How are energy projects being financed? Large-scale projects - whether they’re gas processing facilities, extraction of hydrocarbons or the development of wind and solar - usually run into the billions.
The development of such large facilities requires a massive amount of capital upfront. During the Pennsylvania oil boom of the late 1800s, steely-minded entrepreneurs such as John D Rockefeller and Henry Flagler used their own equity but also borrowed heavily from banks to finance the early start-up of the US oil industry. Big Oil companies would eventually grow to their size and scale by tapping their cashflows for investment and accessing bank credit.
National oil companies, particularly in the Middle East, have largely been self-funded. However, with the volatility in the oil markets and changes in consumption patterns, state oil companies are increasingly monetising parts of their business. Renewable energy projects are also seeking private credit and new ways of accessing capital.
This week, I take a look at how some critical energy projects in the region are being built.
Last week saw a few major deals in the region. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company raised $11 billion in structured financing from a consortium of 20 banks to develop gas processing facilities for its Hail and Ghasha concessions. The company will use the “pre-finance” amount to help construct facilities that will be used to process the ultra sour gas, which is expected to come online by the end of the decade. Hail and Ghasha are developed by Adnoc with its partners - Italy’s Eni and Thailand’s PTT. Russia’s Lukoil, which was one of the upstream stakeholders, exited the concession in November.
What does this financing model do?
It shifts repayment responsibility off Adnoc, Eni and PTT’s balance sheets, with the liability sitting entirely with the project.
Are the funds available immediately then?
According to sources close to the project, the funds will be available in “staggered phases” from the financiers, who also include Chinese banks
Adnoc also secured $2 billion for low-carbon energy projects from South Korea’s export credit agency last week. Asian investors including Japan Bank for International Co-operation have contributed to $5 billion in green financing to help Adnoc progress projects that will lower its carbon emissions.
ACWA Power, Saudi Arabia’s power developer, also secured an unspecified amount for a desalination project from KKR last week. It marked the asset manager’s first foray into the kingdom. Alterra, the UAE’s $30 billion climate fund, is meanwhile investing in a fund managed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners to support the global expansion of renewable energy.
Meanwhile, Libya is inviting foreign companies to invest millions of dollars in greenfield projects to help raise production capacity stalled due to years of fractious politics. An Opec member, Libya is opening its oilfields to new investment for the first time in more than 17 years, aiming to raise output to 2 million barrels per day by 2030 from about 1.4 million bpd.
Who has qualified?
International oil companies, including BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, Eni, Shell and OMV, have qualified for a new licensing round covering 22 oil exploration and development areas, split evenly between offshore and onshore blocks.
What can we expect?
“It’s reasonable to expect several hundred million to be committed in the round, higher if companies bid up offshore blocks,” Martijn Murphy, principal analyst for North Africa Upstream at Wood Mackenzie, told my colleague Fareed Rahman.
Jargon buster
Non-recourse financing: In which lenders are paid directly from the project's cash flow and not from the balance sheet of concession operators.
Big number
$2.85 per gallon
US holiday makers are in for a treat as US petrol prices fell to the lowest so far this year on Monday. Petrol prices have remained below $3 per gallon this month.
Special mention
Big Oil has its first female chief executive. Meg O’Neill will become the first woman to lead one of the world’s five largest oil companies from April 1, as BP refocuses on oil and gas after its push into renewables
Meg O’Neill speaks at an energy conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in June. Reuters
Cyberbullying or online bullying could take many forms such as sending unkind or rude messages to someone, socially isolating people from groups, sharing embarrassing pictures of them, or spreading rumors about them.
Cyberbullying can take place on various platforms such as messages, on social media, on group chats, or games.
Parents should watch out for behavioural changes in their children.
When children are being bullied they they may be feel embarrassed and isolated, so parents should watch out for signs of signs of depression and anxiety
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
Bournemouth 1 Manchester City 2
Watford 0 Brighton and Hove Albion 0
Newcastle United 3 West Ham United 0
Huddersfield Town 0 Southampton 0
Crystal Palace 0 Swansea City 2
Manchester United 2 Leicester City 0
West Bromwich Albion 1 Stoke City 1
Chelsea 2 Everton 0
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Burnley 1
Liverpool 4 Arsenal 0
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
MATCH DETAILS
Chelsea 4
Jorginho (4 pen, 71 pen), Azpilicueta (63), James (74)
Ajax 4
Abraham (2 og), Promes (20). Kepa (35 og), van de Beek (55)
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024. It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine. Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages]. The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts. With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians. Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved. Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world. The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Date started: January 2017 Founder: Khaled Zaatarah Based: Dubai and Los Angeles Sector: Technology Size: 21 employees Funding: $7 million Investors: Shorooq Partners, KBW Ventures, Vision Ventures, Hala Ventures, 500Startups, Plug and Play, Magnus Olsson, Samih Toukan, Jonathan Labin
if you go
Getting there
Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.
Staying there
On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.
