c. 1km) connecting the power plant to the ELPS. It is the first phase of a planned two-phase project to expand capacity to 1,000 MW by 2018. In addition to a potential IFC investment in the form of a senior unsecured loan, the project has been nominated by the Nigerian Ministry of Finance for participation in a series of World Bank Partial Risk Guarantees. The project is also expected to benefit from insurance provided by the World Bank''s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.