RIYADH: Saudi Aramco will be able to release its audited financial accounts in early 2018 if the government decides on a venue for listing the oil giant’s IPO and finalizes several reforms this year, three sources said. It will be the first public earnings disclosure for Aramco and one of the most important internal milestones in preparing for the initial public offering (IPO), which is expected to raise as much as $100 billion. The Saudi government has said it wants the sale of five percent of Aramco to take place before the end of 2018. A Saudi government source said the share sale was on track. Releasing the 2015-2017 accounts in the first quarter would be a major step towards sticking to the 2018 goal although the IPO’s timing depends on several external factors, the sources said.
“Aramco will have its 2017 results by the first quarter, the audited accounts will be available then, so the IPO could happen after that,” one of the sources said. The sources said internal accountants would send the 2017 accounts to external auditors when they have finished work on them at the beginning of next year. The auditors – named by Aramco as PwC, EY and BCG – have already audited the 2015 and 2016 accounts. They have never been released. The auditors and Aramco would first prepare a report on the accounts for all three years that it could share with a group of prospective large investors. They would then prepare a full prospectus which would be available to all investors.
The accounts for 2017 would be done to reflect Saudi’s new taxation system while the two previous years would be done on a pro-forma accounting basis. However, it would make sense to release the accounts only after the government has decided where the listing will take place as different venues use different accounting standards, the sources said. For example, a listing in New York would require the accounts to be prepared according to US GAAP standards whereas IFRS standards would be acceptable for a listing in London, Hong Kong or Singapore. Aramco has so far prepared the accounts according to IFRS standards, but can quickly convert those to U.S. GAAP if the government decides to list in New York, a second source said.
