Sources of Funding

Abstract From the very beginning of the development process relating to any specific project, the project’s sponsors will continually assess and analyse the best available sources of capital for the project. The sponsors will seek to obtain funding at the lowest achievable cost; they will seek to minimize as far as practicable the sponsors’ equity contribution and will look to achieve the longest-possible debt tenors. This chapter discusses a variety of sources potentially available to sponsors pursuing a project finance funding plan. These sources include equity, equity bridge loans, subordinated shareholder debt, mezzanine debt, bank debt, Islamic project finance, capital markets, public sector lenders in project financings, export credit finance, multilateral agencies and development finance institutions, and leveraged and finance lease arrangements. The chapter concludes with an overview of the reasons for entering into, and a description of the role of, term sheets, letters of intent, commitment letters, and mandate letters.