29th December 2023, Lusaka – Subsequent to the First Green Bond registration announcement at the COP 28 on 5 December 2023 in Dubai, The Copperbelt Energy Corporation PLC (CEC) is delighted to announce that the first tranche subscription towards the US$200 million green bond programme was oversubscribed by over 178 percent. The first tranche of US$ 53.5 million, issued as a private placement, to a select few investors closed on 28 December 2023. The investors in the Green Bond include Emerging Africa Investment Fund who acted as the Cornerstone Investor and others were ABSA Bank, Atlas Mara Bank Zambia and the African Local Currency Bond (ALCB) Fund.

Announcing the subscription allotment, CEC Managing Director, and Chief Executive Officer Owen Silavwe said “the response from a wide spectrum of investors has been extremely positive and encouraging. We are thankful to our partners for the support and hard work exhibited during the entire Green Bond process. The financing raised through the Green Bond allows us to continue to finance the renewable energy development aligned to our strategy. We remain keen on actualising our green energy ambitions and the issuance of this Bond is an affirmation of our commitment to achieving our flagship 200 megawatt (MW) of solar energy. We look forward to subsequent tranche subscriptions which should provide an opportunity for a diversified investor class to participate in a green and tradable instrument.”

James Doree, Head of Corporate Investment Banking at Cygnum Capital, the Bond’s lead arrangers,said, “we are committed to finding capital markets solutions for infrastructure and clean energy investment. This transaction, Zambia’s first non-recourse project bond and the first to be issued locally under the ICMA Green Bond Principles, demonstrates CEC’s leadership and impact, while also providing it with a flexible and scalable structure to roll out their renewables pipeline.”