Tabreed launches holding company

National Central Cooling Company (Tabreed) plans to restructure as it prepares to sell some of its assets to finance construction of new utilities, according to a press report and a company statement.

The firm will form a holding company into which existing assets will be transferred, the firm said in a statement on the bourse website on Sunday.

The Financial Times reported on Friday the firm's board has urged shareholders to approve a plan to sell $817 million of refrigeration plants to finance construction of new units.

Tabreed is considering selling between three and seven plants every year, the paper quoted Deputy Chief Executive Karl Marietta as saying. It is also looking at raising Dh1 billion a year through asset sales over the next three years.

The company said in February it planned to raise at least $570 million this year in Islamic loans and convertible bonds to help refinance existing debt and expansion.

Tabreed, which builds cooling and air conditioning systems, said in May it expects to double capacity next year to 1 million tons of refrigeration, with most of the extra capacity added in the United Arab Emirates.

The company's shares are down almost 23 per cent this year to last week's close, underperforming the main index, which has gained almost 9 per cent this year.

Citi Cool, a UAE-based district cooling and water treatment, is looking at investing Dh6 billion on projects in the Gulf region in the next three to five years, a local newspaper reported, citing Chief Executive Fouad Younan.