Dubai
Empower, the Dubai government-controlled district cooling company, will expand with a series of acquisitions before any potential listing, said chief executive Ahmad Bin Shafar on Monday.
“The market is so saturated,” he told Gulf News at a conference in Dubai.
Empower is currently completing due diligence on an unnamed acquisition that is not expected to be completed for several months.
“We are looking at a proposal in front of us,” Bin Shafar said.
He declined to state specific details of the acquisition other than “it’s going to be big, it’s very prominent” and that it would “most likely” be funded with “debt equity.”
Asked how many firms Empower could acquire, Bin Shafar said “as much as I could.”
Empower acquired fellow state-controlled Palm Utilities, which provided district cooling to The Palm, from Istithmar World for $500 million (Dh1.8 billion) in January. Istithmar World is owned by government conglomerate Dubai World.
Bin Shafar said “there’s a chance” for an initial public offering and that “one big solid company” should be listed, however, did not provide a timeline a potential listing.
“When Empower comes to the market, it’s going to be one of the prime shares,” he said.
Empower, jointly owned by government entities Dubai Electricity and Water Authority and Tecom Investments, will focus on growing its business in the Dubai emirate, Bin Shafar said.
The firm is hopeful planned constructions projects, including those that are part of Expo 2020, will be a huge boost for the sector.
Bin Shafar said he plans to double capacity to two million refrigerated tonnes by 2018.
Meanwhile, Dubai-listed National Central Cooling Co (Tabreed), an Abu Dhabi-based district cooling company, which has a number of government-related contracts in the region, does not believe falling oil prices will impact the firm.
Jasem Thabet, Tabreed chief executive, pointing to Abu Dhabi’s Western Region, said at the same conference, there were a number of contracts up for grabs.
