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Sources say that Oman's Asyad is planning to flotation Asyad Shipping and has hired advisers.

Sources familiar with the matter say that Oman's state owned logistics firm Asyad Group plans to launch an Initial Public Offering (IPO) for its subsidiary Asyad Shipping Co before the end of this year. Jefferies Group has been selected as the adviser, and EFG Hermes is the financial advisor.

When contacted on Thursday by about the IPO, Asyad Group declined to comment. The size of the offering was not immediately known.

Asyad Shipping is a company that specializes in transporting LNG to international markets. Its fleet includes large crude carriers, chemical and product tankers and bulk carriers.

The company counts Vale, a Brazilian miner, and the energy companies BP and Shell as its clients and partners.

Asyad Group is owned by Oman’s wealth fund and has assets worth more than $4 billion. It focuses on shipping, logistics, port services, transportation, and free zones.

Oman Investment Authority didn't immediately respond to our request for comment.

Oman, a non-OPEC small producer, follows its neighbours, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, in pushing for state-led listings in a bid advance privatisation strategies.

This strategy, combined with a wide range of reforms, including fiscal discipline, helped Oman to pay down its debt and turn the large fiscal deficit it had in recent years into an surplus since 2022.

Sultan Haitham Bin Tariq al-Said is driving reforms in the state and restructuring the entities. He took over the throne at the beginning of 2020, after Sultan Qaboos died, having ruled the country for almost five decades.

Moody's, a ratings agency, raised Oman's rating in December from Ba2 (below investment grade) to Ba1, a level below that. This was due to an improvement in metrics for debt affordability.

Oman is pushing to be upgraded to an emerging market from a frontier market, which will put it on global asset managers' radars and attract foreign investment via passive funds.

MSCI, the index provider, has classified Oman and Bahrain as emerging markets.

In 2021, it was reported that Asyad weighed the sale of its strategic stake in Oman Shipping. This subsidiary was rebranded into Asyad Shipping by 2022.

Asyad asked banks to bid for a review mandate of a possible deal where Asyad would be able to divest up 40% of its ownership. Reporting by Hadeel al Sayegh in Dubai and Federico Maccioni, with additional reporting by Emma Victoria Farr in Frankfurt. Editing by Anousha Saoui and Alexander Smith.

(source: Reuters)