Winners of the IJ Global Awards 2022

Category: Water Deal of the Year
Winning entry: Jubail 3B Desalination, Saudi Arabia

Few projects can exemplify Saudi Water Partnership Company’s (SWPC) water sector revolution better than the splitting of Jubail IWPP into 2, the second of which – Jubail 3B – has was brought to financial close by an Engie-led team in October 2021. The sponsors signed off on a $550 million soft mini-perm, starting at 125bp over Libor – but the debt pricing rose during the financing process as oil prices fell in 2020, causing a liquidity crisis in the kingdom. Jubail 3B will include a 60MW capacity solar power plant to reduce its reliance on the national grid. Meanwhile, the 570,000 cubic metres per day (m3pd) reverse osmosis desalination plant will serve Riyadh and Qassim with potable water. In addition, it will include one-day storage facilities and 380kV Electrical Special Facilities with around 59km of overhead transmission lines (OHL).

Category: Refinance Deal of the Year
Winning entry: Riyadh PP11 Refinance, Saudi Arabia

The project debt on the 1.73GW PP11 combined cycle gas-fired IPP plant was refinanced in a $1.2 billion deal to match the tenor to the March 2033-end date of the PPA. The sponsors originally brought PP11 to financial close in 2010 on the back of $1.55 billion of debt. Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) and Engie are the main sponsors of the asset, and previously signed off on a $1.14 billion refi in March 2016. However, this last deal only slightly lengthened the tenor and only parts of the debt were brought down to 150bp over Libor. This new refi is understood to have reduced all debt pricing to 150bp and under. The tenor of the debt now matches the PPA which runs to March 2033. PP11 was commissioned in 2013 in Dhuruma, about 80km west of the Saudi capital city of Riyadh.