Aramco CEO says ready for IPO in second half of year

Haradh, SAUDI ARABIA:  A general view shows a new plant inaugurated 22 March 2006 in Haradh, about 280 kms (170 miles) southwest of the eastern Saudi oil city of Dhahran, launching a project adding 300,000 barrels of oil to the kingdom's daily production capacity. The facility which was opened today in a ceremony attended by Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nuaimi was completed in January, ahead of schedule, the company said. Approximately 160 kms (100 miles) of new pipeline and extensions will transport crude and gas products to processing facilities further north in the Eastern Province, a statement said. Saudi Arabia, the world's top crude producer and exporter, currently pumps around 9.5 million bpd of oil and has a production capacity of around 11 million bpd.  AFP PHOTO/STR  (Photo credit should read -/AFP/Getty Images)

Bloomberg

Saudi Arabian Oil Co. is ready for its initial public offering in the second half, with the government yet to decide where to list the shares, Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser said.
The kingdom will decide where the stock will be traded, not the company, Nasser said
at Aramco headquarters in Dhahran, in eastern Saudi Arabia. One option being considered is selling the shares locally and then overseas, he said. There is no short list of possible exchanges and talks are ongoing to decide on bank roles, he said.
“We are ready and prepared for the IPO in the second half of the year,” Nasser said. “We can list at home and abroad at the same time but it’s not our decision. We are waiting for the government to tell us where to list so that we prepare for the venue.”
Saudi Arabia is seeking to sell as much as 5 percent of Aramco as part of a plan by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to set up the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund and reduce the economy’s reliance on hydrocarbons. The sale could be the largest ever, based on the government’s $2 trillion valuation of the company. The share sale has drawn interest from international stock exchanges in London, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo and Toronto, and even spurred US President Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Theresa May to lobby for the listing.
The listing has seen intense competition by banks from New York to Tokyo for a role on the deal. Aramco is set to appoint lenders including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup Inc. HSBC Holdings Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Morgan Stanley to help manage the sale, people familiar said this month.

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