ACWA Power, APICORP Sign on $125 Mn Facility to Accelerate Green Transition

APICORP and ACWA Power have signed on a USD 125 million 5-year corporate facility to support ACWA Power’s future growth pipeline.

APICORP, a leading multilateral development financial institution, and ACWA Power, a leading Saudi developer, have announced the signing of a USD 125 million 5-year Shariah-compliant corporate facility to support ACWA Power’s future growth pipeline.

The agreement is aligned with APICORP and ACWA Power’s shared mission of accelerating the energy transition in the MENA region and globally through green technologies, which currently comprise over 15 percent of APICORP’s financing portfolio. The facility has been earmarked for funding ACWA Power’s investments in renewable projects in the countries it operates in, as well as future high-growth markets.

The five-year tenor is well suited for financing a typical renewable project’s initial life cycle, enabling greater financial strength during the early development phase. Moreover, the APICORP facility can also be utilised as a revolver loan during the initial 3-year period, whereby it could be settled and redrawn as per ACWA Power’s liquidity needs, enabling the company to recycle capital and increase financial capacity for further portfolio development and growth.

“Backing the sustainable development of the Arab energy sector through innovative financing solutions continues to be a strategic priority for APICORP. Worldwide and across the MENA region, we are witnessing a concerted drive to accelerate the share of renewables in the energy mix through the adoption of innovative, low-carbon technologies and solutions. This agreement further cements our longstanding and fruitful partnership with ACWA Power to build a renewable, more sustainable energy future,” said Nicolas Thévenot, MD of Corporate Banking at APICORP.

In October 2020, APICORP provided a USD 70.5 million commitment to support ACWA Power and other co-sponsors to develop Phase V of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, UAE, the world’s largest single-site solar park. A rapidly emerging sector within the regional energy mix, APICORP forecasts that renewables will comprise just under one-third (32 percent) of the total value of planned and committed power projects in the MENA region for the period 2020-2024, the largest such share of any power generation source.

“APICORP’s USD 125 million facility will serve as an important funding source to support the agile and robust expansion of ACWA Power’s ‘green’ portfolio across markets. The revolving feature of this facility offers ACWA Power the flexibility to reallocate and thus optimise its utilisation. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with APICORP as we actively seek to unlock renewable energy potential and deliver long-term, sustainable value to nations, backed by our strong ESG framework,” Kashif Rana, Chief Financial Officer of ACWA Power.