Dubai’s Tabreed bought a majority stake in Emaar Properties’ Downtown Dubai district cooling business for Dh2.48 billion on Monday and said it is looking at new opportunities in its core markets to boost growth.
"Our appetite remains for new transactions. As long as it makes commercial sense and provides value the shareholders expect from us, we will definitely be pursuing including acquisitions as well as greenfield projects," chief executive Bader Al Lamki told The National in an interview.
Tabreed, in which France's Engie and Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company hold stakes, currently operates in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman.
It provides district cooling to developments such as the Dubai Metro and Ferrari World in the UAE; Bahrain's financial centre and the Jabal Omar Development in Saudi Arabia.
"Geographies of priority are Gulf states, North Africa and [the] Indian sub-continent and if opportunities arise beyond these markets, we will be mindful and we will be open and look at them on a case-by-case basis," he said.
The company is well placed to ride out the current economic downturn in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and is looking at long-term growth, Mr Al Lamki said.
“Our business is quite stable ... we continued to manage our operations and adjusted to the current situation. The business is not interrupted," he said.
"We are taking whatever actions are required in our liquidity and we are very much in a position to navigate this period with minimum impact.”
The transaction with Emaar Properties will result in Tabreed controlling 80 per cent of the district cooling scheme serving Downtown Dubai, one of the biggest in the world, while Emaar will retain the remaining stake as part of a long-term partnership with Tabreed, the companies said in a joint statement to the Dubai Financial Market, where their shares trade.
The deal is being financed through a corporate loan secured from HSBC and other banks.
"As new opportunities come our way, we will be assessing our financing solutions; some can be through equity, some can be a mix of equity and debt and others could be fully financed. We have flexibility and look at case by case," Mr Al Lamki said.
Downtown Dubai is the flagship project of Emaar Properties, the biggest-listed developer in the UAE. The master development is home to the iconic Burj Khalifa – the world’s tallest building, the Dubai Mall and other residential, commercial and hospitality developments.
The long-term concession will exclusively provide up to 235,000 refrigeration tons of cooling to the development.
The utility scheme currently provides 150,000 RT of contracted capacity through a network that distributes chilled water produced through three interconnected district cooling plants. A fourth plant is currently under construction.
After the transaction, Tabreed's total capacity increases by 12.6 per cent to 1,338,602 RT from 83 plants.
"This is … a truly transformational transaction for the company, accelerating our growth trajectory and consolidating our position in Dubai," Khaled Al Qubaisi, chairman of Tabreed, said.
"This acquisition in the world's largest district cooling market is a further testament to our financial strength and leading market position."
After the deal was announced, Moody's Investors Service affirmed the Baa3 long-term issuer rating of Tabreed and also its Baa3 instrument rating on the company's senior unsecured sukuk certificates.
"The acquisition materially improves Tabreed's position in Dubai, the world's largest district cooling market and contributes to improve Tabreed's operating diversity," the ratings agency said.
"With it, Tabreed becomes the second-largest district cooling player in Dubai, with an estimated 18 per cent market share."
Tabreed is well placed to take advantage of growth opportunities and expects its enhanced presence within Dubai will help it achieve its long-term objectives, Mr Al Qubaisi said.
The deal is Tabreed's second acquisition this year. In January, the company bought cooling plants in Masdar City and said it will explore the development of large-scale cooling plants in Sharjah through a venture with environmental management company Bee'ah.
Tabreed is also consolidating a number of service offerings to set up a new entity, Tabreed Energy Services, offering consultancy services, as well as operation and maintenance services for cooling plants.
Virtual banks explained
What is a virtual bank?
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority defines it as a bank that delivers services through the internet or other electronic channels instead of physical branches. That means not only facilitating payments but accepting deposits and making loans, just like traditional ones. Other terms used interchangeably include digital or digital-only banks or neobanks. By contrast, so-called digital wallets or e-wallets such as Apple Pay, PayPal or Google Pay usually serve as intermediaries between a consumer’s traditional account or credit card and a merchant, usually via a smartphone or computer.
What’s the draw in Asia?
Hundreds of millions of people under-served by traditional institutions, for one thing. In China, India and elsewhere, digital wallets such as Alipay, WeChat Pay and Paytm have already become ubiquitous, offering millions of people an easy way to store and spend their money via mobile phone. Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines are also among the world’s biggest under-banked countries; together they have almost half a billion people.
Is Hong Kong short of banks?
No, but the city is among the most cash-reliant major economies, leaving room for newcomers to disrupt the entrenched industry. Ant Financial, an Alibaba Group Holding affiliate that runs Alipay and MYBank, and Tencent Holdings, the company behind WeBank and WeChat Pay, are among the owners of the eight ventures licensed to create virtual banks in Hong Kong, with operations expected to start as early as the end of the year.
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
The Greatest Royal Rumble card as it stands
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v tba
STAY%2C%20DAUGHTER
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Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures
Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)
Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy
Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy
Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy
Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Moonfall
Director: Rolan Emmerich
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Halle Berry
Rating: 3/5
The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
match info
Manchester United 3 (Martial 7', 44', 74')
Sheffield United 0
