Monday 15 July 2024

#SaudiArabia’s PIF, Vision Industries Close to Deal With China’s Envision - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia’s PIF, Vision Industries Close to Deal With China’s Envision - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia and China’s second-largest wind turbine manufacturer are close to a deal to develop a new plant in the oil-rich desert kingdom to help support its goal of boosting renewable power production.

The Saudi sovereign wealth fund and Vision Industries, a privately owned renewable-energy manufacturing company, could sign an agreement with Envision Energy Co. as soon as this week, according to people familiar with the matter.

The deal would involve the Public Investment Fund, which controls nearly $1 trillion of assets, and the two other partners building a wind turbine manufacturing plant in Saudi Arabia as part of the kingdom’s efforts to localize supply chains, according to the people. Envision is expected to be the majority investor in the partnership, they said, declining to be named discussing confidential information.

The PIF and Vision Industries didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment, while Envision declined to comment.

Envision already has significant business in Saudi Arabia, which is investing billions of dollars in renewables to stop burning oil for power. The Chinese firm supplies wind turbines for the almost $9 billion Neom Green Hydrogen Co., which will use 4 gigawatts of solar and wind power to create clean hydrogen.

Major Gulf markets gain on firm oil prices, start to earnings season | Reuters

Major Gulf markets gain on firm oil prices, start to earnings season | Reuters


Major stock markets in the Gulf ended higher on Monday as oil prices held steady and companies in the region started to report quarterly earnings, while investors assessed the fallout of an assassination attempt on U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump.

He was shot in the ear during a campaign rally on Saturday after a major security lapse, an attack that will likely reshape this year's presidential race and fuel fears that the campaign could descend into political violence.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab gained 0.6%, rising for an eighth consecutive session, led by a 1.7% rise in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), opens new tab and a 0.7% gain in top lender Saudi National Bank (1180.SE), opens new tab.

The Saudi stock market continued its positive momentum on hopes of better-than-expected second-quarter results, said Mazen Salhab Chief Market Strategist MENA in BDSwiss.

Dubai's main share index (.DFMGI), opens new tab added 0.3%, with sharia-compliant lender Dubai Islamic Bank (DISB.DU), opens new tab rising 1.6%.

In Abu Dhabi, the index (.FTFADGI), opens new tab finished flat.

According to Salhab, oil prices could continue to support the markets in the region, especially in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, as long as prices remain on an uptrend.

Oil - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - held its ground as downward pressure from a stronger U.S. dollar and concern about demand in top importer China offset support from strong demand elsewhere and OPEC+ supply restraint.

The Qatari benchmark (.QSI), opens new tab was up 0.2%, helped by a 0.5% rise in the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank (QNBK.QA), opens new tab.

Bahrain bourse (.BAX), opens new tab - which closed 0.2% higher - said due to technical issue today's session ended earlier.

Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab fell 0.3%, hit by a 2.6% fall in EFG Holding (HRHO.CA), opens new tab.

Mubadala, QIA Lead $600 Million Investment in Trailer Lessor TEN - Bloomberg

Mubadala, QIA Lead $600 Million Investment in Trailer Lessor TEN - Bloomberg

Private equity firm I Squared Capital has raised more than $600 million from investors including Mubadala Investment Co. and Qatar Investment Authority for Transportation Equipment Network, the largest full-service trailer lessor in the US.

The fundraising comes after I Squared earlier this year grouped several trailer-leasing companies it acquired under a single brand name. The proceeds will be used to support TEN’s acquisitions including the purchase of TIP Canada, according to a statement reviewed by Bloomberg News.

Sovereign wealth funds like Mubadala and QIA have been boosting their infrastructure investments globally as they seek to generate steady long-term returns. They’re increasingly becoming go-to sources of capital for private equity firms at a time when other players are shying away from pursuing big-ticket deals.

TEN operates more than 83,000 trailers and locations across the US and Canada. It provides full-service support from leasing and maintenance to consultation services. I Squared, which manages about $40 billion in assets, separately owns European-focused trailer lessor TIP.

Mubadala sees the US as a top investment destination with about $100 billion invested in the country, Waleed Al Muhairi, its deputy group chief executive officer, said in an interview in December, despite increasing scrutiny on Middle Eastern investments by the Biden administration. For Qatar Investment Authority, its high-profile investments in the US include taking a 5% stake in the parent company of NBA team Washington Wizards.

#SaudiArabia Wealth Fund (PIF) Picks JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley for Nupco IPO - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia Wealth Fund (PIF) Picks JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley for Nupco IPO - Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has picked banks for the planned initial public offering of the kingdom’s largest medical procurement firm, as it hunts for cash to finance the crown prince’s ambitious economic agenda.

JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and SNB Capital have been hired to work on Nupco’s IPO, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal could come as soon as this year, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn’t public.

The Public Investment Fund could raise close to $1 billion by selling a 30% stake in the firm, according to one of the people. Bloomberg News has previously reported that the deal was likely to raise less than $1 billion.

Representatives for the PIF, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and SNB Capital declined to comment.

Saudi Arabia is considering cutting spending on some of its biggest development projects as it grapples with the scale of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s Vision 2030 agenda, Bloomberg News reported last week. That’ll put additional pressure on the PIF, which is the main entity tasked with driving the multi-trillion-dollar economic diversification plan.

The $925 billion wealth fund has listed several of its portfolio companies in recent years and is becoming an active debt issuer.

Saudi Arabia has been a busy market for share sales over the past few years, together with other Gulf countries, as governments sought to raise funds to reduce their reliance on the energy sector while encouraging private firms to list to develop their capital markets.

Founded in 2009, Nupco seeks to raise the level of health services in the kingdom, improve the efficiency of government spending for the purchase of medical supplies and increase the effectiveness of supply chains in the public health-care sector, according to its website.

Health care is one of the main focus areas of Vision 2030 as the country seeks to develop its drug industry. Dr Soliman Abdel Kader Fakeeh Hospital Co. raised $763 million in a Riyadh IPO in June, but its shares have risen just 2% from their offer price.