After several delays, the Association of African Petroleum Producers (APPO) has set a new deadline to make the African Energy Bank operational. A summit of African leaders is planned to mobilize significant contributions toward the bank, which aims for a total capital of $5 billion.

The African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) plans to hold a summit of Heads of State in the first half of 2026 to raise $500 million for the launch of the African Energy Bank.

The announcement was made on November 5, 2025, by Côte d’Ivoire’s Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Mamadou Sangafowa-Coulibaly, who recently assumed the APPO presidency for 2026, succeeding Congo’s Minister of Hydrocarbons, Bruno Jean Richard Itoua. Coulibaly was appointed during the 48th APPO Council of Ministers meeting held in Brazzaville on November 4-5.

The Ivorian minister made completing the bank a top priority of his term. The planned $5 billion institution aims to help African countries finance energy projects independently , from exploration to local resource processing. “Completing the establishment of this bank is extremely important,” Sangafowa-Coulibaly said during his inauguration.

Launch Delays Continue

The new announcement follows several missed launch deadlines. In February 2025, Afreximbank Executive Vice President Denys Denya had indicated a mid-2025 start date, noting that teams were still working to raise the necessary capital. The project, first announced in May 2022, is a joint effort between Afreximbank and APPO. Nigeria was chosen to host the bank’s headquarters in July 2024. Three months later, APPO Secretary General Omar Farouk Ibrahim reported that member states had already secured 45% of the projected capital, around $2.25 billion,though detailed contributions have yet to be disclosed.

Filling a Funding Gap

The African Energy Bank is designed to fill the financing void left by international lenders’ withdrawal from fossil fuel projects in Africa, which has constrained capital for oil and gas development. The institution will serve as a pan-African energy development bank, primarily focused on oil and gas projects but also open to renewable initiatives.

Its objective is to give African nations greater financial autonomy over their energy development. The bank will operate across the entire value chain, from exploration and extraction to processing and marketing. The $500 million to be raised at the 2026 summit represents 10% of total capital and will fund start-up operations and initial projects, with the remainder to be mobilized from other partners to reach $5 billion.

Chamberline Moko