Acwa Raises Shuaibah IWPP Stake to 62% After Badeel Acquisition

RIYADH: Saudi utility developer Acwa has completed its acquisition of a 32 percent stake in Shuaibah Water and Electricity Co. from Badeel for SR843.3 million ($224.8 million), increasing its ownership in the project company to 62 percent. 

The transaction, first announced in December, was finalized after securing regulatory approvals as well as shareholder and lender consents, according to a filing on Saudi Exchange. 

The acquisition was executed through Alwaha Projects Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Acwa, and financed through the company’s own funds. 

The purchased stake represents Badeel’s entire holding in Shuaibah Water and Electricity Co., the operator of the Shuaibah independent water and power project, one of Saudi Arabia’s major integrated utility assets. 

Acwa said it already held an indirect 30 percent stake in the project before the transaction. Badeel, formally known as Water and Electricity Holding Co., is wholly owned by Public Investment Fund, which is also Acwa’s largest shareholder. 

The underlying asset, the Shuaibah IWPP, was commissioned in 2010 and has a generation capacity of 900 megawatts along with desalination capacity of 880,000 cubic meters of water per day.  

According to the company, the asset carries limited operating risk and continues to benefit from contracted cash flows. The plant receives capacity payments from the offtaker until the expiry of the original power and water purchase agreement in 2030. 

Acwa said the transaction is expected to contribute incrementally to earnings and free cash flow, while increasing recurring net income and free cash flow to equity. 

The deal comes as Acwa continues to expand its global utility portfolio after reporting a 5.42 percent rise in net profit attributable to shareholders to SR1.85 billion in 2025, while revenue climbed 17.73 percent to SR7.41 billion. 

The company ended the year with 108 assets across 15 countries, with 93 gigawatts of power generation capacity, 9.2 million cubic meters per day of desalinated water production, and SR437 billion in assets under management.