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SHUAA Capital Leads Consortium to Buy Stanford Marine’s $308Mn in Debts

SHUAA Capital has bought 1.13 billion dirhams of debt held by Stanford Marine Group (SMG) as part of its restructuring. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
SHUAA Capital has bought 1.13 billion dirhams of debt held by Stanford Marine Group (SMG) as part of its restructuring. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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SHUAA Capital Leads Consortium to Buy Stanford Marine’s $308Mn in Debts

SHUAA Capital has bought 1.13 billion dirhams of debt held by Stanford Marine Group (SMG) as part of its restructuring. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
SHUAA Capital has bought 1.13 billion dirhams of debt held by Stanford Marine Group (SMG) as part of its restructuring. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

A consortium led by the United Arab Emirates financial firm, SHUAA Capital, has bought 1.13 billion dirhams ($308 million) of debt held by Stanford Marine Group (SMG) as part of its restructuring, the companies said on Sunday.

The plan has helped save more than 1,800 jobs and annual exports of close to $20 million worth of UAE-manufactured vessels at the ultramodern Grandweld shipyard’s facility in Dubai Maritime City.

The debt buyout has supported banks in exiting a distressed debt situation with a cash recovery.

The Dubai-based Stanford Marine Group (SMG) is a diversified offshore services company in the Middle East, with a focus on chartering, building and repairing offshore support vessels for the oil and gas industry.

The firm’s debt problems stemmed from a $325 million Islamic loan agreed in 2015 provided by a group of banks including Noor Bank - which has since been acquired by Dubai Islamic Bank - Barwa Bank, Ajman Bank, United Arab Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank and First Gulf Bank - now part of First Abu Dhabi Bank.

“Despite the COVID-19 lockdowns last year, we continued to lead discussions with the SMG lenders’ advisors and worked collaboratively to reflect the changing needs of the consortium while finding a viable solution that worked in the best interest of all parties involved,” said CEO of SHUAA Capital Jassim Alseddiqi.

“We are proud to have achieved so much with this deal – from supporting banks to exit a distressed debt situation with a cash recovery, to retaining jobs of employees and sailors and sustaining their livelihoods, and finally ensuring continuity of SMG business and its contribution to the local economy.”

“SHUAA Capital has managed to pull off a complex restructuring program effectively giving the company a new lease of life,” said Elias Nassif, chief executive of SMG.

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BP Nears Deals for Oil Fields, Curbs on Gas Flaring in Iraq

British Prime Minster Keir Starmer (L) welcomes Prime Minister of Iraq Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minster Keir Starmer (L) welcomes Prime Minister of Iraq Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
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BP Nears Deals for Oil Fields, Curbs on Gas Flaring in Iraq

British Prime Minster Keir Starmer (L) welcomes Prime Minister of Iraq Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)
British Prime Minster Keir Starmer (L) welcomes Prime Minister of Iraq Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, 14 January 2025. (EPA)

Iraq and British oil giant BP are set to finalize a deal by early February to develop four oil fields in Kirkuk and curb gas flaring, Iraqi authorities announced Wednesday.

The mega-project in northern Iraq will include plans to recover flared gas to boost the country's electricity production, they said.

Gas flaring refers to the polluting practice of burning off excess gas during oil drilling. It is cheaper than capturing the associated gas.

The Iraqi government and BP signed a new memorandum of understanding in London late Tuesday, as Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and other senior ministers visit Britain to seal various trade and investment deals.

"The objective is to enhance production and achieve optimal targeted rates of oil and gas output," Sudani's office said in a statement.

Iraq's Oil Minister Hayan Abdel Ghani told AFP after the new accord was signed that the project would increase the four oil fields' production to up to 500,000 barrels per day from about 350,000 bpd.

"The agreement commits both parties to sign a contract in the first week of February," he said.

Ghani noted the project will also target gas flaring.

Iraq has the third highest global rate of gas flaring, after Russia and Iran, having flared about 18 billion cubic meters of gas in 2023, according to the World Bank.

The Iraqi government has made eliminating the practice one of its priorities, with plans to curb 80 percent of flared gas by 2026 and to eliminate releases by 2028.

"It's not just a question of investing and increasing oil production... but also gas exploitation. We can no longer tolerate gas flaring, whatever the quantity," Ghani added.

"We need this gas, which Iraq currently imports from neighboring Iran. The government is making serious efforts to put an end to these imports."

Iraq is ultra-dependent on Iranian gas, which covers almost a third of Iraq's energy needs.

However, Teheran regularly cuts off its supply, exacerbating the power shortages that punctuate the daily lives of 45 million Iraqis.

BP is one of the biggest foreign players in Iraq's oil sector, with a history of producing oil in the country dating back to the 1920s when it was still under British mandate.

According to the World Bank, Iraq has 145 billion barrels of proven oil reserves -- among the largest in the world -- amounting to 96 years' worth of production at the current rate.