Saudi’s Public Investment Fund buys 30% stake in cooling company Saudi Tabreed

SAUDI Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has acquired a 30 per cent stake in cooling company Saudi Tabreed through a private placement of shares, as indicated by a bourse filing on Wednesday (Dec 21).

The sale is subject to completion procedures.

United Arab Emirates-listed National Central Cooling Company, known as Tabreed, has also boosted its stake in the Saudi venture to 21.8 per cent, after acquiring additional shares from Al Mutlaq Group for Industrial Investments for 55 million riyals (S$19.8 million), the bourse filing showed.

On Tuesday, Bloomberg News reported that the PIF’s stake in Saudi Tabreed could be worth about US$250 million.

Saudi Tabreed provides district cooling services to major urban developments across Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region. In Saudi Arabia, the company is the exclusive cooling services provider for the Red Sea Project, a flagship mega-project under the kingdom’s Vision 2030 plan to diversify its economy. It also has long-term contracts with Saudi Aramco. REUTERS