Action Energy Co. is planning an initial public offering in Kuwait, potentially setting up the first energy listing in the Gulf state since 2008, according to people familiar with the matter.
National Investments Co. and EFG Hermes are advising on the transaction that could come as early as this year, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing private information. The firm could start initial investor meetings as soon as September, the people said.
No final decisions have been made on the listing. Representatives for Action Energy, NIC and EFG declined to comment.
Action Energy, founded in 2014 and owned by Action Group Holding Co., offers drilling and oil field services in Kuwait.
Any deal would mark a rare transaction in one of the Gulf’s quietest markets for new share sales. Unlike Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have seen numerous listings over the past four years, Kuwait has hosted just a handful of IPOs.
Beyout Investment Group Holding raised about $146 million last year, following Ali Alghanim Sons Automotive’s $322 million 2022 listing. Kuwaiti convenience store Trolley is also planning an IPO, possibly as early as this year, Bloomberg News reported last month.
Kuwait’s benchmark index has been among the region’s top performers this year, second only to Dubai. Both gauges briefly dipped after the conflict between Israel and Iran flared up, but have since erased those losses and are nearing new highs.
Investors have piled into the Kuwaiti bourse amid moves by ruler Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah to cut through political gridlock, including the suspension of parliament last year. That cleared the path for long-awaited economic and fiscal reforms, which are yet to materialize.
The OPEC-member state in March approved a new debt law to re-open international bond markets for Kuwait for the first time since 2017. The country has already started the process of sending a request for proposal to banks to raise about $6 billion from international debt markets.
The Gulf nation, home to a $1 trillion sovereign wealth fund, has long been hampered by a unique political structure — combining an elected parliament with a government appointed by the ruling family, often resulting in legislative deadlock.
That’s delayed key bills in the past, such as the public debt law, forcing the government to rely on the General Reserve Fund to cover budget deficits.
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