Dubai kicks off IPO rush with landmark listing of utility DEWA – The Peninsula

Dubai kicks off IPO rush with landmark listing of utility DEWA – The Peninsula

Dubai plans to sell a 6.5% stake in its main power and water company, kicking off an ambitious plan to list as many as 10 state firms and reinvigorate its flagging capital markets.

The emirate is pushing ahead with the initial public offering of Dubai Electricity & Water Authority even as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine roils equity markets around the world. The main bourses in the energy-rich Arabian Gulf have proved resilient, in large part because of the jump in oil prices to more than $100 a barrel.

DEWA is offering 3.25 billion shares, but didn’t disclose how much money it aimed to raise. Bloomberg has previously reported the company may be valued at as much as $25 billion, making the listing one of the largest ever in Middle East’s main financial hub.

The price range for the IPO will be announced on March 24 and the shares are expected to start trading in the second week of April, according to a prospectus.

DEWA said it will aim to pay an annual dividend of 6.2 billion dirhams ($1.69 billion) for the next five years.

Recent listings in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh have attracted a flood of cash. Investors placed $126 billion in bids for Arabian