Cairo - Mubasher: The African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank) is studying a number of loans totalling $1.2 billion to finance several investment projects in Egypt, Middle East News Agency (MENA) reported, citing the bank's head of operations Heba Abou El Ezz.

Speaking at a press conference to announce the bank's financial indicators, Abou El Ezz stated that loans and credit facilities given to Egyptian institutions and banks reached $4.2 billion in 2016, representing 40% of the bank's credit portfolio, MENA reported.

Afreximbank's loans included a $521 million joint loan as part of an emergency electricity scheme, $1.9 billion for the petrochemical sector, and around $210 million for the power sector and grid.

The bank provided around $500 million in 2016 to the Egypt-African Trade Roadshow with the aim of increasing trade between Egypt and the bank's 41 African nations, the bank's top official noted.

Since its inception in 1993 to-date, the bank has provided Egypt with $13.8 billion in loans and facilities, representing around 33.7% of its overall facilities portfolio.