AL-KHOBAR – A consortium led by ACWA Power International has entered into a power purchase agreement with Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) to finance, build and operate the Rabigh 2 power project, said the company in a statement Saturday. The project, located in Rabigh on the western Saudi coast, involves setting up the Al-Mourjan for Electricity Production company, a split venture between SEC and the consortium which also includes Samsung C&T. The project will deliver 2060 megawatts of electricity to SEC under a 20-year agreement, from the scheduled commercial operational date of June 2017. ACWA said 74 percent of the nearly SR5.1 billion ($1.36 billion) project would be financed through senior debt with the rest in the form of equity bridge loans. Banks contributing to the senior debt include Standard Chartered Bank, KfW-IPEX Bank and Mizuho Bank as well as local banks, including Banque Saudi Fransi, Al Rajhi Bank, National Commercial Bank, Samba Financial Group and Al-Inma Bank. SaudConsult buys into Egyptian power firm SaudConsult, one of the Kingdom's largest engineering firms, has joined hands with top investment funds – BPE Power and BPE Investments to acquire a 40 percent stake in Egyptian firm Power Generation Engineering and Services Company (PGESCo). BPE Power and BPE Investments are investment vehicles managed by Cairo-based Beltone Private Equity which has over EGP 3 billion ($434.6 million) in assets under management. Under the agreement, Saud Consult will acquire 20 percent shares in the company, while BPE Power and BPE Investments will together acquire the remaining 20 percent. PGESCo is a leading Egyptian company providing engineering, procurement, project and site management services to electric power plants. It has completed over 19,000 MW of electric power plant capacity and has over 11,000 MW of ongoing projects in Egypt, Libya and Iraq. Commenting on the acquisition, Omar Alshawaf, the executive vice chairman of SaudConsult, said: “This transaction marks our commitment to the power space in Egypt. It is a clear sign that Egypt remains an attractive investment destination and we remain committed to supporting the Egyptian economy.” The transaction will open new opportunities for PGESCo to be involved in projects in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the GCC countries. – SG/Reuters
