Utility Shamal Az-Zour Al-Oula makes debut on Boursa Kuwait

Shamal Az-Zour Al-Oula Power and Water Company started trading on Boursa Kuwait's premier market on Sunday, becoming the first public-private partnership project to be listed in Kuwait.

The company's shares closed at 0.38 Kuwaiti dinars (Dh4.50) at the end of trading on Sunday, below the opening price of 0.4 dinars, and after rising to highs of 0.5 dinars, according to Boursa Kuwait.

On an August 6 meeting, the company's board recommended a cash dividend payout of 25 fils per share, subject to lenders and shareholders' approval, it said. This will be the company's first dividend and relates to retained earnings from 2017 to 2019.

The company plans to hold an annual general meeting of shareholders after the listing.

The listing comes after the Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects' public offering of its stake in Shamal Az-Zour Al-Oula to Kuwaiti citizens last year.

The distribution of 50 per cent of the company's total shares to Kuwaitis during the last quarter of 2019 was oversubscribed by 1.27 times and attracted about 127,000 investors.

The remaining 50 per cent of shares are owned by various public and private sector entities.

About 40 per cent is held by Azour North One Holding Company, which is owned by a consortium comprising Engie, Sumitomo and AH Al Sagar & Brothers.

The Kuwait Investment Authority and the Public Institution for Social Security each hold a five per cent stake.

Kuwait's PPP law states that 50 per cent of a PPP project must be held by local investors before listing and they can then trade them on the market after the debut.

The company operates the Az-Zour North One power and water plant, which began commercial operations in November 2016.

The plant currently supplies about 10 per cent of Kuwait’s installed power capacity and 20 per cent of the country's water desalination capacity.

Power and water produced by the company are entirely supplied to the national power and water grid operated by the Kuwait Ministry of Electricity and Water under a 40-year long-term Energy Conversion and Water Purchase agreement.