Mumtalakat says to give out profits of BHD 20 million

Manama : Mumtalakat Holding Company (Mumtalakat), the sovereign wealth fund of Bahrain, announced its approval to distribute profits of BD20 million to the National Budget for two consecutive years and to pursue a number of investments, both inside and outside the Kingdom.

The decision was made in accordance with Article 39 of Mumtalakat’s Article of Association which states that a percentage of the company’s net profits shall be transferred to the National Budget.

“We are pleased to be in a strong position to make a significant contribution to the national budget while also continuing to pursue our investment strategy,” Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, the Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of Mumtalakat said. To date, the sovereign wealth fund has investments in approximately 30 companies in Bahrain, providing over 14,600 direct employment opportunities within its local portfolio. 

Profits will be distributed equally for the years 2017 and 2018, the company said in a statement. Net profit for the year 2016 was BD68.9 million.  

Mumtalakat, Shaikh Khalid said, continued to be financed independently, which also resulted in borrowings to cover the losses incurred at subsidiaries. 

Between 2006 and 2012, Mumtalakat financed the national airline, Gulf Air, with over BD475 million and implemented restructuring initiatives to improve its operational efficiencies. This resulted in a reduction in Gulf Air’s net losses by 86%.

“In addition to stabilising and driving growth of its important national assets through financing of over BD600 million, Mumtalakat aggressively pursued new commercially sound and sustainable investment opportunities while minimising risk exposure across various industries and asset classes,” he added.

Other success stories include the enhancement of Alba’s production capacity through an efficiency programme implemented in 2014 and the launch of its line 6 expansion plan due to operate in 2019, making it the largest single site aluminium smelter in the world. Once complete, the expansion will generate 600 new jobs in the industry.

Similarly, Mumtalakat has formed a number of important joint ventures with leading international players that will collectively create over 1000 new jobs in the Kingdom within the next three years. As part of its downstream expansion plan, Mumtalakat partnered with Mueller Industries and Cayan Ventures to establish the first regional copper tube manufacturing facility in Bahrain, Mueller Middle East. Scheduled for operation in 2018, Mueller Middle East will further enhance Bahrain’s manufacturing exports, which currently accounts for 20% of the Kingdom’s GDP.