Saudi Aramco Issues $8bn in Bonds

Saudi Aramco has completed the issue of $8bn of international bonds in five tenors, the national oil company reported in a Saudi stock exchange filing on November 25.

The US dollar-denominated bonds were unsecured by assets, and comprised three-year, five-year, 10-year, 30-year and 50-year notes with coupon rates of 1.25%, 1.625%, 2.25%, 3.25% and 3.5% respectively. Citi, Goldman Sachs International, HSBC, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and NCB Capital served as underwriters for the issue.

Proceeds are expected to help Aramco follow through on its promise to pay out $37.5bn in dividends for the second half of the year to help replenish the Saudi budget. The company suffered a 44.6% decline in net profits and a 42.3% drop in core earnings year on year in the third quarter, as a result of lower oil prices, Opec+ production cuts and weaker refining margins.