UKEF has guaranteed an Islamic Murabaha financing facility for
c.$700 million signed by Qiddiya Investment Company to finance
the construction of the Six Flags Qiddiya City theme park near
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This is being undertaken by a joint venture
led by Bouygues Bâtiment International and Almabani General
Contractors.
This is UKEF’s largest Murabaha financing to-date and first in
the region, a move which helps UK exporters gain wider access to
the opportunities being created by PIF’s investment in
large-scale infrastructure development.
UKEF was supported by reinsurance from the Dutch ECA Atradius
Dutch State Business N.V., the Italian ECA SACE S.p.A., and the
German ECA Euler-Hermes Aktiengesellschaft.
Crédit Agricole CIB acted as exclusive ECA Coordinating Bank,
Structuring and Documentation Bank and Investment Agent, and,
together with a syndicate of banks comprising HSBC and BNP
Paribas, as Mandated Lead Arranger (MLA).
UK Export Finance Chief Executive, Tim Reid
said:
Saudi Arabia’s ‘Vision 2030’ is hugely ambitious, and UKEF is
determined to ensure that British businesses can benefit from the
enormous exporting opportunities it offers.
This new landmark deal not only creates exciting business for UK
suppliers, but demonstrates UKEF’s ability to unlock new sources
of commercial finance to make transformative projects possible
around the globe.
Oliver Christian, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for
the Middle East and Pakistan, added:
UK-Saudi Arabia bilateral trade stood at over £17bn last year,
and our trading relationship goes from strength to strength. This
is clearly demonstrated by today’s announcement that UK Export
Finance has secured another strategic win by supporting this
record-breaking Islamic financing deal – its largest ever
Murabaha. This transaction will help UK exporters access even
more of the valuable trading opportunities being created by Saudi
investment in infrastructure and socio-economic transformation.
