Taqa weighs dollar bond amid board shuffle



Abu Dhabi National Energy, known as Taqa, is due to launch meetings on Thursday with overseas investors for a prospective US dollar-denominated bond as its leadership changes guard.

Abdulla Al Nuaimi, the former chief of Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority who oversaw the recruitment of international investors to build the emirate’s power and water projects, left the board and will no longer serve as executive vice chairman. He was replaced as director general of Adwea earlier this year.

Leadership at the local utilities owner and international oil and gas investor is in transition, with four new board members voted in on Tuesday, and a new chief executive appointed in February. Ed LaFehr, who replaces Carl Sheldon, is due to announce details of a “simplified” restructuring later this month. The new chairman, Saeed Mubarak Al Hajeri, is an executive director at Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Last year, Taqa lost Dh2.52 billion, in part because of a writedown on Canadian gas assets bought before the height of the shale boom.

The preparations for a new bond come during the same month that Taqa secured a $200 million samuari loan to pay off part of a $1.2bn bond maturing in September. Taqa hopes to tap Japan again thanks to ample liquidity brought on by “accommodating government policy”.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Mitsubishi UFJ Securities, Société Générale, Standard Chartered and RBS are arranging talks with fixed-income investors in Asia, Europe and the United States.

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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe

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Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille

Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm

Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year

Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”

Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners

TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013 

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The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young

Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

Types of fraud

Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.

Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.

Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.

SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.

Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.

Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.

* Nada El Sawy

If you go

The flights 

Emirates flies from Dubai to Funchal via Lisbon, with a connecting flight with Air Portugal. Economy class returns cost from Dh3,845 return including taxes.

The trip

The WalkMe app can be downloaded from the usual sources. If you don’t fancy doing the trip yourself, then Explore  offers an eight-day levada trails tour from Dh3,050, not including flights.

The hotel

There isn’t another hotel anywhere in Madeira that matches the history and luxury of the Belmond Reid's Palace in Funchal. Doubles from Dh1,400 per night including taxes.