Al-Morjan Two Electricity Company has achieved financial close for the SAR 9.69 billion Rabigh 2 IPP Expansion Project in Saudi Arabia. ACWA Power holds a 40 percent equity stake in the 2,313.5 MW gas-fired facility. Debt financing was backed by a syndicate including major Chinese commercial banks.
An analysis published by Free Malaysia Today indicates that US attempts to enforce a zero-leakage sanctions regime against Iran face significant operational obstacles. Iran's oil trade, of which China purchased an estimated 90% prior to Hormuz disruptions, largely clears outside the US dollar system via renminbi settlements and shadow networks in Dubai, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Consequently, financial compliance scrutiny is intensifying across financial institutions operating within the China-UAE corridor.
US Treasury measures against Iran place an increasing investigative burden on foreign banks to monitor opaque cross-border transactions, including transfers disguised between Hong Kong and Dubai companies. Prior to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, China bought an estimated 90% of Iran's oil exports, with trade largely settling in renminbi through shadow-banking channels. Secondary sanctions under Operation Economic Outcast threaten to cut non-compliant foreign institutions off from dollar clearing.
The Saudi Central Bank has concluded its formal participation in Project mBridge following the completion of its proof-of-concept phase. The multilateral central bank digital currency project remains co-anchored by the People's Bank of China, the Central Bank of the UAE, and the BIS Innovation Hub.
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