DOHA: In a strong validation of its increasingly robust fundamentals, Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp), the Multilateral Development Bank of the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) announced that Moody’s has upgraded its issuer and senior unsecured rating from A1 to Aa3, while maintaining a stable outlook. The Government of Qatar owns a 10 percent stake in Apicorp.
The substantial jump in Apicorp’s ratings reflects the continual reinforcement of the Multilateral Development Bank’s fiscal strengths over the last two years. One of the drivers of the rating upgrade, Moody’s said, was the introduction of $750m callable capital by its shareholder countries at its General Assembly meeting in May 2011, during which Apicorp’s shareholders also decided to double its authorised capital from $1.2bn to $2.4bn, and to increase its paid-up capital from $550m to $750m.
Ahmad bin Hamad Al Nuaimi (pictured), CEO, Apicorp said: “We are delighted by this new ratings achievement, which will further boost our strategic equity and financing programme aimed at supporting the Arab energy industry’s development. The steadfast support of Apicorp’s shareholding countries has played a significant role in this ratings achievement, which in turn is a reflection of their confidence in our ability to fulfill our mandate of contributing to the Arab energy industry’s transformation. In addition to the invaluable support of our shareholders, the expansion of our medium term committed funding has has also played a key role in strengthening our capital base.”
The Peninsula
