Friday 7 December 2012

Times of Oman | Oman Gas plans RO300m expansion

Yousef bin Mohammed al-Ojaili, CEO of Oman Gas Company (OGC) said that the company will invest RO300 million during the current Eighth Five-Year Plan in a bid to enhance the gas network for the different industries and services.

He said in a statement to ONA that the company owns 2,300-km long pipeline, which is expected to increase to 2,500-km in the coming two years. The company has also three gas pumping stations in Al Buraimi, Nimr and Fahud.  The stations, which cost RO120 million, helped in enhancing availability of gas at the different economic zones and provided 70 job opportunities for Omani youth.

He added that the gas transported through Oman Gas and POD networks is about 85 million cubic metres per day. He noted that BP Company, which is developing the biggest fields in the Sultanate, will add 30 million cubic metres per day of gas every day. Oman Oil Exploration and Production Company, which builds a gas pipelines and processing plants in Abu Al Tabool field, will add two million cubic metres per day.

Property haven. Video courtesy FT




Investvine » Dubai’s Shuaa Capital expands to Indonesia

Dubai-based investment banking firm Shuaa Capital is about to enter the Indonesian capital market to offer investment banking services to issuers and investors in the UAE and in Indonesia, the company said on December 5 in a release.

Shuaa Capital, one of the Arab world’s largest investment banks, said it has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Jakarta-based investment banking company PT Pratama Capital Indonesia.

“With this MoU we are taking an important first step to develop representation in the largest Southeast Asian economy and start facilitating cross-border capital flows between the UAE and Indonesia,” said Shaikh Maktoum Hasher Al Maktoum, Executive Chairman of SHUAA Capital and member of the ruling family in Dubai.

Dubai ‘could overtake capital on air links to vital markets’ - London Evening Standard

London's position as the city with the best connections to high growth markets is under threat, mainly from Dubai, it was claimed today.

The City of London Corporation has published a report which suggests the capital has the best aviation links to 22 key countries whose economies are predicted to boom in coming years.

But the study by York Aviation also found that other European hub airports were better connected to some of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).

TEXT-S&P rates Qatar Telecom (Qtel)'s proposed GMTNs 'A' | Reuters

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it had assigned its 'A' long-term issue rating to the proposed global medium-term note program to be issued by Qtel International Finance Ltd., a finance vehicle of Qatar-based telecoms operator Qatar Telecom (Qtel) Q.S.C. (Qtel), and guaranteed by Qtel. At the same time, we affirmed the existing 'A' debt ratings on Qtel's other senior unsecured debt.

The assigned rating is conditional on successful issuance and our satisfactory review of the final documentation. The amount, maturity, and coupon are to be determined at placement.

The rating on the proposed senior unsecured notes is in line with the corporate credit rating on QTel and its existing debt ratings. Although we believe that the senior unsecured debt at Qtel's level is structurally subordinated to debt at Qtel's various international subsidiaries, we believe this is mitigated by the geographic diversity of Qtel's assets.

M&M loses out as Investindustrial confirms Aston Martin stake buy - Yahoo! News Maktoob

Italian private equity fund Investindustrial has signed a deal to buy 37.5 percent of Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd from its Kuwaiti owner Investment Dar.
Investindustrial is investing 150 million pounds in Aston Martin in the form of a capital increase, said the British car-maker on Friday.
Aston Martin, whose cars became famed for their starring role in James Bond films, said the deal would enable it to "invest more than half a billion pounds in new products and a technology programme over the next five years".

Abu Dhabi conference participants on edge over looming concession expiry « The Barrel Blog

The biennial Abu Dhabi Petroleum Exhibition and Conference last month  was notable on two counts: the apparent paranoia of its host, state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), and the matching reticence of many international oil and gas producers in attendance.

It was an occasion on which everybody was minding p’s and q’s and most industry notables were careful to avoid imparting unscripted asides to the press.

For the first time in the history of the big Middle East regional oil gathering, media representatives were banished from plenary sessions, about halfway through the opening plenary.

How Etihad Could Help Jet - India Real Time - WSJ

When Etihad Airways began its operations in November 2003 Jet Airways (India) Ltd. 532617.BY -1.15% was part of a start-up team that helped set up the Abu Dhabi-based airline. This included Jet helping train Etihad’s cabin crew.

At the time, Jet was a decade old.

Now, it may be Etihad’s turn to help Jet out. Etihad is in talks with Jet to buy a stake in the Mumbai-based airline, an official from India’s civil aviation ministry said last month.

PRAGMATIC CAPITALISM – Rail Traffic is Slowing With the Economy

Rail traffic is taking a turn for the worse in recent weeks as the economy appears to be slowing even further into Q4.  The latest reading on intermodal traffic came in at -1.1%.   That brings the trailing 12 week average to 1.65%.  The US economy appears to be just barely treading water at this point.   This is also consistent with my latest update for Q4 GDP which is tracking at 1.1% (available via Orcam Investment Research).


Business - EIB completes Dubai Bank integration

Emirates Islamic Bank, or EIB, said on Thursday that it has successfully completed the integration of Dubai Bank customers, branches and operations into its platform.
To date, most branches have been converted to Emirates Islamic Bank systems and brand, with the remainder to follow during the first weeks of December. Following the completion of the transition, Emirates Islamic Bank is now the third-largest Islamic Bank in the country, laying the foundations for a future of aggressive, sustained growth in 2013 and beyond.
Emirates Islamic Bank also announced that customers whose accounts have been migrated from Dubai Bank will be issued new account numbers.

Kuwait closes in on BofA’s London HQ - FT.com

The Kuwaiti government is closing in on a £400m deal to acquire Bank of America’s European headquarters, marking what would be one of the most valuable London office transactions since the start of the financial crisis.
St Martins Property, the real estate fund of the Kuwaiti government, entered exclusive negotiations with Evans Randall, the private equity group, on Thursday evening to acquire BofA’s Canary Wharf office tower, according to people familiar with the matter.
The talks highlight the soaring appetite among sovereign wealth funds for good quality London offices. The sale would represent a loss for Evans Randall, which acquired the 536,000 sq ft building in 2007 from Royal Bank of Scotland for £452m.

Qatar's Qinvest sells stake in Indian exhibitor - Banking & Finance - ArabianBusiness.com

QInvest, the Qatar-based investment bank, has sold its stake in Asian Business Exhibitions and Conferences (ABEC), India's leading trade exhibition organiser.
It has sold its interest to ITE plc, the London-listed global trade exhibition organiser focused on emerging markets, QInvest said in a statement. No value was given for the deal.
ABEC runs 19 exhibitions across 11 vertical markets including architecture, design, construction, education, lifestyle, real estate and oil & gas.

Kuwait's Aston Martin seen in deal with Italian fund - Banking & Finance - ArabianBusiness.com

Italian private equity fund Investindustrial is reportedly in pole position to buy a major stake in Kuwait-owned luxury car maker Aston Martin.
Sources close to the deal told Bloomberg that the company is close to an agreement to invest in the UK manufacturer, owned by Investment Dar.
Media reports from India on Thursday suggested that Mahindra & Mahindra, the main rival to Investindustrial, was no longer interested in buying a stake.