Olam Palm Gabon Olam Palm Gabon S.A. (OPG or the Company) is a palm oil company in Gabon established in 2011 as a joint venture between food and agribusiness company Olam Global Holdings (60%) and the Republic of Gabon (40%) to develop and operate palm oil plantations in Gabon.    The Companys has developed six plantations covering 63,330 ha of land, associated crude palm oil (CPO) mills, a refinery, and other associated facilities (the Project). The plantations consist of ca. 57,300 ha in Awala, Mouila and Ndende developed from a greenfield stage (now fully planted), and about 6,000 ha in Makouke acquired from SIAT Gabon in 2016.  About 106,000 ha (50% of the total concessions awarded to OPG) are set-aside for the voluntary protection of High Conservation Value areas, including community use zones.   The proposed IFC investment is a project finance loan with use of proceeds to support an investment of up $350 m to Olam Palm Gabon (OPG US$350m) of which US$150 m would be from IFCs own account and the remaining amount to be syndicated and financed by IFCs Parallel lenders. The proceeds will be used for (i) the maintenance of the entire palm oil project which includes OPGs 63,330 ha of developed palm oil plantations (Awala, Makouke, Mouila Lot 1, 2 and 3, and Ndende), three palm oil mills and kernel crushing plants (KCPs) at Awala, Mouila Lot 1 and 3, crude palm oil (CPO) refinery in Lambarene, and all ancillary facilities (e.g. biogas co-generation power plant at the Awala mill, 24,000 ha drip irrigation system at Makouke and Mouila Lot 1, 2 and 3, CPO bulking station at Owendo port, workers accommodations, Crop Protection Products (CPP) and fertilizers warehouses, and maintenance workshop), (ii) capital expenditure (CAPEX), including the construction of a bio-diesel plant and refinery at Owendo port, construction of a 4th mill at Mouila Lot 2 or 3, including a kernel crushing plant, roll-out of the remaining 20,000 ha of drip irrigation project at Makouke and Mouila plantations, biogas co-generation power plants at three mills, namely Mouila Lot 1, 3 and at the proposed 4th mill, and other maintenance, logistics, and building additions/upgrades) (the Project), and (iii) partial repayment of the shareholder loan from the sponsors. Main Project Level Development Impact:

(i) Economy wide effects - Increased value added and job creation: The Project through the up- and down-stream linkages in expected to increase value added and create jobs. OPG currently has approximately 4,810 Gabonese employees on its payroll, with around one third of staff being female, making OPG the largest private sector employer in Gabon. Part of the job are taken up by villagers from the surrounding communities (about 10% of the workforce). The Project is also expected to create about 20,000 indirect jobs along the value chain in ancillary functions and services, and to stimulate the growth and professionalization of Gabons agriculture sector, alleviating Gabons significant reliance on food imports.

(ii) Diversifying Gabonese economy away from fossil fuel/oil: The Project will contribute toward diversifying Gabonese economy by developing a sector with potential for long-term competitiveness and significant linkages throughout the rural economy. The Project will provide a new source of export revenue for Gabon away from fossil fuels which are declining in production volume and is particularly important to supporting the economys resilience to global movements in commodity prices.

(iii) Stakeholders  Improved food security for consumers through increased access to palm oil: Domestic and regional consumers will benefit from improved access to a versatile oil which is used in a broad range of products, including edible oil uses. Edible oil, as one of the key food staples, accounts for a significant share of household expenditures amongst Base of the Pyramid consumers in the region. Competitive local production of palm oil would therefore contribute to Gabonese and regional food security.

(iv) Stakeholders  increased access to palm oil markets: The Project is expected to expand offtake opportunities for smallholder oil palm farmers. The Project will onboard an additional 2,000 smallholders.

Main Market Level Development Impact:

(i) Competitiveness: The Project will significantly scale up Gabons palm oil production capacity and expand access to premium export markets. The production of RSPO-certified palm oil in Gabon may attract other responsible investors to the West and Central Africa region while increasing exports to other markets with stringent product standards. The implemented E&S standards are critical to the palm oil sector which is sensitive to E&S risks, especially those related to biodiversity, deforestation and social impacts including access to land. The efforts undertaken by the Project in this regard include participatory community mapping, use of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent negotiations with local communities, and concession management and planting schemes guided by High Conservation Value assessments which will result in the protection and rehabilitation of large tracts of forest, wetlands, and other natural habitat of high conservation value. As such, the Project can serve as a good practice demonstration example for other investors in Gabon and elsewhere in West and Central Africa, contributing to increasing competitiveness of the sector.

(ii) Integration. The export orientation of the proposed investment may not only integrate Gabon into the regional and global palm oil value chains but also relieve some of the broader constraints and bottlenecks to trade, as Olam  via Gabon Special Economic Zone - has made significant investments in related logistics and infrastructure.