Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), the United Arab Emirates (UAE) oil giant, said Monday it plans to sell at least 10 percent of its stake in its fuel retail business in an initial public offering (IPO) next month.
The listing will be on the Abu Dhabi bourse and is expected before the end of 2017, the company said in a statement.
The announcement by ADNOC, which controls nearly all of the proven oil reserves in the United Arab Emirates, comes at a time when Abu Dhabi and other Gulf States are privatizing energy assets in order to compete in an era of cheap crude.
ADNOC has been in the midst of a major restructuring since Sultan Al-Jaber was appointed as the company's chief executive last year.
The oil industry has been forced to cut costs and search for ways to boost efficiency since the price of oil collapsed from nearly $120 a barrel in June 2014. The sharp drop in prices was caused by weak demand, a strong dollar and booming U.S. shale production.
Brent crude traded at around $63.56 a barrel Monday morning, up 0.06 percent, while U.S. crude was around $56.80 a barrel, up 0.12 percent.
ADNOC produces around 3 million barrels of oil per day, accounting for approximately 3 percent of global production. The UAE-based firm also produces almost 10 billion cubic feet of raw gas per day, meaning it is one of the leading energy producers in the world.
