Abu Dhabi National Energy has secured $1.09 billion to refinance debt for its Mirfa power plant and water plant. In a statement to the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange, Taqa said Mipco, the Abu Dhabi project company that owns and operates the plant, received financing from nine regional and international lenders. The U.S. dollar-denominated long-term financing facility will mature in September 2042.

The consortium of entrusted lead arrangers for the financing transaction includes Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Bank of China (Dubai), First Abu Dhabi Bank, KfW IPEX-Bank, Agro-Forest Bank, National Bank of Saudi Arabia, Shinsei Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Bank and Sumitomo Bank Mitsui Trust Bank. Proceeds from the new long-term senior secured loan were used to refinance debt the company raised in 2014 as part of a soft-mini perpetual structure — a popular financing model for utilities in the region that allows loan terms to remain long-term, but Borrowers are encouraged to refinance.

Farid Al Awlaqi, Executive Director of Taqa, said the Taqa Group is committed to securing competitive financing for our assets to maximise returns for our shareholders and business partners.

He said the refinancing of Mipco's debt financing showed a willingness to fund a major utility project in Abu Dhabi, where Taqa will finance. The Mirfa stand-alone hydropower project started commercial operations in 2017. The combined cycle gas turbine power plant, reverse osmosis plant and three multi-stage flash desalination units have a combined installed capacity of 1.7 gigawatts and a combined water capacity of 53 million gallons per day of desalination capacity. It is 60% owned by Taqa, with Italy's Engie and Japan's Sojitz each owning 20%.

Taqa, one of the largest publicly traded integrated utilities in the EMEA region, announced its 2030 strategy in April, which involves investing $10.9 billion in infrastructure development as it seeks to add about 27 gigawatts of power capacity and expand its renewable energy portfolio. The company plans to expand its generation capacity in the UAE from 18 GW to 30 GW and increase its global generation capacity by 15 GW. Keywords: engineering news, overseas news

Its Al Dhafra solar PV plant, currently under construction, will surpass Noor Abu Dhabi, also operated by Taqa, to become the world's largest single-site solar PV plant once completed.Editor/XingWentao