South Africa: The South African Mamba Cement project, jointly funded by China's Jidong Development Group, the China-Africa Development Fund and a South African cement company, inked a deal regarding financing on 20 November 2013.

The project, with an investment of US$220m, is situated in Limpopo Province, South Africa. The capital fund of the project is US$100m, 51% of which is held by Chinese shareholders.

Unlike traditional overseas investment financing, Mamba received US$120m through project financing, which is based on the projected cash flow of the project rather than the balance sheets of its sponsors. This marked China's first successful investment through project financing in Africa. The loans are jointly provided by Nedbank South Africa and Bank of China's Johannesburg office.

Chen Ying, vice-president of China's Jidong Development Group, said that the success of the financing deal meant the South African bank's accreditation to Chinese companies. "Project financing offers Chinese companies a new way to make overseas investments," stated Ying.

The project includes a new cement clinker production line with an output of 1Mt/yr, a waste heat recovery (WHR) system with a generating capacity of 26.8MKW/hr and other supporting facilities. The electricity generation system together with the cement plant makes Mamba the first cement company in possession of WHR technology on the African continent.