TAQA wins finance award for ground-breaking power project bond

TAQA, the international energy company based in Abu Dhabi, has won the 2013 Middle East Bond Deal of the Year award from Project Finance International for its Shuweihat S2 refinancing, the first tradable power project bond in the GCC. The prestigious award relates to USD 825 million in project bonds issued in July 2013, raised for the development of Shuweihat S2, a power and water plant in Abu Dhabi. Stephen Kersley, TAQA's CFO, commented, "The Shuweihat S2 bond refinancing was the first of its kind and will prove to be a landmark deal for Abu Dhabi and for TAQA. It is a commercial success and a strong precedent for future transactions. It demonstrates TAQA's ability to incorporate debt capital market solutions into complex financing structures, and provides a template for independent water and power producers throughout the region. The issue confirms the market's appetite for Abu Dhabi power and water assets and will encourage further international investor interest." Project Finance International, owned by Thomson Reuters, is the leading source of global project finance news, analysis and intelligence. The Shuweihat 2 bonds were issued at a coupon of 6% with a maturity in August 2036 and an average life of 21.5 years. Standard '&' Poors and Moody's rated the project A-/A3. Located 260 kilometres southwest of the city of Abu Dhabi, Shuweihat S2 is the latest addition to Abu Dhabi's power and water infrastructure network and is 54% owned by TAQA. It adds 1,510 megawatts to the Emirate's power generation capacity, and produces up to 100 million imperial gallons of potable water each day. Other shareholders in Shuweihat S2 are Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA) (6%), GDF SUEZ (20%), Marubeni (10%) and Osaka Gas (10%). They have invested USD 2.7 billion in the construction of the facility with a view to meeting the challenge of providing reliable energy and water to a population in Abu Dhabi predicted to rise to five million by 2030.