Oman’s OQ Gas Networks Plans Muscat’s Biggest IPO in Almost Two Decades 

Oman's OQ Gas Networks (OQGN) plans to float up to 49% of its shares.
Oman's OQ Gas Networks (OQGN) plans to float up to 49% of its shares.
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Oman’s OQ Gas Networks Plans Muscat’s Biggest IPO in Almost Two Decades 

Oman's OQ Gas Networks (OQGN) plans to float up to 49% of its shares.
Oman's OQ Gas Networks (OQGN) plans to float up to 49% of its shares.

Oman's OQ Gas Networks (OQGN), the pipelines business of state oil giant OQ, said on Monday it plans to float up to 49% of its shares, in what is expected to be the biggest initial public offering in the Sultanate in almost two decades.

The offering, which begins this month, will provide investors with access to growth in the company that holds a natural monopoly over essential gas transportation in the country, the company said in a statement.

OQGN is Oman's exclusive gas transportation system operator, supplying natural gas to the country's power plants, freezones, industrial clusters, LNG complexes and other customers.

OQ, directly and indirectly through Oman Energy Trading Company Limited and Oman Oil Services Limited, is offering up to 49% of the shares, the document said.

The selling shareholders reserve the right to amend the size of the offering at any time before the end of the subscription period at their sole discretion. Immediately following the offering, a minimum of 51% will continue to be held by OQ.

The company plans to pay a semi-annual dividend in cash to investors after the offering. A first dividend of 33 million rials for the first nine months of 2023 is estimated to be paid around January next year, and a second dividend of 11 million rials for the last three months of 2023 will be paid around April, 2024.

The planned IPO follows the flotation of OQ's oil drilling business, Abraj Energy Services, in March which raised $244 million from selling a 49% stake.

Oman follows Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia in looking at sales of stakes in energy assets, capitalizing on a rebound in crude prices to attract foreign investors and boost interest on their respective bourses.

OQGN's IPO is part of a broader divestment program being implemented by the Sultanate's sovereign wealth fund, the Oman Investment Authority, Talal Al Awfi, OQ's Group CEO was quoted as saying in the statement on Monday.

"The listing of OQGN, which owns and operates critical gas transportation infrastructure in Oman, is in line with this ambition while enriching the dynamically developing Omani stock market," Al Awfi said.



OPEC+ Agrees to Delay December Output Hike for 1 Month

FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
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OPEC+ Agrees to Delay December Output Hike for 1 Month

FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside their headquarters in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2023. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo

OPEC+ has agreed to delay a planned December oil output increase by one month, the group said on Sunday.

Eight members of OPEC+, which groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries plus Russia and other allies, were due to raise output in December as part of a plan to gradually unwind the group's most recent layer of output curbs - a cut of 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd).
However, weak demand and economic data raised concern in the group about adding more supply, sources told Reuters last week ahead of the decision to postpone the hike made on Sunday after consultations between ministers.
The eight countries decided to extend the 2.2 million bpd cut for a month until the end of December, OPEC said in a statement. They also "reiterated their collective commitment to achieve full conformity" with output targets, it said.
Oil prices closed on Friday just above $73 a barrel, supported in part by the prospect of a further delay to the OPEC+ increase. Even so, Brent crude is still not far from its lowest levels this year of below $69, reached in September.
OPEC+ had already delayed the increase from October because of falling prices, weak demand and rising supplies. An easing of investor concern about conflict in the Middle East disrupting the region's oil output has also weighed on prices.
The December hike was due to be 180,000 bpd, a small part of the total 5.86 million bpd of output OPEC+ is holding back, equal to about 5.7% of global demand. OPEC+ agreed those cuts in separate steps since 2022 to support the market.