PIF-backed ACWA Power raises $750m from maiden sukuk

PIF-backed ACWA Power raises $750m from maiden sukuk

RIYADH: ACWA Power, the utility developer backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), on Tuesday announced it had raised SR2.8 billion ($750 million) from its first sukuk issuance. The sukuk will have a seven-year tenor and was 1.8 times oversubscribed, the company said in a statement. Fund managers, government funds and insurance companies accounted for about 30 percent of investors. Paddy Padmanathan, president and CEO of ACWA Power, said: "The success of the issuance is proof of the wider market's faith in KSA's bond market and ACWA Power's strong credit fundamentals, which have attracted a diverse pool of sophisticated investors.“ He said that the issuance is also "a vote of confidence from investors in our ability to capture large opportunities in Saudi Arabia and other growth markets, thanks to our de-risked and 100 percent contracted business model that is well diversified across different technologies and geographies.“ Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the PIF, in November last year increased its stake in ACWA Power to 50 percent from 33.6 percent. "We believe that ACWA Power will play a significant role in both driving and diversifying economic growth in the future, while also providing enduring commercial return for the people of