Sam Ikeotuonye
29 June 2016, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Lekoil, the oil and gas exploration and development company with a focus on Nigeria and West Africa, says it is on track to complete and bring the to production within the original $82 million capital expenditure budget that was estimated in 2014.
The company expects to start commercial production from the field located in Oil Mining Lease, OML, 11 this year.
Lekoil’s Chief Executive Officers Officer, Lekan Akinyanmi, restated the company’s commitment to completing the project within budget as he announced the refinancing of an existing debt facility and the completion of a new debt facility raising, in aggregate, $20 million.
The company said it has refinanced its existing $10 million Notes Issuance Agreement, NIA, with FBN Capital Limited and has secured a new 2 billion Naira (approximately $10 million) facility from FBN.
“I am delighted that we have secured this facility with local lender FBN,” said Akinyanmi in a company statement.
“This funding represents a strong endorsement of our asset’s value in this market environment and provides validation of our strategy to secure non-dilutive funding from near term commercial production. We appreciate FBN’s support, and look forward to building a long-term relationship with them,” he added.
The $10 million facility has a maturity of three years and is repayable quarterly after a six-month moratorium. The existing NIA bridge facility, of which $5 million was due May 2016, has been extended to August 2016 and subsequently refinanced into the new USD facility.
The new 2 billion Naira ($10 million) facility has a maturity of three years, and is repayable quarterly with ten quarterly instalment after a six-month moratorium.
