Bahrain-based asset management firm Instrata Capital has closed the acquisition of a stake in Oman’s Sembcorp Salalah independent water and power project (IWPP) from Oman Investment Corporation (OIC). The investment has been made through the Bunyah GCC Infrastructure Fund.

Previous to the transaction, OIC held a 40 per cent stake in the IWPP, while Singapore’s Sembcorp had 60 per cent. Sembcorp’s ownership share will not change as a result of the deal, but OIC and Instrata will be minority shareholders.

Salalah IWPP is a 445MW, 15 million gallon-a-day (g/d) combined-cycle gas turbine power and water desalination plant located in the southern region of Salalah.

The project is currently under construction and is expected to be completed by April 2012. It has been developed on a build, own and operate (BOO) model. The entire output of the project is contracted under a long-term power and water purchase agreement with Oman Power and Water Procurement Company (OPWP).

Instrata Capital’s existing investment portfolio also includes two significant IWPP investments. In June 2009, the firm closed the acquisition of a stake in the Al-Dur IWPP in Bahrain and in August 2010, acquired a stake in the Barka 1 IWPP in Oman.

Instrata Capital is backed by leading regional shareholders, including the Kuwait Investment Company and Sage Capital Management. It is set to launch a second fund for investments in the GCC/Mena region (including Turkey) to follow the Bunyah fund once the new fund has received regulatory approval.