Every drop of fresh water drawn from the depths of the desert not only nourishes the Islamic holy city of Mecca, but is now bringing stable returns to global investors through innovative financial channels. On December 22, 2025, the Rabigh 3 seawater desalination project in Saudi Arabia completed a milestone refinancing transaction, converting the long-term value of the infrastructure project into a vote of confidence in the international capital market.

Global capital gathers in Saudi Arabia

This refinancing broke through the traditional model and attracted top global institutions such as KKR, Baring Investment, and Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation to participate by issuing high rated project bonds. The diversified investor structure not only includes European and American financial giants, but also gathers support from major Asian financial institutions and local banks in the Middle East, forming a cross regional capital synergy. This capital market led financing model has opened up new funding channels for infrastructure projects in the Middle East.

The Strength Behind High Ratings

The project has obtained a high investment grade rating from top international institutions due to three core advantages: firstly, a robust contract framework to ensure long-term certainty of returns; Secondly, the project has achieved an availability rate of over 99% since its launch, with a stable daily production capacity of 600000 cubic meters; Finally, ACWA Power's performance endorsement as the world's largest private seawater desalination operator. These three dimensions together constitute a strong protection for investors.

Reshaping industry financing standards

The impact of this transaction has gone beyond the individual project level. ACWA Power has actually set a new financing benchmark for the entire seawater desalination industry by meeting the strict standards of international rating agencies. The company currently supplies more than half of Saudi Arabia's desalinated water, and this successful financing will further consolidate its industry leadership position, while providing a replicable financing model for similar infrastructure projects worldwide. As the EPC general contractor of the project, the construction quality of China Power Construction Group has also become an important basis for obtaining a high rating this time. Keywords: International News and Information, International News Network

This drop of desalinated water from the Red Sea coast is causing ripples in the capital market that transcend regions. (This article is from the official website of Jian Dao www.seetao.com. Reproduction without permission is prohibited, otherwise it will be prosecuted. Please indicate Jian Dao website+original link when reprinting.) Jian Dao website international column editor/Gao Xue