Saudi Aramco has welcomed Yasir Othman Al-Rumayyan as its new chairman
Al-Rumayyan was appointed as a member of the board of directors of the company in 2016 and is currently the governor of the Public Investment Fund.
Saudi Arabia removed Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih from his position as chairman of Saudi Aramco as the government prepares to sell shares in the state-owned oil company.
Aramco has said it plans to float around five per cent of the state-owned company in 2020 or 2021, in what could potentially be the world’s biggest stock sale.
“I congratulate my brother, Mr Yasser Bin Osman Al-Rumayan, governor of the Public Investment Fund, on his appointment as chairman of Saudi Aramco’s Board of Directors, which comes as an important step to prepare the company for the IPO, and we hope him with all the best and success,” Al Falih said on Twitter.
Al-Rumayyan, a former banker with Saudi Fransi Capital, is governor of the PIF, as the sovereign fund is known, leading its transformation from a sleepy domestic holding company into one of the biggest investors in global technology start-ups. The fund has accumulated stakes in electric carmaker Tesla Inc., ride-sharing company Uber Technologies Inc. and has made a US$45bn commitment to SoftBank Group Corp.’s US$100bn technology fund.
The kingdom’s original plan, announced by Prince Mohammed in 2016, was to sell about five per cent of Aramco on the Riyadh exchange and at least one international bourse. The listing was pushed back to 2020 or 2021 to allow Aramco to complete the US$69bn acquisition of Saudi Basic Industries Corp.
The oil giant is considering a two-stage IPO with a domestic debut and a subsequent international listing possibly in Tokyo, the Wall Street Journal reported last week.
