Dubai : Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa) announced, Wednesday, the successful completion of its transaction with Abu Dhabi Power Corporation (ADPower), creating one of the largest utility companies in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.
The transaction – which was first proposed by ADPower to the Taqas’ board in February and received Taqa shareholder approval in April – saw ADPower transfer the majority of its power and water generation, transmission and distribution assets to Taqa in exchange for 106,367,950,000 new shares.
With the completion of the transaction, Taqa, which is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), is now the UAE’s third-largest publicly traded company by market capitalization and among the top-ten integrated utility companies in EMEA by regulated assets.
Taqa currently has 23 GW of power generation capacity globally and 916 MIGD of water desalination capacity, of which 1.4 GW are from renewable sources. Taqa also has a further 4.4 GW and 200 MIGD under development, including 2 GW from renewable sources. Across the UAE, its assets now include 12 power and water generation plants in operation. Taqa now also owns all of Abu Dhabi’s power and water transmission and distribution companies in addition to its existing international assets.
As a result of the transaction, ADPower will own 98.60 per cent of the entire issued share capital of TAQA. It is TAQA’s intention to seek an increase to the free float through a follow on public offering.
“The successful consolidation of Abu Dhabi’s power and water assets has created a true national energy champion that is well-positioned to spearhead the transformation of the utilities industry. TAQA’s strong balance sheet, predictable income, access to global capital markets and deep industry expertise enables it to play an active role in the UAE’s diversification strategy, putting a strong emphasis on clean sources. The company will invest and deploy new technology to ensure continued reliable and efficient supply of power and water and additional sustainable capacity to meet the demands of the UAE economy,” said Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi, Chairman of Taqa.
Jasim Husain Thabet has assumed the role of CEO and Managing Director of Taqa, and Saeed Hamad Al Dhaheri becomes Deputy CEO. Other key leadership appointments include Stephen John Ridlington, the company’s Chief Financial Officer.
“TAQA is now positioned to be a leading player in one of the world’s most exciting energy markets, the UAE. We benefit from a strong capital structure, a robust business model and exclusivity rights to participate in all generation and water desalination projects tendered in Abu Dhabi over the next decade with a minimum 40 per cent equity share,” said Thabet.
“For one of the largest utility businesses in the GCC and a Top 10 player in the EMEA region to be listed on ADX is of enormous significance," said Khalifa Al Mansouri, CEO of ADX Securities.
"Having such high quality companies listed here fits squarely with our strategy of raising our profile, making us more attractive to a broader range of investors and boosting liquidity as the free float increases."
