Saudi Arabia's wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), is in talks to buy a stake worth about $250 million in Saudi Tabreed, the local venture of the Dubai-based National Central Cooling Co., Bloomberg reported. The sources said that the transaction would give the PIF a significant equity in the district cooling company ahead of a planned initial public offering (IPO) in the next two to three years. They added that the terms of the agreement are not finalized and may change.

Tabreed, which is majority-owned by Abu Dhabi's state-owned fund Mubadala, said in a bourse filing that the removal of foreign ownership limit on its stock will be activated as of the close of the trading session on December 23, 2022. Last September, shareholders of the district cooling provider voted to amend Article 7 of Tabreed's Articles of Association to allow 100% foreign ownership, up from the previous cap of 49%. The company already has close ties to the PIF, with agreements to provide cooling for the fund’s Red Sea tourism project and an entertainment district close to Riyadh called Qiddiya.