Saudi Aramco’s potential acquisition of a stake in petrochemicals company Sabic will affect the timing of an initial public offering, its chief executive said, throwing further doubt on the kingdom’s plans to sell shares in its state giant. The flotation tipped to be the world’s biggest, is the centrepiece of an ambitious economic reform programme driven by the powerful crown prince Mohammed bin Salman to diversify the Saudi economy beyond oil. Amin Nasser told Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television on Friday that if the Sabic deal was completed, “with relevant regulations taken into account, it will definitely affect the timeframe for the partial IPO of Saudi Aramco,” according to a transcript provided by the government’s communications office.
But not only has Riyadh’s willingness and readiness for the initial public offering come into question, those working on the flotation have seen preparations slow. Concerns about legal exposure and an inability to generate the $2tn valuation sought by the crown prince have led to indecision at the highest levels of Saudi Arabia. Mr Nasser told the Financial Times last month that the kingdom had yet to make a final decision on any structure for the IPO, which was initially intended to include a local listing in the kingdom and one or more abroad. London, New York, Hong Kong and Tokyo have all vied for a slice of the world’s biggest oil producing company. He echoed this statement to Al Arabiya saying: “When Saudi Aramco is ready, the decision of going ahead with the IPO is for the state to make.”