The National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed), the district cooling firm part owned by France's Engie and Mubadala Investment Company, is seeking shareholders' approval to issue up to $1 billion in Sharia-compliant or conventional bonds.
The company is seeking the go-ahead for the transaction only for the 12 months from the date of approval at the general assembly meeting taking place on Sunday evening, the company said in a statement to Dubai Financial Market, where its shares are traded. Any deal will be subject to the approval of the UAE market regulator, the Securities and Commodities Authority, it noted.
The shareholders are convening to “consider a special resolution, granting authority to the board of Tabreed …. To issue any non-convertible senior bond(s) and/or sukuk(s) or other similar instrument(s),” the company said in the bourse filing, without specifying the timeline of the deal.
Engie acquired a 40 per cent shareholding in the utility provider last year from Mubadala for Dh2.85 billion. The Abu Dhabi strategic firm retains a 42 per cent in Tabreed, which earlier this month reported a 14.4 per cent jump in the second quarter net profit, citing a rise in revenues.
Net profit attributable to shareholders at the end of three-month period to June 30 increased to Dh134.17m from a year earlier, while revenue rose 1.9 per cent to Dh376.25m during the same period.
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Read more:
[ Tabreed buys Aldar Properties' 50% stake in district cooling firm ]
[ Tabreed explores growth opportunities in markets beyond GCC ]
Mubadala sells 40 per cent stake in Tabreed
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With 72 district cooling plants located throughout the region, Tabreed provides services to key developments in the region including projects such as Abu Dhabi’s Al Maryah Island, Yas Island, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Dubai Metro, Dubai Parks and Resorts, and the Jabal Omar Development in Saudi Arabia.
It has also solidified its presence in the home market. In April, Tabreed announced its acquisition of 50 per cent of S&T Cool District Company on Reem Island from Aldar Properties to become the sole owner of the utility firm. The plant has connected capacity of over 32,000 Refrigeration Tonnes (RT), which has further boosted Tabreed's operational capacity, it said at the time.
The company has managed to boost its total connected capacity across the Arabian Gulf markets to 1,113,906 RT, with 21,588 RT of new customer connections added during the first half of 2018, it said in August.
