Snam lands in the United Arab Emirates. The Italian group has signed a maxi-agreement, together with 5 international investment funds, with the company ADNOC (The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company), one of the largest energy operators in the world, for an investment of over 10 billion dollars in the energy infrastructure of the United Arab Emirates.
Snam, controlled by Cassa Deposti e Prestiti, is supported by Global Infrastrutture Partners (GIP), Brookfield Asset Management, GIC (the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore), Ontario Teachers's Pension Plan and NH Investment & Securities, for the purchase of 49% of ADNOC Gas Pipeline Assets LLC (ADNOC Gas Pipelines).
The latter holds for a period of 20 years the management rights, remunerated at tariffs, of the infrastructures (38 pipelines) which connect ADNOC's upstream activities to Abu Dhabi's consumption points and export and interconnection terminals to neighboring Emirates. The remaining 51% of ADNOC Gas Pipelines will be controlled by ADNOC.
Snam defines the operation as "one of the most important ever to take place in the energy infrastructure sector at a global level". Indeed, it is an important investment opportunity in a strategic energy infrastructure as well Snam's first acquisition outside Europe.
The transaction values 100% of ADNOC Gas Pipelines at approximately $20,7 billion ($10,1 billion for 49%). While the contribution in Equity is distributed proportionally among the members of the consortium, who all hold equal shares with the exception of the GIP leader. In particular, for Snam the outlay will be around 250 million dollars.
Snam's CEO, Marco Alvera, declared that “with this strategic agreement we are strengthening our international presence by entering a country and region central to the energy sector, further consolidating Italy's role in the Gulf area. Our goal is to foster further opportunities for collaboration, particularly in the energy transition. We will work with ADNOC and consortium partners by leveraging our industrial expertise and innovative infrastructure management solutions to contribute to the UAE's energy system."
Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State and CEO of ADNOC added that this transaction “confirms the strong interest in ADNOC's valuable assets and sets a further benchmark for major investments in energy and infrastructure in the UAE and the region”.
