Hoegh LNG has locked in financing for one of its FSRU newbuildings.
Oslo-listed Hoegh has secured $230m from both conventional banks and export credit agencies to help pay for FSRU#8.
ABN AMRO Bank, Danske Bank, Nordea and Swedbank have come up with $80m via a five-year loan.
The remaining $150m has come from Garantiinstituttet for Eksportkreditt ("GIEK") and Eksportkreditt of Norway in the form of a 12-year term loan.
Sveinung Stohle, chief executive of Hoegh LNG, says in a statement that the company has been diversifying funding sources and has secured a competitive structure to support its growth strategy.
“The favourable financing terms reflects Hoegh LNG's strong balance sheet and track-record in securing and operating long-term FSRU contracts,” he said.
“We are very pleased with the excellent support we get from the leading ECAs and banks participating in this transaction."
The $230m package will cover 65% of the newbuilding, a figure which will rise to 75% when employment is secured.
The unit has been earmarked for a project in Chine, however, there is a chance it could be swapped out and deployed elsewhere.
Stohle tells TradeWinds all of the conventional banks involved are from the owner's core group of lenders ,with the company's "rock solid" balance sheet helping it secure the funding.
The use of export credit is not new for Hoegh LNG, however, the contribution to the ticket is larger on this occasion.
It marks the second positive development for Hoegh LNG this month following a new partnership with Nakilat.
Discussions for loans to support FSRU#9 are also under way in line with the company's strategy to fix financing at least six months prior to delivery, Stohle says.
The final newbuilding, FSRU#10, is set for delivery in 2019, meaning it is too early to look at funding for that vessel, he adds.
