Linklaters advises lenders on €120 million sustainability-linked financing for Cabo Verde airports

Linklaters has advised a group of lenders composed of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (DEG) and The Emerging Africa & Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF) on a €120 million sustainability-linked loan to Cabo Verde, as part of the public-private partnership framework under which VINCI Airports operates and develops the Cabo Verde airport network.

This new facility will support Phase 1B of the programme, representing €142 million of investments to be deployed over the next three years. It follows an initial €60 million sustainability-linked loan signed in 2023 for Phase 1A with IFC, DEG and Société De Promotion Et De Participation Pour La Coopération Économique S.A. (PROPARCO), which has already enabled €80 million of investments completed in 2024. Together, these financings form part of a long-term public-private partnership framework aimed at modernising, expanding and decarbonising airport infrastructure across the archipelago.

The programme has financed, and will continue to finance key capacity and operational upgrades, including runways, terminals, aircraft parking areas and advanced digital solutions, as well as a comprehensive range of environmental improvements, such as solar power installations, LED lighting and new waste and wastewater treatment facilities. It also supports strong air traffic growth in Cabo Verde, with a 60 per cent increase in passenger traffic between 2022 and 2025, driven by the opening of more than 35 new routes.

The Linklaters cross-border team from Lisbon, Paris and Milan was led by Francisco Ferraz de Carvalho, Partner, and Tessa Lee, Partner with the support of Soraya Salem, Counsel. The team also comprised Managing Associates Laura Nunes Vicente and Teresa Novo Faria and Associates, Rita Albuquerque, João Noronha, João Coutinho, Samantha Deversin and Inès Le Bloa.