Powering International Growth – Marubeni

In this client story, Marubeni Middle East & Africa Power Limited (“Marubeni”) shares how Standard Chartered has supported its expansion.

2 March 2026

3 mins

Corporate & investment bankingCorporate strategyTrade corridors

Powering International Growth. In this series, our Corporate & Investment Banking clients share how Standard Chartered’s global network has supported their growth across key markets – combining local insight with international reach.

This episode explores how Standard Chartered has partnered with Marubeni to help expand its operations across borders.

Watch the video below to hear from Anshul Gupta, Chief Financial Officer at Marubeni Middle East & Africa Power Limited, about Marubeni’s story and see cross-border partnership in action.

When projects stretch across borders, complexity shows up in small but consequential ways. A tax treatment in one jurisdiction. A regulatory requirement in another. A tight deadline that leaves little room for misalignment.

For Marubeni, navigating these realities is part of daily decision-making. Over more than two decades, Marubeni has worked alongside Standard Chartered as it expanded its footprint across the Middle East, particularly in the UAE, Saudi and Oman. What began with early projects has developed into a long-standing banking relationship that spans markets and roles, shaped by our familiarity with how Marubeni operates on the ground.

Standard Chartered has supported us over the last two decades, starting from our first projects, across all our key markets, the UAE, Saudi and Oman.

Anshul Gupta

Chief Financial Officer at Marubeni Middle East & Africa Power Limited

When structure matters

In cross-border projects, structure is rarely just technical. In Saudi Arabia for example, how a transaction is structured can materially affect whether a project moves forward as planned.

In one recent Saudi transaction, including activities in Yanbu, Marubeni needed a financing structure that would address withholding tax considerations without slowing execution. The solution involved structuring the transaction through jurisdictions such as Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Hong Kong – allowing the project to proceed efficiently while remaining compliant. Resolving these issues early made a difference. With the structure in place, attention could stay on execution rather than correction – a priority when projects involve multiple markets and tight timelines.

Working against the clock

Time pressure is another constant in cross-border transactions.

In the UAE, Marubeni faced a situation where underwriting was required within a short timeframe, without materially changing the existing financing setup. Multiple parties were involved, and alignment needed to happen quickly.

Standard Chartered helped coordinate between local lenders and the offtaker, keeping discussions moving and expectations aligned. Despite the compressed timeline, the transaction progressed smoothly – the result of clear roles and coordination across markets.

Bridging home and host markets

As a Japanese-headquartered conglomerate, Marubeni also values having a banking partner that understands both its home market and the realities of operating overseas.

Marubeni, being a Japanese entity with many overseas offices, needs a bank that has presence both in Japan as well as in all our key markets.

Anshul Gupta

Chief Financial Officer at Marubeni Middle East & Africa Power Limited

Standard Chartered’s presence in Japan and across the Middle East has supported engagement with institutions such as Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), Japan’s export credit agency. In situations where JBIC needed to interact directly with local lenders, the Bank helped navigate differing regulatory approaches and market practices.

A relationship shaped over time

For Marubeni, cross-border banking is not about isolated deals. It is about working with partners who understand how decisions in one market affect outcomes in another.

As its Middle East presence has grown, so too has the relationship – adapting to new markets, new structures and new demands, while retaining continuity across projects and cycles.