Capital Details
Market Significance
Defines the new template for African energy project finance when Western institutional debt withdraws — sponsor balance sheet and bond markets replacing traditional project finance syndication. African regional banks stepping into the gap left by BNP Paribas, Société Générale, Barclays and five other Western banks that withdrew under climate activist pressure.
Risk / Considerations
Climate activist and litigation risk ongoing; Western bank exclusion limiting traditional debt syndication options; first oil target H2 2026 creates construction timeline pressure on remaining financing tranches
Commercial Opportunity Intelligence
Analyst Notes
EACOP — $5 Billion Financing Package
Total Project Cost: $5 billion for the 1,443km heated crude oil pipeline from Kabaale, Uganda to Tanga, Tanzania.
Equity Partners and Stakes: TotalEnergies (62%), Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) — 15%, Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) — 15%, CNOOC — 8%.
Eacop
FID and Initial Funding: Following the Final Investment Decision in February 2022, the project was initially funded entirely through equity contributions from its shareholders.
Original Debt Plan vs Reality: EACOP was originally planned to be funded via $3 billion in debt and $2 billion from shareholders. After six Western banks, including BNP Paribas, Société Générale, and Barclays, pledged not to finance the pipeline under pressure from climate activists, the structure was revised — equity now surpasses debt, shifting from the planned 40% equity to approximately 52%.
First External Financing Tranche: The first tranche of external debt financing was closed in March 2025, led by African and regional banks. $775 million was disbursed in that tranche.
TotalEnergies Bond Financing: In February 2025, TotalEnergies issued €3.15 billion ($3.62 billion) in bonds underwritten by Citi, Santander, Mizuho, Société Générale, Standard Chartered, and UniCredit — maturing across 2033, 2045, and 2037. In June 2025, a second round of bonds worth €3 billion ($3.44 billion) was issued, underwritten by Citi, BBVA, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, MUFG, Royal Bank of Canada, Société Générale, and Wells Fargo — maturing across 2040, 2035, and 2031. Part of the proceeds from both issuances went directly toward pipeline construction.
Construction Progress: By the end of 2024, the project had surpassed 50% completion, with major milestones achieved in pipe haulage, infrastructure development, and workforce training. Over 8,000 Ugandan and Tanzanian citizens are employed on the project, with $500 million spent locally.
Status: Active — first external debt tranche disbursed March 2025; TotalEnergies bond proceeds funding ongoing construction toward First Oil in second half 2026.
Why It Matters: EACOP is the defining case study of what happens when Western institutional debt financing withdraws from a major African energy project for ESG reasons. The pivot to TotalEnergies' own balance sheet — two large bond issuances totalling over $6.6 billion — as the primary external capital source, backed by African regional banks for the project-level tranche, is reshaping how oil and gas project finance on the continent gets structured going forward.