Page 7 - DMEA Week 37 2021

DMEA FINANCE & INVESTMENT DMEA

Sonangol reveals details of IPO plan

AFRICA SONANGOL, the national oil company (NOC) wants the stock issue to succeed, it is willing
of Angola, has revealed details of its plan to issue to move slowly so that it can resolve questions
an initial public offering (IPO) of stock. relating to Sonangol’s former status as conces-
According to Sebastião Gaspar Martins, sionaire of the country’s hydrocarbon resources,
Sonangol’s chairman, the government-owned he explained.
company is gearing up to sell 30% of its equity in The NOC has not acted as concessionaire
the IPO. The stock will be listed in multiple loca- since June 2019. At that time, the government
tions, starting with the Angola Debt and Stock reassigned that function to a newly created state
Exchange in Luanda and expanding later into body, the National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency
foreign venues, he said during an address at the (ANPG).
Angola Oil & Gas 2021 conference. Martins also explained last week that the
“We are analysing several different stock upcoming IPO was designed to support the
markets, starting with Luanda, but in a second NOC’s ongoing restructuring effort. This pro-
phase also London and Wall Street,” Martins gramme “prioritises financial stability,” he said
was quoted as saying by Angolan press agencies. during his speech at the conference, and is
“Luanda will certainly come first.” designed to allow Sonangol to focus on its core
The sale could generate as much as $5-7bn in activities – namely, the exploration, production,
budget revenues, he added. transportation, distribution, processing and
The Sonangol chairman did not say exactly sale of crude oil and natural gas, as well as their
when the Angolan government expected to pro- derivatives. As such, it will include divestment,
ceed with the IPO. However, he told the Lusa in the form of “changes to the core business, a
news agency on the sidelines of the conference financial and portfolio restructuring, regulatory
that Luanda might need as much as three or four structures and an organizational support axis,”
years to prepare. Since Angola’s government he explained.™

SUPPLY

Aramco, South Sudan talk fuel supplies

MEA SOUTH Sudan is expected to agree terms with currently working to expand throughput at its
Saudi Aramco on the long-term supply of oil refinery near Juba in Unity State.
derivatives following the recent signing of a In March, Yak Malong, Nilepet’s deputy man-
memorandum of understanding (MoU). aging director for downstream operations, told
At the weekend, the South Sudanese Energy reporters that the plant had cost about $100mn
Ministry announced that a Saudi ministerial and to build and had raised South Sudan’s oil pro-
business delegation was in Juba for talks about cessing capacity to 127,000 bpd.
supplies and investments in the local energy and Malong went on to say that Juba had author-
other sectors. According to the statement, Ara- ised Bentiu to build the refinery because it hoped
mco is expected to agree to favourable pricing for that bringing more refined fuels to the domestic
products to be supplied under a “stable and sus- market would lead to a decline in prices. “We
tainable” long-term deal. Meanwhile, the dele- have come to the market to reduce the high
gation was engaging this week in talks regarding prices of fuel,” he was quoted as saying by Radio
potential investments across energy, agriculture, Tamazuj.
mining and technology. At the time he said that the refinery was
The Kingdom’s ACWA Power is reported to due to begin producing diesel, as well as small
be considering investing in renewable energy amounts of gasoline, in the near future, but to
projects, while other investments noted by the begin with, its focus would be on establishing
local SUNA agency are in gum arabic, farming itself as a reliable supplier of residual fuel oil for
and livestock, and infrastructure construction. the domestic market.
The potential Saudi deals follow the recent “We have the issue of power, and you know
liberalisation of the South Sudanese fuel market, this product is mainly used for power genera-
while the strategy fits with Aramco’s constant tion,” he said. “Our aim ... is to tell the world that
search for long-term offtakers of its crude and we are able and we managed, despite the politi-
refined products. cal situation we have been going through. South
The Bentiu joint venture (JV) between South Sudan is here to provide you with heavy fuel oil
Sudanese NOC Nilepet and Russia’s Rafinat is at any time you request it.”™

Week 37 16•September•2021 www. NEWSBASE .com P7