Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) is seeking $1 billion to become an independent operator, according to a report by Reuters news agency.

Reuters reports that GNPC is in talks with Dutch commodities trader Trafigura and banks for a $700 million five-year loan at 4.43 percent to fund oil and gas projects.

GNPC is state-owned and a major player in Ghana’s oil exports, but says its need to boost capital cannot be met entirely through public sources. The company said the loan would save money in the long term, according to a document it prepared for the deal, which Reuters says it has seen.

“GNPC has to be prudent and build up capital for its growth. This is normal commercial practice. No serious company lives from year to year,” Reuters quotes the company as saying.

GNPC say the loan deal would be funded through its mandated share of national oil export revenue rather than using oil as collateral. The deal would be Trafigura’s first in Ghana. Founded in 1993 Trafigura Beheer BV is the world’s third largest private oil and metals trader after Vitol and Glencore Xstrata.

GNPC is also in talks with Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) partners for a $493 million gas pipeline and receiving facility and would pay 22 percent interest were it not for the new loan.

Oil exports are Ghana’s second biggest source of revenue, but are projected to surpass mining receipts in the near future. Ghana discovered oil in 2007 and began production in 2011. The country is on course to produce around 105,000 barrels of oil per day in 2014 from its offshore Jubilee field, GNPC said. It expects $15-$20 billion in oil investment over the next decade.