Bee’ah, an environmental management company, and Masdar, the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, were recognised as the winners of the Structured Loan Deal of the Year Award at the Bonds, Loans and Sukuk Middle East Awards for their financing of the UAE’s first waste-to-energy project.
DUBAI, (Pakistan Point News - 12th Nov, 2018) Bee’ah, an environmental management company, and Masdar, the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, were recognised as the winners of the Structured Loan Deal of the Year Award at the Bonds, Loans and Sukuk middle East Awards for their financing of the UAE’s first waste-to-energy project.
The award was presented during a ceremony held recently as part of the prestigious Project, ECA and Structured Finance Conference conducted in Dubai.
The Structured Loan Deal of the Year Award was presented to Bee’ah and Masdar for the outstanding efforts of teams from both entities in procuring the term loan of US$162 million, on a Soft Mini-Perm Structure, to finance the Sharjah Waste to Energy Facility. The deal is the first of its kind in the region, bringing together a consortium of five banks to finance the project on a non-recourse basis.
Hosted by GFC Media, the bonds and Loans Awards recognise the outstanding efforts of issuers, borrowers and market professionals in landmark transactions, and celebrates excellence in the Middle Eastern and Islamic Capital Markets.
The lenders to the project were Abu Dhabi Fund for Development; Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank; Siemens Financial Services; Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation; and Standard Chartered Bank.
Commenting on the award, Khaled Al Huraimel, Group CEO of Bee’ah, said, "We are proud to receive this award which recognises the cumulative efforts of several entities towards establishing one of the region’s most iconic projects. As the first zero-waste solution in the Middle East, the Sharjah Waste to Energy Facility is an innovative project; which required even greater innovation in addressing its financing.
This award recognises the hard work and capabilities of all the exceptional individuals who came together to develop a well-structured and viable solution to achieve financial closure of this project."
The 20-year loan will be used to construct the Sharjah Waste to Energy Facility, which is being managed by the Emirates Waste to Energy Company, a joint venture formed last year by Bee’ah and Masdar. The 30MW plant, which when operational, will treat more than 300,000 tonnes of municipal waste a year, that was previously diverted to landfill sites.
In turn, Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, CEO of Masdar, said, "Receiving the prestigious Structured Loan Deal of the Year Award further illustrates the strength of the financial community’s confidence in the commercial viability of sustainable waste management solutions and the international appeal of Sharjah as an investment destination. The award is richly deserved recognition of the professionalism and teamwork of all the partners involved in a truly ground-breaking project."
"From the point of view of the capital markets, the loan structure is easy to understand and replicate, a key factor in winning the award and one which will attract more clean-tech investment into the UAE and wider region in the future," Al Ramahi added.
