SMN Power Holding, Oman's largest electricity producer, said it has started trading
on the Sultanate's bourse offering 35 per cent of its share capital.

SMN Power is a JV between UAE-based Kahrabel, a wholly-owned unit of International Power, Abu Dhabi fund Mubadala, and Oman-based National Trading Company.

The only IPO in Oman this year so far, and one of the very few in the region, the SMN Power Holding IPO attracted strong interest from mainly regional investors, said a statement from its founding shareholder International Power (70 per cent owned by GDF Suez).

The issue was oversubscribed 1.7 times, raising RO 40.9 million ($106.2 million) against the target size of RO 24.6 million, it added.

Following the IPO, 35 per cent of the shares will be held by public investors, while the founder shareholders will retain the remaining 65 per stake in the company.

For International Power, this IPO was an important regional achievement after the combination in February this year of GDF Suez Energy International and International Power, both wellestablished private power and water developers and operators in the GCC, said a top official.

Shankar Krishnamoorthy, president and CEO of IPR GDF Suez MEA and Turkey, pointed out that the successful completion of the SMN Power Holding IPO demonstrated the execution capability of the new, combined team at International Power.

'The IPO validates International Power’s strategy of developing solid, long‐term partnerships such as the joint venture we have built with our partners in SMN Power Holding,' he added.

In the GCC region, International Power has 15 years of experience, said Krishnamoorthy. 'The company has been awarded 7.6 GW (net) of power and 295 MIGD (net) of water desalination capacity in this region since 1994.'

Five regional projects are still under construction in Oman (Barka 3 and Sohar 2), the Saudi Arabia (Riyadh PP11), Bahrain (Al Dur) and the UAE (Shuweihat 2).

The latter two, both independent power and water desalination projects, are scheduled to come on stream later this year, he added.-TradeArabia News Service