Saudi International Petrochemical Co (Sipchem) hopes to complete a 1.8 bln riyal (US$480 mln) sukuk issue next month, as per Reuters. Ahmad al-Ohali also said the firm would be open to reviving its aborted merger with Sahara Petrochemicals or pursuing another target but only once the kingdom has changed the rules governing mergers and acquisitions, which scuppered the tie-up. Sipchem began meeting local investors in Jeddah and Riyadh this week about the sukuk transaction. "I think we have positive feedback so far from potential investors," Ohali said of the deal, which is being arranged by Riyad Capital and NCB Capital. The sukuk, or Islamic bond, will be used to fund current business requirements as well as new opportunities. Sipchem announced on Thursday in a bourse filing that it would repay the existing Islamic bond on June 15 using cash reserves.
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