Prime Highlights
- Saudi Electric Company closes a $1 billion financing facilitybacked by Italian export credit agency Sace, strengthening Italy-Saudi industrial cooperation.
- The deal includes a green financing tranche, supporting sustainability targets and creating new business opportunities for Italian suppliers.
Key Facts
- Intesa Sanpaoloacted as the sole facility coordinator, bookrunner, and green loan coordinator; BBVA joined as agent bank.
- The facility is part of Sace’s Push strategy, which has provided over $15 billion in untied guaranteesto sovereign borrowers in multiple countries.
Background:
Saudi Electricity Company has successfully closed a US$1 billion financing facility, drawing strong demand from international lenders and securing backing from Italy’s export credit agency Sace, the agency confirmed.
The facility, which was oversubscribed, involves a consortium of 13 global banks and follows discussions held during the Italy–Saudi Arabia Business Forum in Riyadh last month. The transaction is expected to deepen economic engagement between Italy and Saudi Arabia, with a particular focus on energy-sector cooperation.
Sace said the financing falls under its Push strategy, a framework that supports untied financing arrangements not linked to specific Italian export contracts.
BBVA joined the deal as the agent bank, while the remaining lenders were not disclosed.
As part of the agreement, Saudi Electric Company, which operates across electricity generation, transmission and distribution in the Middle East and North Africa, is expected to expand its sourcing of Italian goods and services. Sace said this will be supported through business-matching initiatives and increased visibility for Italian suppliers across the energy value chain.
Separately, Sace has entered into a reinsurance partnership with the Saudi Export-Import Bank, announced on November 25. The agreement is designed to enhance the two institutions’ ability to jointly support export credit transactions and promote cross-border trade.
“The partnership brings together complementary capabilities to foster international trade flows and open new opportunities for companies in both countries,” Sace said in a statement.
The latest agreements build on Italy’s growing economic footprint in Saudi Arabia. In January, Sace guaranteed a US$3 billion financing package supporting the Neom mega-project, marking the largest untied facility in the agency’s history. At the time, Italian firms had already secured contracts worth more than US$6 billion related to the project.
Sace said the total value of guarantees issued under its Push strategy has now exceeded US$15 billion, with similar untied financing extended to sovereign borrowers in countries including Mexico, Serbia, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Benin.
