Ethiopia: Kefi Secures Funding for Tulu Kapi As Security Concerns Test Ethiopia Gold Project

What the report says

KEFI Gold and Copper says it has assembled the financing needed to push ahead with the Tulu Kapi gold project in western Ethiopia, according to a report by Addis Standard distributed by AllAfrica. The company said the package was completed in the first half of 2026 and includes project debt from the Africa Finance Corporation and the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank, mining fleet financing from BCM Group, and additional equity-risk capital.

The report says the project had moved into full development earlier this year, with a construction launch ceremony in February attended by officials, community representatives, contractors, lenders and investors. A mining services agreement with BCM followed in June. KEFI also reported financial results showing increased net assets and a wider loss, reflecting higher administrative costs and fundraising activity.

Progress at Tulu Kapi was disrupted after a deadly security incident on 4 September that left multiple people dead, including a KEFI employee. The company suspended development and said work would not resume until security arrangements were agreed with community representatives, the federal government, the Oromia regional government and other stakeholders. Addis Standard also noted later warnings from an armed group operating in Oromia’s extractive sector, which called for local consultation and participation; the report treated those warnings as demands rather than evidence about the cause of the violence.

The project remains important for KEFI’s broader strategy in Ethiopia, where the government is expected to retain a minority stake through its statutory free-carried interest. The article suggests the central challenge is no longer funding alone, but whether the company can restart construction under conditions acceptable to local communities and authorities.