Yinson Production completes US$1.3bil project financing for Agogo FPSO

KUALA LUMPUR: Yinson Holdings Bhd’s unit, Yinson Production has finalised a limited recourse term loan facility, securing up to US$1.3bil.

This funding is designated for both pre-and post-delivery financing for the Agogo floating storage production and offloading vessels (FPSO).

In a statement, Yinson said the financing was provided by a consortium of 13 lenders, including international banks and institutional investors, and will be utilised over the course of the construction of the FPSO.

“The financing comprises three pari-passu secured tranches with staggered maturities of up to 10 years post-delivery of the FPSO. Subject to satisfaction of certain conditions, the financing will become non-recourse post-delivery of the FPSO,” it said.

Yinson Production entered into a firm contract for the provision, operation and maintenance of the Agogo FPSO with Azule Energy in February 2023, a 50:50 joint venture between BP and Eni, Angola’s largest independent oil and gas producer.

It said the contract has a firm operation period of 15 years, with additional optional periods of up to 5 years and a total contract value of up to approximately US$5.7bil.

The Agogo FPSO will have a production capacity of 120,000 barrels of oil per day. Once construction is completed, the Agogo FPSO will be deployed to the Agogo Integrated West Hub Development Project located in the West Hub of Block 15/06 offshore Angola.

The Agogo FPSO is designed with a comprehensive suite of carbon emission reduction technologies, including the first-ever carbon capture technology onboard an FPSO.

“This transaction is a significant milestone for Yinson Production. It not only is our single largest financing to date, but the commercial multi-tranche structure – the first of its kind in the industry – significantly increases the efficiency of the financing compared to traditional structures, whilst diversifying the funding base by combining different lender groups in a single transaction. We thank all our lenders for their trust in us and support in passionately delivering this powerful financing solution for the Agogo FPSO,” Yinson Production chief financial officer Markus Wenker said.