Long-term investors are still finding opportunity in the Gulf and recent deals show continued appetite for regional projects
Commentary
Colin Foreman
Editor
Speaking at a conference in the US in early May, Brookfield CEO Bruce Flatt’s message was clear. Instead of saying the conflict has dampened Brookfield’s appetite for investment in the Gulf, he said the region now offers great opportunities.
“When you find… an opportunity to invest when others are not, it is always the best opportunity in the world,” he said, adding that Brookfield is “doubling down” after 25 years in the region. Flatt also suggested today’s geopolitical strain could accelerate an economic strengthening cycle, as governments respond by investing in further resilience and strategic infrastructure.
A week later, those words were followed by action. Brookfield and Kuwait-based Alshaya Group announced a joint venture to develop a 480,000-square-foot mixed-use scheme in Dubai Hills. While the deal is modest compared to some of Brookfield’s other investments, it is a clear sign that leading global institutions still have faith in the economic prospects of the GCC.
That theme was reinforced later in May, in Abu Dhabi, when L’imad and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) agreed to partner with Global Infrastructure Partners (now part of BlackRock) and Temasek on a proposed platform targeting $30bn of infrastructure investments in the GCC and Central Asia, with scope for select opportunities in the wider Middle East and North Africa region.
Looking ahead, more capital will be needed. Two near-term opportunities illustrate the range. Saudi Aramco is considering raising more than $10bn by leveraging real estate assets, potentially through a sale-and-leaseback structure that infrastructure and real estate funds are built to absorb. In Abu Dhabi, Modon Infrastructure is moving towards a request for qualifications for the Mid Island Parkway project’s public-private partnership phase, a major transport scheme with significant civil, tunnel and bridge works.
These are only two examples. If the appetite for investment remains, then there will be many more opportunities in the future.
