ADNOC to sell 15% stake in logistics unit in Abu Dhabi IPO

Abu Dhabi’s main energy company will sell a 15 per cent stake in its logistics and shipping unit in an initial public offering (IPO), kicking off the second listing of one of its businesses this year.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC Group) will offer about 1.11 billion shares in ADNOC Logistics & Services, it said in a statement on Wednesday. The company will announce the price range and start taking investor orders on May 16, with final pricing slated for May 25. Shares in ADNOC Logistics are expected to begin trading June 1, according to the statement.

The share sale comes just a few months after state-owned ADNOC raised $2.5bn in the listing of its gas business, currently the world’s second-biggest IPO of the year so far.

The GCC region has remained a relatively busy IPO market amid a global slump. Still, oil prices have come off their highs reached last year in the wake of the war in Ukraine, and fears of a recession and bank failures in the US have recently put pressure on the commodity, which strongly influences Gulf stock markets.

We’re pleased to announce our Intention to Float a minority stake in ADNOC Logistics & Services on @ADX_AE.

ADNOC Logistics & Services is a global energy maritime logistics leader and the dedicated and vital logistics arm for the ADNOC Group. #EnergyForLife

— ADNOC Group (@ADNOCGroup) May 10, 2023

About $3.5bn has been raised so far in 2023 through listings in the Middle East — the bulk of it in Abu Dhabi, data compiled by Bloomberg show. That’s down sharply from the $11.4bn fetched by this time last year, as markets like Saudi Arabia have remained quiet and there haven’t been any privatizations in Dubai, which helped boost volumes in 2022.

The company has been expanding its fleet to cope with increased demand from growth in the state-owned firm’s upstream and downstream businesses. It recently signed a five-year contract with ADNOC Offshore to provide integrated logistics services including port services and warehouse operations.

First Abu Dhabi Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, EFG Hermes and HSBC Bank Middle East are joint lead managers for the IPO.

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