Saudi Arabia may not have the grip over oil prices that it once did, but it still knows how the prime the market. Earlier this month, Saudi’s deputy crown prince, Muhammad bin Salman, floated the idea to The Economist of a stock offering for Saudi Aramco, the state company that controls Saudi Arabia’s massive oil reserves.
For all the talk of Saudi Arabia’s oil company becoming the first trillion-dollar business if it goes public, some see the chatter as a sign of oil’s weakness. The Saudis, they say, know it’s time to start hedging their bet on fossil fuels. While the Saudi Arabian Oil Co. sits on a preposterously large reserve of 260 billion barrels of oil, the kingdom’s discussion of a share sale amid a global collapse in crude prices suggests another motive to those who preach about the financial risks of climate change: The Saudis may want to capitalize on an asset that’s only going to lose value if the world gets serious about global warming.
Investors hoping a Saudi Arabian Oil Co. IPO will provide a chance to buy a stake in the world’s largest crude producer may have to wait. The company says one option is to sell shares in the company’s refining assets rather than the parent company.
Saudi Arabian Oil Co., the world’s biggest crude oil producer, confirmed it is considering a potential initial public offering. The company, known as Aramco, is studying whether to list “an appropriate percentage” of shares of the parent or a bundle of “downstream” units, according to an e-mailed statement Friday. Once the review of these various options is complete, the findings will be presented to the company’s board of directors, which will make recommendations to Aramco’s Supreme Council.
Armed men set a Saudi Aramco bus, carrying employees, on fire in Saudi Arabia amid heightened tensions.
Saudi Aramco has awarded Petrofac the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) work for its greenfield development.
Saudi Aramco has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on new business opportunities with HHI (Hyundai Heavy Industries) in Saudi Arabia. The MoU included a multi-faceted framework in areas such as engineering, procurement and construction, downstream, and the development of a casting and forging facility. The agreement also includes the development of a maritime yard in the country.
Oil giant Saudi Aramco said an attempted fraud which allegedly targeted its trading unit as well has India's Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has been foiled.
Saipem has been awarded new offshore contracts cumulatively valued at more than 600million euros.
One person has died and 30 others were injured when a fire broke out at a residential complex used by Saudi Arabia’s state oil giant. Saudi Aramco is investigating the cause of the fire in the eastern city of Khobar.
South Korea's S-Oil Corp, the country's third-largest refiner, said on Wednesday it sees a recovery in industry-wide second-half refining margins after a recent dip. S-Oil whose main shareholder is Saudi Aramco, the Kingdom's state oil giant, reported a 613 billion Korean won ($533 million) profit in the second quarter from a 238.1 billion won profit a quarter earlier and a 54.4 billion won loss a year ago, helped by more stable oil prices and healthy margins. The refiner said it expected margins to recover to a solid level following a recent correction.
Saudi Arabian Oil Co., the world’s largest oil exporter, is planning to spend between $70 billion and $80 billion on overseas acquisitions and investments during the next five years, three people with knowledge of the matter said. The investment is part of the state-owned company’s target of spending $150 billion at home and internationally through 2019, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. Saudi Aramco, as the company is known, will focus on Asia, particularly China and Korea, they said.
Saudi Aramco has terminated a drilling contract with Hercules Offshore. The company made the move in a bid to save costs following the oil price decline.