Published: September 21, 2018
ADCOP prints US$3bn bond ahead of huge ADNOC spending spree
The Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline caught investors’ attention with a US$3bn debut in the international bond markets that saw massive demand. The successful deal heralds a capital-intensive period for the pipeline’s parent company, which plans to deploy around US$109bn over the next five years.
Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP), a subsidiary of state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, printed two senior secured bonds at the tail end of last year; a US$837mn 12-year bullet and a US$2.2bn 30-year amortising bond at 3.65% and 4.6% coupons, respectively.
“This represented the ADNOC group’s debut issuance (at the asset level) to the international debt capital markets,” Matar Al Ameri, director, finance and investment directorate, at ADNOC, told EMEA Finance. “The bond was the largest project-linked bond and first with an AA credit rating in the Middle East.”
Standard & Poor’s and Fitch both had the trade at an AA rating, in line with the Abu Dhabi sovereign.