Apollo is said to lead buyout group for $10bn Aramco deal

Apollo Global Management is leading a group of investors aiming to buy a roughly $10bn stake in Saudi Aramco’s oil pipelines, people familiar with the matter said.

The buyout firm’s consortium will include US and Chinese investors and has been shortlisted to make a final offer, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s state energy company, has narrowed the pool of bidders and Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management and BlackRock are no longer involved, the people said.

While the Apollo consortium is currently seen as a leading contender, another bidder could still emerge as the winner, the people said.

Aramco, the world’s biggest oil company, may choose a winner in the coming weeks, though it could decide not to sell the stake, according to the people.

Apollo didn’t respond to requests for comment. Representatives for Aramco, BlackRock and Brookfield declined to comment.

Opening Up
If an agreement’s reached, it could rank among the largest infrastructure deals this year and be one of Apollo’s biggest ever, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

The potential sale is part of Saudi Arabia’s plan to further open up to foreign investors and use the money to diversify the economy.

Global infrastructure funds are flush with record amounts of capital and seeking assets with predictable returns. Last year, Abu Dhabi’s state energy firm sold a $10.1bn stake in natural-gas pipelines to a group of six investors including GIP and Brookfield.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Moelis & Co., the Wall Street investment bank that was also involved in the Abu Dhabi deal, are among Aramco’s advisers.