UK Export Finance (UKEF) is supporting a GE Oil & Gas contract in Ghana with funding worth $400 million (£318m).

The cash will help the company secure an $850 million (£676m) deal for the Offshore Cape Three Points project.

GE Oil & Gas is providing subsea production systems for the project, which will include the development of gas fields around 60 kilometres off the western side of Ghana’s coast.

The project is expected to generate 1,100MW of power and feed the nation’s thermal power plants for more than 20 years following first gas production in 2018.

The UKEF states the “transformational” project will help Ghana achieve its COP21 commitments by displacing heavy fuel oil use with gas – equivalent to taking 1.2 million cars off the roads each year.

The contract is also expected to support jobs in the Aberdeen and Bristol areas.

Last month UKEF said it would provide a loan worth $34.8 million (£27.14m) to Kurdistan to finance a contract with a UK water engineering company.