Trade, Infrastructure & Green Energy Finance · Africa

Where real assets meet capital.

Starzec Partners sources, structures, and arranges asset-backed financing for licensed trade operators, energy infrastructure, and green-energy projects across West Africa, connecting them with the capital that funds them.

Trade Finance · Deal Cycle 20–180 days · self-liquidating
1
Contract signed with OMC
Confirmed off-take, written debtor
Day 0
2
Fuel secured
In-country, under independent control
Controlled
3
Facility funded
Structured & secured by Starzec
70–85%
4
Buyer pays on schedule
Self-liquidating, USD-settled
Closed
Principle The licence never moves
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West African energyCommodity financeInfrastructureGreen energyLicensed operatorsAsset-backedUSD-settledShort tenorSelf-liquidating West African energyCommodity financeInfrastructureGreen energyLicensed operatorsAsset-backedUSD-settledShort tenorSelf-liquidating
The Gap

Good projects lose good financing, because the capital arrives too late, or not at all.

Across Africa, the capital that moves trade, builds infrastructure, and finances green energy rarely comes from a bank. The ticket is too small, the timeline too short, or the project looks "unbankable" on paper, even when the underlying asset is real, collateralized, and cash-generative. That gap is where we work.

$100B
Annual trade-finance gap across Africa
World Bank · AfDB, 2025
45%
SME finance applications rejected by banks
AfDB Survey, 2025
~2%
Default rate on African trade finance vs 5–15% NPL on general bank lending
ICC · AfDB
80%
Of banks expect financing demand to keep growing
AfDB Survey, 2025
Solutions

Three ways we put structure where the asset is real.

We source, structure, and arrange asset-backed financing across three verticals: short-tenor trade and commodity finance for licensed operators, structuring and capital-sourcing for energy and logistics infrastructure, and financing for green-energy and off-grid power projects. Every structure follows the same discipline: collateralized, independently controlled, and legally reviewed before a dollar moves.

01

Trade & Commodity Finance

Our founding vertical, and where we fund from our own balance sheet. Fuel is a physical commodity, and this is where we finance its trade: we advise licensed fuel importers and sellers in Ghana, known locally as BDCs and OMCs, and structure the short, self-liquidating facilities that fund it. We never buy, sell, or take title to the fuel; our role is to source and structure the deal, mitigate the risk, and see it through to completion.

0130–180 days

Receivable Finance

A facility structured against the fuel plus a confirmed order the buyer has already agreed to.

02Main structure20–40 days

In-Tank Facility

Structured against a batch of fuel already in-country, held in storage tanks under independent control. The licensed importer holds it as the regulator requires, an independent party controls the tanks and the cash, and a licensed operator makes the sale. Nothing is shipped, so the cycle clears fastest.

03Shipment tenor

Import Finance

Structured around a licensed importer's incoming shipment, secured by the cargo under independent control and the confirmed order. Longer, to cover the shipping time.

04Per cargo

Allocation Facility

A share of a large importer's cargo instead of a dedicated shipment, which removes shipping and scheduling risk. On arrival it passes to a licensed operator to sell on, secured throughout.

The licence never moves. In all four structures, the licensed operator keeps its licence, exactly where the regulator requires. The only thing that changes is where the capital sits and what backs it.
Why the risk is contained. Ghana's regulator sets fuel prices with a published formula that already includes a fixed margin for the operator, so that margin is set by the rules, not haggled deal by deal. Our risk is simply whether the deal completes and the buyer pays, over a short cycle that repays itself. It is not a bet on fuel prices.
02

Infrastructure Finance

We structure and source capital for the energy and logistics infrastructure that the trade we finance depends on. Here we act as originator and arranger: we structure the facility, then connect sponsors with the DFI, ECA, bank, and guarantee-fund capital that infrastructure tickets require.

Terminal & Storage Finance

Structuring capex and working-capital facilities for storage terminals, depots, and distribution infrastructure that underpin the trade we already finance.

Capital Sourcing & Structuring

Structuring the facility, then connecting sponsors with DFI, ECA, bank, and guarantee-fund capital sources matched to the project's risk and tenor.

03

Green Energy Finance

We structure and source financing for solar, off-grid, and distributed-generation projects serving commercial and industrial demand, and for the working capital that moves the equipment behind them.

Off-Grid & Distributed Generation

Structuring project financing for solar, mini-grid, and off-grid power serving commercial and industrial buyers.

Green Trade & Equipment Finance

Asset-backed working-capital structures for renewable-energy equipment trade and the inputs a green-energy project needs to reach completion.

Where we are today. Trade finance is funded from our own balance sheet and through capital partners. Infrastructure and green-energy mandates are structured and arranged as originator, connecting sponsors with capital partners, as our own book builds toward funding them directly.
Selected Engagements

Structured, secured, seen through.

We build the record before we scale. Each engagement below is from trade finance, our founding vertical, sourced, structured, and secured on the same discipline, and seen through to completion. Early, small-ticket facilities (under $500k) were funded from our own balance sheet. Infrastructure and green-energy mandates are underwritten on the same discipline as they move through origination.

Completed
Transaction 01

Downstream Fuel Retail

Filling Stations & Fuel Trading · Ghana
Capital deployed
GHS 800,000
≈ USD
$80,000
Security
Landed property
Status
Completed
Thesis: essential-service demand with daily, recurring revenue and high cash conversion, secured against a landed asset. Sourced, structured, and seen through to completion, our first closed cycle.
In execution
Transaction 02

Licensed OMC Supply

Downstream Fuel-Supply Facility · Ghana
Facility size
GHS 4,000,000
≈ USD
$400,000
Structure
Product + receivable
Status
In execution
Thesis: a short-tenor fuel-supply facility for a licensed operator, structured against the underlying product and its confirmed off-take receivable. Sourced and structured on the same discipline: collateral controlled, repayment defined.
In origination
Transaction 03

Bulk Import Facility

Refinery · Licensed BDC · OMC · Ghana
Structure
Cargo finance
Control
Independent
Security
Cargo + receivable
Tenor
30–90 days
Structure: structuring a licensed Bulk Distribution Company's purchase of product from the refinery for delivery to Oil Marketing Companies. The BDC imports on its own licence and account; Starzec structures the working-capital facility, secured by the cargo and the confirmed off-take receivable, and arranges the capital that funds it. Self-liquidating on the buyer's payment; the licence and title stay with the operator.

The fastest way to lose money in trade finance is to fund a good story. Discipline is the product. It is the only reason a deal clears.

Advisory Philosophy
01

Protection first

Downside protection is non-negotiable. Every facility is stress-tested and collateralized before anything moves.

02

Asset-backed, never speculative

Every deal is secured by tangible collateral: cargo, assigned receivables, or landed property. We structure; we do not speculate.

03

Self-liquidating by design

Repayment comes from the underlying trade, not the next deal. Short tenors, defined exits, USD settlement.

04

Separation of control

The borrower never controls collateral, collection, and valuation at once. Buyers pay into controlled channels; independent parties inspect.

05

Aligned interests

We stay in every deal through to completion, on the same discipline we would accept ourselves, not just at signing.

06

Legal sign-off, always

No deal proceeds without legal review of contracts, collateral, and counterparty by our legal partner, BE Law Consult.

Leadership

The people who source it, structure it, and see it through.

Ground-level origination in Ghana's energy sector, paired with disciplined structuring and capital partnerships.

Joseph Elikem Ametsitsi

Joseph Elikem Ametsitsi

Founder & CEO

Founded Starzec to bridge the capital–execution gap in Africa's energy sector. A Geological Engineer and Petroleum Geologist by training, and a finance and investment professional schooled in Ghana and London, he has led structuring engagements with international oil & gas companies and the Government of Ghana, and served on procurement panels assessing counterparties contracting with the state.

Geological Engineering, KNUST (Ghana) · Sustainable Management & Finance, Bayes Business School (London) · European Innovation Academy (Portugal)
LinkedIn
Saint Ann Opoku

Saint Ann Opoku

Co-Founder · Partnerships & Negotiations

Brings a financial-services background across banking operations and project implementation, translating complex requirements into structured, executable workflows. She leads partnerships and deal origination, building trusted relationships with counterparties and institutional partners across the deal lifecycle.

BSc International Economy & Trade, Changzhou University (China)
Artem Gabrielyan
Advisor

Artem Gabrielyan

Capital & Structuring Advisor · External

Works with Starzec as an external advisor on capital strategy and structuring: how facilities are built, secured, and brought to funding partners. He supports the process across structuring, due diligence, and reporting in emerging-market trade finance.

International Economic Relations, MSUIR MFA · MSc Management, Bayes Business School (UK)
LinkedIn
Risk & Governance

Discipline is the first mandate.

Dedicated legal advisory

Every deal is reviewed by our legal partner, BE Law Consult: contracts structured, collateral verified, counterparty diligence completed. No deal proceeds without legal sign-off.

Asset-backed collateral requirement

Every facility is secured by tangible collateral at a minimum 1:1 coverage ratio: cargo, assigned receivables, or landed property that can be realised if needed.

Structured deal terms

Clear repayment schedules, defined exit mechanics, and performance covenants are built into every facility to protect the position from day one.

Active portfolio monitoring

Continuous oversight of operations, cash flows, and covenant compliance, with early-warning triggers that enable action before issues escalate.

Work With Us

Let's put structure where the trade is real.

We work with two kinds of partner: licensed operators who need a trade sourced, structured, and funded, and capital partners looking for disciplined, asset-backed deal flow in West Africa's energy sector. Whether to compare notes or explore working together, we'd value the conversation.

Operators
je@starzecpartners.com
Licensed operators seeking to structure a facility · Joseph Elikem Ametsitsi
Capital Partners
artem@starzecpartners.com
Partners funding structured deal flow · Artem Gabrielyan
Partnerships
ann@starzecpartners.com
Counterparties & institutional partners · Saint Ann Opoku
General Enquiries
info@starzecpartners.com
Media & all other
Looking Ahead

Trade, infrastructure, and green energy are where we start, not where we stop.

Disciplined, asset-backed financing across our three verticals is the foundation, and our focus today. As the platform scales and the track record compounds, the same underwriting discipline extends into adjacent parts of the real economy.

Next

Commodity Finance

Structuring physical commodity flows beyond fuel: metals, agricultural and soft commodities, on the same secured, self-liquidating terms.

As we scale

Regional Corridors

Extending the same underwriting discipline into new West African trade and infrastructure corridors beyond Ghana.

Long term

Strategic Equity

Selective, long-horizon principal positions in the operators and assets we know best, once scale and completed cycles justify it.

The foundation does not change: collateralized, self-liquidating, disciplined. New verticals are added only as the track record earns them, never ahead of it.

Our Purpose

Value Beyond Generations.

In Africa, few businesses outlast the generation that builds them. Starzec is built to be the exception: a disciplined institution, and the relationships behind it, designed to endure and to create value that lasts beyond any single cycle or founder.