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Tabreed to issue USD 1.2 bn in green sukuk next year: District cooling firm Tabreed is set to issue green bonds or sukuk to refinance USD 1.2 bn in debt in 2025, Tabreed CFO Adel Salem Al Wahedi told Asharq Business (watch, runtime: 6:40).
The details: The funds collected from the planned green sukuk issuance will be used to pay off USD 500 mn in bonds issued in 2018, due to mature in October 2025, Al Wahedi said. They will also be used to pay back a USD 700 mn loan obtained in September 2020, scheduled to be settled in March 2025, to finance the purchase of a 80% stake in Emaar Properties’ Downtown Dubai district cooling business back in March 2020.
The company is looking to expand in existing markets, and enter new ones: Tabreed is considering expanding into the Indian market in partnership with India’s real estate giant Tata Realty — a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, Al Wahedi said. Tabreed is currently working on hedging against India’s rising inflation and the fluctuation of its currency in preparation for entering the market. The firm is also looking to expand in other countries where it operates, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Oman, and is studying new markets such as Jordan, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Egypt remains a promising market for the company “if the local currency continues to stabilize,” according to the CFO, who added that the firm’s exit from the CapitalMed project in Egypt did not affect the company’s financial results. The exit came due to a lack of a “business case” amid FX instability in the country, with CapitalMed’s investments planned in USD and the returns from the project expected to come in EGP.
