EFG Hermes concludes landmark advisory on $244 million IPO of Abraj Energy Services

EFG Hermes concludes landmark advisory on $244 million IPO of Abraj Energy Services

EFG Hermes, the leading investment bank franchise in Frontier and Emerging Markets (FEM), announced today that its investment banking division successfully completed advisory on the $244 million initial public offering (IPO) of Abraj Energy Services (the “Company”), the oil and gas drilling unit of Oman's state energy company OQ, on the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) – marking the largest Omani listing since 2010 and the second largest IPO on a Middle Eastern Exchange this year. EFG Hermes acted as joint global coordinator on the IPO alongside National Bank of Oman and Ahli Bank. The Company began trading today on the Muscat Stock Exchange. Abraj Energy Services offered a total of 49% of its share capital, equivalent to 377,398,000 shares, at OMR 0.249 per share. The aforementioned IPO price indicates the top end of the bookbuilding range. Such pricing was determined on the basis of very strong oversubscription in the bookbuilding process. The IPO witnessed demand of OMR 791 million ($2.05 billion) for shares from local, regional, and international investors, with the total book approximately covered 8.7 times. The offering included cornerstone investor participations from several leading local, regional, and international financial and strategic institutions. Cornerstone participations included: Oman’s Royal Court