ACWA Power’s Net Profit Reaches SAR927 Million in First Half of 2024

ACWA Power’s Net Profit Reaches SAR927 Million in First Half of 2024
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ACWA Power’s Net Profit Reaches SAR927 Million in First Half of 2024

ACWA Power’s Net Profit Reaches SAR927 Million in First Half of 2024

Saudi-listed ACWA Power, the world’s largest private water desalination company, announced on Sunday its consolidated financial results for the six months ending June 30, 2024.

The company’s net profit – attributable to equity holders of the parent – reached SAR927 million, growing by 36% or SAR243 million versus the comparable period in 2023, said a statement from ACWA Power.

Operating income before impairment losses and other expenses reached SAR1,389 million in the same period, with an increase of SAR100 million.

As part of its operating income, the company reported a SAR402 million development business and construction management services gain on partial divestment of its Bash and Dzhankeldy wind projects in Uzbekistan.

During the first half of the year, the company continued to add new projects to its portfolio, including the addition of a record 10.5GW of renewable power generation capacity.

In May, the company signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the National Electric Grid of Uzbekistan for up to 5GW Aral Wind with BESS project, which is Central Asia's largest wind farm and ACWA Power's 15th project in Uzbekistan.

In June, three PPAs were signed for large-scale PV solar projects at an aggregate total investment cost of SAR12.3 billion in Saudi Arabia with a combined capacity of 5.5GW as the fourth round of the ACWA Power-Public Investment Fund (PIF) Strategic Framework Agreement.

ACWA Power CEO Marco Arcelli stated: “Our financial results renew our confidence in pursuing our ambitious growth agenda and allow us to accelerate our mission of delivering low-cost and responsible water and power globally.”

ACWA Power CFO Abdulhameed Al Muhaidib said: “Despite the operational challenges witnessed in few assets, the diversity of our asset base as well as our business model has allowed us to grow our operating and net profit in the first six months of this year.”

ACWA Power has successfully reached financial close on three major projects, the Taiba and Qassim Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) projects in Saudi Arabia, and the Hassyan IWP project in the UAE, with a total investment of SAR18 billion for all three.



Libya's $70 bln Wealth Fund Sees Thaw in UN Asset Freeze by Year-end

Libya's Tripoli view - File photo/AAWSAT AR
Libya's Tripoli view - File photo/AAWSAT AR
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Libya's $70 bln Wealth Fund Sees Thaw in UN Asset Freeze by Year-end

Libya's Tripoli view - File photo/AAWSAT AR
Libya's Tripoli view - File photo/AAWSAT AR

The Libyan Investment Authority is expecting UN sign-off by the end of the year to actively manage its $70 billion in assets for the first time in more than a decade, its chief executive told Reuters.

The LIA, set up under Muammar Gaddafi in 2006 to manage the country's oil wealth, has been under a United Nations asset freeze since the 2011 revolution that toppled Gaddafi.

This means that in order for Africa's largest sovereign wealth fund to make new investments, or even move cash from negative interest rate accounts, where they have been losing money, the LIA needs UN Security Council sign-off.

Chief Executive Ali Mahmoud Mohamed said the authority is confident the council will provide the landmark approval by November or December for an investment plan it submitted in March.

"We believe our investment plan with be accepted ... we don't think they will refuse it," Mohamed told Reuters via a translator.

The first of LIA's four-part plan is the "very simple" step of reinvesting money that has built up during the freeze, such as payouts from bond holdings.

The LIA has previously tried to actively manage its funds. But in the turmoil following Gaddafi's ouster, it at one point had dueling chairmen, backed by different factions within the country. A British court ruled in 2020 in Mohamed's favor. In 2020, the LIA said a Deloitte audit showed the freeze had cost it some $4.1 billion in potential equity returns.

He said transparency has since improved; the LIA released audited financial statements in 2021, covering 2019. It aims to publish the 2020 numbers in the coming months and provide them annually from next year.

And while the LIA was 98th out of 100 sovereign funds in a 2020 ranking of sustainability and governance by Global SWF, an industry data specialist, it stood at 51st this year.

Of its estimated $70 billion in assets, the fund has $29 billion in global real estate, $23 billion in deposits invested in Europe and Bahrain and $8 billion in equities spread over more than 300 companies around the world. It also has roughly $2 billion worth of matured bonds.

The UN Security Council Committee was not immediately available to comment. Last year, after meeting with the LIA, its members "noted the progress made on the implementation of the LIA's Transformation Strategy" and stressed "the importance of guaranteeing the frozen funds for the benefit of the Libyan people."

Mohamed said that it is also planning to request approval this year for two further investment plan "pillars" - one that covers its share portfolio and another that relates to domestic investment plan.

The LIA is targeting domestic investments in solar power and helping increase oil exports. Libya is one of Africa's largest oil exporters, pumping roughly 1.2 million barrels per day.

If the UN does not approve its investment proposals, Mohamed said "we will keep trying...we will keep asking and requesting."