ACWA Power announces financial close for Sudair solar plant; Aramco joins consortium

ACWA Power building

Saudi utilities provider, ACWA Power, announced, on Aug. 15, the financial close for the 1500 megawatts (MW) Sudair Solar PV plant, a key project under the Public Investment Fund (PIF) renewable energy program.

A specialized Saudi technical team at the Ministry of Energy selected the Sudair project site and carried out the engineering requirements and preliminary studies of the project, with the aim of achieving the highest levels of efficient energy production and contributing to shaping the circular carbon economy, which the Kingdom adopted during its presidency of the G20 last year.

The company also announced that SAPCO, a fully-owned company of Saudi Aramco, joined the consortium with ACWA Power and Badeel, a company wholly-owned by PIF.

ACWA Power - in which PIF holds a 50% stake - and Badeel will each own 35% in the special purpose vehicle, Sudair One Renewable Energy Co., which was incorporated for the project, with SAPCO holding a 30% stake.

The financing for the project is based on the principles of limited recourse project financing, with the senior debt structured as a soft mini perm facility with a tenor of 28 years and both conventional as well as Islamic tranches.

The financing structure also features a set of equity bridge facilities, provided by local and international banks, supporting the sponsor group’s equity investment in the project.

The financing group includes Mizuho Bank, Ltd., Riyad Bank, Korea Development Bank, Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation, and Standard Chartered Bank as senior lenders and Mandated Lead Arrangers. The equity bridge facilities are provided by Bank Al Bilad, Saudi British Bank and SMBC International Plc.

According to data compiled by Argaam, the PIF announced in April the launch of Sudair Solar PV project in Sudair Industrial City, with an investment value of SAR 3.4 billion.

PIF announced the formation of a consortium with ACWA Power - in which the fund owns 50% stake - to implement the project through Badeel, wholly-owned by the fund.