Italian export credit agency Sace has guaranteed a line of credit worth US$200mn for Angolan national oil company Sonangol, GTR is able to confirm.

The goal is to increase the export of goods and services between Italian companies active in oil and gas in emerging markets, and sub-Saharan Africa in particular. According to an Italian media report confirmed by Sace, this strategy has been ongoing since last summer, when Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi visited Mozambique, the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville) and Angola, with a delegation including Sace CEO Alessandro Castellano and other Italian company directors from energy group ENI, defence and high technology provider Finmeccanica, and oil and gas contractor Saipem.

The line of credit agreed at the time for the acquisition of Italian goods and services by Sonangol was actually worth US$500mn, although for the moment only the first US$200mn have been finalised.