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ARTICLE · 09 FEBRUARY 2013

Financing projects in hard times: export credit agencies are the smart alternative

Corrs Chambers Westgarth
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In the last decade Export Credit Agencies have emerged as big players in the project financing market.

AustraliaFinance and Banking
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In the last decade Export Credit Agencies have emerged as big players in the project financing market. They offer many benefits not the least of which include favourable terms and conditions and improved bankability of a project.

Last December saw the signing of the US$20bn facility for Ichthys LNG project in Darwin - one of Australia's largest ever project financing deals. It's quite a feat at a time when credit is scarce and raising large amounts of debt is notoriously difficult. So, how did the sponsors do it?

A look at the project's list of financiers reveals that Export Credit Agencies (ECA) account for more than half of the total US$20bn debt. JBIC, Nexi, EFIC and five other ECAs together are providing over US$11.2bn – either in the form of direct loans or guarantees. In fact, due to the substantial lending by ECAs, the amount available to commercial lenders was scaled back.

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