Dubai — Qatar Petroleum (QP) has hired international banks for a multi-billion dollar debut public bond sale by the end of June, two sources said, as lower oil and gas prices prompt Gulf energy firms to raise cash.
QP, a top liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplier, appointed BofA Securities, Citi, Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JPMorgan and MUFG to lead the deal of up to $10 billion, the sources told Reuters.
More banks are expected to be involved at a later stage, the sources said, with one adding that the QP bond issue was expected to be a “meaningful” so-called jumbo deal.
Gulf energy groups have been exploring a variety of ways to raise cash after they were pummelled last year by the COVID-19 pandemic and oil prices collapsing.
This year’s resolution to Qatar’s three-year-old dispute with Saudi Arabia and three other Arab countries will benefit Qatar’s economy and advantages could ripple through the whole region as it recovers from the dual shock.
QP, which is wholly owned by the Qatari government, plans to vastly expand its capacity in coming years. It did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Citi, HSBC and JPMorgan declined to comment and the other banks did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reuters reported in April that QP was planning its debut public bond issue in what is likely to be one of the region’s biggest debt sales this year.
Other energy giants have also raised cash, including Saudi Arabia’s Aramco planning to refinance a $10 billion revolving credit facility. It is also working on a $12.4 billion deal to monetise its oil pipelines network.
That pipeline deal mimics similar infrastructure deals by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), which raised billions of dollars in the past two years by leasing assets.
QP has sold bonds through private placements in the past, including in dollars and in Japanese yen.
Reporting by Yousef Saba and Davide Barbuscia; Editing by David Goodman and Alexander Smith
