A consortium led by ACWA Power has reached financial close for the $1.302 billion Red Sea multi-utilities project in Saudi Arabia.
ACWA Power, in consortium with China’s SPIC Huanghe Hydropower Development Company and Saudi Tabreed Cooling Company, reached financial close for the senior debt facilities for the project.
The consortium had been selected as preferred bidder for the planned PPP project to design, build, operate and transfer The Red Sea Project’s utilities infrastructure and relies entirely on renewable energy for power generation, water production, wastewater treatment and district cooling.
TRSDC - the developer behind the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism project, is the procurer of the project where all the utilities are being procured under a single offtake arrangement, unique for a contract of this kind.
The PPP contract will include the provision of power and water production, sewage treatment and solid waste treatment.
The project will have a 340MW solar photovoltaic plant with an associated storage system utilizing a battery energy storage system plant for captive use, which at a design capacity of around 1.200 GWh will upon deployment be one of the world’s largest utility-scale systems of its kind.
The scope of the project also includes construction of three seawater reverse osmosis plants totaling a capacity of 32,500 cubic meters per day at the project, designed to provide clean drinking water.
“The Red Sea Development Project, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, spanning an area the size of Belgium, is a remarkable project in terms of vision, ambition, size and scope,” said Paddy Padmanathan, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman, ACWA Power.
He added that “the commitments from such a diverse group of lenders is a testament to the strength of the vision and structure of this transaction and above all underpins the faith and belief that financial markets have in ACWA Power’s track record.”
The senior debt project is financed through a combination of US dollar denominated and Saudi Riyal denominated soft mini-perm and long-term financing provided by a consortium of Saudi Arabian and international banks, including the Al Rajhi Bank, APICORP, Bank Saudi Fransi, Riyad Bank, Saudi British Bank, Saudi National Bank and Standard Chartered.
The Red Sea Development Company is owned by sovereign wealth vehicle Public Investment Fund (PIF), and the PIF will provide the guarantee for the 25-year offtake agreement.
