Arabtec eyes European acquisition
CEO says that construction giant could tap the bond market for the deal
Arabtec is in talks to buy a large European company, Hasan Ismaik has revealed.
RELATED ARTICLES: Arabtec to undertake housing project worth $40bn in Egypt | Arabtec to set up five new subsidiaries | Arabtec signs $6.09 billion deal to build 37 towers in Abu Dhabi and Dubai
Hasan Ismaik, the CEO of Arabtec Holding, the UAE’s biggest listed construction company, has announced that the company is in talks to buy a large European company.
Ismaik added that the construction giant could tap the bond market for the deal, which could be announced in the second half of the year. Speaking during an interview at Cityscape Abu Dhabi, he said that the contractor was looking to purchase companies with international operations to help it carry out projects with high returns.
“We are now looking into an acquisition and we could do it in partnership with others,” he said in a Bloomberg report. “When we get there, we will be looking for financial solutions and convertible bonds could be one.”
In March this year, Arabtec announced that it had entered into an agreement with Egypt’s Defence Ministry to build one million affordable homes with a total value of $40 billion. The company, which helped build the world’s tallest tower, has almost tripled in Dubai trading in the past six months on the back of a rebounding UAE real estate market.
Ismaik added that the shares, currently trading at 7.9 dirhams, are worth 14 – 16 dirhams.
