Trowers & Hamlins advised the banking syndicate led by Al Baraka Islamic Bank B.S.C. (c) (Al Baraka), comprising Bahrain Islamic Bank B.S.C., Khaleeji Commercial Bank B.S.C. and National Bank of Kuwait S.A.K.P. (collectively, the Facility Participants) on the US$200,000,000 syndicated Murabaha facility made available to Bahrain's Oil and Gas Holding Company (nogaholding).
Established in 2007, nogaholding is the energy investment and development arm of the Kingdom of Bahrain with strategic aims to drive energy delivery and development in the nation.
The financing comes as nogaholding prepares to undergo a strategic transformation from a traditional oil and gas holding company to a progressive and responsible energy company – in a manner that is aligned with the Kingdom's Economic Vision 2030 and the goals set out by His Royal Highness Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain, during the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow (COP 26).
Commenting on the financing, Mr. Hamad Abdulla Al Oqab, CEO of Al Baraka noted:
"We are delighted to sign this agreement with the main developer and investor in the Kingdom's energy sector to manage one of the largest Shari'a-compliant renewable credit facilities in the sector. This step will grant nogaholding the flexibility in diversifying sustainable financing sources and applying best practices in managing financial assets and liabilities, while continuing its sound approach in managing working capital and enhancing the liquidity position to serve the development projects of the energy sector in the Kingdom. Furthermore, we would like to thank Trowers & Hamlins, who represented the banks, for their strategic guidance in navigating the complex legal issues involved in this transaction, as well as their capabilities in streamlining the deal process to bring it to a successful close."
Elias Moubarak, Partner in the International Banking & Finance practice in Trowers & Hamlins commented:
"Congratulations to the Facility Participants' and nogaholding teams for concluding this important transaction. We are proud of our multi-disciplinary teams and their solution driven approach that made it possible to effectively support Al Baraka and the other Facility Participants. We are of course honoured to continue to support the development of the Kingdom of Bahrain, where we have been active, with deep roots, since 1959."
The Trowers & Hamlins team on this transaction was led by Elias Moubarak, Partner and Phoebe Lim, Associate.
