Hassana Investment buys into Berain Water

M&A WATCH-

Hassana Investment buys into Berain Water: Hassana Investment — the investment manager of the General Organization of Social Ins. — acquired a 40% stake in Berain Water from Rajhi Invest for an undisclosed sum, according to a joint press release. The move comes as Hassana Investment looks to “acquire well-performing businesses in the consumer sector with a stable and attractive cashflow profile underpinned by strong market fundamentals,” said Hassana CIO of Regional Markets Ahmed Alqahtani.

About Berain: Founded in 2015, the bottled water manufacturer owns and runs a total of three manufacturing plants in Riyadh and Jeddah with 24 storage and warehousing facilities across the country. It operates under a fully integrated business model spanning manufacturing, procurement, logistics, and distribution.

Elm shareholders greenlight Thiqah transaction: Homegrown digital solutions provider ElmCompany ’s shareholders approved acquiring the Public Investment Fund’s (PIF) entire stake in Thiqah Business Services for SAR 3.4 bn, according to a disclosure to Tadawul.

The details: The share purchase agreement — concluded back in January — will see Elm buy all 45k shares held by the PIF in Thiqah, valued at a nominal share price of SAR 1k a piece. The digital security firm will tap its own resources and facilities to fund the transaction fully in-cash. Thiqah will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Elm and its financial results will be consolidated into Elm’s financials.

Salama tapped Estidamah Capital as its financial advisor ahead of a potential merger with Saudi Enaya, it said in a disclosure to Tadawul. The two companies signed a non-binding MoU to consider a potential merger last month, with due diligence currently underway.

INFRASTRUCTURE-

NHC launches SAR 271 mn power project: The National Housing Company (NHC) broke ground on a SAR 271 mn power station and 13 km of transmission lines for the Sadayem project in northern Jeddah, state news agency SPA reports. The project, in collaboration with the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), will cover 4.5k sqm and power over 8k homes, serving 45k residents.

About Sadayem: Located near King Salman Bay north of Jeddah, Sadayem spans 3.8 mn sqm with 8.5k residential units and multiple educational, recreational, and commercial facilities.

The central region to get 16 groundwater treatment plants: The Saudi Water Authority inked an agreement with the National Water Company to design, build, operate, and maintain 16 groundwater treatment plants in the central region, state news agency SPA reports. The value of the project was not disclosed.

The details: The project aims to provide over 18k cubic meters of drinking water daily to more than 80k residents by using efficient and environmentally friendly desalination technologies. It also includes building water treatment and distribution facilities to improve supply reliability in areas with limited water resources.

BANKING-

Vision Bank kicks off pilot phase of its banking operations: Shariah-compliant digital lender Vision Bank has launched the pilot phase of its banking operations, aided by UAE-based fintech firm Finastra, according to a press release.

The details: The bank, formerly known as Saudi Digital Bank, was initially licensed by the Saudi Central Bank (Sama) back in June 2021. Finastra implemented its “Finastra Kondor” services, which helped improve the bank’s treasury trading and risk management capabilities, according to the press release.

MARITIME-

Mawani boosts links between Jubail and Asia: Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) added MSC’s shipping service Clanga to Jubail Commercial Port to boost the Kingdom’s connectivity to Asia, according to a statement. The new service will have a capacity of up to 6k standard containers and will call at Jubail Commercial Port, King Abdulaziz Port, Singapore Port, China’s Shanghai Port, and Sri Lanka’s Colombo Port.

AVIATION-

AviLease offloads three planes to its JV with China: PIF-owned aircraft lessor three Airbus A320neo aircraft to SDH Wings International Leasing Limited — its JV with Chinese sovereign fund Sichuan Development Holding (SDH), according to a press release.

The details: The three aircrafts — which boosted the JV’s fleet to a total of 25 carriers — are on long-term lease to an undisclosed Saudi-based airline. The move comes as part of AviLease’s MoU with SDH for the supply of up to 20 new technology aircraft, which was inked back in December 2023.