ACWA Power, Ewec reach SAR 2.67 bln financial close for Abu Dhabi desal plant

Emirates Water and Electricity Company (Ewec) and Saudi-based ACWA Power have confirmed the successful financial closing of the world’s largest reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plant.

The new plant, which will be located at the Taweelah power and water desalination complex in Abu Dhabi, is likely to be completed in 2022.

The funding for the project is sourced from a combination of senior project finance loans worth a total of AED 2.71 billion (SAR 2.67 billion), in addition to equity contributions from shareholders and operating cashflow from pre-operations.

The Taweelah plant’s loan structure is a “Soft Mini Perm”, with an expected refinancing period of a maximum three years starting after the commencement of the Taweelah project’s commercial operations.

Loans (including conventional and Islamic tranches) have been arranged by a group of local and international banks, including Emirates NBD, Natixis, Mizuho Bank, Siemens Bank, Bank Boubyan and The Norinchukin Bank. Natixis is the Agent Bank.

"We are delighted to announce that our financial targets have been met and that this new initiative can now get underway," Ewec CEO Othman Al Ali said.

"The financial closing of the Al Taweelah plant with renowned institutions was made possible by our cooperation, the scale and impact of this project and the future growth and development we anticipate in the UAE,” ACWA Power Chairman Mohammad Abunayyan said.

A joint venture between ADPower and Mubadala Investment Company holds a 60 percent equity interest in the Taweelah project, while the remaining 40 percent is held by ACWA Power.