By: Maryam Honar pisheh

Dec 14 2022

Saudi oil giant Aramco’s (2222.SE) base oil subsidiary Luberef expects to raise up to 4.95 billion riyals ($1.32 billion) from its initial public offering, it said, if it prices at the top of a range announced on Sunday.

Luberef will sell nearly 30% of the company’s issued share capital, or 50.045 million shares, at between 91 and 99 riyals each, the company said in a statement.

State-led IPO programmes in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have helped equity capital markets in the oil-rich Gulf, in sharp contrast to the United States and Europe, where global banks have been trimming headcount in a dealmaking drought.

Gulf issuers have raised about $16 billion through such listings this year, accounting for about half of total IPO proceeds from Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Refinitiv data shows.

A minimum of 75% of the Luberef shares being sold will be offered to institutional investors, with bookbuilding getting underway on Sunday and running until Friday.

The final share price will be announced next Sunday, with subscriptions for individual investors running from Dec. 14 to Dec. 18. A date has not yet been set for shares to begin trading on Riyadh’s Tadawul exchange.

Aramco owns 70% of Luberef and Saudi investment bank Jadwa Investment the remaining 30%.

Saudi Aramco’s record listing in late 2019, later boosted to total $29.4 billion in proceeds, was the world’s largest IPO.

Aramco, which has raised billions from deals linked to its pipeline infrastructure, is also planning an IPO of its energy-trading business.

The kingdom’s privatisation programme is a cornerstone of its Vision 2030 economic agenda to wean the economy off oil, build new industries and create jobs.