Abu Dhabi's Taqa to spend $6 bln in 2007

By James Cordahi and Dayan Candappa

DUBAI (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. TAQA.AD (Taqa), the Gulf's second-largest utility by market value, said on Sunday it plans to spend as much as $6 billion on foreign acquisitions this year, more than previously planned.

Taqa, a listed company in the United Arab Emirates controlled by the government of Abu Dhabi, has spent $2.63 billion on foreign assets since October, including businesses owned by BP Plc (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), U.S. utility CMS Energy Corp. (CMS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), and Swiss engineering and technology group ABB (ABBN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

"We intend to grow our assets from $14 billion to $20 billion by the end of the year," Taqa Chief Executive Peter Barker-Homek said at the Reuters Middle East Investment Summit in Dubai. That may grow again to between $40 billion and $60 billion by 2012, he said.

Barker-Homek told Reuters in October Taqa planned to spend as much as $3.5 billion on foreign acquisitions and investments as Abu Dhabi seeks to use record oil income last year to diversify its sources of revenue and cushion against a decline in world crude prices.

The company, which is 75 percent owned by Abu Dhabi, will sell its first Islamic bonds this year to raise as much as $2 billion. That would be part of a borrowing plan that will include a euro medium-term note program of as much as $10 billion, Barker-Homek said.

The program will be finalized by May 11 after a review of the company's credit rating by agencies Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's, Barker-Homek said.

The acquisitions are likely to include wind assets that would make Taqa one of the world's largest wind power companies, he said, declining to give more details.

The company is also considering investments in Indian hydro-electric power generation and in a liquefied natural gas project, Barker-Homek said, declining to give details.

Should Moody's and S&P reaffirm their respective AA3 and A+ ratings for Taqa, the company will go ahead with its acquisition plans as early as next month, Barker-Homek said.

"We won't do anything to jeopardize the credit rating," he said. The ratings review will be completed in six days, he said.

The Islamic bonds, or sukuk, as they are also known, may be sold in the third quarter. Taqa is seeking a maturity of as many as 10 years, which would make the bonds the longest term corporate sukuk.

Taqa will decide in the next month which two of three banks it has shortlisted will arrange the sukuk sale, Barker-Homek said, declining to identify the lenders.

Taqa's fourth-quarter profit rose 39.1 percent to 195.94 million dirhams ($53.35 million) after it took control of its sixth power and water plant in the UAE in September, boosting revenue. The company controls about 85 percent of Abu Dhabi's 8,200 megawatts of power generating capacity.

Abu Dhabi pumps almost all the oil of the UAE, which generated 178 billion dirhams ($48.47 billion) of income last year, according to the Ministry of Economy.

Last month, Taqa agreed to buy $1.39 billion of assets from Dearborn, Michigan-based CMS and from ABB.  Continued...