Apicorp and IsDB partner in $1bn infrastructure financing initiative

The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP) and Saudi-based Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) have established ‘Infra Initiative’, a $1bn private sector-focused infrastructure financing initiative.

The initiative will provide funds to finance strategic utility projects that contribute to human and economic development in the two multilateral financial institutions’ member countries and their respective national development strategies.

The two institutions will jointly identify and deliver structured finance facilities to utilities projects with limited access to international financing. Funds will be allocated to electricity generation and transmission projects which utilise renewable energy or natural gas, as well as water and waste management facilities. The involvement of the private sector at the local, regional and international levels will also be a priority in the project selection process.

Through the initiative, APICORP and IsDB aim to address low private sector participation in funding energy projects by incentivising public-private partnerships to bridge the estimated $200 billion investment gap in such projects in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member countries.

Additionally, the initiative aims to mobilise other financing channels from commercial banks, other multilateral development banks, development agencies and capital markets.

#APICORP and @isdb_group partner in $1bn financing initiative to boost private sector investments in strategic utilities projects with limited access to international financing. Read more: https://t.co/PiRRlMtud3 pic.twitter.com/grlo2grmg8

— APICORP (@APICORP) January 12, 2022

Dr Muhammad Al Jasser, IsDB’s president, said the bank’s cooperation with APICORP is “intended to amplify our impact by combining our two institutions’ resources, skill sets and market knowledge”.

The scope of Infra Initiative, which will launch for an initial period of three years, includes all OIC countries, with priority given to the 10 member countries common to APICORP and IsDB. However, projects in other countries are also eligible if they are sponsored by a company headquartered in one of the shared member states.

Dr Ahmed Ali Attiga, CEO of APICORP, said, “Increasing private sector investments in the energy sector is a key area of focus for us as part of our strategy to fund the energy transition in the Arab region.”

APICORP’s 2021-2025 MENA Energy Investment Outlook has projected that the share of private investments in regional energy projects will reach 27 per cent by 2025, a threefold increase from the 8.5 per cent forecasted in its 2020-2024 outlook.