Enara (Energy Arabia) has announced the purchase of 51 per cent of Jordan’s Central Electricity Generating Company (CEGCO) for $320 million.

The deal is considered to be the first privatisation activity in Jordan’s energy sector.

Enara is a company established by JD Energy, the energy investment arm of JD Capital, and two other foreign firms.
 
The signing ceremony held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Amman was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of finance and the Executive Privatisation Commission.

The transaction gives JD Energy; Malakoff, the Malaysian electricity giant; and the Athens-based Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC), represented by Enara, a 51 per cent stake. The Government of Jordan will retain 40 per cent and the remaining 9 per cent shares will be transferred to the Investment Unit of the Social Security Corporation.

The success of this privatisation process, carried out through an international competitive bid, reflects the high credibility of the Jordanian privatisation programme, said a statement.

The sale agreement and another 10 related agreements were signed to officially complete CEGCO’s privatisation.

A shareholders agreement and a share acquisition agreement were signed by Hamad Kassabah, Minister of Finance on behalf of the Jordanian Government; Samir Z Al-Rifai, chairman of JD Energy and Enara; Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, managing director of Malakoff Corporation Berhad; Thomas Langford, group vice president of CCC; and Abdul Fattah Nusoor, CEO of CEGCO.

An Implementation Agreement between CEGCO, Enara and the Jordanian government represented by the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, head of the project’s Steering Committee was also signed.

Energy Arabia is a new regional energy market entrant. The company was established earlier last year with JD Energy, JD Capital's energy investment arm, owning 65 per cent, Malakoff having 25 per cent, and Consolidated Contractors Company owning the remaining 10 per cent.

As an O&M (Operation and Maintenance) company, Enara will provide technical services for both its own power plants and others across the region, in addition to offering consultancy services to existing and potential investors in the power generation industry.

Al-Rifai said: “We are very proud of this announcement, this is JD Capital’s largest investment venture till date, and it is also our first major investment in the energy sector. Our interest in this field stems from our true understanding of its importance in the development of any economy, especially Jordan's. We also realise the increased need in Jordan and the region to find alternative energy resources, which Jordan-Dubai Energy aims to provide.”

CEGCO, established in the late thirties, generates electricity through five generating plants across the kingdom and sells it to the government at a fixed price. The government in turn sells the generated electricity to companies and consumers. -TradeArabia News Service