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Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC (TAQA), the leading integrated utility company in the MENA region, has announced the successful placement of dual 5-year and 10-year senior unsecured notes totaling US$1.5 billion.
The 10-year note is US$1 billion due April 24, 2033 and has a coupon rate of 4.696%. The notes represent TAQA’s first green bond issuance and the net proceeds from the issuance will be used to finance, refinance and invest in relevant eligible green projects, as described in the company’s Green Finance Framework.
The US$500 million five-year notes due January 24, 2029 were issued as conventional bonds with a coupon rate of 4.375%. Proceeds from these bonds will be used for general corporate purposes.
With final order books approaching $15 billion, the deal was nearly 10 times oversubscribed, with strong demand from domestic, regional and international investors. The notes are expected to be rated Aa3 by Moody’s and AA- by Fitch, in line with the company’s corporate credit rating.
The offering is being managed through a joint lead manager comprising BNP Paribas, Emirates NBD Capital, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC, ICBC, IMI-Intesa Sanpaolo, Scotiabank, SMBC Nikko Bank and Standard Chartered Bank Arranged and issued by a consortium of bookrunners and bookrunners.
In establishing its Green Finance Framework, TAQA has the support of Citibank, Standard Chartered, MUFG and HSBC as the Sustainability Joint Bank, and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) as the Sustainable Finance Framework Advisor support.
Jasim Husain Thabet, Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of TAQA, commented: “TAQA has once again secured competitive funding in our latest bond offering, which has attracted strong demand from several capital market investors. Apart from this, TAQA A clear ESG strategy and decarbonization agenda have enabled us to finalize our first green bond following the launch of a new green finance framework, and have enabled us to meet growing demand from investors looking for solid green investment opportunities.
“In ‘The Year of Sustainability,’ TAQA is demonstrating how utilities can set ambitious growth targets and prioritize robust returns, while working towards a net-zero future.”
Stephen Ridlington, TAQA Group Chief Financial Officer, commented: “The successful completion of this latest dual tranche bond issue, which was repeatedly oversubscribed, reinforces investor confidence in TAQA’s financial fundamentals. The company once again Achieved a very competitive financing rate and locked in an interest rate that is basically in line with our existing corporate interest costs.
“We are pleased with these results, especially given the upward trend in interest rates since last year. On top of this, we have also successfully completed our first green bond issuance. This follows on from our recently published Green Finance Framework Yes, the framework has received a Moody’s SQS2 (Very Good) sustainability score. We remain committed to maintaining our investment-grade credit rating to ensure we can continue to competitively fund future growth.”
TAQA recently established a green finance framework. Moody’s has issued a second party opinion on TAQA’s green finance framework. – trade arab news agency
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