AS&H in co-operation with Clifford Chance advises on SAR 2.138 billion acquisition of Second Milling Company in Saudi Arabia as part of Vision 2030-related privatisation drive
AS&H in co-operation with Clifford Chance advises on SAR 2.138 billion acquisition of Second Milling Company in Saudi Arabia as part of Vision 2030-related privatisation drive
Abuhimed Alsheikh Alhagbani Law Firm (AS&H) in co-operation with Clifford Chance is advising the consortium of Abdul Aziz Al-Ajlan Sons for Commercial and Real Estate Investments Company, Sulaiman Abdul Aziz Al-Rajhi International Company, National Agricultural Development Company and Olam International Limited (together, the “Consortium”) on their successful bid to acquire the Second Milling Company for SAR 2.138 billion (approximately USD 570.13 million) that was offered for privatisation by the Saudi Grains Organisation (SAGO) as part of the privatisation of the grains and flour milling sector in Saudi Arabia.
This flour mill sale comes after AS&H previously successfully advised the consortium of Saudi Arabia's Al Rajhi Holding Group and the UAE's Al Ghurair Foods LLC on its SAR750 million (US$200 million) acquisition of the Third Milling Company. This continues the trend of the Kingdom’s use of the private sector to build and operate public assets by way of “public private partnership” (PPP).
The team was co-led by partners Majid Al-Sheikh (Partner and Head of Corporate) and Omar Rashid (Clifford Chance Partner seconded to AS&H) with support from Senior Associate Ali Moiz Ansari and Associates Qasim Rasool, Noura Abdulrahman, Mohammed Ghazzawi and Abdullah Al-Huwayshan, all based in Riyadh.
We are advising the Consortium on the definitive agreements and documentation which will need to be agreed and executed with the National Center for Privatisation (NCP) and SAGO related to the sale, management, commercial business, ownership and licensing requirements of the Second Milling Company in addition to the external financing that will be put in place to support their bid.
Majid Al-Sheikh commented: “We are delighted to have advised the Consortium on this milestone project and continue our strong showing in the PPP sector. We are also honoured to have the confidence of leading organisations on such strategic mandates.”
Omar Rashid remarked: “We are very pleased to be working for the Consortium on this significant transaction in the PPP sector in the Kingdom. This deal continues to underscore our reputation as the firm of choice for complex privatisation work in the Kingdom.”
Besides advising on the successful close of the Third Milling Company, AS&H in cooperation with Clifford Chance also recently advised Riyadh’s airport (KKIA) on the procurement of their cargo terminal concession to SATS, the Singapore airport services company and Al Rajhi Bank on the US$69 million (SAR258 million) Islamic debt facility in relation to the Taif independent sewage treatment plant (ISTP) in Mecca Province. The team is also advising the Ministry of Health on its privatisation initiatives including the privatisation of the Dialysis services (financial close in 2019) as well as the procurement of the Alansar Hospital BOT project.