Arab News, Wed, Sep 04, 2024 | Safar 30, 1446
Saudi Public Investment Fund begins selling green sukuk and bonds
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is preparing
to issue a benchmark-sized three-year sukuk and a green bond maturing in 2032,
Reuters reported, citing bank documents.
The report said that three-year sukuk is priced
between 80 and 85 basis points above the US Treasury bonds, while the green note
stands at 135 bps.
Benchmark size typically refers to at least $500
million.
The proceeds from the sukuk sale will be directed
toward the general purposes of the fund, while the green bond sale will be
used for eligible projects, the release added.
Goldman Sachs, HSBC Holdings and JPMorgan Chase &
Co. are among the bookrunners.
This will mark the fourth time the Public
Investment Fund has tapped the bond market to support its major investment
plans, including the development of giga-projects in the Kingdom.
In 2023, PIF raised $7 billion through two dollar
bond sales and an additional $850 million from a sterling-denominated issue.
In August, the fund also obtained a $15 billion
revolving credit facility for general corporate purposes from a diverse global
syndicate of 23 financial institutions from Europe, the US, the Middle East, and
Asia.
In a statement, PIF said that this credit facility
is offered for an initial period of three years, and is extendable for up to two
additional years.
The fund added that this credit facility will
replace the previous revolving arrangement agreed on in 2021.
Loans and debt instruments represent one of PIF’s
four sources of funding. The other three are capital injections from
governments, state assets transferred to PIF, and retained earnings from
investments.
The fund is currently spearheading the economic
diversification efforts of Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom is steadily reducing its
decades-long dependence on oil.
Since 2017, PIF has established 95 companies and
injected at least SR150 billion ($39.97 billion) into the local economy
annually.
In July, a report released by KPMG noted that the
total revenue of PIF climbed by more than 100 percent year-on-year in 2023 to
reach SR331 billion.
The financial results also affirmed PIF’s robust
position, earning an A1 rating from Moody’s with a positive outlook and an A+
standing from Fitch with a stable outlook.