PIF-owned ACWA Power sells $105m stake in Saudi desalination plant

PIF-owned ACWA Power sells $105m stake in Saudi desalination plant

PIF-owned ACWA Power has sold its 32-percent stake in a Shuqaiq Water and Electricity Co. at SR391.5 million ($105 million), it said in a bourse filing.

Dated back to 2011, Shuqaiq IWPP, which is owned and operated by the company at stake, has 850 megawatt power and 212,000 cubic meters per day water desalination capacity.

The move is part of the utility giant’s capital recycling strategy, bringing it a step closer to 50-percent lower carbon intensity by 2030, compared to 2020 levels.

The Riyadh-based energy firm noted that the transaction had no material financial impact, adding that it will use the proceeds for “general corporate purposes.”

ACWA Power plans to end investment in non-renewable schemes as part of the business’s commitment to reaching net zero by 2050, its CEO Paddy Padmanathan said in October.

Earlier, the firm posted a 17 percent profit drop to SR744 million in its first annual results following its initial public offering on the Saudi exchange last year.