The Capital Market Authority said on Thursday that Saudi Arabia’s stock market regulator has given the go-ahead for Luberef, a base oil subsidiary of the world’s largest oil company Aramco (2222.SE), to conduct an IPO.
Investors will be able to purchase 50.045 million shares, or 29.656% of the share capital, of Saudi Aramco Base Oil Company (Luberef), formerly known as Saudi Aramco Lubricating Oil Refining Co.
The Saudi investment bank Jadwa Investment controls 30% of Luberef, with Aramco owning 70% of it.
The region has emerged as a bright light in an overall down year for equities markets, riding high on robust oil prices and amid a flurry of state-led flotations in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai.
According to statistics from Refinitiv, Gulf issuers have raised over $16 billion in IPOs this year, or almost half of the total proceeds from IPOs in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
The energy trading division of Aramco also intends to go public.
In order to wean the economy off of oil, develop new sectors, and generate employment, the kingdom’s privatisation initiative is a pillar of its Vision 2030 economic strategy.
The biggest IPO ever was Saudi Aramco’s record listing on Riyadh’s Tadawul market in late 2019. The listing’s profits were later increased to total $29.4 billion.
(With inputs from agencies)
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